Stripped
I'm happy because Wednesday is over; it's the worst day of the week for me. Also they called a mistrial for Lt. Ehren Watada -- who I think just hands-down hot! If you don't know who he is, check this out. Lt. Watada is the first commissioned officer to publicly refuse orders to deploy to Iraq. Sexy. Plus I like the way his parents spelled his name.
In Bloomington news, they featured an article about student strippers who work at the local strip club called Night Moves. I have a friend who lives by there and -- behold! -- the apartment I'm going to move into in August is just down the street. For some reason, I never considered how many students would be pole-straddling there. And more importantly, I somehow never considered that plenty of professors probably patron it too. Anyways, here's the article.
Student by day, stripper by night
Dancers often struggle to balance professional, school commitments
By Zack Teibloom | Indiana Daily Student | Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Lit up by a series of blacklights that reflect off walls splashed with neon Jackson Pollack-esque paint, a student dancer who calls herself Portia spins around on a pole at Night Moves in Bloomington. As she strips, her panties accidentally come undone in front of one of her professors who's visiting the club. Suddenly, Portia's dual identity of student by day, stripper by night, is as exposed as her privates.
She's one of 10 students among the club's 35
dancers, working to earn enough money in tips to cover books and tuition.
Though tips can be high, working as a dancer while being a full-time student still has its downsides, from both a social and an academic perspective.
Balancing herself upside down while spreading her legs on a pole appears to be easier than balancing working late at night and getting up early for class.
"It's hard to get up for your 8 a.m. after giving lap dances until 3:30 a.m.," said Portia, a junior. "By the time you get home, it's almost time for class."
Night Moves waitress and former dancer Heather Emerson has also had her share of problems balancing both sides of her double identity. The semester when she was in a small discussion class of eight students, her professor came into the club, paid the entrance fee and left immediately after making eye contact with her.
"It was awkward talking to him after that," said Emerson, who plans to graduate next spring.
She said several people she knows, including her school principal, math teacher and people she went to Sunday school with, have seen her perform. Her ex-boyfriend's dad came in as well but, instead of leaving upon recognizing his son's ex, paid her for three lap dances and asked her not to tell his son about it.
Aside from the occasional awkward encounter, a number of the dancers said they have a good relationship with regular customers and their bosses. One of Portia's best customers brings her cookies on days she has tests and gives her $200 at the beginning of the semester for book money. Her regulars treat her like family, and often order her favorite kind of pizza and have it waiting for her when she comes in to work.
But dancing for strangers can be dangerous, and dancers have to put up with threatening men inside and outside the club. Portia said she always carries mace with her in case someone follows her home. Inside the club, Emerson has to hide her emotions while dealing with rude customers, she said. Dancers are never completely nude, they are required to wear panties and cover their nipples at all times.
Emerson said guys have told her they've slept with hotter women and that she has the smallest breasts they've ever seen, but she has to just grin and bear it.
"At first you think it's a great job," Emerson said. "You just take your clothes off and make money, but eventually guys say things that get to you. I just smiled the whole time, but I really wanted to punch him in the face."
Student dancers
Even among the dancers there is a great deal of fighting. Emerson left her job at Brad's Brass Flamingo in Indianapolis after another dancer punched her in the face during an argument. Portia has seen women strangle each other at Night Moves over wearing another dancer's outfit without asking and both she and Emerson said there is a ton of cat-fighting in the club. However, they try to stay out of it.
Night Moves Co-owner Rodney Domer said there's a clear difference between the student dancers and the other women.
"Students act more intelligently," he said. "They're here to make money, while some of the other others use it like a night out."
Domer even helps students out by giving them the night off when schoolwork becomes stressful. He also said he lets them use the club's wireless Internet to do homework on the premises.
IU graduate Nicki, a waitress at the club who wished not to be identified, said her gender studies major has helped her see stripping from a different perspective. From what she's learned, she said the feminist movement has varying opinions on whether it's degrading to women or empowering.
"You know, student by day stripper by night," she said. "They come here and take guys' money making them think they're something they're not. Why not?"
She said she definitely notices a difference between student dancers and others.
"The way they carry themselves and treat customers, they have different social skills than some the other girls and I think it helps them make more money," Nicki said.
Three-figure tips
Money is the reason the women dance in the first place, and they make a lot of it. Emerson said she makes about $200 a night in tips as a waitress, while Portia brings in $700 to $1,000 on a good weekend night. Her earnings allowed her to pay for a new $16,000 car in cash after a year of working.
Most men sitting in what the dancers refer to as "pervert row" -- the chairs around the stage -- tip a dollar or two, but dancers remember their biggest tips well. The day after Christmas, one guy was so happy to have 15 minutes with Emerson that he gave her a $200 dollar tip and said "Merry Christmas." The tips are often given for the dancing, but men will occasionally proposition sex for a much larger tip. One man put $1,000 dollars on the table and propositioned Portia, but she turned him down.
The money was what attracted Emerson to stripping, since she was trying to find a way to get out of her parents' house and get her own apartment. But her plan left her on her own quicker than she thought. Her parents found out the day after she started stripping and kicked her out, forcing her to pack a garbage bag full of clothes and find a new place to stay.
She said that ever since she started dancing, she hasn't done as well in school, and she said she imagined a different life for herself.
"If I could do it again I probably would have found another way to get out of my mom's house," Emerson said. "I could have lived in the dorms, known different people and I would have graduated by now."
Portia had friends who danced and decided to do it after breaking up with a boyfriend who was against it. When college ends, Portia plans to end her dancing career. For her, it's just a way to make money and a little secret that she'll keep from her future husband and family.
"I will never tell my future husband," she said. "I don't think a respectful person will respect what I've done."
In Bloomington news, they featured an article about student strippers who work at the local strip club called Night Moves. I have a friend who lives by there and -- behold! -- the apartment I'm going to move into in August is just down the street. For some reason, I never considered how many students would be pole-straddling there. And more importantly, I somehow never considered that plenty of professors probably patron it too. Anyways, here's the article.
Student by day, stripper by night
Dancers often struggle to balance professional, school commitments
By Zack Teibloom | Indiana Daily Student | Wednesday, February 07, 2007
  A stripper who calls herself Portia shows off her dancing skills at Night Moves in Bloomington. Portia is one of 10 students who dance at the club for college money. Ronni Moore/IDS |
She's one of 10 students among the club's 35
dancers, working to earn enough money in tips to cover books and tuition.
Though tips can be high, working as a dancer while being a full-time student still has its downsides, from both a social and an academic perspective.
Balancing herself upside down while spreading her legs on a pole appears to be easier than balancing working late at night and getting up early for class.
"It's hard to get up for your 8 a.m. after giving lap dances until 3:30 a.m.," said Portia, a junior. "By the time you get home, it's almost time for class."
Night Moves waitress and former dancer Heather Emerson has also had her share of problems balancing both sides of her double identity. The semester when she was in a small discussion class of eight students, her professor came into the club, paid the entrance fee and left immediately after making eye contact with her.
"It was awkward talking to him after that," said Emerson, who plans to graduate next spring.
She said several people she knows, including her school principal, math teacher and people she went to Sunday school with, have seen her perform. Her ex-boyfriend's dad came in as well but, instead of leaving upon recognizing his son's ex, paid her for three lap dances and asked her not to tell his son about it.
Aside from the occasional awkward encounter, a number of the dancers said they have a good relationship with regular customers and their bosses. One of Portia's best customers brings her cookies on days she has tests and gives her $200 at the beginning of the semester for book money. Her regulars treat her like family, and often order her favorite kind of pizza and have it waiting for her when she comes in to work.
But dancing for strangers can be dangerous, and dancers have to put up with threatening men inside and outside the club. Portia said she always carries mace with her in case someone follows her home. Inside the club, Emerson has to hide her emotions while dealing with rude customers, she said. Dancers are never completely nude, they are required to wear panties and cover their nipples at all times.
Emerson said guys have told her they've slept with hotter women and that she has the smallest breasts they've ever seen, but she has to just grin and bear it.
"At first you think it's a great job," Emerson said. "You just take your clothes off and make money, but eventually guys say things that get to you. I just smiled the whole time, but I really wanted to punch him in the face."
Student dancers
Even among the dancers there is a great deal of fighting. Emerson left her job at Brad's Brass Flamingo in Indianapolis after another dancer punched her in the face during an argument. Portia has seen women strangle each other at Night Moves over wearing another dancer's outfit without asking and both she and Emerson said there is a ton of cat-fighting in the club. However, they try to stay out of it.
Night Moves Co-owner Rodney Domer said there's a clear difference between the student dancers and the other women.
"Students act more intelligently," he said. "They're here to make money, while some of the other others use it like a night out."
Domer even helps students out by giving them the night off when schoolwork becomes stressful. He also said he lets them use the club's wireless Internet to do homework on the premises.
IU graduate Nicki, a waitress at the club who wished not to be identified, said her gender studies major has helped her see stripping from a different perspective. From what she's learned, she said the feminist movement has varying opinions on whether it's degrading to women or empowering.
"You know, student by day stripper by night," she said. "They come here and take guys' money making them think they're something they're not. Why not?"
She said she definitely notices a difference between student dancers and others.
"The way they carry themselves and treat customers, they have different social skills than some the other girls and I think it helps them make more money," Nicki said.
Three-figure tips
Money is the reason the women dance in the first place, and they make a lot of it. Emerson said she makes about $200 a night in tips as a waitress, while Portia brings in $700 to $1,000 on a good weekend night. Her earnings allowed her to pay for a new $16,000 car in cash after a year of working.
Most men sitting in what the dancers refer to as "pervert row" -- the chairs around the stage -- tip a dollar or two, but dancers remember their biggest tips well. The day after Christmas, one guy was so happy to have 15 minutes with Emerson that he gave her a $200 dollar tip and said "Merry Christmas." The tips are often given for the dancing, but men will occasionally proposition sex for a much larger tip. One man put $1,000 dollars on the table and propositioned Portia, but she turned him down.
The money was what attracted Emerson to stripping, since she was trying to find a way to get out of her parents' house and get her own apartment. But her plan left her on her own quicker than she thought. Her parents found out the day after she started stripping and kicked her out, forcing her to pack a garbage bag full of clothes and find a new place to stay.
She said that ever since she started dancing, she hasn't done as well in school, and she said she imagined a different life for herself.
"If I could do it again I probably would have found another way to get out of my mom's house," Emerson said. "I could have lived in the dorms, known different people and I would have graduated by now."
Portia had friends who danced and decided to do it after breaking up with a boyfriend who was against it. When college ends, Portia plans to end her dancing career. For her, it's just a way to make money and a little secret that she'll keep from her future husband and family.
"I will never tell my future husband," she said. "I don't think a respectful person will respect what I've done."
posted by Danny Thanh Nguyen at 1:56 PM
1 Comments:
Ehren Watada is pretty cute... Anyway how are you?
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