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rhiannon529

The year was 2013. I was 18 and had only recently lost my virginity to a long-time boyfriend. I was a nerd/tomboy (albeit one with great T&A), rarely wore makeup, and had zero fashion sense. The last word I would ever use to describe myself was “sexy.”

I was always envious of women who oozed natural sex appeal and charisma. Their self-confidence and flirtatious manner was impressive, and I was amazed by the way they used those qualities to get what they wanted.

To me, the women who most epitomized those qualities were exotic dancers. While I have learned over the years that this stereotype wasn’t true, I thought all strippers were mostly glamorous, statuesque beauties with acrylic nails, voluminous hair and amazing cleavage. Either that, or women who had four kids, a drug habit, and food stamps. Although I was raised in a super conservative environment, I harbored a secret ambition to become a stripper. Of course, I never thought of it as a career- I had gotten a full academic scholarship to many schools and was career/goal-oriented. But I didn’t have money and didn’t think I was pretty enough to strip.

I decided to try Amateur Night at my local club, a chain of mid-level nude juice bars. Even though I was scared shitless, I bought some cheap dancewear-a pink scrunch butt bikini and white platforms, had my best gay friend do my makeup and hair,I signed up for Amateur Night, gave the DJ (Michelle), chose a song (Purple Rain), and when I got onstage, I swayed around the pole awkwardly, arched my back and tried to look sexy, and removed my bikini top at the end. The customers were sliding ones and fives over the top rail, and it was clear that they liked me.

There was only one other girl in the Amateur competition, a petite and barefoot brunette in a mini skirt and tube top. She was already a waitress at the club, and she didn’t do any pole tricks but had more rhythm than I did. When it came time to declare a winner, the guys applauded and cheered for me. I had several customers that night asking me for a dance but I didn’t have a license.

The manager told me that I needed to learn how to dance and get a license. After watching YouTube videos on floor work, I went to another club, auditioned, and immediately started making money. I bought some more clothes, learned how to pole dance, got acrylic nails and a spray tan, and started traveling out of state on weekends or vacations to go to cities known for their clubs (Dallas, Tampa, etc.). There were some bad nights and amazing nights, but I enjoy my secret job a lot.

I have a university degree, and want to go to graduate school eventually, but my day job isn’t fun doesn’t pay very well. This is not a career for me, and I am pretty frugal about money. I plan to keep on dancing as long as I still can, and have a list of cities and clubs I’d like to visit.

Making that decision to do Amateur Night was a life-changing one, and I’m so happy that I did it. Even if you don’t think you are sexy, you can make money and harness your sex appeal when you start dancing.

In short, I really love what I do.