Budgeting & Restraint

I only spend the cash I have with me and I keep track of how much I have left. If I'm not sure, I'll stop to verify I have the cash for a lap dance or two before agreeing to dances. I never used a credit card in a strip club. I have enough control just not to use it. I do take it with me. I heard many people have credit card debt. I do not. I pay for whatever I buy each month. If I don't have the money, I do not buy it. In strip clubs, if I don't see a reason to buy lap dances, I don't. For the first time in a long time, I didn't buy a single dance last weekend. I didn't spend much money either. That will help make up for the times when I thought I had too many favorites showing up in the club on the same night. I might prefer at least one dancer I like though.

Took me a moment or 2 to realize you meant Blackjack.

I'm not into real strict budgets. I always know how much I have available and what's coming in the future.

Lol, I almost did ask that. Anyway if I go into a strip club I fully expect an empty wallet when I leave. I'll even drop my last few dollars on the stage as I go just for good manners. Leaving with cash means I had bad stamina or the dance was bad.

I am very careful with my money. I know that sounds crazy since I am basically throwing it away when I go to the club but I have a little to play with, so it is not going to hurt me. I always have a budget and only bring Cash. Once I reach my limit, I leave. I spent about $400 more than I wanted to last month, so I am going to have to slow down this month. I have the money but I am smart enough to know when to stop.

I have walked out with as much as $400 and walked out with an empty wallet.

I only have used a cash machine once in a club and was standing there saying to myself "dumbass why the F... are you paying this outrageous fee..." That was the last time I have even brought a card to a club. For a while I would bring the projected cash to be spent and a little more for contingences and that is all. I am now never tempted to use my card in a club. If I want more cash I leave and find a regular bank machine and then that gives me an excuse to bail.

I use cash and try to keep track of balance.

One should bufget hobby spending bc we never know when bad times will come - job loss / forced early retirement.

I don't even have an ATM card.

Bring with you only the cash you want to spend. When you run out, leave. Try to keep track of what you are spending. look at a bill before you spend it. It is all too easy to tip with a $5 instead of a one if you are not paying attention.

I put tip money, usually ones in one pocket. I put dance and beer money in the other pocket, usually $20s for VIP dances and $10s for lap dances. I also try to spend so that I have the exact price of the dance available so I don't have to ask for change.

Don't use a credit card in the club. It is too easy for you to overspend and also too easy to loose track of what you spent and reconcile it with tab you are presented. Also, although the charges don't usually show up on your statement as a strip club, they often show up as an odd place, often a bar or restaurant that doesn't exist, or an odd corporation like Acme Enterprises. If someone else looks at your credit card statement these can be as hard to explain as charges to a strip club. Best to leave the credit card at home or in the car.

Don't use the ATM in the club. The charges range from high to exorbitant. Leave the ATM card at home or in the car.

If you can get away with it, get a streamlined wallet and only take in your driver's license or other ID, and your cash. Think with your head.

I used to use mainly cash but with credit cards as back up for time to time. This was because I had my withdrawal limits down at $500. I got one of those limited bumped up to $1000, and if I am travelling will make a larger withdrawal than that in person.

So it's all cash for me now. The other factor is the cops used CC receipts to track down people to talk to when they were busting Rick's and co locally. None of them got in any trouble - cops were just trying to bag the owners - but why take a risk for no reward?

As for specific budget, I did set aside $10k for my trip last fall, but that turned out to me more than I needed. I was way under budget going into Reno, but a visit to the Mustang Ranch and Bunny Ranch got me very close to the limit. So a budget worked against me that time. Now I'll just trust my hard won knowledge of what's a good deal in the scene and what ain't and have fun.

I have never budgeted for anything – not a good thing I would say - but:

I *have* always been a saver though – so if I don’t have the money for something I want (vs. something I need) – I just won’t get it.

I pretty much know when I can spend and when I should hold back and not spend.

But when I SC, I want to leave satisfied. I don’t want to leave feeling I wish I could have done x or y (x or y being something or a particular dancer). I sometimes say to myself, what if I die tomorrow and didn’t get to enjoy myself today when I could’ve?

I have a ballpark figure of what I would like to spend in a SC visit but will spend more than that if I am having a good time. I will often go past my ballpark amount if I am having a good time and have used credit cards in the past but sparingly (I just tap or hit my savings accnt extra hard).

When I overspend – then I just cut back on my SC visits for a while.

I am also not married nor have children which allows me to be a little more loose w.r.t. my financial activities. I also often tend to cut back on other things (e.g. eating out; etc) when I go on my SC binges.

Never use plastic in clubs. Never drink alcohol in clubs (though I don't drink much in the first place anyway). Take a fixed amount of cash. Tuck a 20 or so separate from my main stash just in case I need it to get home. Have fun with the remaining pre-set limit until I run out of cash or interest.

After hurricane andrew, I had a nearly unlimited AT&T credit card and I used it. A lot was reimbursed by insurance, but when you have to rebuild a home and all that goes with it, I went way overboard. Took quite some time to get rid of that balance. I swore off credit cards. Then I had to have one to even rent a car. I have ONE now and don't allow them to raise the limit.