Geography changes mileage and cost expectations and perceptions
rickdugan
Verified and Certifiable Super-Reviewer
When one clubs in places like MA and NY, one can generally expect to pay a lot of money for fun. When I say "fun" I mean OTC, but a similar principle holds for ITC action. And this assumes that fun is available at all with an attractive girl. Prior to the Great Recession, money flowed pretty freely in the clubs in those areas and any type of serious action was difficult to find unless one was spending well north of $1,000. There were exceptions to this of course, most notably Providence and a few dive clubs in CT for those willing to drive out to either of those areas, but there were quality trade-offs necessary to enjoy those places as well. Since the start of the downturn, things have opened up a bit in MA and NY (and a lot in PVD before things tightened there), but finding reasonably priced fun is still a serious challenge in those areas.
But having said all of that, it was the environment I was accustomed to. The Great Recession opened up OTC opportunities in my local NY-metro area club, but even then I had to shell out $300 OTC plus more money ITC prior to the event in order to have fun with upper tier talent. Now as a traveler, I also got to enjoy cheaper fun in certain places like FL and SC, but those were pleasant discounted exceptions rather than the norm.
But now that I have lived in the South for a few years, I have a much greater appreciation for what some of you boys were talking about all those years in terms of value expectations. I still travel a lot, but now I am traveling from to higher cost areas from a lower cost locale rather than the other way around. This has seriously influenced my thinking on value and what I am willing to spend for action, a fact which really hit home during recent trips to NYC and LA, I am having much more trouble getting my arms around big ticket expenditures for fun in high cost areas when I know that I can just wait a few days and get a much better bang for my buck back home.
But having said all of that, it was the environment I was accustomed to. The Great Recession opened up OTC opportunities in my local NY-metro area club, but even then I had to shell out $300 OTC plus more money ITC prior to the event in order to have fun with upper tier talent. Now as a traveler, I also got to enjoy cheaper fun in certain places like FL and SC, but those were pleasant discounted exceptions rather than the norm.
But now that I have lived in the South for a few years, I have a much greater appreciation for what some of you boys were talking about all those years in terms of value expectations. I still travel a lot, but now I am traveling from to higher cost areas from a lower cost locale rather than the other way around. This has seriously influenced my thinking on value and what I am willing to spend for action, a fact which really hit home during recent trips to NYC and LA, I am having much more trouble getting my arms around big ticket expenditures for fun in high cost areas when I know that I can just wait a few days and get a much better bang for my buck back home.
Got something to say?
Start your own discussion
14 comments
So what part of "the South" are you calling home now? Idle curiosity and none of my business, of course. :)
This is one of the few areas where I hope for a worsening economy... as long as it doesn't affect me.
Once I moved back-home to Miami and started hitting the $5 black clubs; now I find-it painful to pay the standard $25/LD SoFla non-black-SC price. Sure; this *is* an extreme example but def falls under “expectations thinking”.
Now I have said that my historical OTC payments (at least prior to moving south) fell in a fairly narrow $250 - 300 per hour band, because they did. I lived in the NY metro area and, when traveling, was arranging first meet, same night OTC. I'll readily admit that I have no doubt over-payed historically in places like Atlanta and parts of South Carolina, by way of two examples. But on the road I don't have the luxury of gaining regular status, getting to know the local markets well and generally building rapport with the dancers in those clubs, so I chalk up over-payments as a traveling monger tax. But, again, I never doubted shadow and others who are able to score it cheaper in their local clubs.