Avoid when crowded

I have not been to many strip clubs since the pandemic hit, and I had a rare opportunity to get out on a recent Saturday night. I decided to see how The Club had changed. I arrived at about 10:30 and the parking lot was packed. After paying a $10 cover, I looked for a seat. I usually started at the tip rail, but there were no seats there. I checked the bar, and all the bar stools were taken. I circled the main room twice before finding a seat at an empty table. There was an empty beer bottle on the table. Not surprising as I learned after a while that there was no waitress service.

The Club always depended on regulars, but it seemed to be even more attuned to them. The first question that both of the dancers who first stopped by was “Are you waiting for someone in particular?” I found that question a bit unsettling and since each of them was a 6 or less encouraged to continue their rounds.

After about 30 minutes, Star, a 7-8 in appearance stopped by. I bought her a drink. Her bright red lipstick and dark shoulder length hair stood out. She was a relative newbie, having only worked about 3 months at The Club, her first job in the industry. We talked for a while, and she started pushing a VIP experience. At $150 for 15 minutes, compared with $20 per song in the public lap dance area, the economics didn’t seem right. Her promise “that we could have a more private conversation in the VIP” was not the right sales pitch for me. I agreed to some lap dances. She gave a very good one way lap dance, and I ended up getting four such dances. (The Club has strict rules about touching the dancers in the lap dance area.) She promised to continue our conversation after she freshened up, but ignored me afterwards. And with little seating available because of the crowd, I left.