Okay, okay, there’s lots of buzz going on about Star Light’s new venture. I promise I’ll post here soon. The one thing that you should know is that it will be in late April, in Richmond, Virginia, and Avalon, the SuperStripper, will be joining us.
And I’m so excited, I can BARELY STAND IT!
February 26, 2008
River City Kitty said it best today, how I feel about the ministry that Star Light does, how our volunteers love the women they serve:
Seeing Cody win that Oscar was thrilling, and I was absolutely touched when she thanked her parents for loving her just as she was. Sweet and corny, maybe, but when you’re a stripper, when you transgress and do the kinds of things that can get you disowned or judged to bits, that love and acceptance is unbelievably soothing and soul-healing.
I know the work our volunteers do is “unbelievably soothing and soul-healing.” And I am grateful.
February 23, 2008
GOOD magazine has an interesting article about Christie Hefner, the chairman and CEO of Playboy Enterprises in their Sept/Oct 2007 issue. It’s unexpected to consider Ms. Hefner as a philanthropist, but that’s exactly how she uses her position at Playboy. Their foundation provides “support for civil liberties, sexual health, reproductive freedom, gay rights, and women’s rights.” Playboy magazine wrote about AIDS when it was still considered God’s wrath on homosexuality, and Christie Hefner helped raise $30 million for an outpatient facility in the Midwest for people living with AIDS.
This brings up an interesting item of discussion. Can people do both bad and good at the same time? Do people, as we would like to think, wear either white hats or black hats? Or can there be a mix in everyone?
The Hebrew scripture addresses this issue time and time again. There’s David. He’s an adulterer. He’s a murderer. And yet, he’s a faithful and good man, really trying to serve God. Then there’s Rahab. She’s a prostitute, perhaps even a madam, and she protects God’s servants.
What is it about our nature that we would like for people to wear a black hat or a white hat? Can we not focus on the times they wear their white hats? And can we not salute the good behavior, and not the bad behavior?
February 19, 2008
Just so you know, I messed up the website. As my friend Robertson says, “You shouldn’t pretend like you know what you’re doing with the internet. You can mess it up.”
I hope that we’ll be back up and running soon!
February 17, 2008
I’ve been reading a book called Praying in Color: Drawing a New Path to God. The concept is simple: draw and pray at the same time. So I sat down to pray for Star Light. Here’s what my prayer looks like.
I’m amazed at the connections, the vibrancy, and just how much there is to pray for. I hope you’ll find yourself in here, and know that you have been prayed for. (Click on the page to really see it!)
By the way, the little stars with no writing? They’re former dancers. The whole page is dotted with them, just like the ministry of Star Light is dotted with former dancers. I said special prayers of thanks for each of these amazing women.
February 14, 2008
I know, I know, I can’t help it. It is still my favorite t-shirt.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
February 10, 2008
The World Famous Bob, one of the performers at the Sex Workers Art Show, has a blog on MySpace. First of all, I’d like to say that Bob was my favorite act of the day. Bob is beautiful, funny, talented, and just totally amazing. I met her after the show and found her to be really REAL. I know, I know, that sounds weird, but to meet hundreds of people in an evening, and to be nice and engaged with each one, is quite a talent.
To top it off, she wrote this, about her experience at William and Mary. So, she wins my Sex Worker of the Week Award. Maybe even the month…
When we arrived the tension amongst the performers was visible- I did not know what to expect so I picked out my “Meet The Protesters” outfit carefully. I chose leopard- the colour of painted city ladies for eons. Black FAKE fur coat, sensible leopard scarf around my head Movie Star style to match my leopard top, & a pair of pink sunglasses- nude lip. There were channel 13 & Fox 5 News vans waiting and our gorgeous leader Annie Oakley agreed to interviews. The group of protesters were given an area and they decorated it with signs that quoted scripture & signs that said “W&M is a college- not a stripclub” . The protesters numbers were low- starting with 4 and growing to MAYBE 20. They joined hands in a circle and prayed for our souls. I addressed this in the Q&A after the show. I’d like to thank the people that prayed for us outside the show. I felt that it was the most desirable form of protest that we could ask for. I also feel that prayer is powerful and can generate love. I LOVE living in a country where I can say YES while others may choose NO. I don’t need everyone to agree with me and I am most definitely often wrong in my life anyways. I feel that this is one of the beauties of the human experience that we are offered when born. The chance to grow and develop doesn’t stop at a certain age, it’s always there. I’ve made decisions that I NEVER thought I would. Like being sober for the past 10 years- I NEVER thought I’d stop drinking or using drugs BUT I DID! The only limits ANY of us have are the ones we put on ourselves and I APPLAUD the Christians for coming down & praying for us. They walked their talk and that’s a lot more than a lot of us do. Thank you to the students at W&M College that worked SO hard to let us have a voice and in doing so insure that they could have one too!
~Love & Poodle Kisses, World Famous *BOB* - The Dream Come True Girl!
Okay, beautiful, funny, and amazingly generous.
February 8, 2008
It was incredible.
It was amazing.
It was the coolest thing I’ve done in quite a while…
Do you ever feel like if you’re going to something that the Christians are picketing, that you must be doing something right?
Find out more here.
February 8, 2008
A couple of people have said to me in the last few days, “You should blog about Pacman Jones.”
Pacman Jones??? Who is that? A google search later, and I’m thinking, “Should I really blog on Pacman Jones? What is the larger issue here?”
The larger issue is a hard one to write about, and it is, WHAT ABOUT THE MEN WHO VISIT STRIP CLUBS?
In fact, I was on a panel discussion recently and the other two women on the panel were really dissing (is that a word?) the men who buy sex. A few friends (male) were really uncomfortable with their discussions, understandably so.
So what do I think about the men? About the clients in strip clubs? About men who engage women in prostitution?
Pay close attention here:
I don’t hate them. I don’t think they’re evil. I don’t think they are horrible.
But what do I think? I think, just like most people in our age, that they are generally lonely, generally ill-equipped to deal with that loneliness, and have confused money with power and friendliness with intimacy.
How is that different than our society in general?
February 7, 2008
Avalon is my stripper hero. She’s incredibly business-like, very organized, and according to another source, “One of the coolest women I’ve ever met in this industry.”
She writes about her finances, and explains how much her expenses are for one year. She works at several clubs, goes where the money is, and is very clear that she’s there to make money. Here’s her list of expenses for one year. This is what it costs Avalon to work:
$6190 Stage Fees
$3300 DJ Fees
$2050 House Mom Fees
$2200 Security Staff Fees
$1500 VIP Hostess Fees
$3580 Merchandise Fees (Yep I sold 358 t-shirts last year)
$2115 Personal Trainer (Legally Deductible from a Health Savings Account)
$800 Wig/Hair Extensions
$755 Cosmetics
$800 Nails
$420 Tanning
$1030 Costumes/Lingerie
$166 Business License Fees
$1200 Cell Telephone
$480 Internet
$67 Business Planner/Calendars
$337 Music/Ipod
$1350 Travel expenses to Vegas including airfare, hotel, rental car, food
__________________________________
$28340 Cumulative Total thus far
10,020 miles on my car (I don’t know what the 2007 rate is per mile but that is why I pay a professional to do my taxes….I’m sure he knows) You have to work at more than one location to claim this deduction. If you ONLY work at ONE club then it is considered commuting.
Not exactly what you thought, is it?
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