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hustlebunny
09-10-2007, 11:18 PM
I haven't worked in LA in over a year...i worked at four play...it was ok money wise and the girls there DO NOT hustle. I couldn't get used to the cut that they take out of the money in LA.

I was just there as a custy a few weeks ago and had to practically beg to buy dances. If you don't mind nude it may be a place to try. I felt like it was pretty clean...I was a little baffled at how to manuever a clean "bed dance" though :-\

I ended up flying to Vegas for the weekends to work when i lived in LA...is that possible on the weekends for you? That way you could study during the week? I dunno what the market is like now in vegas but it was totally worth it to take stripper express aka southwest airlines over and work fri sat or fri sat sun and have the week to myself...Good Luck!

i'm pmsing myself and been off for the past month eating so i know how you feel...I decided to think of only things i'm thankful for as i go to sleep tonight because it's way easy right now for me to continue to swim in my pms tears....

I send you "find someplace soon" vibes!

Yekhefah
09-10-2007, 11:25 PM
^^^ See above reference re: needing to go to gym and looking like beached whale. I'm pretty, but I'm not 4-Play material just yet. And now that I can't do dayshifts, they're out of the question anyway, because they have a looooooong waiting list for night shifts.

I'm not a Vegas dancer. I've gotten into it repeatedly on this forum so I won't get into it again, but suffice it to say I bank in laid-back rural clubs and Vegas made my hair fall out, and sent me home broke and covered in hives.

This thread is turning into a long rehash of the L.A. club options, which isn't really what I meant to get into. I'm just stressed and already overworked, and being broke and unable to work is making it a lot worse; I got spoiled over the summer and forgot how awful it is here. I kinda just wanted to vent and maybe get a bit of sympathy, but thanks.

hustlebunny
09-10-2007, 11:52 PM
Ah I c then sympathy given!!!! This job is more mentally/spiritually taxing than most folks think. I swear sometimes i have visions of causing serious bodily harm to anyone who has the nerve to say what EASY money this job is. Feel Better...

Gretchen
09-11-2007, 12:03 AM
^^^ See above reference re: needing to go to gym and looking like beached whale. I'm pretty, but I'm not 4-Play material just yet. And now that I can't do dayshifts, they're out of the question anyway, because they have a looooooong waiting list for night shifts.


They have a long waiting list :O? Wow, thats the first I've ever heard of it. I'm not terribly surprised though. Do they still let you audition and then just call you when they have a spot? I know I'm at least day shift material so maybe I can weasel my way from days to nights. Its so close to campus its hard for me to ignore.

I think I'm more surprised that they have a waiting list instead of just turning away girls because they are too full.

You make Montana sound like heaven.

Yekhefah
09-11-2007, 07:42 PM
They say you have to do the amateur night competition to get hired. I went in on a day shift though and begged for an audition, which I got; the manager said he loved the way I dance, but I need to tone up. (That was back in June and I have lost weight since, but I don't feel toned enough yet and anyway I can't do a dayshift anymore.) I can't imagine them not hiring you though, pretty and slim as you are.

Montana WAS heaven for me. I made plenty of money and had a wonderful time. Now my hormones are crazy, I have to make $500 by the end of the week, it is almost 8 pm on a Tuesday (and I can't work tomorrow night for Rosh HaShanah), and the thought of getting up to put on makeup makes me burst into tears. I don't want to dance in L.A. anymore. I wish my day job would pay me enough to live on. I'm so tired and I don't want to do this here and I can't take YET ANOTHER night of getting all made up to drive around and have people look at my 38C-28-37 figure and mumble some bullshit about too many girls. I can't take much more of it. I don't know what to do but I can't do this.

AlexxaHex
09-11-2007, 08:47 PM
:hug: I'm so sorry you're feeling this way. I'm right there with ya - hang in there.

Lena
09-11-2007, 09:49 PM
Well get the fuck out of LA already, then. There are plenty of places with clubs just like Montana where you can make money without all the stress.

velvet
09-11-2007, 10:34 PM
i was going to say something similar. forget school for now get to work!

Yekhefah
09-12-2007, 06:23 AM
No, I'm not willing to just bail on my whole life and my dayjob and my pursuit of a better future. Going to have to work out another solution. I'll be better once my hormones quiet down, and when I lose a little more weight.

Tina
09-12-2007, 05:20 PM
Yekhefah, you have had financial crises since you have been posting here. Velvet and Lena make perfect sense. I've worked in LA before, and if my fiancee' didn't have income to cover our bills, I would have been in bad shape. I like the LA metro area. It is cosmopolitan and diverse, and there is a lot to do, but it just isn't the place for a dancer to make consistent money. And if you aren't a successful entrepreneur, you won't be able to buy a decent home.

The way things are going for you, you will eventually ruin your credit and have serious financial hardships if you don't make a change. Continued stress isn't good for you.

Do you think I like working in no mans land? Of course not. I would rather be back home in the big city where there is a lot do and where the lifestyle is more cosmopolitan and racially diverse. But it's less competitive in the rural areas, the clubs and customers aren't as picky, and I can save money from my dancing. I would have quit 5 years ago if I hadn't been able to escape the city clubs.

You can work on the road for awhile and come home for a few weeks, which will allow you a chance to build up your money and not have to worry about paying your bills and having spending money.

Once you get on stable footing you can then decide where you want to live and what other career paths you want to pursue. What you are doing in LA obviously isn't working for you, is it?

Yekhefah
09-12-2007, 05:27 PM
I'm working for other things. I'm teaching, studying, gaining valuable experience and working for my future. I'm applying to PhD programs and hopefully this time next year will be living on a fellowship and working on my doctorate. I'm sure that what you're doing works great for you, but I'm not convinced that throwing everything into the air for a bit more short-term money is the proper solution for me at this point. There are things that matter more than money.

Once I've got a home club, I'll feel better about it. My two really pressing debts are gone. I can live on an L.A. stripper income at this point; I just need to get hired on, and it wasn't happening while I was in the throes of PMS. I don't LIKE dancing in L.A., but right now the alternative is to sacrifice the gains I've made in pursuit of my real career. So I'm going to have a nice Rosh Ha'Shanah tonight and then get back to it with a fresh perspective. I just need to rest.

Starfire
09-12-2007, 05:34 PM
yekhefah I'm not that familiar with your situation but I think you mentioned in this thread you are in school? why don't you take out student loans and take time off from working til you finish school? It's not ideal but life is too short to be stressed out all the time!
Whatever you end up doing good luck!!
*sends happy and sympathetic vibes*

Yekhefah
09-12-2007, 05:45 PM
I'm not a full-time student. I'm taking one Chinese class to prepare for the language requirements of a PhD program, and applying to different programs this fall. I hope to become a full-time student by next year, but for right now I'm studying Chinese, working out, and teaching during the day. (The teaching is invaluable experience but isn't paying nearly enough to live on.)

I go through fits of depression every couple of months. I'm just coming out of one now. After Rosh HaShanah I will get back to the club-hunting thing and hopefully find a place I can tolerate for awhile. Like I said, I kinda just wanted to vent. :)

miabella
09-12-2007, 06:07 PM
how do you reconcile pursuit of a PhD with your goals regarding the film industry? it seems like you have a very full plate in terms of career goals.

Yekhefah
09-12-2007, 06:14 PM
Since I was an undergrad, my eventual goal has been teaching and filmmaking. As a university professor I would have stability, benefits, and a rewarding job I love, plus I'd have the summers free (and occasional sabbatical) to write and direct. I'd have the freedom to create my own films without putting my entire soul into other people's shitty low-budget indies just to pay my rent. I wasn't ready to jump straight into a PhD after grad school; I needed industry experience first. I've now got three years of industry experience and I'm ready to start my PhD next year if I get accepted to a good program.

Mily
09-12-2007, 07:51 PM
I wish you the best, Yek. I don't have any different advice to offer you than what everbody else already has...but I pray you find a club out there that suits you and makes you happy, since you can't just leave.

*hugs*

Danielle_4370
09-12-2007, 10:07 PM
Here's what you do:

First: spend every waking moment that you are not learning or observing, working out. Get those endorphins going so you can feel better about everything! Barring that, to feel better about yourself.

Second: suck it up and audition. I can understand that you don't like it, but if this is your only option to get where you need to be in one or two years, then all the depressed whining in the world is not going to change that fact.

Third: remember: you rock, girl!

I get the feeling that this is the kind of advice you'd give someone else if the tables were turned, so I hope you take it in the spirit given -- truly wishing for your success.

Lysondra
09-12-2007, 10:22 PM
^^ not necessarily... he just has moodswings. White and black don, doug, anthony, matt, felix, and tony.... those are the main guys. Matt and Anthony are doorguys only. The rest are all combo dj/doorguys depending on the night. They really run the place.

But they DID have you audition? not just fill out an application? (heheh and yes, lysondra, C is still there.)

i only push E because there IS still $$$... it's up and down, yes.... but... a lot of girls on dayshift made between 4-800 today.

Doug can kiss my pale ass. That is all I have to say. He's a f***ing dick. And if he reads this I don't care.

Felix, however, I love. <3

And I didn't know dayshift made that much. Near the end (February-ish) I was only making $200-300 a night.

I also heard the day girls did extreeeeme extras.

Lysondra
09-12-2007, 10:26 PM
Also, I'm really sorry about this whole thing, Yek... I wish there was something I could say about sucking it up and working in LA... but I ran away faster than my stilettos could carry me. So I'm not one to offer advice.

Yekhefah
09-13-2007, 03:31 PM
Thanks, everyone. I'm resting up from the day job right this minute and then I'm going to go try again tonight. Got $9 to my name right now and $500 in bills due this weekend, so no more Rosh HaShanah for me. Fingers crossed that I find something!

Farrah_Holiday
09-13-2007, 05:10 PM
I'll keep my fingers crossed for you too. I saw that you mentioned you're coming out of a depression, I'm sorry to hear that and I hope you feel better !

Try to keep in mind that you're the chick who's "Gotta Gloat" !
:hug:

Yekhefah
09-13-2007, 05:16 PM
Yeah, but I wasn't in L.A. when I was gloating. The beauty standards are so different... around here I'm an obese cow. My self-image has really taken a beating with all the rejections I've gotten lately, and now I'm starting to get panicky again.

I really just want to write, for fuck's sake. I don't want to waste half my day at this awful day job I don't like (but have to keep for a year because I'm committed and it's good resume material) and then spend the whole night driving all over town so a bunch of assholes can tell me I'm fat because you can't see my ribcage. Everyone else I know is having totally awesome career success right now and I don't understand why I can't just do what I'm fucking good at and not have to freak out about money all the damn time. Argh.

FUCK LOS ANGELES!! :shoot:

Yekhefah
09-13-2007, 06:51 PM
OMG, I neeeeeeeeed a confidence boost right now and I just can't find one. My short keeps getting rejected by the film festivals (it's very entertaining but it's not very deep and it doesn't deal with any hot sociopolitical issues), so I keep thinking about all the money I poured into a movie that no one will ever see, and I feel like a reject as a director and a reject as a stripper and just an all-around reject. I feel fat and bloated and bloody because I'm on the rag and I have cramps. I keep thinking about my expensive education and how awesome I felt the day I finished my Master's because it meant I wouldn't have to wait tables anymore, and now I'm looking at waitressing jobs but I wouldn't get hired at that either.

I need to get out of this headspace so I can try to make some money tonight, but I don't know how I'll pass an audition when I feel so lousy about myself. Grrr. I guess I'll just have to go in there feeling lousy and hope no one notices. I'm normally so confident but the past couple of weeks have been hard. The absence of K and all physical affection, and the disappointment of my day job, are probably factors too.

Kaylinn
09-13-2007, 07:07 PM
Rosh HaShanah is like a celebration for a new year, right?

I doubt this helps...but can you cast off all the bad luck you've had so far and try to look ahead to the new year and all the great things it will bring?
Trying to think of somethign opsitive to make you feel better. WIsh I could just give you a hug and a million dollars.




Shana Tova Umetukah

Yekhefah
09-13-2007, 07:10 PM
Thank you so much, Kaylinn. And yeah, today being Rosh HaShanah and me having to work is kind of a bummer, but that's a good way of thinking about it. New year, new book, new beginnings. Last year was better than the year before it, so this year must be better than last year too! Things have to keep getting better.

Lysondra
09-14-2007, 03:34 AM
YOU'RE looking for waitressing jobs? Shit, you have hit rock bottom. :(

Yekhefah
09-14-2007, 10:36 AM
LOL, yeah, I was browsing through Craigslist but I got violently nauseated when I started to call someone, so I'm not willing to waitress again just yet! I worked at a bikini bar in the Valley last night and made a big ol' $78. It's official: I DO NOT DO $10 LAPDANCES ANYMORE. No offense to girls who do them, but I just sort of reached a point last night and from now on *my* minimum lapdance price is $20. I think that's a fair price and I'm not going below it ever again. The clubs with $10 laps and no cover just do not attract a decent crowd, and I worked too damn hard last night to have gone home with so little.

Got an audition this afternoon. Hopefully last night's shitty shift was a good warmup and I'll have a lucrative Friday night tonight. I do feel better about the audition and like I've warmed up a bit, so that's something.

AlexxaHex
09-14-2007, 04:58 PM
If you are willing to work in the valley, have you tried Blue Zebra? I know they are owned by Rhino but I did okay there.

Please don't waitress! I don't want to hear about you being in jail for homicide. :P

Yekhefah
09-14-2007, 05:04 PM
Every time I venture into the Valley, it does not go well. I've tried five clubs there and never even broke $100 (except for one weird night I got lucky and managed to squeak $200). I think the Valley is worse for me than L.A.

I'm about to go get dressed up again for another audition I've got in West L.A. Fingers tightly crossed. I need to make $400 tonight just to survive through the weekend... but it's Friday, so if I get hired I should (hopefully) be able to do it.

I'm trying to think of what else I could do for a night job but haven't come up with anything. I really, really, really wish I could just write and do what I'm good at and pursue my actual career without having to deal with all this shit.

AlexxaHex
09-14-2007, 05:19 PM
The thing about the Valley is that it's really random. You'll make $100 one day and $700 the next. So you need to stick around for a week or two to really see it. But it's all over the place. The Vu is decent $$$ wise but you would hate the way it's run. I think they audition on Sunday nights. :shrug: Would prolly be better than waitressing. I think ANYthing is better than that though.

Yekhefah
09-14-2007, 05:23 PM
I care much more about respect than money, which is why I get so stressed out in L.A. I can't make money when I'm furious and feeling exploited. I absolutely WILL NOT be treated with disrespect for any amount of money. (Which, yeah, means I really ought not to go back to waitressing!)

Too bad the dungeon closed - oh yeah, I should call you, Alexxa. There's a hilarious story there. But it'd be nice to do a few Domme sessions a couple nights a week and live on that. Maybe I'll check with Passive Arts and some of the other bigger dungeons around town.

Samba
09-14-2007, 05:24 PM
I'm sorry that you are having such a rough time now.

I refer you to your own words, as quoted in my signature:

Yekhefah
09-14-2007, 05:24 PM
*giggle* And indeed I would. Dunno what came over me for even thinking it!

Yekhefah
09-14-2007, 09:46 PM
So, erm, I just ROCKED me a muthafuckin' audition if I may say so myself. The club looks great and I did too. Unfortunately they wouldn't let me start on a Friday night but I'm gonna work a day shift tomorrow. I might dispense with my day job and just do this; my class gets out at 10:45, and then I could work this day shift 12-7, and then have my evenings free. I'd love that. And I am HATING this teaching gig for a long list of reasons... if I can figure out a good way to bail on it, I should be okay.

Bridgette
09-15-2007, 09:19 AM
Dude. It seems to me LA is THE worst place on earth for you. You were so happy this summer and looked great, and now you sound like you're in hell. Again. I don't understand why you feel LA is the place for you to be, because it seems SO unhealthy for you in every way. There ARE other places to do what you want to do, you know. Places where you would be much happier too, I think.

How many times must we say "GET THE FUCK OUT OF LA"? I'm starting to think you're some kind of masochist. And I don't say that to be mean or bitchy. I really don't.

Yekhefah
09-15-2007, 09:24 AM
Well, I sort of AM a masochist in some ways, heh... but I'm leaving L.A. in February or March. We're moving to Oregon. And in the meantime I start the day shift at a club I really like and I think I'll do well at, and I'm going to dump the dodgy day job. So the next few months until we move should go much better.

AlexxaHex
09-15-2007, 01:59 PM
Yay!! I am so happy to hear you're moving!! Not that LA won't miss you, but I think a change would do you good. Jess and I are really thinking of moving to Atlanta when he's done with school. And yes, I want to know your funny dungeon story. I was wondering what happened with that but keep forgetting to ask you when I'm at the computer.
:highfive: Also, congrats on the audition. I know how much you hate them. Which club in WLA is it?

Yekhefah
09-15-2007, 07:48 PM
Fantasy Island. I did a dayshift today and made very, very little. At one point I asked the DJ if it was always this slow, because there was hardly anyone in there; he looked surprised and said, "It's not slow! We've got a pretty good crowd in here today!" :O

I'll stick it out for awhile and see if it gets better, but I'm definitely leaving before 6 pm so I don't have to deal with the INORDINATE amount of bullshit that the night girls have to deal with, and I'm going to have to forget about paying down debt and just worry about maintaining bills. Blargh. Sucks that we can't move next week or something. I'm stoked about moving now and it's gonna be a long six months while I wait for it.

AlexxaHex
09-16-2007, 04:19 PM
Oh, I've forgotten long ago about debt. It's all about whether or not we can eat, keep a roof over our heads and maintain my car payments these days. Fuck California!!

LAChloe
09-16-2007, 04:49 PM
Yek, since you live in Hollywood, I am hoping you have an answer for me. Did Crazy Girls really reopen? I called information for their number so I could find out, but they didn't have one.

Yekhefah
09-16-2007, 04:55 PM
Yeah, Crazy Girls is open again. Sounds like it's being run exactly like the Seventh Veil (it's owned by the same people), so I haven't been there. But it is open again.

LAChloe
09-16-2007, 04:56 PM
Thank you. I appreciate it.