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crystalchip
03/23/11
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crisvic
03/10/11
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03/27/11
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GetHighOnBlueGrass
03/01/11
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bette213
03/12/11
March 01, 2012
Well, at your own risk.
"There are many men in London, you know, who, some from shyness, some from misanthropy, have no wish for the company of their fellows. Yet they are not averse to comfortable chairs and the latest periodicals...”
The club referred to by Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes is brother Mycroft's Diogenes Club.
“No member is permitted to take the least notice of any other one. Save in the Stranger's Room, no talking is, under any circumstances, allowed, and three offences, if brought to the notice of the committee, render the talker liable to expulsion."
My favorite fictional Gentlemen’s club belonged to another great mystery writer, Dorothy Sayers, by way of her admirable amateur sleuth, Lord Peter Wimsey.
Appropriately called the Egotists’ Club.
She described it as the most genial place in London, where you go when you want to tell that “odd dream you had last night, or might want to recommend a dentist you discovered."
“You can write letters if you like, but there is no silence room and it would be a breach of club etiquette to appear preoccupied when another member addressed you.”
Other considerations:
You must not mention golf or fish, (dentists were safe) and “wireless” (in the 1920s it was radio) but we can change that to cell phones.
In Sayer's short story, “The Abominable History of the Man with the Copper Fingers,” Wimsey himself unravels the case in the very club.
Gentlemen's clubs were very much real, of course, (some even allowed women) popularized in England in the late 19th century.
So…how would you design your club?
Make it all inclusive?
Any subjects off limits?
Menu?
Ignoring Groucho Marx’s famous utterance, “I wouldn’t belong to any club that would have me as a member,” who would you have as members?
You have a choice of anyone in history.
I seem to recall a certain Sepia club car...but I could be mistaken.
Give me a humor club.
Club members could dress down -- no fancy or formal attire in this club....
Mar. 01, 2012 12:47 AM
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handrail
03/07/11
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03/15/11
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03/12/11
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03/23/11
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jraymond
03/08/11
Give me a humor club.
Club members could dress down -- no fancy or formal attire in this club.
But you must wear a smile -- a smile as big as all outdoors.
And make others smile.
No dues required.
Just come armed with a good joke.
Or a funny line about the day's heavy, depressing news.
The menu?
Grilled cheese sandwiches -- your choice from a list of, say, three dozen written on a blackboard above the bar.
Just one rule: You must leave happier than when you came.
And you will.
Guaranteed.
more on the honor roll"We've saved a seat for you. Why don't you join in?" I'll pick J. P.
WOW anyone in History, - Tolstoy & Ghandi are the first two that have popped into my mind.
I think being able to see & hear them converse would put anyone who is in that room into an elite club, of having an understanding of the Old Mystical Eastern Beliefs & the more "Buddist Ideals" of late 19th century India. Just by reading the letters between these two men, I am not sure I can even begin to conceive what a real face to face conversation would teach me.
I would be delighted to tend bar at The President's Club.To be in the same
room with Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Madison and Monroe would be a good start
to an interesting afternoon. To watch the heads turn when another President
walked into the room, perhaps Jackson, Lincoln, or Grant, to hear the
camaraderie and greetings, the whispers and innuendos. Then to watch the
interplay between the generations adding the Roosevelts and Bushes to the mix
along with Eisenhower, Truman, Nixon, Carter, Johnson and Clinton. It would be
fascinating to see how they would pair off or huddle together. I would love to
see how old Abe would loosen up after a few rounds of Wild Turkey and branch
water. Would anyone care to cater the event? Wait tables?
LOTLOT Your club sounds perfect.
However I would love to be a fly on the wall during a conversation with Jefferson and Franklin.
Let me guess, TOMMY will want to join Hemingway's club.
HAZEL-- Happy St. David's Day! Now could you explain what its about!
Anybody in history? Spoilt for choice. Is there an option like speed dating?
When my Dad was dying, I asked him a similar question and he said he was looking forward to meeting Isaiah, Ezekiel, Saint Paul, Gollum from The Lord of the Rings and Idi Amin. Opiates in palliative care are a mixed blessing.
March 1st, Chefdeb~ is the Saint's Day of Saint David, the patron saint of Wales. All Welsh people wear a daffodil or a leek on this day as a sign of patriotism. The children dress up in traditional Welsh costume and have Welsh food for school dinner. Every pub-meal and restaurant will have Welsh stuff on the menu. Last summer, I had the pleasure of re-visiting Saint David's Cathedral in South Wales. What a pretty place! Eeeew~ it's so difficult to explain Welshness, it just is.
"I sat alongside the most interesting man in England today."
"Indeed? What did he have to say?"
"Why, nothing of course."
Sounds more German or Scandanavian than British.
Privacy and silence in the presence of others is a quirky goal to begin with.
Today's club would probably contain fidgety members texting or speaking into mobile phones mainly to inform persons unlikely to care of the texter's or speaker's whereabouts.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drones_Club
http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Junior_Ganymede_Club
My club would be obliged to adhere to several unlikely requirements: No meetings, no agenda, no agendum , no items even.
My mind has wandered to Club Sandwiches. Three layers of bread, the middle one buttered both sides and in between whatever your heart desires. Mine is small salad stuff with mayo on the bottom layer and a load of prawns in fromage frais on the top. These sandwiches are cut into dainty triangles - crusts cut off and served on a porcelain plate with a crisp linen napkin. Me, I'm happy with a 'doorstep' sandwich, a couple of sheets of kitchen paper and the company of this excellent club.
It does bother me that we may seem so exclusive club-ish that new people are scared off!
HAZEL Our Club Sandwiches are not dainty in anyway. Three slices of bread, usually toasted, heavily mayoed...then turkey, bacon lettuce and tomato on each layer. Of course turkey can be switched off with almost anything from egg salad to lobster to avocado and on and on. Tradiitionally served at Country Clubs at lunch after tennis.
Locally, a Club Sandwich has the bottom layer with meat and the t op layer with the bacon lettuce and tomato. Any version is cut into triangles and generally stabbed with a frilled toothpick to keep it in place.
What will you have for your St. David's dinner?
Hazel ~
I have long since ceased to gush over or even welcome new posters: it seemed like bad luck when they disappeared.
Generally, they have their feet anointed, fannies massaged and words appreciated.
If they require more than that, they should seek refuge elsewhere. There is nothing more to be done.
Thank god for the little nooks & crannies where people of either gender can escape from the rat race, and validate their otherwise raggedy & frustrated lives by the free & open exchange of ideas. "Winning" in worldly terms unfortunately translates as "money & power." Unfortunately there is no room for the love of learning, spirituality, or a laundry list of other underappreciated values. Nobody ever solved their exixtential crisis (dealing with the absence of meaning) merely by being the man or the woman who accumulates the most toys. Now back to work, but at least I now know that the Sepia Train's club car will be open early for "happy hour." Club sandwiches may not have the snob appeal of dainty "finger food" with more exotic ingredients, but they can be ordered customized to each passenger's expectations.
The rich man has his Gentleman's Club, the poor man has his garden shed.
Club members should have a sense of humor. They should also be intimate with thinking deeply about more than themselves and not take themselves too seriously. They should be fascinated by words and ideas and have a playful imagination. Therefore, I put forth for membership into this club the following persons (in no particular order): William Shakespeare, PG Wodehouse, Cleopatra, the translators of the King James Bible (don't know about their sense of humor, but they were great with words!) and Queen Elizabeth the First.
To find meaning in your own life, begin, in your daily comings and goings, by failing to be a dark spot on the day of those with whom you meet, speak, interact or communicate in any way.
Is extrospection a word? It oughtta be.
Ahh! Great suggestions, all! I like Carol's club, as well as that of Paolos and LotLot! Grand thinkers, leaders, inventors, writers, humanitarians would make for a cerebral club, but for humor, I'd have to add Mark Twain, Oscar Wilde, Will Rogers, Jonathan Winters, Robin Williams, Bob Hope, Red Skelton, Billy Crystal, and Tim Conway. Of course, they'd nominate other comedians, and we'd all be laughing all the time. Any bitter memories would soon be met with a counterpart of humor or satiric glee.
Serve those ChefDeb Club sandwiches, just a variation of Hazel's, but mayo instead of butter. Offer a variety of fillers, turkey, ham, chicken, roast beef, Swiss cheeses, white American, Jarlsberg, or pepper jack, and layers of lettuce and tomato on wheat, white, rye, pumpernickel, or a mix. Wash that down with cold beer, bourbon and branch, or sweet tea...your choice. What time does theSepiaTrain Club Car open?
"Beg pardon, Sir, but the leather wing chair you are occupying has been the traditional seat of one of our most honored senior members."
"Oh, really? Not since my membership was accepted and annual dues fully paid."
"Very well, Sir. I shall inform His Grace, Lord Supperating-Analboyles of your position."
"W-w-wait a sec there."
Most of the clubs I have joined had a purpose such as my sorority ( to foster education, music, and service to humankind), church (making the world a better place), women's club (fostering arts, friendship, and beauty), retired teachers (supporting scholarships for higher education, tutoring, donations to the local food/clothing bank), game club (playing dominoes to improve friendships and laughter), and family (to give mutual love and support as needed).
Wonder why there were no "good ole gal" clubs as there were "good ole boy" clubs??? Perhaps the females were home cooking, washing, ironing, cleaning, caring for children?
In the rural communities, the "club" may be the local country store with fellows sitting on rockers or barrels playing checkers, rocking on the porch, or watching the main street to comment on those passing by. I remember in the small town, Inverness, FL where I grew up, a "club" of local men sitting on the low wall around the courthouse (the same fellows every day, mostly older guys), playing checkers in the shade of the moss-laden live oak trees, slapping their knees, laughing, spitting, and watching the traffic.
Bert - Your escape from the "rat race" vision of a club reminds me of the atmosphere in the local library....many cubbies in which to become isolated, distant corners of desks and large leather chairs in which to sink with a favorite book, magazine, or paper and not be disturbed. For me, a library is an oasis of thought and solitude, but seldom one of discussion or camaraderie. There is a need for both in our human psyche. A time to speak and a time to listen. "Good on you" for mentioning this vision.
Stoney - Your comment at 8:51 is noted. We shall not put you on the Welcome Basket Committee. ;-) Hazel, Bebe, and Carol are chairing that.
A little golf club humor compliments of Lee Trevino. If you are out on the course during a thunderstorm, take out a two iron and hold it in the air because even God can't hit a two iron.
Were I not welcome on thesepia train (and in its club car), such welcome would be my chief aspiration. For life. I am daily grateful for PeterLake.
A friend in New York CIty belongs to a club of Dorothy Sayers' description; women are allowed at only certain times, and never in pants, only skirts or dresses. Sunday brunch is often open to women, and he once took me...I felt I dwelt in a Henry James novel, and thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience...excellent food, fascinating people I'd never otherwise meet. And a beautiful building.
But I'm an anachronism in many ways. (Haven't time right now to read everyone's thoughts, but I'll return to enjoy them -- the dentist calls.) Some women are offended by a "gentlemen's club," but I'm not. Nor did I join the well-known woman (whose name I've lost) who, several years ago, protested outside gates of The Augusta National Golf Club. (Her complaint: No women on its Board of Directors.)
It takes all kinds, they say, and all kinds we have. Room for everyone, one place or another....see y'all later
P.S. the Augusta National event turned out "they gave a party and no one came."
She'd secured a permit, held a press conference, promised many attendees. Anticlimax. Everyone went about his/her business in Augusta and at the National. Golfers played golf; we natives know what streets to avoid; things got done as usual.
Good golf joke, PAOLOS; it'll come in handy with first-week-in-April visitors.
The thing about clubs is not whom they deign accept but whom they do not.
I'll stick with the club car and the odd coffee shop… open to all.
That said, I harbor resentment neither toward the clubby nor the rich and powerful come to that.
CD- I have been at a meeting in the little old bar at the back of Sloppy Joe's writing my own Rum Diary and imaginging that Big Skinner was the bartender. A member in good standing can still throw a knife accurately. Papa insists. *** Mr. P and peeps, I have been involved in several Philosopher's Clubs that reek of Double Coronas and at meetings the thinking and drinking are inseparable. In our latest tome my partners and I speak of Geulincx admiring his belief in preestablished harmony.*** In my mind, I have to add food to the mix and thay is why I must consider myself an associate member of Archie McNally's Pelican Club where with Archie I as his alter ego was perusing the lunch menu at the Pelican Club when I let out a howl, which was a bit uncouth even for that unpretentious lodge. This brought forth our waitress, Priscilla, a phenomenon as unusual as my outburst. To get Priscilla's attention is tantamount to hailing a taxi in the rain, as she would rather be gliding down a couturier's runway than punching the parquet at the Pelican.
"Steak tartare?" I exclaimed, still in a state of shock. The cuisine at the club is far from haute, and while I don't mind indulging in one of Leroy's thrombotic blue-plate specials, I draw the line on courting mad cow disease.
"Leroy is upgrading the menu," Priscilla explained.
I should say here that chef Leroy is Priscilla's brother and, along with their father and mother, Simon and Jasmine, the Pettibones are the African-American family of great charm who keep the Pelican aloft, as it were.
"What happened to the hamburger?" I asked. Leroy's hamburgers are among the best in Florida, if not the world.
"Like I said, we're upgrading."
"Before you reach the zenith, may I still order a hamburger, medium rare?"
"Sure."
"How, if it's not on the menu?"
"You order the steak tartare, medium rare."
"But that's a hamburger."
Priscilla put ten beautifully manicured fingernails on her slim hips and spoke as if instructing a not-too-bright child. "Well, a hamburger is what you want, isn't it?"
Leading with my chin, I countered, "Why should I pay fourteen ninety-five for a hamburger that cost seven-fifty, with pommes frites, yesterday?"
"Why? Because if you want to mutilate a perfectly good steak tartare, you have to pay for the privilege, that's why."And with that, Priscilla moved away with a smile, a nod, and a promise...
My father belonged to a club in NYC called The Players. It is on Gramercy Park and was the home of Edwin Booth. It was a big deal when he got in as iin those days, only gentlemen in the Arts were accepted, but once in a while, a Patron of the Arts got in by knowing some members. Women were not allowed except for some holiday dinners such as Easter and Thanksgiving.
Finally around the same time McSorley's allowed ladies in, The Players allowed women in at any time until they actually let them become members (someone like Mary Tyler Moore was the first). Nowadays I think if you have the membership fee, they'll take it!
What a wonderful old house -- filled with most of Edwin Booth's things as well as so much theatrical memorablia that no matter how often you go, there is always something new to discover. Any meal there was always amazingly exciting because one simply didn't know who you would standing in the buffet line with.
My wedding reception was there and it was the greatest one in history. In fact. that club factors into some of my happiest memories. The building started to fall apart and my dad was on the Building Committee. There simply was not enough money to restore it properly until they discovered in one of the upstairs bedrooms (open to members & guests of members--a few of my beaux stayed there)a painting worth millions of dollars! It would make a better story if i could remember the artist but nonetheless it was immensely gratifiying to my dad.
After his funeral we all went to The Players and had a sing-along culminating with "This Was a Real Nice Clambake."
Sorry for blathering again. The only club I want to belong to now is the Sepia Train (even Mr. P. seems to agree). I shall bring the club sandwiches--you will be dazzled by the variety. MOOSELOOP I was curious that you specified "white" American cheese.......
Blatherers welcome...nay, anticipated with delight.
I am pirating today's pic for a weeklong escapde on my social sites. It is so mysteriously cool. Makes me think of that Buffett tune. Ceilin' fan it stirs the air. Cigar smoke does swirl. Havana daydreamin'.
I always wanted to be "A Player"...
I've thought about this at some length and I could not come up with a more interesting group than the top 30 or so of this group right here...you probably know wat the list would look like. I'd be happy to make you a speech or facilitate a discussion or participate as a member but my preference would be to spend a few weeks listening to each of you talk about your life from birth to now and the experiences/circumstances/events that brought you to where you are today and how you feel about that.
There is a Time & Place for everything ... and at NO TIME, is a Gentlemens' Club the PLACE for Women ... I do not refer to those places jokingly call'd, "A Gentlemens' Club", where bare, flouncing, Plastic-Pump'd pulchritude abounds, to the strains of god-awful noise that Mental Deficients call, Music ... and the abbreviated costumes of the "Dancers" always remind me to buy Dental Floss ....... Rather, a secure and trustable place wherein Captains of Industry, Generals and Socially Prominent persons who do not flaunt their Good Fortune ... get together discretely, in a serene atmosphere, and play Monopoly on a World Scale ....... Like Lawyers who decide Verdicts on the Golf Course rather than in the Courtroom, such men as I describe quietly(usually) cuss and discuss the various details of the development and Order, of the World ... and then see that all that agreed upon, is follow'd up on and fully/satisfactorily executed by the Pieces on the Big Board ... These Giants might enjoy a London Broil or an Old Fashion'd or three while the discussion goes on, or a Massage and Steam ... and then to avoid being rude, they wait until they arrive home to Clip their Coupons and prepare for the next mornings' Business ... It is an Institution started by King Arthur and his fellows at the Round Table ...
Political Correctitude be damn'd !!! And besides ... Women have their Private Clubs, where they are free to gossip, trade Recipes, loosen their restrictive garments, pass gas, and whatever other undignified thing they might enjoy, out of the sight of the Men who adore them, and would be destroy'd by the truth ....... Those Clubs are the Lounges that are the Front Rooms of all the Ladies' facilities in Public places ... Theatres are especially plush, and popular ... The Little Woman doesn't really want to watch, The Longest Day or Stagecoach anyway ... She'll feign an attack of the Vapors, and excuse herself to cross the Lobby, to the Club ... A place by the way, where Men are not allow'd ... Politically Incorrect, No? But, Women are now allow'd into Mens' Clubs ....... Like so many others, of various ilk, the squeeky-wheel weaklings don't really want Equality ....... they want an Advantage ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MxGC1j2ogM
Haze, I think the nose-in-the-air-n-too-important-to-light-his-own-$50-cigar rich man often needs his club to disguise that after being weighed and measured....he may still be found wanting; while the poor-in-possessions-but-rich-in-character-and-humanity enters his modest shed and is content in being able to walk into and enjoy his limitless kingdom.
Georgia Peach, all who find joy in the magic of moonshine are grateful for the day you first strolled into theSepia's clubcar. If there was a sudden hush, it was because we were all awestruck.
I second that emotion.
Actually--and in fact--my Dad met my mother at The Players Club, where she was allowed because she was working there as a secretary and he was the very big star of the now mostly long forgotten Hellzapoppin--the 1930s forerunner of SNL. I think perhaps in his very last years he may have had some regrets for--in the end--she did him in. But for a time he was very pleased indeed, which is perhaps all one can expect. And having many of one's earliest memories set backstage at The WinterGarden is a bit of fun.
Oddly, I can't remember ever going there myself. But I recall another rather elegant club on Gramercy Park with a marvelous Maxwell Parrish mural.
Moose's post above that mentions sororities reminds me of my own social "fraternity" experience, my AAUW membership, and countless others that I have let lapse on purpose or forgot to stay affiliated with out of pure boredom. I'm just not a club joiner - or rather, I join a club, and then I can't wait to unjoin it. Or escape, is how I think of it. Club and Mob mentality are pretty much the same, and I don't care for either. For example: an Independent Thinkers Club sounds good, but it's just an oxymoron and would be as successful as say the United Nations. I guess some of us are destined to go it alone and with any luck we find kindred spirits here in the Village at the Eye.
I don't say this with a heavy heart......at least not since I was young boy.........but I've never been that guy whom folks seek out to join or belong to their group, club, or organization. Unless of course they were in desperate need of dues and since the only thing that I'd pay to gain admittance to is a baseball game or theatre, I was never tempted.
I have always simply preferred shaking hands, forming a short-lived or perhaps long-lasting bond of common ground and mutual respect. I somehow feel that membership in many clubs is like putting blinders on a horse to make certain it runs in the right direction with the rest of them. That may be nothing but a bunch of hoo-haa rationalizing on my part but at this stage of the game, it just doesn't matter.
There is however one club I would join if I could.
That would be the Racoon Lodge that Ralph Cramden and Ed Norton belonged to. I like the hats and secret handshake........
Peter Lake~ I agree - but that man will come out of the shed to help his kids build a tree house so they can have a club house too.
The Gould Corporation outside of Chicago had the only gentleman's club that I was ever invited to - not to join of course, but to dine at, with several gentleman. It was wood panelled and the flowers were tall and structured, where there were flowers, and the leather smelled very nice. And the men who belonged weren't boring - the ones I knew - but they were snobs in the way Corporate people tend to be. There were no menus, initially; ultimately menus appeared but in the tradition of old clubs, the ladies menu had no prices... I was young but I appreciated this place, and I've got to say, while I love the women in my life, they share the same qualities as do the men, in most ways (other than physically)- and all of us are quite comfortable in the panelled rooms of mens clubs rather than the blush pink of ladies clubs. I hope I'm making sense. It's not that I want to intrude upon the mens club membership, but frankly, their clubs are nicer and more comfortable than a club full of ladies. Why a woman's club must be pastels and bright, and men's, warm and paneled and intimate, I will never know. Don't quite know where I'm going with this other than it was a sad day for men when the Gould club went coed, and I can understand why. I'm willing to bet that the women here at the Eye feel much the same way as I do, since here we are always in the company of men, and it would seem, most all of us wouldn't have it any other way.
paneled, it's paneled, not panelled. I thought I had some paragraphs in there, alas, I didn't. Sorry for your eyes.
Breeze: your mother did your father in?!
God love you, Ivan.....but I gotta say that no lady or even non-lady wants to think of the foyer of a toilet as her club.
Now, for my club - I would want the membership to such cool ladies as Isak Dinesen. The scene of Meryl Streep as Karek Blixen being invited into the men-only bar in Out of Africa has always been a favorite. She had more balls than the rest of them put together.
Whether women only, men only, or human only, it must have attentive bartenders, comfortable chairs, impeccable food, and interesting members. And none of that need be fancy or exclusive.
PL: secret handshakes are over-rated. The only one I know of that belongs to my sorority is verging on obscene. We could never use it without giggling.
And I don't believe for a moment you weren't offered an invite to a club. I can and do believe you turned them all down, though.
Breeze- Great post. Working in Gypsy now with references to the 30's when Vaudeville was dying but Olsen and Johnson led the way in the world of Zaniness. And I too am intrigued like P4. Today we are barnstorming toward a 100+.
Breeze--I have to echo Park only I'm sqeeking it "your mother did your father in?" because I squeeked when I read what you wrote, but then thought...ah! something was left out and it will get taken care of later. Shandonista--I concur about the scene and would welcome Isak in my club, as well. I think she fits in with the rest of my very incomplete list offered earlier today. I've never been a club joiner....no Chess Clubs popped on extra curricular activity lists in high school and no sorority had much on offer as far as I could see. No Ladies Aid or Missions Guild for me, either. I don't doubt they do good things, they just don't appeal enough to join. There IS one club though, that just because of it's name I would think find it hard to recruit new members (I know nothing of their agenda, goals or aims this is purely based on their name) and that is "The Odd Fellows Club". Wouldn't be a kick in the pants to try and join only to find you're the odd man out?
I just looked up "The Odd Fellows" organization and it does do a lot of good---I still can't get past the name, however. Being female I wouldn't be an Odd Fellow, but a Rebekah. Still in all, reading over the page I came across the word "regalia" ---nope, not for me.
Are you an Odd Fellow? No. A Knight of Pythias? No. So where did you catch my act? At the Elks.
LOLOL....Yes, in fact she did. You don't think I'm gonna tell you how, do you? And, if you saw The Sunshine Boys, you have some idea how gloomy old zanies can get. That's what comes of younger "trophy" wives. Ultimately, they have their revenge. And when she was done, she took a long walk on The Great Wall of China with her by then elderly high school girlfriends for a breath of fresh air.
But long before all that --alas, long before I was born--there were the Zeigfield Follies and the Music Box Reviews and a little after that there was Ed Sullivan, who also brought us The Beatles...but TV put the final nail in the vaudvillian coffin. Hanging on my wall is a Hirschfeld NYTimes cartoon of the Hellzapoppin cast. I seem to remember a doll's tea party in my room featuring two toddlers, including one Joy Olsen. A very private club. Trying to recall if the crusts were cut off the cucumber sandwiches.
Ahhhhh ....... MISS SHANDONISTA ... Very Good hearing from you, and Glad to see You !!!
I hasten to say that, I do not say that any Woman would think of such Locale as a Club ... just that, the reality is that things just turn out that way, whether one thinks of it or not ... It is a place of private congregation, for a myriad of purposes ... Why is it that Women always find the need to powder their noses, in anything from a pair to a gaggle ??? Seems to be a Club Rule .......
Ivan..... You are my hero!
To go back to the main thread---pubs, taverns, gentlemen's clubs, wasn't that where men always went to escape their wives and families. And in the very finest clubs were men like Henry James, Sr.--America's most successful businessman, in his day--and Oscar Wilde's daddy--a noted surgeon--and others of their ilk, who, we later learned, lived double lives and had other wives and families hidden in the shadows. In each of their homes they surely had the privacy of their studies, and yet I suppose we can understand that they needed the added privacy of their very masculine clubs in which to comfortably--and perhaps very secretly--ponder the strategies and logistics of their very complex private and public lives.
You are so right, Park4. Men's clubs are much more elegant, warm and inviting to quiet contenplation than the fussy, frilly of Ladies' clubs. I do think more and more women are learning the beauty of quiet elegance in decor, but haven't been to any club except the Officers' Club, and that's been a while ago, so I couldn't be sure in regard to the club house decor.
I like Lotlots idea of a happiness club and Paolos' Presidents' Club. Mooseloop, you add the best for humor, especially Robin Williams--one of my special favorites. Hazel, I always said if I get to heaven I want to talk to St Peter and St. Paul. Maybe your Dad and I will run into each other.
Guess my book club is as close as I can get to club life. We'ver read everything from books on Islam to Uncle Tom's Cabin. Total of twelve of us.
George Hall ~
RE: 1:01 PM
Now we're all wondering if we'd make your top thirty.
It could be Peterman's Ear.
ChefDeb ~
I'm starting to think of you as GramercyDeb.
I liked your report a lot.
Does Sam's Club count?
No.
You need to have a secret handshake to have a proper club. A vaguely obscene handshake. A secret word also helps. And by god if you have a secret knock, you've got yourself a Club in spite of yourself....We had a secret password and a knock too. MOOSE, don't worry, I'm not going to blurb out panhellenic secrets - all of panhell could implode if members began to knock their secret knocks in public or drop their secret words for all to read....it's all really silly though, gee. At least I had the sense to know it was silly way back when though. Rusty: wouldn't that be better? the paneled rooms and comfortable chairs of a mens club for a womans club, if women were to have a club, that is. Frills are unnerving, even to this woman. On the body or on the walls, I leave the frills to nurserys and kids rooms...ya got good taste, Rusty. ;)
And yes, George Hall now we need to know who's on The List of Thirty. We're not going to sleep until you spill the beans about the Thirty or So. Talk about being put on the spot...SHANDONISTA: one of the best scenes in that film, which was full of best scenes, but like you I recall that one when the gentlemen"stand" her for a whiskey as one of the best of the best. Brave intelligent woman, was Karen Blixen.
How about the Triple A Auto Club? It rejected me back in 1972 and I've held a grudge ever since.
Who else?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PgRznuRseA
38 more to the C note club.
My treehouse club- The Lost Boys- required that you could play a recognizable song using the arm fart and you could kill a Dr. Pepper in one swig and knew all of the words to the Gilligan's Island theme song. Then you had to allow the other guys to frog your arm. That smarted but what we wouldn't do for acceptance. But if the right girl came along, the social structure collapsed and any and all would dump on their buds for a chance to kiss. Some would brag about using tongue. Times have changed for a kid of a dozen summers.
38C
I like the idea of a Club, the get-togethers, the conversations, the people, THE FOOD! I don't see myself as a joiner of clubs, but a worker that gets recruited......I enjoy the organization and the opportunity that is offered, but if I am not having fun, I won't be back. Humor is very important, especially for a Club.
I think the club car in the sepia train is fine for me, all are welcomed, bring your friends. There is food and drink and we love to talk about thoughts on the food and drink..... It's a great opportunity to watch and listen. I enjoy people watching and people listening, it's story telling 101....................
This does not sound like a Club - it sounds like a party! I guess the difference between a Club and a party is that Clubs can meet every day or at least once a week/month. A party is more of an occasion, otherwise it would be a "wake".
Just doing my part Paolos to get to the "c-note".
Hey Tommy! I know all the words to the Gilligan's Island theme song! It is one of those songs you can sing just about any song lyrics to....
Park4~ Just between you and me you are right there at the top, very near Mr. Stoney.
This site is similar to a club. Each of its members are pleasant and kind and welcoming. Wish we could meet in person and have coffee.
Ptex- If you can also perform Car 54 Where are you? and Lorne Green's lyrics to Bonanza. On this land we put our brand. Cartwright is the name...dum duh duh dum Bonanaza! Oh No. That made me think of Bobby Kennedy doing Wild Thing, the old Troggs hit and William Shatner doing the talk sing Star Trek Theme.
Far better, Park4. The paneled walls and richly appointed, comfortable chairs would also do away with talk of babies and the latest styles and lead to conversations on culture: art, theater, music, etc. The atmosphere would set a tone, don't you think?
My gosh, I'm glad I came back.... PETERLAKE and STONEY, you've outdone even yourselves, and that's a hard thing to do. How could I NOT love you?
See you in the club car of thesepia train, my very personal very favorite....
Penelopetx ~ It's not for myself, mind you, it's for poor
Tommy. He needs the C note to get back in the club.
Here’s another look at Gilligan, I wonder if Tommy knows all
the words to this one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eu77tX7uDvc
Hazel’s 10:01 put me in mind of the song. There’s another version with a stanza that
starts out Rich girl uses vaseline, poor
girl uses lard, my girl uses axle grease…
Some of you may know it.
I have a feeling the sidewalks are rolling up early in the
village tonight.
paolos~ That's very funny. I'm rolling up under my duvet any minute. It does annoy me that I live in the wrong time place to enjoy the evening chats. Bring back the flat earth theory.
Nos da.
PARK..............my eyes, my d*mn eyes...........................
CHEFD......................mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...............................I'll be there.....................
HAZE...........................Happy St. David's Day & to my great grandfather who came from where you are!
TT..................I just finished that one, poor Melva...............am now starting on McNally's Trial.............................a deight to curl up w/..........................
You all make me happy.......................
Can't stop enjoying STONEY's "38C." I was all set to write "less is more" 'til the irony hit me. I do love Peterman's Ear, and now we're certain he reads our notes: How else could he know of thesepia train? Which begs the question, always, in my mind, "How did he think, hope, guess Peterman's Eye would turn out?
Someone asked does Sam's Club count; how about COSTCO? A semi-club? We just got one; things are slow finding us down here, so it may the last in the U.S. ChefDeb, "Gramercy Deb" has a nice ring...classy....
Given how we wove our way from gentlemen's clubs to here, I'd say it's been a good day all 'round at The Eye. But I won't sleep 'til I know The List of 30.
PARK 4, Out of Africa is among my favorites, and brave indeed was Karen Blixen. I felt the audience snarl with me when she arrived, weary and worn, at her husband's camp, and he virtually ignored her. That film is filled with good scenes, and one of few whose directors and actors understood the difference between in-your-face sex and lovely sensuality and gentle sensuousness, far more to be desired.
Thank you GEORGE HALLl; you are a sweetheart. And RUSTY, yes I do indeed agree. I like the part about discouraging talk about babies and such. Enough of that, I've had years of that - I'm ready to be an adult now... HI BEBE, now you see her now you don't - and NOS DA to Hazel. STONEY, a storm tomorrow? So they are threatening on the weather channel. I hope they are wrong -- getting ready for wind, snow, rain, hail and the possibility of tornadoes. Are these awful tornadoes and winds in excess of 180 mph really necessary. We need to invite MOTHER NATURE to our club, and have a sit down with her...NOS DA from Wisconsin, where the weather tonight is...it's dark, is what it is. And no wind...a quiet night...night all. You've got your work cut out for you if you want to hit the C mark.
...and I agree with PeterLake: IVAN is our hero.
MOOSE...............make sure I'm in a good mood first! Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahahahahaha.............................
MISS GEORGIA & PETER LAKE: You both exhibit Graciousness beyond belief ...
Bless You Both, and Thank You .......
FInally, I've read everyone's thoughts; enjoyed them, and...oh, PL and STONEY, you make me cry -- the happiest of weepings. Suppose I'd never found you? I can't bear the thought.... Some way, somehow, you'd have found me.
TOMMYTYPICAL, I'm not sure how "typical" you are: Are you in production of a new play? Writing your own? Acting in your or someone else's? The hints are there....
GEORGIA You are right about GramercyDeb being an improvement. I have often regretted choosing that particular handle as its kind of like being the Pillsbury Doughboy or something...
Good night everyone! Mr. P's Club rules!!
I'm developing a real soft spot for persons whose names start out G-e-o-r-g…
Thank you both so much.
38-c? Well, I was groping around in the mists of adolescent memory for a reference but I just couldn't put my finger on it.
ChefDeb ~ You can change it any time you like. We will still know you for
your lovable selfsame self. If you change it to GeorgramercyDeb, Stoney will
have a soft spot in his heart for you too.
Sorry for being so late, and strolled right into the After Hours Dining Car....Club....I do like clubs...with their secret passwords....usually a latin...word is chosen..to open the nite discussion....as long as there is a mission statement that persuades one to be social, partakes in civil matter with practice of nice mannerisms along with a note of humor...I am in like Flynn....!!! I am a ZETA life-long member...and public schools at one time ...because there were so many children in Pittsburgh you could join a sorority in 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade.along with being a Majorette.....I was a Sub-Deb...this is quite historical..most people have long forgotton these national council grade school sororities..I belong to one Socrates Salon...it is wonderful...fun and conversational...too....Long day today, my mother is in town...
Park4 - I understand the aversion to sororities and the cliques that gave the college Greeks a bad reputation, but my group was and is just what I need, a group of educated, hard-working, conscientious women who are friends....I am an only child, so with no sibs in life, and no close associates in college, the sorority became like family....I was pledge trainer, VP, then Pres. of the college group, then as an alumnae, greeted in the big city of Atlanta the first week in town, knowing no one, by "sisters" who had graduated from other colleges, but were in the same national group and who became and still are, my friends! It has been a good experience for me, and no silliness or shallowness associated. Maybe "you get out of it what you put into it..." ?
ChefDeb - white American has a different flavor than the yellow processed stuff, and the white American is just better somehow....I do not know the chemistry of the cheesemaking process to explain why the difference.
Jalopkin - No ladies group getting together does so in order to pass gas freely, I assure you! That is a man thing!! Check it out. Gossip, laugh, and tell jokes, yes, but bathroom jokes...no ladies group I have ever seen.
MOOSELOOP: How fortunate you are to have been so Blessed as to be spared the Pro-Wrestler antics of aphewwww ....... My birth-mother's seven sisters all lived in my home off and on(mostly on) when I was growing up, because we had indoor plumbing, and four bathrooms in a very large house, and none of them liked their parents anyway ... they would congregate in several parts of the house, and many times with groups of friends, and the only difference between these Women and Truck Drivers was occasional displays of Gingham ....... Not the true flowers of Southern Womanhood at all, and often reminiscent of a scene from Blazing Saddles ....... No one pay attention to a four or five year old kid, sitting quietly in a remote corner of a room, reading .......
My sermon for the day..........."Smile"!
Oh Moose, I don't know. I gave it my best, but I had little in common with my 30 plus pledge class. The girls I liked were mostly seniors when I rushed, and so when I moved into the house, they were gone. And my pledge class were cute smart cute pretty social cute smart cute. Everything you'd want in a pledge class I guess, but belonging to a too cute and too "popular" house can be a whole lot of nothing as far as meaningful lasting experiences and friendships. I have several friends still from college, most are older than I, and were pledged before me. My class - cute. Popular. And smart. But you wouldn't find them spending free time at our very good University library. So I got married and moved out...;)
pledge class was not were
More Salad Dressing, Less Mayo.