My Past Life Experiences

There are so many of my past life experiences that are very unusual and quite different from the normal person. I would like to relay most of them to the world for anybody who would like to read about them. They are enjoyable and light reading. They do not require a lot of concentration. What is magnificent about them is the fact that all of them are true. There are so many that when I start to write about one incident, three or four other ones come to my mind. I feel that I could write continuously about these experiences.

Walking By Myself Alone at Night in Detroit...

The first time I danced in Detroit, Michigan as a stripper was an eye opening experience that I had not expected; but I did adjust to it. The burlesk theater was downtown. Late at night, the only businesses open were the theater and a little restaurant next door. But the restaurant closed before the theater; so when the theater closed, everything was desolate and bare - nno traffic - or people.

The first night I worked it there - after the show - all of us on the show walked out of the theater. Everyone went their separate ways. I was left alone on the street in front of the theater. It was dark and desolate with nothing around me but big buildings - closed businesses. I decided right then that if I am going to be afraid - I will not be able to work on the road.

I just took off walking to my motel which was only about six blocks away. But they are long blocks when you are all alone on the big mean streets of a big city at night and the dark sound of silence surrounding you.

If someone would have attacked me, I would have been at their mercy. It would have done me no good to even holler because no one was around to hear it. I was really scared; but I knew I had to get through the week and hope that I would live through it.

I had no protection at all such as a gun or knife. Later on in my burlesk career, I learned to carry a knife or ice pick up my sleeve ready to use. Also, a hot cup of coffee to throw in the assailants face if attacked. I, also, tried to program my self to be ready all the times for an attack; so I would better be able to protect myself if attacked.

But no matter how prepared one is - when the actual time comes - that is the big test. A person can say what they would do if attacked but might be too scared to do anything.

When I worked in New York City in Time's Spuare, I was never afraid to walk on the street at night because there were always people on the streets. If someone would have attacked me, there would have been a chance for me to holler for help and maybe get help.

I had to take a lot of chances with my life when I was on the road. I am glad I lived through it all and hope I never have to take chances like that again.

Al Baker Told Me I Could Not Work Another Theater...

When a stripper worked the Al Baker circuit, he did not allow her to work for any other burlesk theater. Strip clubs were alright but not burlesk theaters - something to do with the competition.

One of the times I was in New York City working for Al Baker at the Roxy Burlesk Theater on 42nd Street, I heard about a burlesk theater around the corner that paid $300.00 a week. I decided to check it out.

It was different from Al Baker's theaters. One act was a live sex act with a man and woman. One dancer stuck her high heel inside her. At times, men would ejaculate on the stage. One dancer was complaining because one time she slipped in it. This was a lot different from Al Baker's theaters where no one was even allowed to touch you. But with all this at the other theater that paid $300.00 - no one was actually allowed to "touch" you either. But I put all the negative things about it aside because I needed the extra $300.00.

I was booked at the Roxy for one week with Al Baker; so I thought if I could work at this other theater for one week, it would really help. I went to see about the job. I asked to speak to the manager. I told him I was looking for a job for one week. He said "Doing what?" I told him I was working at the Roxy Theater for one week and someone told me I could make $300.00 if I danced here this week. He later told me after we became friends, that he thought I was applying for a cashier or cleaning lady job. Whenever I was not on the stage bare-assed naked - but with my clothes and glasses on and my cross-eyes glaring out, I looked completely different.

He told me I might not be able to handle the rough way of dancing in this place and for me to take a look and decide if I wanted to do it. This is the act where I saw the girl stick her high heel shoe inside herself. I needed the $300.00; so I figured I could handle it for one week. I told him I could do it. He gave me the job and saw that I was more than a cleaning lady or cashier when I hit the stage.

I worked there a couple of days when I got a call from Al Baker telling me that I could not work that other theater because it was against his rules. I told him I needed the money for my kids. This always melted his heart with him because he knew I was telling him the truth. He respected me for raising my kids and spending all my money on them.

He told me that he knew I would use the money for my kids and not give it to some man or use it for drugs or alcohol. He told me it was alright to work there for the week.

I told him, "Thanks!" - and I really did appreciate it. But he knew as well as I did that I could not afford to give up $300.00 - and that I would not. I was a good, dependable employee. I knew he wanted to keep me and I wanted to stay.

I am glad he told me O.K. Because my stubborn - bullheadedness would have caused me to work there anyway. If he would have fired me, I would have really been in a mess. But it would not have been the first mess or the last one that I got in and then survived. But I am glad he said, "O.K.".

Different Roads to Finding Your Spirit....

I think it is imperative that each of us find our own true self - our own true spirit. All of us do not reach this level on the same road. We all take different roads at times. Who is to say that one road is better or worse than the other? The road that is right for one person may be wrong for another. The end result is what counts. A person might cook rice differently from someone else. As long as it is edible the way he or she likes it; and it serves as a good nutrition value, who cares how it was prepared?

The road I took to find my true spirit and to come face to face with it was quite an unusual road. When I became a stripper, this is the road I traveled that led me to enlightenment. I discovered my spirit. I introduced myself to my spirit. I came face to face with my spirit. I reached a level so high that I would not have been able to cope with the beautiful feeling if it had been any higher.

My spirit has been with me forever. It just took this - what most common ordinary people would call irrational act - to permit me to meet my spirit and to always know that my spirit is continually with me and will always guide me.

My spirit guided me through all the hard times of raising my children. Without the knowledge of my spirit, I do not see how I could have managed this. At that time, I did not know how to take care of myself - let alone two little kids and to raise them to adulthood.

My spirit continually is with me as I make all decisions in my life. Thanks to the road I took as being a stripper and an outcast of society. This decision was the best one I ever made in my life. I truly did find my spirit in the most unconventional way.

Glad No One Called the Law on Me...

Sometimes when I think about all the chances I took with my children's safety and my own during my years as a stripper, one stands out in my mind. I am really glad that someone did not call the law on me for taking my kids in the porno movie places where I danced as a stripper.

They would wait back stage for me to do my show. Many times, they would take a dressing room for all their toys and games. All the dancers would walk around naked in front of them. They would play games such as board games with them while being naked.

I do not feel that this type of life damaged my children. I feel that it opened their minds to know that sex and the human body is not something to be ashamed of. It helped them to mentally surpass common, everyday thinking on such matters as this.

But if I had to do over, I would not have taken them backstage because now I realize that one phone call to the police could have caused me to lose my kids forever. I am happy now that I was not smart enough to realize this back then. All I knew then was that I was making a lot of money and that my kids were too young to leave by themselves.

I am glad about my past ignorance in this regard. The lessons of everyday, street smart that my kids obtained from this type of life could not be learned in any school. There is no class for it.

I know that either one of my kids could be left in any major city or small town with nothing but the clothes on their acks and make a go of it on their own - survive. Not many people could do this. The type of life I exposed to them from the burlesk theaters has helped to prepare them for such things as this. The street smarts they learned as children will benedit them the rest of thier lives.

George Belching and Other Bad Habits....

I like people who are different. Maybe not so much different - but who are not hypocrites and who are themselves no - matter what people think about them. I have more respect for a person who will come up to me and say they hate me than for someone who pretends to be my friend. I might not like it; but I will have respect for this person.

This is what really attracted me to a lover of mine back in the seventies. He always said what he felt no matter what anyone thought. He had a lot of money but wore clothes he got from such places as the Salvation Army. He owned Canton Storage and Transfer and slept in one of the rooms at his storage warehouse.

He was so gross. But his grossness turned me on. When we went to a movie, if he had to go to the restroom, he would just pull it out and pee on the floor. He chewed snuff. When we were in department stores, he would spit on the floor. At the grocery stores, he would open a jar of something and taste it. If he had to belch, he would do it really loud no matter where he was.

I thnk his grossness turned me on because it was on the same category as some of the exhibitionist pranks my stripper friends and I would play on people. I liked finding a man as crazy or even crazier than myself.

One time he was standing in the back of the burlesk theater in Canton, Ohio watching my show. He belched really loud. One of the guys watching my show turned around looking disgusted. It was really strange and funny and quite coincidental; but every so often after that, when this same guy was at the theater watching my show, my gross boyfriend would be standing in the back of the theater and let out a big belch.

This guy became really irritated at the belching and more so each time he heard it. None of the other guys even acknowledged the belch; but he did. When he heard the belch, he would look all around looking disgusted and mad squirming in his seat.

I told my boyfriend about this guy - about how he would cuss and squirm around when he heard the "big belch"! We both thought it was really funny.

One day I was not working and my boyfriend and I were in the theater for some reason. I saw the guy that hated the belching sitting in the audience. I told my boyfriend. We both thought it would be really funny to sit behind this guy and have my boyfriend let out a big belch.

My boyfriend was six foot one, weighted 250 pounds, and had a 52 inch chest; so he was not afraid to take on any man. We sat behind the guy. The stage show started. My boyfriend was directly behind him. He let out a really loud belch. The guy got up and walked to the end of our aisle and hollered, "You son-of-a-bitch!" We both laughed so much. It was so funny. Tears were coming out of my boyfriend's eyes from laughing so much. He later told me that if that guy would have hit him, he could not have defended himself because he was so weak from laughing.

Opal as THE X-RATED GRANDMA - Talking Crap:

The Thrill of Shocking People....

Most of the girls I worked with as a stripper were natural exhibitionists including myself. At that time of my life, I enjoyed the thrill of shocking people. I still do but, maybe, not as intensely as I did back then.

I never wore a bra. Sometimes my tops were so skimpy and see through that a blind man could have seen my nipples.

Some girls I worked with in Buffalo, New York proved to be as wild, if not wilder, than me. They went to eat at the chicken place next door to the burlesk theater. After they ate, the waitress came over to give them the check. One of the girls who had extra big tits just pulled them out and dropped them on the table and said, "How much do we owe?"

They were told to leave and never come back and to forget about the bill - just leave! That was alright with them. They figured they got a free meal and would probably never be in Buffalo again anyway. And if they were, that was not the only restaurant in town. The shocked look on the face of the waitress was workth getting kicked out and barred.

One time after work in Kansas City, Missouri, a customer who had the "hots" for me gave my friend, a stripper, and me a ride a few blocks away from the club where we were working to a party at a restaurant. He was a low-keyed quiet married man. We were all three in his pick-up truck. My friend was sitting in the middle. It was rush hour traffic. My friend pulled her top up and shook her breasts. He said, "Oh! My God!" She could have caused him to have a wreck. It was so funny to see the surprised look on his face that a wreck would have been worth it.

These are just examples of what most of us strippers liked to do for fun. The thrill of seeing the suprised, shocked, look on someone's face was fun and is fun to do.

My Parents Never Loved Me....

I have always felt that my mother and father have never loved me. I am fifty four years old and still feel this way. I would like to know the reason before I die why they do not.

One time a friend of mine, actually a lover back in the late seventy's, by the name of George Pappas explained to me why he thought they never loved me. He said that since I was the third child and my parents already had the perfect family - a boy and a girl, that my arrival put a boomerang in their idea of a perfect family. Also, at one month old I became ill with the hoopen cough which caused the leaders of my eyes to weaken; thus I became cross eyed. Back when I was a kid, any type of deformity - anything less than perfect - was considered as retarded. So, as George explained to me, having an unwanted third child, and being labeled as retarded is a possible explanation for their not loving me. I do remember, many time, my mother saying, "I don't know what's ever gonna become of Opal!"

I have worried and cried over their not loving me many times over the years. I have tried to do different things to make them love me and to feel acceptance from them. None has worked. I might think that maybe I am wrong; but the same feelings have been with me for my entire life; so this leads me to believe that maybe they are real feelings and they have never ever loved me. The feelings have intensified over the years form different actions my parents have done to prove their unlove for me.

As I said, I always felt unloved by them; but I was never copletely sure of this until I had my own children. The strong love I have for them shows me that my parents do not love me. I have never felt one fraction fo the type of love I have for my children from my parents.

One time I asked a fortune teller why my parents have never loved me. She told me that I have an old soul and that the type of love I am capable of having and projecting - they do not even comprehend.

Many times I wish that I did not love them as much as I do; but I am happy to know that I am capable of projecting a strong love for my children - something that I have never had and will never have. I will never have this type of love from my parents. But I am more lucky than they are; and I feel sorry for them because een though I will never feel this type of love, they are far worse off than me because they will never be capable of giving it.

High Power Watched Over Me

I went throught a period of drinking alcohol after my kids reached eighteen. I felt a relief that I had done my job - an accomplishment of having raised them to adulthood.

My drinking went too far. One time, I blacked out and woke up on a bridge driving to North Kansas City. At that point, I knew there was a higher power. There was no way I was in control of the car. Someone besides me was driving.

This, also, happened to me many othere time like when I would wake up at home but did not remember driving home. If it had not been for the higher power watching over me while I was heavily drinking, I would not be able to write about it now.

I really do believe that my life has been saved to do some good. I hope I realize the good I am supposed to do and do it.

Opal's X-RATED GRANDMA Doritos commercial:

Higher Power that Helped Us...

There have been many experiences that I have endured since I left Lamar, Missouri. Nobody was as dumb as me. I am glad I lived through all of them. I am glad my children lived through all of them. I was so ignorant of the world - not only the big things that happened but, also, the small things. I did not realize the potential dangers that many of my actions put my children and me in. If I had to do over, I would not have taken the chances that I took. But since it is over, and we all lived through it, I am glad I took the chances. If I had not, we would not have done and seen all the things that we experienced. From this, I know that there is a higher ower that watched over us and protected us and always directed my thoughts to do the right things as best I could. If it had not been for this higher power, we would not be here today.

Stripper Fell Asleep....

One of my managers, I will not mention any names, at one of the burlesk theaters where I worked was always bragging about how he was so good at sex. One day he told my friend who was the projectionist, "I fucked that girl so hard last night she passed out!" When this same stripper came to the theater, she told my friend that she went home with the manager last night. She said, "He was so boring, I fell asleep!"

Guy Told Stripper No Steaks, if No Bed

I worked with a girl as a stripper in Syracuse, New York - I do not remember her name - who told me about going to a guy's apartment. He was a regular customer; so she felt pretty safe. He asked her to his place to eat some steaks. While the steaks were cooking, he came in and said, "Well, we have time to go to bed while the steaks are cooking!" She told him she did not want to go to bed. He replied, "If you don't fuck, you don't eat!" She told him to stick his steaks up his ass and left.

Lori and I Hiding Our Pay in our Suitcases

When my friend, Lori, and I decided to go to Boston to strip at the 2 O'Clock Club, we were broke. I used the payment that I was going to send off to my son John's military school for our plane tickets. We were able to get a draw at the club when we arrived to get us by for the week until we made some money.

The night we got paid we his our money in our suitcases. The dressing room was upstairs above the club. We got our suitcases and walked down the stairs. When we reached the bottom of the stairs, we both looked into our suitcases to see if the money was still in them.

What was so funny about this is we had just put the money in the suitcases right before we walked down the stairs. I do not know where we thought it would go. Also, neither one of us knew the other one was going to look in her suitcase. We laughed about it. Our brains were on the same wave length. I guess it had been so long since we had had any moey that we wanted to make sure it did not go anywhere.

Opal's new episode of THE X-RATED GRANDMA:

Lori and I Gave Notice to Leave Al Baker...

I had worked on the Al Baker Burlesque Theater circuit for, at least, six years when I decided I wanted to make more money. My friend, Lori Lanier from Calgary, Canada - she danced under the name of Peaches and Cream - decided she wanted to make more money, too. She had not worked the circuit as long as I had; but we had become close friends like sisters - and it was fun being together.

We had heard about the 2 O'Clock Club in Boston, Massachusetts. We could double our pay plus get commission hustling drinks.

We let Al Baker know that we were leaving. We were in Canton, Ohio working at the State Burlesk Theater when we gave our notice. As in most jobs where I have given notice to leave, the manager gave us a hard time. The manager, Marty, was telling us the benefits of staying with Al Baker. Then he said something really stupid. He said, "Al Baker is going to give pencils to all his employees for Christmas". Lori said, "Al Baker can stick his pencils up his ass!" That is the last we heard about staying.

Traffic Laws in Kansas City....

When I first started driving in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, I found that they had more traffic laws than what I had been used to experiencing in the small town of Lamar, Missouri. One such law involved parking.

One day during the five-o'clock rush hour, I was driving in downtown Kansas City looking for a parking spot. I had driven around for quite sometime when I saw one. I really felt lucky and wondered why nobody else had parked in it. I parked my car and went to wherever I was supposed to be going.

When I came out to my car, much to my surprise, my car was gone. I thought, "Oh! No! Someone stole my car!" I called the police. They came over. They asked me where my car was parked. I showed them. Then they showed me! They pointed to a sign - a No Parking - Tow Away sign.

Another incident relating to the big city's driving laws which I learned the hard way concerned one-way streets. I had never heard of one-way streets before in my whole life. I soon found out that they existed. I am just glad I lived through the experience.

One day in Kansas City, I was driving down the street. Suddenly, I saw a lot of cars coming toward me on my side of the street. I was frantic! They kept coming - one after the other. They were honking their horns at me and hollering obscenities. I thought, "These people are nuts! Why are they driving on the wrong side of the road? And why are they mad at me? They are the ones doing the wrong thing!

Soon, I learned that it was me who was doing the wrong thing when a compassionate driver, instead of showing his middle finger, used his index finger to point to a sign that said ONE WAY!

Medians in the middle of the road were another thing that I had never encountered in Lamar, Missouri and had never heard about. The policeman who stopped me for this violation was more dumbfounded from my improper driving act than I was from the new law I was about to encounter - new to me, anyway.

I was driving on Paseo Street in Kansas City, Missouri. There was a lot of traffic. I needed to get to the other side because I needed to go in the other direction. There was only one problem - a big piece of cement in the middle of the road which separated my raod from the one I wanted to take. I really did think it was stupid to have a big piece of cement in such a location; but I really saw no big problem from it. I just drove my car over the cement and got on the other side.

I was driving along when a policeman stopped me. He asked me why I went over the median like that. I did not know what he was talking about. He said, shaking his head, "That's the first time I ever saw anything like that - someone just driving over the median to the other side of the road". Finally, I realized what he was talking about. I replied sarcastically, "Oh! You mean that big piece of cement in the middle of the road? I drove over it because I had to get to the other side". He told me I could not do that and asked if I as drinking. I told him that I as not drinking and that I act like this all the time. He told me that he would not give me a ticket but for me to never do that again. I was confused and asked him how I could get to the other side of the road without driving over the cement. He explained to me how to go to the light and turn around. I asked him, "You mean I have to go all the way up to the light and turn back this way?" He said, "Yes". I was still baffled by this rule when I asked him why they put big cement blocks in the middle of the road anyway. He just shook his head and walked away, but said as he was leaving, "I'm not going to give you a ticket. You have enough problems the way it is!:

Opal as PHONE SEX GRANDMA:

Parking Lots in Kansas City....

When I first started go-go dancing in Kansas City, Missouri, I was, basically, a "hick from the sticks". There were basic everyday things that people used in the city that I was not aware such as parking lots. I had never parked in a parking lot before in my life. This was a big deal for me. My hometown, Lamar, Missouri, did not have parking lots.

It took me awhile to adjust to parking lots. I experienced some terrifying incidents before I got used to using parking lots. One example of such incident occurred one time when I parked my car in a parking lot in downtown Kansas City and then went to work. It was still daylight when I parked my car; but when I got off work, it was night. Not realizing that there was more than one parking lot in Kansas City, I went to the first parking lot I saw. I did not see my car. I was terrified. I walked around a little and saw another parking lot. I thought, "What is this? Two parking lots?" Now I was not only terrified but, also, confused. I had not realized that when I parked my car that I should have noted the street the parking lot was on. I did not do this because I was unaware that Kansas City even had more than one parking lot. This thought did not enter my mind.

Just by luck. I finally did find my car. I, eventually, learned that night that unlike Lamar, Kansas City has more than one of almost everything, especially, parking lots.

Opal as PHONE SEX GRANDMA:

Cars Following Me....

When I was traveling from state to state while dancing as a stripper, I encountered a lot of weird people. I always tried to be as careful as possible. Once in awhile I would have some nut follow me from the theater or club after work. Soon, I was lucky enough to figure out how to get rid of him with no problems or confrontations.

As soon as I arrived in a city, I would find out where the police station was. That way, if someone was following me, I would not get excited. I would just drive normally making him think everything was alright, and that I was going for it. Little did he know I was headed for the police station. I would just pull up in front of the station. The car following me would speed out as fast as possible.

One time, before I had figured this out, someone was following me from the State Burlesk Theater in Canton, Ohio. I was staying at the Towne Manor Motel. I was really scared. All I wanted to do was get to my room. I was too scared to realize that I should not let him know where I lived.

As soon as I arrived at the motel I ran in the office and told Ruth, the desk clerk, that I was being followed. She immediately got a pen and paper and went to the door. The car pulled up. He saw her with the pen and paper. Knowing that she was going to write his license's plate number down prompted him to speed away. He almost hit a car in the oncoming traffic.

Quite a few years before this just when I was barely starting to go-go dance part-time on twelth street in Kansas City, Missouri, I left work and was heading home when I noticed a car following me. I took streets and alleys I did not know trying to lose them. I was so scared. I did not know my way around Kansas City at all; but I did know that if I could find Truman Road that maybe I could make it to Vitale's Restaurant which was, at least, ten miles away. There were always police cars parked across the street; so I thought that if I could, at least, make it there that I would be safe.

Thankfully, I found Truman Road. They were still following me. I was running stoplights hoping that a policeman would stop me. Unfortunaletly, it seemed like we were the only vehicles on the road. The car would get even with me; and the driver would look over really mean at me. I really think I could recognize him today if I saw him.

I was so lucky I did not have car trouble or something. I made it to the restaurant. To my relief, the police cars were parked across the street. I pulled up by them and told them what happened. The car sped away - out of sight.

I look back now and wonder why the police did not pursue the car. But I am so happy I lived though it.

Opal's new episode of THE X-RATED GRANDMA:

Streaking A Formal Affair - Canton, Ohio

I really did some pretty weird, insane things back when I was a stripper before I was even thirty years old. The things I did were not to hurt anyone. I just delighted in the thrill of shocking someone with certain off the wall behaviors.
One such incident was the time Jim Manos who managed the State Burlesk Theater in Canton, Ohio wanted me to pull a prank on a big party. There was a class reunion at a big fancy country club. Some of the guys at the reunion asked Jim if he could get a stripper to streak the party. Guess who Jim asked. Of course, anything for a laugh and a chance to shock some uppitty people was right down my alley.
Jim showed me the map of the country club dining area. Still, I was not sure how to get out of the place; but I wanted to do it anyway.
He drove me out to the country club and parked across the big lawn. I walked through the front dorr - naked as a jaybird. No one was around. I heard some people talking and looked in the large fancy dining area. The men were in tuxedoes and the women were in formal gowns. It looked like a senior prom "get together".
At that point, I ran upon the stage, bent over, spread my butt cheeks in front of the crowd, and ran out the back door. At least, I thought it was the back door. Turns out, it was the kitchen. One of the cooks hollered, "Call the police!" I thought, "Oh! No! How can I get out?" Luckily, I saw another door and ran to it. It went outside. I was running down the steps. Two chauffeurs were sitting on each side of the steps. I said, "Hi!" they replied, "Hi!" We were all three really
nonchalant - like, "Ho! Hum!"
I saw Jim's car across the lawn. I ran and got in it. We both had a big laugh.


Special Quote, Written By Opal Dockery on July 17, 2003, a 40 year old vegan:
"Humans and non-humans are animals. All deserve an equal right to be treated with dignity and respect. One species has no right to rule over another in any manner such as slavery or determining the other's fate as with death. Until humanity as a whole realizes this, no peace will ever be available."

I Took Chances On The Road With My Small Children

I was really lucky when I was raising my two kids. I was so dumb back then that our mere survival has reinforced the fact of knowing that there was a higher force looking out for us.
I took a lot of chances back then that I would not take now. I did not realize the full danger that could happen in certain situations. But being twenty four with no life experiences compared to fifty four with an abundance of life experiences explains why I was this way.
I am glad that I was dumb back then because if I had not been, we would not have done all the things we did and went all the places we went. I would have been too worried. Sometimes I think back; and it scares me to think about the chances I took with our lives and well-being. This reaffirms the knowledge inside me of the fact that there was a higher power looking out for all of us because I was too young and inexperienced in life to realize what bad things could have happened.
One example of this was when I used to take my kids in the burlesk theaters with me. They were too small to leave alone; so they would wait in the dressing rooms until my shows were over.
I was so lucky that no one called the law on me for taking minor children into a burlesk theater, especially, one that played porno movies.
I am not sorry I did this. My children grew up with open minds. This street smart education they received from my way of life balanced with the formal education of boarding schools and other private schools where I sent them. Many people look down on me for this. But what they learned from the street smart education has benefited them a great deal.
I would not take the chances now that I did back then because I would be afraid of someone calling the police plus there were many dangers that could have happened to us. But I must truly say; since we all lived through it, that I am glad I was not so smart back then.

Special Quote:

"Humans and non-humans are animals.
All deserve an equal right to be
treated with dignity and respect. One
species has no right to rule over
another in any manner such as slavery
or determining the other's fate as with
death. Until humanity as a whole
realizes this, no peace will ever be
available."

Written By: Opal Dockery, July 17, 2003

Tijuana Showing Her Monkey....

I worked as a stripper at the Follie's Burlesque Theater in Kansas City, Missouri with a girl named Tijuana. She was pretty with long black hair that came past her rear end. She probably weighted about 110 pounds, was maybe 5 feet tall, and had a really nice figure. She was from Guatemala and the wife of the manager, John Ory. She had a pet monkey. She would carry it in her bag on her shoulder.

One day she was walking in front of the burlesk theater. A big bus full of young guys drove by. The bus stopped at the light in front of the theater. They all hollered sexual remarks to her.

She hollered back, "Do you want to see my monkey?" Well, you know what the anser to that was. Unfortuately, for them they did not get to see the kind of monkey they thought she was going to show them. She opened up her bag and held up her monkey and said, "Here! Look at my monkey!"

Opal as THE X-RATED GRANDMA:

Jack-Off Backstage - Kansas City, Mo.

There were some men who hung around the strippers like puppy dogs. Some people called them "stage-door johnny's". Most of us girls called them "jack-offs". They would do almost anything to be around the strippers. We used a lot of these guys for money, clothes, food, or whatever. Sometimes we just messed with their heads.
One such person was a guy who was friends with the manager in Kansas City, Missouri at the Follie's Burlesk Theater. He had an open ticket to come backstage because he was the manager's friend. This did not bother us girls though. We were used to his hanging around.
He pretended to be a photographer. I really do not know if he was or not. But some of the girls did go out with him for a free meal and free publicity pictures.
One time one of the dancers commented that when he came backstage, he would not look at our faces. He would always gaze between our legs. She said, "It's like he's talking to my pussy!" That was really funny.
But we girls did not help the matter. Whenever he came backstage, we were usually completely naked.. We did not bother to cover up. We could have very easily covered up: but we saw no need. We figured - "If he can't stand the heat, he had beter get out of the kitchen!"
The projectionists and any other man that worked in the theater did not think anything about coming backstage and seeing us naked.It was no big deal. This guy was backstage so much that we considered him no big deal - just another "jack-off".

Special Quote:

"Humans and non-humans are animals. All deserve an equal right to be treated with dignity and respect. One species has no right to rule over another in any manner such as slavery or determining the other's fate as with death. Until humanity as a whole realizes this, no peace will ever be available."

Written on July 17, 2003 by Opal Dockery, 40 year old vegan.

Lori Asking Waitress if She Wants to see her Sores...

One time Lori, some other people, and I were sitting at a big round table in a restaurant in Kansas City, Missouri. We had just got off work at the Pink Pussy Cat. Lori still had her pasties on.

For those who do not kow, pasties are the covering for the nipple of the breast. The stripper covers the pink or brown part, which ever color she has, of the nipple when she dances at places that do not allow her to show her nipple. These are usually made from a stiff material and covered with shiny sequins.

Lori had on a thin top with no bra. She still, for some reason, had her pasties on. The pasties shown through like the sun. For some reason we were talking about sores.

The waitress was a real prude. She was really rude. She kept looking and making faces and acting all grossed out from our conversation. She did not like us anyway because she knew we were all from twelth street where the strip clubs and go-go joints were.

Lori had enough of it. Finally, Lori looked at the waitress and started to unbutton her blouse as she said, "Do you want to see my sores?" The waitress shouted, "No! I don't wanna see your sores!" She stormed off.

We thought it was really funny. As I look back, I hope the waitress did not spit in our food! She probably had the last laugh.

Opal as THE X-RATED GRANDMA on YouTube:

Lori and Me Fighting Over Buster....

My friend, Lori Lanier, better known on the burlesk theater circuit as Peaches and Cream and I really had a lot of fun together. We did some really crazy things. We liked to shock people from our frequent displays of insanity.

There was a customer - an oler guy - who used to come to see us dance in Kansas City, Missouri at the Pink Pussy Cat. His nick-name was Buster. We teased him by calling him Buster Brown.

We always made over him making him think that we really liked him. We would be walking down the street with him acting like we were fighting over him. He was at the height of his glory.

He would take us out to eat. We would act like we both wanted to sit on the same side of the booth with him. We would act like we were getting into an argument over him - over who would get to sit with him. Finally, we would make a compromise. We would take turns sitting with him. We would eat a little while and then change seats.

That was funny enough; but what was even more funny was when we changed seats, we would leave our plate of food. We just changed seats. We did not move our food. She would eat off my plate; and I would eat off hers.

I think this grossed Buster out more than it turned him on. But we did not care. We got our big thrill from the shocked looks from Buster, the waitress, and everyone around us.

Opal as THE X-RATED GRANDMA:

Police will Bust You for Anything they Decide...

As a stripper, a girl has to realize that every once in awhile she will be busted. The police come in the burlesk theater or club and arrest the dancers for such things as lewd and obscene behavior.

This usually happened when the girls would take off more than what the law allowed, usually, the g-string - the pantie part - and bare it all. But if they had decided to arrest the girls, they would do it no matter what the girl did or did not do.

One dancer told me that they busted the whole show one time where she was working for showing pubic hair. She was clean shaven between the legs. She said, "How can you arrest me? I don't have any hair!" It did not make any difference. They arrested her anyway.

Another dancer told me that in one burlesque theater where she worked, the manager came back and told the girls not to take anything off because the police were in the theater. Well, they busted the whole show anyway because the police said the girls were making obscene gestures.

So if the police wanted to arrest us, they wold do it no matter what we did. Things have not changed.

Opal's new V-log episode as THE X-RATED GRANDMA:

Busted in Philadelphia....

One time when I was stripping in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the police raded the burlesk theater and arrested all the strippers. This did not happen too often; but it was always expecteed.

Maxie Furman was the manager. He spoke up for us girls against the police. He told them how we were not hurting anyone - just dong our jobs. He said as he pointed to me, And look at this girl. She sends her son to military school. How could she do that if she didn't dance? That costs a lot of money!" It made me feel good that he said that about me. It was the truth.

The police did not say anything; and it did not cut any ice with them as far as letting us go. They had to do their jobs, too. Especially, since it was election year.

Opal, THE OLD STRIPPER, on VEOH:


Online Videos by Veoh.com

Good Reputation I Built up as a Stripper

When I was a stripper, I built up a reputation among everyone in this business all the way from the strippers, ticket takers, snack bar men, and the owners of the burlesk theaters and clubs as being straight-laced. They all knew that I did not smoke, drink, do drugs, or go out with the customers. All of these people, also, knew that my main objective for my stripping career was to support my two children. They knew that most of my money went to my children's boarding schools and for their general well-being.

When I worked the burlesk theater circuit for approximately seven years, owned by Al Baker, I really did receive a large display of respect from him. His mother and father used to work the burlesk circuits yeArs ago as comedians or whatever. His mother won the Irish Sweepstakes. Al's father took the money and bought alot of burlesk theaters; thus forming the Al Baker Circuit. His name was Al, too.

His mother wanted little Al to have a good education; so they sent him to military school. This is the reason Al Baker respected me in this way. He liked military school and thought it was good that I sent my son to one.

He expressed his feelings to me many tmes. He would tell me that it was good that I was sending my son to miltary school and that I take care of my kids and don't give my money to some man.

Reputations wherther good or bad follow a person. It would amaze me when I would go to a place I had never danced before and the owner would say, "Wild Star? Oh! Yeh! I've heard about you! You don't smoke, drink or do drugs; and you're rasing two kids". This made me feel good.

Opal, the X-Rated Grandma, in THE ACCEPTABLE SIN:

Vision of My Becoming a Stripper

I believe in visions. The reason for this is because I have experienced them for myself. One such vision occurred before I ever knew there were such things as visions. Because I did not know there were such things as visions at this time is one factor that reinforces my firm belief that there really are visions. I believe that it is possible for a person to predict his/her future and the fture of others because I have done it and the future turned out like I visioned it.

The first time I remember that I ever had a vision was when I was still married. At that time, I was settled in my mind to know that I would be married all my life. I had two kids and a husband. I had been taught that a person stays married no matter what - throught thick and thin. That's just the way it was - "You made your bed - now lay in it!"

My marriage was not the best; but at that time I did not consider it the worst. I made compromises to get along with my husband.

Even though it did not make me happy, at the time, I really did feel that I was doing the right thing. I was being a good wife and mother.

But there was an unsettling deep inside me. The unsettling that has been with me all my life. The unsettling that I have had ever since I have had any sense of consciousness. The unsettling that will not let me stop and be satisfied with a certain situation or certain type of life for any length of time. The unsettling that knaws at my insides to do something else. The unsettling that will not let me settle down - my spirit.

I really had made up my mind that being a good wife and mother and working hard to help pay the bills was my lot in life. I was satisfied in my mind with this decision. There was only one problem. I would lay awake at night with this vision in my mind. I could see myself dancing on stage in front of a bunch of men. I had on a bright red sequin gown trimmed with black feathers. I was divorced. My kids and I were living in different states.

I could not figure out why I was having these thoughts. They would appear sporatically when I had my mind clear, at night, and while I was in bed and could not sleep.

It turns out that I was actually seeing my future. When I divorced my husband, a few years later I became a stripper. A veteran stripper took me under her wing and showed me the ropes of the business. She sold me a red sequin gown trimmed in black feathers for $10.00. At the time she sold it to me, I did not think about my vision; but later on I remembered that this was the gown that was in my vision. I was going on the road; so I put my kids in boarding schools. John was in Tennessee at a military school. Melissa was in Kentucky at a girl's Catholic school. As with the gown, I ddid not remember my vision of all three of us being in different places until later - long after I had enrolled them.

I was traveling from town to town stripping at different burlesk theaters in front of a bunch of men. I was doing this for a long period of time before I remembered this being in my vision.

Other visions in my life have occurred over the years that have reaffirmed my belief in visions. But this first one that I remember stays fresh in my mind more than the rest because, at the time, I had never heard of a vision.

I feel that my spirit put the vision in my mind. This vision represented a big turning point in my life. It is the one vision that relly did change my life and my kids' lives for the better - forever.

Opal in the new Feature Film trailer THE OLD STRIPPER:

Me Saying I Would Never Take All of My Clothes Off...

I have learned through life to not say, "I would never do that!!" It seems that everytime I have said that I end up doing the very thing that I really and truly felt in my heart that I would not do. One such incident occurred before I had become a stripper.

I was working at a go-go joint in Independence, Missouri - The Mountaineer Club. My job was to wait on customers - be a cocktail waaitress - and take my turn go-go dancing. There were about three of us girls doing this. I did not mind the go-go dancing because I just got up on the stage with a little tank top and some short shorts and danced. None of us took anything off.

One day a good-looking girl came in the club. She knew the owner. She was talking to him and some of the customers - really seeming to have a good time. Suddenly, she jumped upon the stage and started dancing. She danced in a sexy, erotic way that I had never seen before and never knew possible.

I asked one of the go-go dancers who she was. She told me that she was a stripper who traveled with another girl on the road. I said, "You mean they take their clothes off?" She said, "Yes! Everythng!" I replied, "Well, I might be a go-go dancer; but I know for sure that that's one thing I would never do - take my clothes off in front of a bunch of men!"

I wish I had a penny for every eyeball that has seen my naked body. I look back and laugh at my innocence and narrow-mindedness.

Opal, the X-RATED GRANDMA on Funny or Die:

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

Stage Names and Me Changing My Name....

There were a lot of girls that I worked with as a stripper; but I really did not know any of their names. At least, not their real names. And I really did not care to know. I only knew their stage names, the names they wanted the men to call them. These names, to me, were their real names.

All the strippers I knew had this same attitude. Two girls could be really close friends for years and never know each other's legal names. And never ever care. This was the regularly accepted type of thought among us strippers.

An example of some of the names were Tijuana, Misty Knight, Linda Darling and Foxy Lady. When they chose their names, they usually decided on one that best represented a certain emotion or feeling. If not that, than a representation of something else - maybe their culture.

I danced under two different names - Wild Star and Melissa St. John. I chose Wild Star when I first started stripping because at that time, I felt wild and like a shining star.

There was a name I chose before Wild Star; but it lasted only a couple of shows. This name was Wild Flower. I wanted a name to represent the wildness inside me.

It was my turn to dance. They announced me, "And now, lets have a big hand for Wild Flower!" I heard some customer say, "What'd ya say 'Wall Flower'!?!?" Right then I decided to change my name. Iam glad I did. I fugured that future customers might misunderstand my name as this man did. I thought a name like this would create a negative attitude before I ever got on stage. Wild Star represented me better anyway because I not only felt wild but, also, shiny.

I changed my name to Melissa St. John later in my career as a stripper and only used Wild Star at places where I had danced before using it. People I knew when I used Wild Star still called me Wild Star even though I had now changed my name. People I knew back then - to this day still call me Wild Star. People I met later after I changed my name - to this day - call me Melissa.

I changed my name for two reasons. The first was for financial reasons. I had stripped under the name of Wild Star for quite a few years and had a steady job on the Al Baker Burlesk Theater circuit traveling around and sometimes working as a stock girl. He paid his regular girls less money than the star of the show. But it was worth it to me because it was steady money every week.

The star of the show was not a regular of the Al Baker circuit. She would dance at different theaters and clubs but make more money. The work was not as secure as for a girl working the same theater circuit year after year.

After a few years working for Al Baker, I decided to ry to go out on my own, find an agent, and make more money and become a star myself. I called some agents but they were unable to get me more money because by now Wild Star was pretty well-known by theater and club owners as Al Baker's stock girl. They said, "Why should I pay Wild Star more money than Al Baker does?" I realized that I would hve to change my name if I wanted to make more money.

Most of the owners of the other theaters and clubs that turned me down did not know what I looked like. They had oly heard about me. I figured that if I could get jobs making more money with another name that by the time they knew I was Wild Star, they would see how good a job I ddid and not care anyway. It worked. I chose the name of Melissa St. John.

By now the feelings of wildness were calmed by the feelings of serenity that I had found from finding my own true spirit. My children mean more to me then life. Melissa is my daughter's name. John is my son's name. At that point in my life, I felt elevated, spiritually, to the level of a saint; thus Melissa St. John.

The strippers I knew did not use ther real, legal name and nobody cared or even wanted to know - not even the owners. Legal names were not important. The importance displayed back then with the large majority of the strippers was the importance of their soul and spirits. If I had never become a sripper, I do not feel I would have ever met my true self - my spirit.

Opal, the OLD STRIPPER, Talking about Shit:

Lesbian Attacking Me....

Strippers get a bad rap of being stereotyped as whores, lesbians, and dopers. There were a lot of lesbians, but not all of us were. The ones who were never tried to get a straight girl to have sex with them. But there are exceptions to every rule.

One such exception occurred bakstage at the Follie's Burlesk Theater. I was the stock girl and was backstage by the records getting the show prepared. This stripper comes up to me telling me how she likes girls. I let her talk. My attitude towards her was "matter-of-factly - like so what? - Who cares?

Then the tide took a turn. She said that she wanted me. I told her that I was not a lesbian and I did not want to do anything with her. I turned my back. She grabbed me and said, "Wide Star, you're going to do something whether you want to or not! Wrong move! I broke loose and knocked her clear across the room. She never bothered me again.

Opal, the X-Rated Grandma, as PHONE SEX GRANDMA:

Playing the Mickey Mouse Song for the Star...

One road girl stripper who thought she was a star performed at the Follie's Burlesk Theater in Kansas City, Missouri for one week. She kept going on about how pretty she is and about what a "star" she is.

She had a heavy accent. It sounded like she was from France. The rest of us girls soon realized that she did not understand English too well. This was too good to resist.

We kept telling her how good she was and what a star she was. We kept on about how she was going to be the best there ever was. She ate this up like a hound dog.

What she did not realize was that we were sitting her up to make a fool out of herself. I am the one who decided how to do it.

I borrowed a record from my babysitter - "The Mickey Mouse Club" theme song. I told the girl that I had a record that would make her famous. I told her that all the big stars danced to this song and that is what make them stars. She was ecstactic, to say the very least. She wanted it in her show.

I was the stock girl; so I was in charge of playing the records and running the show. I waited until her last number when she had everything off to play it. All of us girls were laughing until our sides busted. Here is this young, good-looking naked girl out on the stage dancing around sexy to ---- M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E! We were laughing so much.

She got off stage. We told her how good she did and how she was going to be a star for sure and that she just needed to use that record on all her shows. She said, "It sounded like a duck!"

Turnedd out she was not as dumb as we all thought. She would not let me play it anymore. Needless to say, we did not hear anymore "star" talk out of her for the rest of the week.

Opal as PHONE SEX GRANDMA:

People Telling us They Were Just Doing their Jobs...

Some of the strippers, especially, the ones just starting, had a misconception of the business. For some ungodly reason, they thought that they were a "star". They were too stupid to realize that there was nothing glamorous about getting up in front of a bunch of horny men, some who were "jacking-off" while watching, and taking off their clothes to music.

I was not dancing. It was stripping to the music. There was nothing glamorous about it. But with some of us it was a form of self-expression which was violated many times when we were busted by the police and thrown in jail.

One time in Chicago when I was busted, the undercover agent said to the ticket man and me while he was hauling us downtown, "You understand, don't you, that we're just doing our jobs?" I wanted to reply, "So are we".

Opal, the X-Rated Grandma, aka THE OLD STRIPPER:

People Eating Garbage...

I had never heard of people eating garbage. I did not even know this happened. I will never forget the first timeI saw this.

I was in New York City. It was late at night. I was leaving the parking area. I turned on my lights and started to back up when I saw them.

I was shocked. Three or four people were digging in the trash getting food and eating it. I could not move. The peole looked up at me. They had a look of fear on their faces. I left.

At that point, I counted my many blessings. At different, difficult times in my life, I remembered this scene to help me realize that I could endure.

THE X-RATED GRANDMA on YouTube:

Fighting Over Pete....

There was this old Greek man who was, at least, in his eighties named Pete. He was a a cook at the Golden Pheasant Restaurant. This place was a "hang-out" for us strippers who danced at the State Burlesk Theater on Tuscawaras Street in Canton, Ohio. I always joked around with him telling everyone that he was my boyfriend.

There was a stripper who, occasionally, worked at the theater that, for some reason I cannot remember, did not like me; and I did not like her. She started, one day, teasing me about Pete. She was so stupid that she could not see that I was only joking about the situation of his being my boyfriend.

I ignored her until she started running Pete down - making fun of him. Pete was a nice person and did not deserve some nut like her saying bad things about him such as how he probably could not even get a "hard on" and more deragotory comments that I cannot remember.

At that point, I decided that I would not give her the satisfaction of even telling her the difference - that he was really not my boyfriend; and I was only joking to have a good time and to make him feel good. Instead, I stood up for him letting the dummy realy thnk that Pete was my boyfriend.

Later on that day I was sitting in the Golden Pheasant talking with Pete and one of the waitresses. This stripper walks in. She starts telling Pete that he should not have anything to do with me because I am such a bitch. I told her to shut up; but she just kept it up.

This prompted me to get out of the booth and walk toward her. I was boiling with anger. She said, "I don't want to fight!" I said, "Well, I do!"

I had her down on the floor and was getting the most of her when the waitress and the cook jumped in. This girl had long, thick blond hair. All three of us women had ahold of it. She screamed, "Let go of my hair!" We would probably still be pulling her hair if Mr. Manos, the owner and Pete had not broke us up.

Mr. Manos hollered at the girl to leave and she was wobbling out the door. But I was not satisfied. I started to go after her again; but Pete stopped me and put me in the booth and sat so I could not get out.

This incident is an example of my stubborn attitude. I would cut off my nose to spite my face. I could have told her the truth; and she would have probably laughed about it and went on. But for some reason, I did not like her and did not want to give her this satisfaction of knowing the truth. Then when she blasphemed a good person like Pete, that mad up my mind not to tell her. I should have ignored her; but many times ignorance is so profound that it cannot be ignored.

Opal, THE OLD STRIPPER:

George feeding Chico...

Lori Lanier and I wre striping in Cleveland, Ohio. E were going to only be gone a few days for the booking; so we kept our motel room rented inCanton, Ohio because that is where we usually stayed when we were not working. My boyfriend lived in Canton; so I liked to be around him as much as possible.

The managre at the burlesk theater in Cleveland offered to boo us for two weeks. We took the offer. Therer was only one problem - Chco.

Chico was Lori's spider monkey. She had left him n his cage with enough food and watdrer for the length of time that we would be gone. But if we stayed for two more weeks, he did not have enough food and water.

We were not sure what to do. Then we decided to call my boyfriend. He agreed to take what Lori told him to take - apples - to the motela nd give them to the monkey.

When we got back to Canton it waw sreally funy. George had just thrown the apples in the cage. He had not cut them up or anything.

He said that he had gone to the desk clerk and told him that he needed to give the apples to hte monkey. Thedesk clerk told him that they could not let him in our room without our permission. He told them, "I don't watnt inthe damn room! Here's theapplsee! You give them to the monkey!" They let him inthe room.. guess they did not watn to feed the monkey.

THE X-RATED GRANDMA:

Lori Ran off with Vince...and Garbage....

My friend, Lori, was bisexual. I did not know this when I first met her. I had no clue. As a matter of fact, after I had known her for awhile, she had developed an affair with the fourteen year old son of the people who owned the Pink Pussy Cat strip club where we stripped in Kansas City, Missouri. She was nineteen.

My kids and I were in Syracuse, New York. I heard a knock at my door. I answered it and saw Lori and Vince, the fourteen year old. He had run off with her.

We had a lot of fun with him. We teased him a lot and told him stories he really believed. One funny story was about eating garbage.

We told him that my kids and I had to pick through the garbage to get enough to eat. Of course, my kids caught on right away and chimed right in. He believed us.

To really convince him, we told him one night that we were going to go to the different alleys to look for food. He was shocked!

We loaded him and my kids in the car and cruised some alleys. We locted some garbage cans. Lori, the kids, and I got out all excitedly talking about how we bet there was some good food in those bags. We loaded the trunk up with the bags. Vince was speechless. It was so funny to see him so shocked. We never did tell him the difference.

Vince was only in Syracuse for a couple of weeks when I got a call from Kansas City, his parents. They asked if Vince was there. I said, "Yes". He was sitting right next to me. They hold him a ticket for him was waiting at the airport; and he better be on the next plane coming to Kansas City.

His family was the type of Italian family that Lori and I had enough sense to know not to mess with. We took him straight to the airport - no questions asked.

She missed him; but I think I missed him more than she did. He was a handy babysitter.


The X-RATED GRANDMA: Dirty Stories from the Kitchen:

Meeting Lori at the Pink Pussycat....

One of my best friends that I worked with as a stripper was Lori Lanier from Calgary, Canada. She was only nineteen when I met her. I was about twenty six.

I ws dancing at the Pinik Pussy Cat strip bar in Kanssas City, Missouri as well as the Follie's Burlesk Theater. She was a new tripper at the Pink Pussy Cat. This is how we met.

I got her into the business of stripping the ethe burlesk theaters I saw her dancing at the Pink Pussy Cat. She was so pretty. I could see that she could make a lot of money on the road stripping.

We developed a sister type of relationship. She would occasionally travel with my kids and me. I trusted her completely with them. She helped me out a great deal when she was with us by helping me with my kids and by being a part of our family.

THE X-RATED GRANDMA - Dirty Stories:

Mon Cherie, Chicken Soup - Somewhere on the Road...

I was raised in Lamar, Missouri which was extremely prejudiced against blacks at that time. I was taught to be this way. Most of the black people I have come in contact over the years since I left Lamar, Missouri have pulled the blinders of racial prejudice away from my eyes and permitted me to judge them as people instead of what my birth into ignorance had taught me to do.

The first lesson I learned in this area was taught to me by a stripper I worked with on Al Baker's circuit for many years. She was a tall nice looking black girl named Mon Cherie. This was her stage name. I never knew her real name.

It was the year of 1973. I had enrolled my little girl into a girl's Catholic boarding school in Covington, Kentucky - Villa Madonna Academy. I had to make a down payment of a little over five hundred dollars in May; so she could go to school the following September. I had it figured out oto the penny how I would save enough to do this. My budget left me about two dollars a week for food. I was talking to Mon Cherie about this.

Most of us girls carried around a little tin container that plugged into the wall and held such things as a cup of water or a can of soup - to heat up. I had one. I had it figured out how to survive. I drank a lot of hot water anyway. Also, I had a jar of honey and a jar of vinegar. I heated water and made a tea of this with my little electric pot. I had a jar of wheat germ that I ate as cereal; so with these items, I was certain I would not starve to death. It would be difficult; but I could do it. Also, I fasted a few days a week anyway to keep my body looking good.

I liked Mon Cherie already as a person; but what she did for me - I will always remember and appreciate forever. She was packing to go to the next town to dance. She had some instant chicken soup in her reservoir of food. She said, "Here!" as she handed me two packages of them. I said, "Oh! No! That's alright! I'll be O.K.". Needless to say, she made me take them. Later, when I drank the soup, I appreciated her generousity. And even though I am a vegetarian now, everytime I see chicken noodle soup, I think of her act of kindness. It is a good thought.

Her kindness to me helped me to survive and accomplish my financial goal for my daughter. But more than that it began my mental elevation of transition from the depths of ignorance.

THE X-RATED GRANDMA: Dirty Stories from the Kitchen:

Black Stripper at the Fruit and Vegetable Store

A black girl who I had worked with for quite sometime - we were both strippers on the Al Baker circuit - told me the following story. I do not remember her name.

We were working together at the State Theater in Canton, Ohio for the week. Across the street on the same side of the road on the corner was the Golden Pheasant Restaurant owned by Mr. Manos, an old Greek man. Next door was a Greek grocery store owned by him. One or two doors down was another small grocery store which had, mainly, fresh fruits and vegetables. It was more what you would call a vegetable and fruit store.

My co-worker said she went to buy some fruit and vegetables at this store. She got a grocery cart and started walking around. Almost immediately one of the women who worked at the store started following her around. My friend just acted like she did not notice. She filled up her grocery cart to the hilt. The employee tailed her all the time she was shopping.

The stripper went to pay for the groceries. The same woman who had been following her was all happy and excited as she went to the register to check her out. We later learned that she was the owner. She figured the tatal and told my friend what she owed. My friend said, "I don't want any of it". The woman screamed, "What?" The stripper replies, "You've been following me around like I'm gonna steal a pice of your fruit. I work next door at the burlesk. I don't have to steal your fruit. I don't want any of it!"

I wa glad she did that. Back in the early 1970's people were still so openly prejudiced. his store keeper not only had a prejudice against blacks but, also, strippers. I feel that the stripper demonstrated liberation for her race as well as her profession.

THE X-RATED GRANDMA: Talking about Shit:

My Definition of Ignorance

I define ignorance as something an intelligent person does even though he knows that he should not do it. My family - mother, father, brother, and sistres - have hurt me time after time. Even though this has happened, I still go back for more. I am not sure if I enjoy the emotional pain, If I am just ignorant, ro if the family love that I have for them is so deep that no matter how much they hurt me I still love them and still want to associate with them. It is painful as I write this.

One example of my ultimate display of ignorance is het fact that I am always afraid dof hurting their feelings. They say bad things to me to make me feel bad. I could bring up things they haave doone to me in the past to top of anything they could say to me; but I do not. I do not want to hurt their feelings. But, at times, I feel that my words would not hurt them because they do not like me anyway.

Opal aka THE X-RATED GRANDMA - Talking about Shit:

My Dad Telling Me I am the Scum of the Earth...

I had a lot of fun when I was working as a stripper. It was one of the best, if not the best, times of my life. Not only was I making enough money for my kids and me; but the job, also, provided a way for all of us to see places we would probably never been able to see if I had chosen a "regular" life for us.

My daddy once told me, "You're the scum of the earth - doin' that dancin' - takin' off your clothes! If you're gonna do that, you shouldn't of told your kids!" I reeplied to his comments by letting him know that I wanted my kids to know who I really am and love me for the kind of person I am and not for someone I pretended to be. I, also, made the decision when I started to dance as a stripper that I was not going to be ashamed of what I was doing and not hide it from anyone - not even my kids. I decided that if I was going to be ashamed of it, then I would not do it.

This type of thinking is something that my dad is incapable of acquiring because his mind is saturated with the life-style of the small-town hypocritical, provincial thinking that the people of Lamar, Missouri hold so high.

Opal as PHONE SEX GRANDMA on YOUTUBE:

John Working for My Dad Instead of Me....

I have always loved my children, John and Melissa, more than life itself. I always bought them anything they wanted. One time Melissa and I were arguing; and I asked her if at anytime during her life when she wanted something if I got it for her. She thought for a moment and said, "Well, one time I wanted a 10-speed bike; and you didn't get it for me". That was because she had a regular one; and I did not feel that she needed a 10-speed one. As much as I spoiled them, I was just as strict.

One of the strict ways I had with them was to teach them to work. I tried to instill in them a little bit of the attitude toward work the way my old boss, Barney Eagon, had for me. From doing this, they both know how to work.

John and Melissa were teenagers when I started a second-hand business in Lamar. I told my kids, "I want to make it so hard on you with working that when you work for a mean boss, you will think it is easy compared to the work I made you do".

They had to clean the merchandise. There were certain things they had to get done before I got back from the auctions where I bought most of the merchandise. Sometimes it would be two or three o'clock in the morning when I got home. Sometimes they had to go to school the next day. But if they had not done the job they were supposed to do or just did it half-way, I would make them get out of bed and do it right.

John got fed up and decided he wanted to go live with Grandad, my dad, for the summer. Daddy said, "Send him to me, I'll make him work". I saw John a couple of weeks later. I said, "Well, John, how do you like working in the hot hayfield?" He replied, "Well, Mother, it's hard; but it's not as hard as working for you!"


THE X-RATED GRANDMA Talking about Shit

Lesson From My Parents and Barney...

There are many, certain ways that I was raised that I do not agree. The main one is the small-mindedness that was bred into me. Luckily, I overcame that.

One lesson I took from my childhood and have cultivated was one my mother taught me - always take care of our kids, no matter what - you are not worth what you are made of if you don't - other things will come and go, but your kids will always be there. My father taught me that it is important to be a good worker and pay your bills no matter what.

I have always tried to be a good worker. I always try to do my best at any job I do because I feel my boss has bought my time for a certain length and is paying me for it; so my wants and desires should not come above his or hers. But I can honestly say that, at times in my life, I have not always paid my bills the way I should.

I learned to be a hard worker from Barney Eagon, my boss at the Blue Top Cafe in Lamar, Missouri. He was really strict - such as standing over my shoulder an making sure I did not put one more squirt of milk in the milk shake than was supposed to go or a drop more of chocolate than was required. He taught me that the customer is the King and without the customer there is no cafe and no jobs.

Barney, unknowingly, was preparing me for the hard life I was going to face raising my kids on my own. It was like boot camp working for him; but I am thankful he was like this because when I left the Blue Top Cafe and went to other jobs in other states, I met people who did not know how to work. I can truly say that Barney Eagon is the one person who really did teach me - "how to work."

I am very thankful for the lessons I mentioned from my mother, father, and Barney. I know, that this combination is what helped me to endure and overcome the hard times I encountered while raising my children and to succeed in this effort.

Barney's Funeral

When my boss, Barney Eagon, at the Blue top cafe in Lamar, Missouri died, I was fortunate enough to be in town which enabled me to attend his funeral. Most of the people who attended were his former employees plus his wife and two kids. There were not even twenty five people there.

I think people did not attend his funeral because they were jealous. These type of people hat to see the "little guy" get ahead. If they had thought it would have benefited them someway to attend, they would have knocked the doors down to get in. Such jealously is evil; and sick. They brown nosed him while he was alive but snubbed his memory in death.

This made me really sad. Barney was a life-long resident. He was a hard worker and became rich on his own. I respected him very much and still do.

I have worked many jobs since the Blue Top Cafe. On each job, there are always people who complain and talk bad about the boss. I can honestly say that I never once heard anyone say one crossword about Barney Eagon.

As far as I know, everyone respected him for the good boss that he was. We were all happy to have a job. He was strict, and things had to be his way or not at all. But through it all, he was highly respected by his employees. The evidence was shown at his funeral.

Me Not Knowing Which Way...

I was raised in the small town of Lamar, Missouri. Everyone in this little town thought the whole world revolved around Lamar, Missouri. They were, and most still are, small town provincial thinking people. I was programmed to, also, be this way.

I worked at the Blue Top Cafe as a waitress. I was in high school. A customer asked me, "Which direction is Pittsburgh, Kansas?" Well, what a big question to ask! I sure did not know! If it did not concern Lamar, who cared?

I asked my boss, Barney Eagon. He told me it was west of Lamar. I asked him which way was west. He pointed in the west direction; so I was able to tell the customer.

Barney told me something that I did not understand until years later. He told me taht a person should know what is going on around him and where things are around him. This way of thinking, at the atime, was way over my head.

Since that day, I have learned that lesson arney tried to teach me. I learned my directions; and I am aware of what is happening around me and where different cities and states are located. I have been to many of them. Oh, and by the way, Pitsburgh, Kansas is only twenty miles away from Lamar, Missouri.

Solitude is Marvelous...

Solitude is marvelous - it cannot be bought. A price cannot be put on it. Most do not want it even for free. They do not realize the meaning and solice that comes from solitude. To have clear thoughts - to be mentally capable of projecting thought to paper with the possibility of projecting them to the world for worthwhile benefits is a goal and accomplishment I would like to meet. It is what I could live for - it could be my purpose in life. I have accomplished other things I set out to do - mostly material. I have reached the level of aesthetic thinking in Maslow's hierarchy. I have surpassed it a long time ago. I have taken from the world everything I want. Now is the time for me to give back.

The Days of Stripping Were Insane...

The days of being a stripper were excitingly insane. I am glad I experienced them. I went so many places that I would never have gone if I had been a "normal" preson. I was restless. I wanted to see things. I can rest now with the comfort of knowing I have been everywhere I want to go and seen everything I want to see. Going places is boring to me now. Staying home at my house in the country with no car is, at this point in my life, exciting.



THE OLD STRIPPER - at the Kitchen Counter

People Only Want What They Can Get Out of You

People want what they can get out of you. When you are no longer any use to them, they discard you. My dad told me many times, "When you are up and going, everyone is your friend; but when you're down and out no one wants anything to do with you".

This is so true. I have seen it happen many times during my lifetime.

What a person needs to do is be themselves. Do what YOU ant to do; and od not do what others expect of you. YOU have to live with yourself - good or bad. YOU have to face yourself in the mirror each day. No one can do that but - YOU!

The 'Ropes of Life'...

I could talk about "the ropes of life". There arre many. Most are hard to learn; and the lesson stays with you for a long tme. Many leave scars on your heart forever. Some never have to face "the ropes of life". Some do. Which are the lucky ones? The ones who live in complete, blissful oblivion never having to face change, adventure, or challenge? Or the one who takes the world by the tail and spins it for all it is worth? Is ignorance bliss or is learning "the ropes of life" fantastic?

Jack-Offs Taking Us Girls Out to Eat

Beign a stripper draws you to many men who are after your body. Some people refer to them as "stage-door Johnnys". Most of us strippers back then referred to them as "jack-offs". We would get everything we could out of them without going to bed with them. One thing we could always count on was a free meal out of them anytime. They were always wanting to "take us out to eat".

It got to the point where it was better to be hungry or buy my own food. Most of the time when a "jack-off" would take me out to eat, he would just stare at me. No matter what I talked about, I could see him undressing me with his eyes.

It was good to have these guys around to pick up the tab for a lot of things such as food or clothes or whatever else I could think to use them. But for the most part, the aggravation of their presence was not worth it.

Fasting and the Dancing Telling Me it was a Beautiful Thing...

It really makes me sad to know that so many "regular", "normal" people do not possess some of the good, aesthic feelings and attitudes that a lot of the strippers who I worked with had. Most of these girls had crossed over the brink of normality and were living in a mental world of spirituality above what the basic normal, everyday person cannot understand and will never attain. I attained this level of thought and have kept it all through my life.

I was in the early stages of learning how to fast. I was at the little cafe, The Golden Pheasant in Canton, Ohio - next to the burlesk theater, The State Theater. I was drinking only liquids that day. Even though I was used to it because I did it quite frequently, at least, one day a week, it was still difficult to do, especially, with everyone around me eating. But I had reached the level of thought and consciousness that permitted me to surpass my hunger pains and led me to a higher level.

Not many people understand this way yof life. It made me feel really good when one of the strippers sitting across from me said, "Wild Star, what you are doing is a beautiful thing." At that point, I knew the people I was associating with were real and good. I knew that I would never know people like this back home. Nobody back there would ever be able to comprehend in the slightest what she was talking about. I do not remember her name or even what she looked like. But that one sentence has stuck in my mind for the rest of my life, especially, when I fast; and I know that it is right.

"She's the Pretty One"

At John's military school, they would have an award's day at the end of the school year. After all the programs and award ceremonies, the boys would leave for the summer with their parents.

Colonel Jones told me that John was looking all around for me. He said he asked John what I looked like. John replied, "Oh! She's the pretty one!"

"She's the Pretty One"

At John's military school, they would have an award's day at the end of the school year. After all the programs and award ceremonies, the boys would leave for the summer with their parents.

Colonel Jones told me that John was looking all around for me. He said he asked John what I looked like. John replied, "Oh! She's the pretty one!"

Giving My Kids to a 'Regular' Family

I have always prided myself with the fact that I raised my two kids on my own with no help from anyone. There were many difficult times due to lack of money. There were many happy times. The happy times far outnumbered the difficult times. The whole time my kids were little and needed me was happy - even though we were not as well-off as most.

I always placed their needs and desires above anything and anybody. I know this made them happy; but it, also, made me happy.

Some people told me to give my children to a "regular" family - a mom and dad situation - and quit dragging them all over the country. But I loved them and still do more than life itself. I could not bare to think about them being with someone else.

Many tell me this was selfish and maybe it was. But I am able to look in the mirror today and know that I did the best I knew how and did not give them up.

If I would have given them up, maybe they would have been happier. But I would not go back and change it. I would keep my kids. Maybe I really am a selfish person drowning my selfishness with love. Mybe I was reallly placing my great desire before my children which was to have them with me. Maybe all the good things I did for them was really for me.

John's Declamation

While raising my children, I always put their needs and desires above everything and everybody. My mother always taught me what whe learned from her mother - "Other things will come and go; but your kids will always be there. You are not worth what you are made of if you do not take care of your kids." This has been a valuable lesson she taught me; and I carried it through all the difficult but happy times while raising my kids. I placed their desires above everything, even money, which I needed desperately because I was the only source of revenue for all of us.

It was nearing time for me to go to pick up my kids from their boarding schools. John's military school was going to have a little program. He was going to receite a little poem which he called, "my declamation." It was a contest. Whoever recited the best would win a medal. He had talked to me on the phone about it several times. He was so excited. He was really looking forward to my seeing him stand up in front of everyone and recite it; so was I.

A few days before his program, I got a call from my agent telling me that he had a booking for me for $600.00 for one week. I had not started making this much money and was estactic about it because this was the financial goal I had been trying to attain for a long time. There was only one problem. If I worked the week he wanted to book me, then I would miss John's declamation.

We needed the money. I called John and told him I was going to pick him up late because I had to work. He started crying, "You're gonna miss my declamation?!" That changed everything. I told him I would be there. He was happy and so was I. I needed this little six year old boy to remind me what was more important. And by the way, he won.

Fun Things Should Come First...

One of my main objectives in the raising of my children was to let them know that they had the choice of any lifestyle they desired. I was raised in a small town which was saturated with provincial thinking minds. Everybody was expected to meet certain status' of action. I wanted my kids to know that they did not have to act a certain way just because people thought they should.

In my hometown, any fun event was planned for months, even years ahead. I taught my children to do fun things on the "spur of the moment".

One example of this was when we would see such things as carnivals while we were traveling from one of my burlesk jobs to the next. I would pull over and stop the car; so we culd go to it. Sometimes I would be late for a show or miss some. But the loss of the money was worth it because I could see my kid's faces light up with joy.

People where I come from would not even dream of doing ths. "Work comes first! Fun comes later!" This small event would have to be planned ahead and worked around everything else.

As I look back now, I am glad I did different things like that. I almost always put the fun things first concerning my kids.

I once heard that when you come to die, you regret the things you did not do. "Life is short - eat your dessert first." I, also, heard, "I've talked to a lot of peole who were dying and none of them ever said that they wish they had spent more time working."

I instilled the desire for fun in my kids. I am glad I did this. I hope they will pass it on.