I’ve just finished reading the quite wonderful “Restless”, a thriller by prize-winning novellist William Boyd. A couple of phrases ended up being read aloud to Haron as I went. Take this description of a posh London gentlemen’s club, by one of the book’s leading female protagonists:
“The modest entrance concealed a building of capacious and elegant Georgian proportions. On the first floor we passed a reading-room – deep sofas, dark portraits, a few old men reading periodicals and newspapers – then a bar – a few old men drinking – then a dining-room being set up for dinner by young girls in black skirts and crisp white blouses. I sensed it was very unusual ever to have a female in this building who wasn’t a servant of some kind.”
Clearly, a traditional sort of place: I can imagine the members thrashing out the club’s disciplinary policy for staff. “Etonian rules” would be in effect: said smart young ladies would be dealt with soundly for any misdemeanours.
Later, the same character described some rather interesting emotions:
“I was in a strange giddy panic: a combination of excitement and fear, a mood I hadn’t truly experienced since childhood when, on those occasions you wilfully do something wrong and proscribed, you find yourself imagining your own discovery, guilt and punishment – which is part of the heady appeal of the illicit, I suppose.”
‘Appeal’, eh? Ah, it seems that your secret’s out, ladies…
Would that be the worst kept secret ever?!
Love the sound of the serving girls, watched closely by the club members for any mistakes in need of punishment no doubt…where do I apply for the job?
Glad to see you lauding the traditional again, Abel. Which certainly doesn’t include a rubber tawse, of all new-fangled inventions! Very surprising that a gentleman of refined tastes would stoop that low ::shakes head in wonder;;. One could interpret your cold as divine retribution… Nonetheless, I hope you’re feeling better.
I’m sure none of us would willfully do something wrong…
Never.
Goodness, Abel! Where do you get such notions?
All mischevious little girls are simply, “misunderstood.” And the naughty women they grow up to be are victims of a culture that allows men to bend the rules, but not women….
No, wait! Sorry! We’ve all just been deliberately misbehaving so we can get spankings! It’s true! [Zille, chanelling said mischevious little girl, sticks tongue out and contemplates how much trouble she can possible get into….]
I always found that part of the fun of making cheeky comments and generally misbehaving is the knowledge that you can get away with it! It’s quite satisfying to test the waters, and see how far you can go. The rest of the fun of misbehaving is indeed getting spanked for it, though.
Oh, we poor bottoms have such tough lives. We should get some credit for the complex balancing act we have to keep up!
It is complex isn’t it? Sometimes my natural cheekiness…. I know, hard to believe but I have got quite a bit of it… gets me into trouble when I don’t want it to, and other times I am deliberately cheeky and don’t even get a spanking out of it! Tricky!
I know what you mean Sarah…I had an ex who I’d sometimes try to tease into spanking me and fail miserably (sob) and other people seem to see fit to throw you over their lap for the slightest thing
Not that I *really* object!
Sarah, I can’t belive you’d *ever* even concider being cheeky! Heh.