 |
I knew my
chances with Patricia were so-so at best. Once she
discovered the truth about my lack of pedigree, I could very well
go the way of Hank. Patricia struck me as a
woman who was given so many dating options, she preferred to
cut her losses swiftly and move on to the next guy. While Patricia and I matched up nicely on paper,
there were no guarantees. The
question remained, however, in the all-important area of
confidence. Would I be mentally strong and stand tall?
Or would my deep-seated feelings of inferiority rise up to
sabotage this relationship like it had with Vanessa?
Of course I was
dazzled by her looks, but did I like Patricia? Kind
of. Patricia lacked warmth. She was so
guarded and calculating that I did not feel at ease with
her. However I did like the way she matched wits with
me. I would not dream of calling Patricia 'boring'.
She kept me on my toes like no woman I had ever met.
Perhaps if we got to know each other better, she would
soften up a little.
Let me add there
was a serious Supernatural vibe surrounding our fledgling
Romance. Stop and think about it. As consequence
to my Epic Losing Streak, I had a burning desire to prove
once and for all that I had the ability to attract a woman
who was the caliber of the St. John's women who had ignored
me back in high school. Over the years I had met
several women who fit this description... Emily, Carol,
Katie, Sarah, Jenny, Marilyn, Vanessa, Rachel, Francesca.
Although something had gone wrong with every one of them, I
could tell that I had made tremendous progress.
Indeed, thanks to the healing powers of my Dance Path, I was
ready to see if I could finally hold my own.
Isn't it
interesting that at the exact time I wished for another test
to see how far I had come, Patricia walked into my life.
My, my, how convenient! Patricia was
elegance, poise, beauty, education, and intelligence rolled
into one. She was a very sophisticated woman, a
time-progressed version of my former female classmates at
St. John's. Patricia was exactly the woman I had been
waiting for. In fact, she was so perfect, I had the
strangest feeling that Patricia was
the answer to my lifelong prayer. For that reason I was
convinced she was a Karmic Relationship.
|
OCTOBER 27, 1978
VICTORIA'S HALLOWEEN PARTY
|
|
It was Friday, October 27.
The Main Event of my very
interesting Thrill Week was at hand. Victoria had
dedicated the entire month of October to organizing
this party. Tonight I would see if her
dedication and phone magic would pay off.
Back in September, Victoria had the idea to throw a Graduation Night
party for her Tuesday night 'Merger' class.
The original plan had the students driving to the
Pistachio Club on the final Tuesday of October.
However, that was before the surprising results of
taking her Friday Circle of Friends to the Pistachio
club on October 13. Once Victoria saw how well
that visit worked, her thoughts switched from 'Tuesday'
to 'Friday'. Noting the proximity of
Friday the 27th to Halloween, her ambition grew. Why not make
this Graduation Event a
Halloween costume party? By
holding the party on a Friday night, Victoria could include her
friends from her private class, thereby doubling the
size of the event. For that matter, why not
open the party to include the entire dance program?
Victoria did not know the students from Monday,
Wednesday, and Thursday, but why should that matter?
They knew me, so Victoria counted on me to handle
promotion on those nights.
|
 |
Victoria had gone all out this past week.
Her phone was practically glued to her ear.
Based on the buzz in my various dance classes, Victoria's hard work
seemed to have paid off in a big way. Everyone was
talking about the party. Personally I thought
Victoria's
idea to make this Graduation Event a Halloween party was brilliant.
I secretly wanted to be
Leopard Man again, but I doubted Patricia
would approve. Better to play it safe. I came as
a pirate instead. Not terribly original.
I had a feeling
Victoria's event was going to be a big hit. Victoria
was an indomitable force.
She lived and breathed this event. All month
long, Victoria had a big smile on her face.
After several years of dormancy, she was beginning to find herself again. It was a
major
thrill to
resurrect her college role as the Master Organizer. Even
better, her husband Michael was enjoying himself. He
was glad to see his wife come back to life so to speak. The
dancing was growing closer, so Victoria felt rewarded for her hard
work.
Watching
Victoria in action, there were times when I felt so
inept. Nevertheless, I was grateful she had sensed this
leadership vacuum
and
decided to solve the problem. By organizing this
party, she had created an opportunity for students from
all five weeknights to meet, greet and dance together. In so doing,
Victoria had accelerated the formation of a group identity.
Putting my damaged ego aside,
I had a hunch this upcoming party was an omen of good things to
come.
|
 |
I made
one
fascinating observation. Everyone told me they were coming to this
event because everyone was coming to this event. In
other words, a stampede created a stampede. Victoria made this party sound like so much fun
that the students were promoting this event to
other students.
In particular, the singles crowd was ecstatic with the
expectation of meeting the love of their life. A
Monday student wondered what special student from the
Tuesday or Wednesday class might be in attendance.
And what about that cute girl (or guy) in one's own class? The single guys
used the event as an excuse to encourage
certain ladies they had their eye on to participate.
Some even had the courage to suggest they go together.
Victoria had created
something very special here. Her upcoming party was a
goal to shoot for, a reward for their preparation. When students
practiced in dance class, they concentrated like
crazy because they intended to put their lessons to good
use at the party.
In the privacy
of my thoughts, I was ashamed.
Not once during the first nine months of my Magic
Carpet Ride had it occurred to me to have a grand party
which connected students from all five nights. The
idea was so obvious that I could not stop kicking myself for
the oversight. I had observed how encouraging students in my Monday
Advanced
class to join me for after-class dancing had developed close friendships. However, there was no group identity for my
overall program.
It had never occurred to me to find a
way to link Monday students to Thursday students and so on. Besides, even if the thought had crossed
my mind, I did not possess the social skills to know
how to
organize everyone. Considering I had never planned a
party in my life, I made sure to pay careful attention to
Victoria's game plan.
Victoria seemed like the answer to another wish, my desire
to succeed in this business despite my obvious limitations.
Seeing Victoria as someone sent to be my teacher, here again I thought, 'My, my, how convenient'. Victoria was so perfect
in her role as mentor, I had the strangest
feeling she too was a Karmic Relationship just like Patricia.
It was very curious how both women arrived at the same time.
You don't suppose it was part of a Cosmic plan, do you?
|
On the night of
the party, there was a giant snafu neither Victoria nor I anticipated until it was too late.
Victoria had forgotten to specify a start time on the
Halloween flyer. She
didn't catch it, I didn't catch it, and no one pointed it
out until late in the game. Not a problem, Victoria
decided. She would get to the Pistachio Club
early and greet everyone. The plan called for Victoria
to meet me at the studio to help me with my 8-9 class, but
leave early at 8:45 pm in order to make it to the club
around 9 pm.
Victoria made
another mistake as well. She assumed everyone would
want to skip their 9-10 class and simply go straight to the
Pistachio Club from home. Victoria was a
little upset because the husbands in her Private
Class preferred to come to class first for further training, then head over the
Halloween Party.
Victoria's
husband Michael sided with his friends. "Honey, the
guys tell me they need the review that Rick promised us.
I also need the review. Why not hold class as planned
and then we can head over there with the rest of our gang?"
Victoria would
not dream of getting to her party so late, so they decided
to take two cars. This would allow Michael to attend
the regular 9-10 Friday night dance class on his own while
Victoria headed from Stevens of Hollywood to the Halloween Party.
Victoria alerted me to the problem at 8:45 pm. Pulling me over,
Victoria said, "Look, Rick,
I need your promise that you will end your 9-10 pm class
early. If you end at 9:40 pm, you and the students can be at the club
at 10 pm sharp."
This was news to
me. Her request put me in a
bind because I had promised to pick up Patricia at her
apartment so we could arrive together. Victoria did
not know
about Patricia for the simple reason that our
relationship was just one week old. I wanted Victoria to meet
Patricia, but preferred to keep it a surprise for the
party.
"I'm sorry,
Victoria, I wish you had asked me earlier. I will end
class early as you have asked, but I have a
date and I promised to pick her up. You can expect me around 10:30."
Victoria went
white with panic, then turned crimson with anger.
"Rick,
are you
nuts!?! You're not thinking straight! What do you mean when you say you will be
late? You are the
only person
that everyone recognizes! Without you, how will
anyone know
where our group is meeting? I am only here at the studio on Tuesdays
and Fridays. The people from the other nights have no idea who I am.
I can't possibly greet people I don't know. You
need to be there early!! Call your date and tell
her to drive herself. Then wrap your class up at 9:30
and hurry over."
|
I cringed as
Victoria barked at me. Why
had she waited till the last minute to ask? I had never seen this controlling side
of her before. However, I also saw her point. We were trying to
bring Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday students together
for the first time. Our students would be
wandering around the club, but no one knew Frankenstein from
Dracula. Victoria might be the brains of the
operation, but I was the only person everyone recognized.
Unfortunately, my first loyalty was to Patricia, so I refused to
change my plans. Nor did I offer an explanation of why
Patricia was special, which
in Hindsight was a stupid mistake because now Victoria was
even angrier. Since Victoria did not understand what my
problem was, she went ballistic.
"Damn
it, Rick, what the hell is wrong with you? Don't
do this to me! I have busted my ass for a month
and now I need your help. You
need to go directly to Pistachio after class!!"
As I continue to
point out, there were huge gaps in my social acuity.
This moment was a perfect example. I never saw this
coming nor was I able to see the correct solution. I
should have explained to Victoria my reasons for
being late. If Victoria still insisted, I should have called Patricia, explained the
problem, and asked her to meet me at the club. However, I
did not want to spoil our dramatic grand entrance.
Determined to arrive with Venus on my arm, I tried to
dismiss Victoria's quite-justified anger.
|
 |
"Victoria,
you should have told me sooner, but don't worry so much.
People will figure it out. Just go. Once people see
you, the ones from Tuesday and Friday will assemble in one spot, then
others
will notice a group is forming and drift over."
With fire burning
in her eyes, Victoria lowered her voice to a determined
hush. "Rick, I am depending on you to be there
at the start! What is so important that you have to be
late?"
"I can't tell
you, Victoria, but it is important to me."
Exasperated,
Victoria lost her temper. Grabbing the keys from her
purse, she left in a storm of rage. I had never seen Victoria so
angry.
|
My class
with Michael and friends did not go well. It is a
well-known fact that women pick up partner dancing far more
quickly than men. With only three previous hours of training
under their belt, the men were still Beginners.
Unfortunately, while the men really needed this
lesson, the wives could have cared less. Their mind
was on the fun. They were chomping at the bit to head
to the party. Since no one seemed able to concentrate,
at the halfway mark we made a mutual decision to stop there and
head to
the party.
Meanwhile
Victoria was already at the Pistachio Club. When Victoria
saw the leaderless guests milling about, she was
livid. First Victoria planted her Tuesday friends in
the open spot that the club had reserved for us. Then
Victoria plunged into the crowd looking for lost dance
students. Ironically, it was not difficult to identify
our students. For some
reason, it slipped Victoria's mind that the Pistachio Club
was not having a Halloween Party of its own that night. As a
result, half the crowd was in costume, the other half wore
their regular outfits. Angry to see all these
countless costumed people wandering around , Victoria
conducted the greatest Round-up since the days of Texas
cattle drives. All Victoria had to do
was go from one costumed person to another and point to the
seating area in back that had been reserved for our group.
|
 |
Victoria was not
about to let her hard work go down in flames. It helped
considerably that Victoria was the most stunning Witch
anyone had ever seen. As she passed by,
all eyes were drawn to her. This helped considerably
because it gave her an excuse to smile and politely ask if
they were part of our group.
"Excuse me, but are
you here for the dance studio graduation party?"
One stranger after
another was relieved when Victoria came up to them. Give
her some
credit, Victoria was not afraid of
strangers. Victoria assumed anyone who looked bewildered probably
belonged to her. Using that as her criteria, she went up to every lost-looking person in the club and asked if they were with Rick
Archer's dance group. Like a
shepherd gathering her flock, she guided one
lost sheep after another over to the corner
where her friends were saving an entire section of seats.
Acting as a
magnet, Victoria was
amazing. Not only did she herd our students together, I
imagine she collected a few men who weren't with our group
simply because she looked so good. In
virtually no time at all a large group collected in the
back. Like a magician, in
the space of 20 minutes, Victoria created a group
of 80 dance students out of thin air. Once
the
group was assembled, everyone was in awe. The size of this
group was quite an accomplishment. There was a
confidence that came from belonging to the largest group in
the club. First everyone introduced themselves.
"What night are you from?" was the obvious opening
line. Some mingled while others
swamped the dance floor. Seeing everyone
enjoying themselves, Victoria let out a huge sigh of
relief. She had
rescued her party from the jaws of disaster.
|
OCTOBER 27, 1978,
the disco years
THE PATRICIAN
MAKES HER ENTRANCE
|
|
After I shooed
everyone out of the studio at 9:30, I detoured to Patricia's apartment.
Upset over Victoria's anger, I was in a bad mood. I did
not like being chewed out for a mistake I did not feel
responsible for. Although I did not handle the situation
well, I felt Victoria was at fault. All she had to do was
inform me of her expectations in advance.
Preoccupied with
Victoria, Patricia was able to catch me completely off guard. When Patricia said she was coming
dressed as a Roman woman, I figured toga and sandals.
Maybe she would wear something cut out of bed sheets that would pass as a
toga at a frat party. It never dawned on me a modest
costume was not what
Patricia had in mind.
When I arrived at her doorstep, I gasped.
Patricia had promised to dress as a Roman 'Patrician',
but to me she resembled a Roman Goddess.
I trembled as I stared. Other than Nancy, I had
never seen a more beautiful woman in my life. My vision of
Patricia as the Goddess Venus was permanently emblazoned in my
mind.
At 10:15 I walked into the Pistachio Club with Venus at my side. This was my moment of triumph.
Check that, it was actually Patricia's moment of triumph. Instantly heads began to
turn. Patricia was so stunning, everyone, men and women
alike, craned their necks for a better look. I had seen this effect once before at
élan
with Nancy. Tonight Patricia accomplished the same thing.
They say a hot knife cuts butter. I noticed Beauty has the
same effect. The crowd parted to make way for this
ethereal figure. Patricia
was treated with reverence befitting a Goddess as she crossed the room.
I laughed to myself
as I watched. My favorite part was 'The Wave'.
Patricia had mastered that
practiced flick of the hand used by royalty as greeting to
admirers. I recalled the time Nancy had told me she was 'used to the attention'.
Based on the way Patricia worked her entrance, she was used to
it as well. I had never seen a
woman move with more confidence. Walking slowly, turning
her head from side to side, smiling as she made eye contact,
waving periodically, Patricia had a regal presence. She moved through the adoring crowd with the same aplomb one
would expect from a movie actress on the red carpet. Patricia got a kick out
of the stares. Her role as the most beautiful woman
in the Disco came naturally. She made sure to bestow her mega-watt smile
on
her male admirers. Patricia was no stranger to the
attention of men, that was obvious.
After Patricia and I
made a complete circuit around the dance floor, it was time to join
the group. Due to my height, I
could see the big crowd assembled
in the back. That had to be the studio group.
Victoria did not see us, but her tall hat was easy to spot in
the throng. At the time, I had no idea about the ordeal Victoria had been
through. Victoria's Graduation Party
appeared to be quite a success. It was time for
my big surprise. I had not told Victoria that I was
bringing Patricia. Due to our whirlwind courtship, Victoria did
not know Patricia existed. For her part, Patricia had
heard me mention Victoria, but that was the extent of it.
As we approached,
Victoria had her back turned to us. I called out,
"Hey, Victoria, I want you to meet my girlfriend Patricia!"
|
 |
 |
As Victoria turned
to face Patricia, her smile froze as their eyes met.
if looks could kill!
Victoria let out
some sort of involuntary hiss, the kind of sound heard when two angry
cats meet. Shocked at Victoria's unexpected hostility,
Patricia reacted in kind. The instant grimace on their
faces spoke to the
tension between these sleek panthers. Sparks flew as their eyes
locked.
This was no
ordinary showdown. This was Clash of the Titans.
I could feel the radioactive heat as matter met
anti-matter. For a moment there, the
Pistachio Club was in real danger of going Chernobyl.
The meltdown only
lasted a few seconds. That was the time it took for the women
to regain their poise. It was a startling transformation.
Recovering from the initial shockwave, the
women eased away from their battle stance to adopt an eerie
formality. Their stares of instant dislike were replaced by
cold eyes and thin lips as they sized each other up.
No words were spoken.
It was
amazing to see two glamorous, ultra-thin women resemble giant sumo wrestlers eying each other before the
showdown. Their eyes went top to bottom. How good is the
outfit? How good is the make-up? What about the
hair? Who has the best jewelry? Who has the best
figure?
And... of course...
Who is the Fairest
One of All?!?!
|
|
