Happy New Year!

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I'm going to devote January to inspiration.

My first post is about my long-time friend Lily Burana, author of Strip City, a book that said everything I ever wanted said about working in strip joints--the good, the bad, the nights of shame, the the shameless pleasures, the money, the sexy, the everything it takes to understand what it's really like.

Although I had heard about Lily and was fascinated by her portrait in Annie Sprinkle's Post-Modern Pin-up Pleasure Activist Play Cards, I didn't meet her until we were on the set of Debra Devi's video "Take It Off," the opening for Jill Morley's incredible documentary, Stripped.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kyoYL6uJD8

Everyone I've mentioned in this post is a huge inspiration, so be sure to click on all the links, but I thought of Lily in particular today because of this post today on Salon.com, in which Lily says:

"Here’s what I know, this New Year, for sure: Darlings, it’s later than you think. Always. But there’s still plenty of time. Slip the red dress from the hanger. Tuck the silk flower behind your ear. Hide the scale and head out the door. The rest of your one and only life is waiting."

In the article, she talks about worrying how she'll look in a red dress at the Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekender. Here's how we looked:

Photo by Jonny Porkpie
 
Do it--wear the red dress!
 
 


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