The Belly Dancer

Tonight, all my planning backfired on me. Tonight, as we frequently do on Friday nights, a few of the fellas headed out to the O.C. to grab some delicious Persian food. The events usually play out the same each time. We arrive, then shortly afterwards a not-quite-right belly dancer does her thing. After the belly dancer comes the guitarist, who is good enough, but a couple of my friends (who have been frequenting this restaurant for many years vs. my one year) seem to have developed an awkward connection with him, if not an actual weird relationship. I almost forgot, the hostess is worth the drive by herself. Amazing.

Well, tonight we arrive at the restaurant, only to be greeted by another hostess. She is attractive in her own right, but we still missed our regular girl. We are seated right away, and I take my choice seat - facing the corner, my back to the dining room. I will sometimes try to face the entry way, especially if our hostess is in action, but with her gone I figure it will save me uneasy eye contact with the belly dancer.

I have a hard enough time knowing how to look at the belly dancers as it is. I have a patient who does some belly dancing, and I have questioned her as to the etiquette of watching the dancers. I have been assured that we are to be looking at their bodies, but with the well-lit room, I feel like I'm in a spotlight, and feel like the lights should be dimmed like a strip club.

Some people seem to be afraid of clowns (coulrophobia), but this restaurant has made me afraid of belly dancers. It has nothing to do with the dancing, but the two dancers who are usually there have good enough bodies, but also have these plastic faces, and they look at you with these weird smiles that make me uncomfortable. I found the name for fear of clowns, but if you can let me know if there is a name for the fear of belly dancers, please let me know.

Tonight, after we are seated, a new dancer comes out. She doesn't have the plastic face. She has a very good body. Her dancing is better, too. For the first time I actually want to watch her. She's doing amazing things. Now my seat facing the corner has created a disadvantage. I have my neck cranked around like an owl. I still feel like the lights are too bright. I don't care. I do make conscious decisions to shift my attention back to the table periodically.

Now I have a dilemma. Do I face the room or the corner? It used to be an easy answer. Now I'm not so sure. It's really rolling the dice next time. At least the excellent food is a constant.

Hey, has anyone ever seen a clown belly dance? That would be really freaky.