He's the new member...

Still too busy to assemble that computer, but I took some time to piece together another one of my thoughts into a post. This time, it's about the financial divide betwen the wealthy and those who aren't. I was sent to a country club to do a gig and for the first time, I felt that one even existed.

You would have thought that I would have noticed this divide when I went to another gig in the Hamptons. Just knowing that there are a few hundred people around you paying large sums of money just to be a member and knowing that they only use the place when they don't want to be in NYC made it much more immediate. (I later found out that the price of membership was a mere one hundred thousand dollars besides being sponsored by a member. Not to mention annual dues. Chump change as they say.)

Prior to this job, I knew in my head that there was an elite group of people whose financial wealth allowed them certain privileges that I couldn't afford. I realized what privileges they could afford when I walked in and saw what amounted to a large manor house surrounded by an eighteen hole golf course, olympic sized pool and tennis courts. Chefs manned barbeque grills to cook the members hamburgers and hot dogs. And the only way one could get a drink or seated at a table for dinner required that one would sign off on a card with their membership number.

As I walked around to locate the general manager, I couldn't help being amused by the number of members who nodded to me as if they knew me. As I walked by one group of members, I heard one of them explain to another that I "must be a new member." I kept a pleasant expression on my face, nodding back to those who nodded at me and presented myself to the general manager. I could barely contain my laughter.

I wasn't sent here to rock their dining hall with music at a crazy party. Oh, no, that wasn't the reason. I was there to distract the kids under twelve with a movie. Yep, I was there to set up a projector, screen and dvd player so that the kids would leave the parents alone as they dined. I was being paid to be a glorified babysiter. Along with some popcorn as my assistants.

As the kids watched the movie (Racing Stripes), I wandered around the room, which was filled with plaques going back fifty years listing tennis and golf winners each year for men and women. Some of the names I recognized, which astonished me. I didn't expect to see names of wealthy people here that I would have heard of.

Finally the movie ended (I won't ruin the ending for you), and the kids raced back to their parents. As they left, I thought other than being messy, they were rather well behaved. I expected some tantrums that didn't occur during the time I watched them. I was a bit surprised that my expectations were not met.

As I packed up the equipment, my thoughts ran over the environs that I found myself in, wondering what being a member to a place like this must be like. I knew that even a few hours spent here wasn't enough to expose me to the experience that being a member was really like. Eventually, my masquarade as a "new member" would fall apart and they'd learn the truth. The final thought as I drove away from the clubhouse was that even though my car belonged there in their parking lot, I knew that I didn't belong.