The Girlfriend Experience / Reality Check

Sasha Grey as Chelsea

Steven Soderbergh made an interesting film starring the beautiful Sasha Grey called The Girlfriend Experience. A girlfriend experience, or GFE, is a high-end service where a woman will pretend to be your girlfriend. It is a romanticized version of a service a call girl may provide. Perhaps in some wealthy circles, or maybe in Mr. Soderbergh's, those situations and girls like Chelsea, Ms. Grey's character, actually exist. Those of us who have worked at the agency level have an entirely different point of view.

In reality, the girls that do outcall services with agencies are just a notch above street hookers, and perhaps a step below the incall brothels. Some girls live in dwellings with little, if any, furniture and spend their cash on dope. Many have managed to secure Section-8 housing and are living off your dime. Some actually live in nice homes and hold day jobs. Some of these girls exude class and defy common sense. A lot have kids. To one extent or another, they all have a screw loose. After all, they suck dick for a living. If you're harboring a secret fantasy of what these girls are like, I can assure you that you will not pick up anywhere near the likes of Jessica Alba, or any other fantasy chick. Remember Divine Brown*, the hooker Hugh Grant was caught with? Bingo.

It is a seedier side of society full of drugs and despair. These girls spend their money on coke instead of food. I don't get it. I used to feel sorry for them until I remembered that they made more than me. It's their choice. Regardless of their position, I've always treated them with respect. Some drivers hit on the girls. Gross. Some drivers have even beaten and robbed the girls and left them stranded in Jersey or Long Island. That's dumb on so many levels. Those kinds of lowlife drivers are taken care of one way or another. Some agencies are mob or thug connected or someone knows a cop and drugs are mysteriously discovered...  My advice to potential drivers is to stay under the radar and mind your own business. You'll make more money in the long run.

Honestly, driving escorts is a depressing profession. If you need to work off the grid, then the job may be ideal. For me, I was disgusted at the end of a shift, and it simply isn't worth the risk. It's only a matter of time before you're pulled over and your girl panics and dumps her coke in your car. Then you're fucked. On the other hand, I know of drivers with twenty years of experience and never had a problem. It all depends on the girl. Who knows? Maybe you'll hook up with Chelsea from the film and you'll be good to go. Keep dreaming. More than likely you'll be picking up Cokehead Lexi, Crazy Korina, Bi-polar Angie, or the Houdini Sisters from Paterson (- a long story). It's always something and there's always a story with these chicks. Don't take any shit from any girl or any dispatcher. Remember, it's your car and you are solely responsible for what goes on in it.

*Divine Brown, now Stella Thompson, turned her life around and is the mother of three. Good for her.