The evening of June 5th was both enchanting and bittersweet. The intimate Royal Amusements dinner was flawless—delicious food and gorgeous latex-clad guests! At 10pm, as we paraded through the New York streets on our way to the finale Fetish Retinue party, I felt anxious and a little melancholy, knowing that I was walking into the end of an era, and uncertain of what was to come.
Walking up the long staircase to White Noise, the sounds of revelry filled the air. I was delighted to find the club packed! The Fetish Retinue was truly getting the send-off it deserved.
It was an emotional evening as guests approached, asking if this was truly the last party and why, thanking me for 12 years of fetish parties, and telling tales of the fun and tortures they had over the past years. I took to the stage and made a short speech, thanking everyone. I said that with such a huge turn-out I was going to do another farewell party in September, and that drew laughs and loud cheers. Then I stepped into the throng and began to celebrate.
It wasn’t an easy decision to end The Fetish Retinue and I haven’t yet come up with any definite plans, but I do want to do something for my birthday at Halloween, so start thinking about your costumes!
After the party madness I needed a break, so we took a month-long road trip around the US, including some of Route 66, the Pacific Coast Highway, and several amazing national parks.
While fun, the trip was actually another project, this time a photo book: Mr. Mahj Goes West, featuring one of my cats. Look for it sometime next year. Photographer Mark McQueen has a few of the cat images on his blog.
Enjoy!