Lady of Leisure...

Back in 1999 I used to baby sit the grandchildren of this older widowed white woman named Terry B.

Let me tell you a little about Terry....

-She lived in a 400K house
-She drove a brand new BMW and a Lincoln Continental
-She was always dripping in diamonds, furs, and platinum jewelry
-She only wore custom made suits
-She went on Cruises every other month
-She always ran with an elite circle of black folks

I always knew that Terry only dated wealthy black men from all over the globe; from athletes, judges, doctors, and lawyers. Terry was a big woman too, but she was always impeccable, like a woman born into old money.

She never wore pants, all she ever wore was $600 custom made suits and shoes. She never purchased anything off the rack because she had this Indian guy from Chicago named James who custom made all of her clothes and shipped them to her when he was done.

Terry used to take me to Chicago with her every month where she would meet James at his studio to get fitted for new suits, or have alterations for her old ones. And while we were there, James would buy us lunch and we’d sit in his beautiful office and eat while he sketched new designs for Terry.

When James was done with the sketches, Terry would approve the sketches and pay to have the suits made.

I once saw Terry write a check for $5000 for 4 suits and a pair of custom made shoes, and when James asked Terry; “Do you mind if I asked what you do for a living”, Terry’s response was:

“I do nothing; I’m a woman of Leisure”

I’ll never forget that!