A friend of mine tells the tale of being *turned down* by a prostitute. As a shy and totally inexperienced teenager, he wandered around Soho, finally plucking up the courage to approach one of the ladies in a doorway: "Why don't you go home to your mum and spend your money on something else ?" was her advice. He did. What a kind, good and thoughful woman.

As well as there being "ladies of the night", there are also "ladies of the afternoon" - and very busy they are, too, or certainly used to be. In a lawyers' office I worked at in London, one of the senior men of the firm used to regularly ask his secretary to book him a room at a nearby prestigious hotel for the afternoon. Sometimes he would meet his assignations outside, but "ladies" frequently used to arrive for him at the office reception desk. This was over 25 years ago, in the days of the long lunch hour that went on to 4.30. In the current 24/7 working world, I wonder if his equivalent would be able to do this now ?

-jeanie