2296 Not so Gentlemen

Sometimes I'm not sure about terms. They get bandied about this way and that so you're never certain of the meaning.

Take the word Gentleman. Seems like that sort of genteel appellation that bestows a certain amount of class on an individual. That's appellation as in name, not Appalachian as in Deliverance type region or behavior. 

And it works, I always have a different expectation for a restroom when it has the word "Gentlemen" on the door. As opposed to "Caballeros" or "Buoys." Gotta love those nautical themed restaurants where the restroom signs of "Gulls" and "Buoys" reduce us to birds that mess on things and bobbing markers that are one of the things they mess on.

Anyhow, I read an interesting little snippet the other day about two golfers who came to a violent altercation over scorekeeping on the course. And the title of the article called golf "The Gentleman's Game." Not entirely gentlemanly in this instance.

Then there's the new nude dancing club that opened up in the area recently. Their promotional gambit for the first couple of weeks was a sign that said, "No cover until 7:00." I get it. But afterwards the dancers dance semi-nude? 

What really got me was their main sign, which says that it's a Gentleman's Club. Perhaps they have a different sense of the genteel than you or me. I see "gentlemen" sitting back in overstuffed Victorian chairs, puffing on cigars or pipes, drinking coffee or aged scotch, and reading the newspaper. 

Not yahoos guzzling overpriced drinks shouting slurred indecent offers at unclad dancers and stuffing soiled singles into said entertainer's underwear. 

There's another possibility. Considering the sort of man they're looking for. Since gentle and genital share so many letters, maybe the sign was a misprint. 

America, ya gotta love it.