When Cinderella lost her glass shoe at the ball, did anyone notice the size of her heels on the shoe? She danced so elegantly the whole night that she couldn't possibly have worn high heels. I should have learned from Cinderella. The charity ball that I attended on the weekend saw me wearing some new lovely high heels which may I say looked rather suave. But my feet would argue otherwise. There is no point in wearing high heels if you can't glide across the dance floor, and then later walk to hail a taxi.
I thought my year 12 formal was the last time I would ever fuss over my hair and make-up so that I looked like a princess (well, apart from my wedding.) Little did I know that university is full of balls. There's the law ball, the medical ball and the physio ball for starters. Unfortunately, I never attended the physio ball because it was always held on a Friday night, which is the start of the Jewish Sabbath. So when a uni friend was organising a ball for the charity which she started (40 k home) it didn't take much convincing for me to go.
The evening started with a room full of giggling belles drinking punch at Miss BC's house, who kindly offered her place for pre-drinks. Unlike the year 12 formal, no one felt compelled to bring a partner (in fact no one wanted to pay for a partner!) so there were no corsages and no limos. Just a devoted sister who would play chauffeur.
The ball was held at Pymble Golf club and was filled to capacity - an attendance of 230 guests. I walked in and surveyed the room to look for familiar faces. None stood out. I mingled and chatted to the regular crowd, not yet daring to venture out and introduce myself to new faces. Hadn't drunk enough champagne for that!
The evening proceeded and we devoured a 3 course meal and a few glasses of wine, listened to some inspiring words about the charity and then carved up the dance floor (after kicking off my high heels!) The only low light of the evening was trying to grab a taxi from the after-party at Kings Cross in the wet wind and failing for over an hour!
The ball made $22 500 in profit. It was a great effort for 6 university students who have a passion to help and empower kids in a third world country. It was also so nice to see the community's enthusiasm for this project. The staff at the golf club worked for free. Our desserts were sponsored by an outside company. The Waratahs auctioned an opportunity to play touch footy against them, with the highest bidding price being $650. Bryce Courtenay donated a signed copy of all his books for the raffle. Plantation (a club at Kings Cross) hosted the after party for free.
So kudos to the organisers who have now raised about $38 000 for their charity in one short year. Check out their website and help them reach their target of $40 000.
Whilst prim and proper balls may squeeze the student budget, they are a great deal of fun and I hope their popularity lives on. But girls, just don't wear heels that are uncomfortable!