tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27459387345349734122024-03-14T07:41:30.891-07:00Feminist EroticaReviews of erotica good for the soul by and for sexy feministsAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.comBlogger131125truetag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-18433686306998786672016-04-18T10:12:00.000-07:002016-04-19T00:10:25.006-07:00Seattle Erotic Art Festival<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of the writers I've reviewed in the past, <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/falling-for-kiss-tilly-and-elmer.html" target="_blank">Gene <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Clements</span></a>, wrote to let me know that he will be reading a couple of his stories at the <a href="https://www.seattleerotic.org/" target="_blank">Seattle Erotic Art Festival</a> (April 22nd-24th). The festival sounds like it's going to be fab from start to finish, and if you're short of cash but still want to go - fear not, you can be a volunteer. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Festivals of this kind, and <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/selection-box-burlesque-christmas-party.html" target="_blank">burlesque shows</a>, are a good sign that sex and erotica are becoming increasingly accepted in
society. A healthy mind in a healthy body - brooding over one of our
most natural and pleasurable impulses just can't be good for you. (Gene's books are a delightful reminder that sex is for everyone, as his hero and heroine are an older couple who still enjoy their rumpy-pumpy.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BTW, in the tradition of those adult doodling/colouring books which are designed to lower your stress levels, Gene has recently produced <a href="https://www.createspace.com/6102798" target="_blank"><i>Tilly and Elmer - The Sexy Citizens of South Branch Coloring Book</i></a>. (The cover looks deliciously like a soft focus Lichtenstein.) That should get us all mellow and in the mood! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-88693575478465613192016-04-13T01:34:00.001-07:002016-04-13T01:35:14.426-07:00None of the Above<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41wie%2BkpAYL._SX322_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41wie%2BkpAYL._SX322_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" height="320" width="207" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A review by <a href="https://www.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=1362237&page=submissions" target="_blank">stickygirl</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/None-Above-I-W-Gregorio/dp/0062335316" target="_blank">None of the Above</a></i>, by IW Gregorio<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">: </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Kristin has a secret, but one that Nature has hidden from her. It is
only when, as Homecoming Queen, her attention turns more seriously to her boyfriend, that the truth reveals itself. </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What follows is a story of what-not-to-do when you discover you are
intersex (or gay or transgender) and of how the world will react to
you. The breaking news of her discovery spreads like wildfire and turns
people against her through ignorance, misunderstandings and the often
judgemental nature of teenagers. Kristin's struggle to come to terms
with her identity against that antagonistic backdrop is the real
strength of this novel.</span><br />
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Gregorio, who has first hand experience in treating similar cases,
weaves a high school story that is engaging, if slightly prescriptive.
The usual emotional suspects are rounded up: a tested love interest,
betrayal by BFFs and an overlooked friend who comes to her rescue.
No emotional box is left unticked - as though the author were anxious to
fill the pages with illustration rather than integrity. Despite that, it
is a real page-turner and it's easy reading that would suit any age
from mid-teen upward. </span><br />
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It may lack the emotional intensity of a John Green novel, but its
message is the same: we all struggle to find a place in the world and
those trials, no matter what their cause, make us human.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-32922462647977565722016-01-21T22:53:00.000-08:002016-01-21T22:53:04.194-08:00Pucker Up and Vote! <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Literotica Valentine's Day competition is here - a list stuffed full of top class stories for you to peruse and purse your lips over. Remember - Literotica writers publish our work for free. All we ask is that you give an honest vote, and if you have time - leave a comment. We really appreciate feedback <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">that </span>helps us with our writing, either by pointing to what we did that you like or by suggesting areas we may need to improve. </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a>Remember that not all the stories in the list will be of a kind I would normally recommend on here, so read with caution - and enjoy! Here is the link to <a href="https://www.literotica.com/stories/contest.php/valentines-day-2016" target="_blank">the full list</a>.<br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I'm going to review two stories which I can whole-heartedly recommend - one of them being my own and the other by Hypoxia. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I had wanted to read Hypoxia's stories for quite a while, however being short of time and since most of them are in categories I don't normally look at (like Incest), I hadn't got round to them. When I saw he was planning a botanical tale for Valentine's and looking for an editor, I was unable to resist. I was richly rewarded, as <i><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/the-botanists-an-adventure" target="_blank">The Botanists: An Adventure</a></i> is a wonderful jaunt through California and along the San Andreas Fault Line. Hypoxia has cleverly taken the real life romance of two early botanist pioneers: Townshend Stith Brandegee and Mary Katharine Layne Curran, and woven a charming tale from their passion for plants and for each other. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One fault (apart from the San Andreas one!) which I ought to mention, is the issue of racism. There is a comment complaining of 'racial slurs', but Hypoxia does warn us in his introduction that he is using historically accurate nomenclature. I feel he handles these reasonably well. What is more difficult is the character of Mary Curran's Chinese maid. I'm sure she is historically accurate as well, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">how<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ever</span></span> I <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">put it to </span>Hypoxia that it's well-nigh impossible to represent a secondary character of this kind without doing so in a way that becomes offensive. Her dress, habit of giggling and general demeanour jar for today's readers. Hypoxia argued that he needs her for a sequel he has planned, so she had to stay. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hypoxia's scholarly writing style <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">i</span>s very well suited to this kind of story. I <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">loved </span>reading about the plants and other historical details. (One comment says: "I am flabbergasted at how believable I find your imagineering of this period and these people.") I also enjoyed how T.S. and M.K. took their love affair slowly. And I whole-heartedly admired the adroit way in which Hypoxia introduces Samuel Langhorne Clemens - yes, Mark Twain himself, and some historically accurate condoms into this perfect period piece! Excellent job. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.victoriana.com/VictorianValentine/images/EstherHowlandcouple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.victoriana.com/VictorianValentine/images/EstherHowlandcouple.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An Esther Howland valentine<br />
from <a href="http://www.victoriana.com/VictorianValentine/valentinestributetolove.htm" target="_blank">Victoriana.com</a>. She was<br />
the first person to mass produce<br />
cards for sale in North America. </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By coincidence, I was myself writing a Valentine's Day story set in the Victorian era - about twenty years earlier and in Britain. Our two stories are particularly appropriate for the competition, as it was during the Victorian era with the mass production of cards and cheap postal rates, that Valentine's Day started to be so widely celebrated. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My story is based not on real life characters but on a Victorian myth. I had read a while back that the vibrator was supposedly invented by Victorian doctors for the relief of hysteria among delicate young ladies of the era and I thought that was a spiffing plot device for an erotic story. It was far too good to throw away when I found out that in fact the Victorians weren't quite so enlightened about hysterical women, so I wrote the story anyway. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I'm very pleased to have had comments saying that I got the "formal, flowery tone" of young Victorian women's speech right. I worked hard at Maud as a character, imagining how it would feel to be so constantly repressed that you no longer dare to admit what you would really like to do, even when it's the most natural thing in the world. Of course, that sort of thing doesn't happen nowadays ...? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I had a couple of fun period pictures which I also put into <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/maud-comes-for-valentine" target="_blank"><i>Maud Comes for Valentine</i></a>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-91714426239300501072016-01-02T12:31:00.000-08:002016-01-02T12:31:04.863-08:00The Danish Girl<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMjA0NjA4NjE2Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNzIxNTY2NjE@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMjA0NjA4NjE2Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNzIxNTY2NjE@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>(In this guest post, Literotica author <a href="https://www.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=1362237&page=submissions" target="_blank">stickygirl</a> gives us her thoughts on the recently released film: </i>The Danish Girl<i>.) </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">From the perspective of a transgender woman as well a
cinema-goer, I was impatient, if apprehensive, to see this film. It seems to
have had such a long run of reviews these past months before its official
release in the UK on 1<sup>st</sup> January.</span></div>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Seeing Working Title in the credits as producers is almost a
guarantee of authenticity both in terms of locations and costumes and this
story set in the early 1900’s is a treat for the eyes. Working Title are a bold company and
put an enormous amount of trust in directors - as needed here. This is a
semi-biographical film, based on the diaries of <span class="st">Lili Ilse
Elvenes, aka Lili Elbe; we must assume a good deal of artistic licence was
granted in the characterisation of both Lili, played by Eddie Redmayne, and her
wife Gerda Wegener (Alicia Vikander), who are the main protagonists. </span></span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="st">As we join </span><span class="st"><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810819/" target="_blank">The Danish Girl</a></i>, they are young
successful painters and a devoted husband and wife, full of fun. In a moment of
whimsy, Gerda suggests her husband, Einar, stand in for a missing female client,
whose portrait she must complete. We are shown that this provides a spark that
finally awakens the soul of Lili, who then emerges, full of guilt and fear to
the initial bemusement of Gerda. When Lili seeks medical help, she is met with
professional contempt and at one point has to flee the threat of a
strait-jacket and their home country of Denmark.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="st">The weight of the film focuses more on the
strain in the relationship between the blossoming Lili and Gerda. Alicia
Vikander as Gerda brilliantly portrays an entirely believable,
three-dimensional character. Indeed our sympathies lie more with her torment,
which is allowed space and credibility, and less so with Redmayne’s character.
We are left as sympathetic observers to Lili/Einar and I felt let down by this
aspect of the film. Instead of a film about a woman struggling with her gender
identity, it defaults to a standard human-interest story about a marriage in
crisis. Heart rending at times, but the focus is always on Gerda. Instead of
Lili growing into someone stronger, we see her slipping away from her marriage,
her art and finally her life.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="st">If you’re looking to know more about
transgender issues, then you may be disappointed but if you enjoy a beautifully
made, period love story, then go see it. From an LGBT perspective, it does no
harm, but I’m left wanting to know more about the real Lili.</span></span></div>
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</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-57662598855715436312015-12-29T00:36:00.000-08:002015-12-29T00:37:02.285-08:00The Truth about Hymens and Sex<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Thank you to <a href="http://www.foofoolabelle.co.uk/home.html" target="_blank">Foo Foo Labelle</a> for drawing my attention to this video. As a long-standing campaigner against the way 'virginity' is touted as if it were the ultimate bridal accessory, I thought I understood the hymen pretty well. Well, now that I've seen this video I do. There's a lot I didn't understand about the hymen which is explained very well and very funnily here by <a href="http://www.trutv.com/shows/adam-ruins-everything/index.html" target="_blank"><i>Adam Ruins Everything</i></a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-52646722491714494592015-12-24T00:42:00.001-08:002015-12-24T00:42:35.820-08:00Selection Box - a Burlesque Christmas Party<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Come on now, Christmas just isn't Christmas without those selection boxes of chocolates and biscuits. So of course the burlesque presented a delicious selection box of acts for us to party to in the runup to Christmas Day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I always love taking along a friend who hasn't been to burlesque before. The 'O' of their mouth as they realise how much fun it is. The shaking with laughter, the gasping with amazement, the sparkle of sexiness. Even though they know, because I <i>told </i>them, they always comment on how seeing women of all different shapes and sizes makes us feel good about ourselves.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Burlesque is about watching performers who are freely being themselves, and that makes you feel free to enjoy being yourself. Frankly, it is just a sign of how sexist and sick our society is, that there isn't a burlesque show being put on in a top venue every weekend for women (and men) to go to and enjoy seeing how sexy and smart and super every woman is. (Yes, you too. If you don't believe me, go to a burlesque show and find out.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl">Our naughty, naughty, <i>naughty</i> host <a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100004060728751&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/dis.charge.10">Dis Charge</a> made sure that the evening skipped along full of innuendo and wickedness. First up there were two of Santa's elves getting up to all sorts instead of making the candy canes as they were meant to (</span><span class="fsl"><span class="fsl"><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100007431543311&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/dixie.delicieux">Dixie Allure</a> and <a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100004964941130&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/vixie.rouge" id="js_1z">Vixie Rouge</a></span>.) I love how the Cardiff burlesque shows make sure they put on cleverly themed acts, and we also had a delightful clockwork soldier from </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100004521424951&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/bonita.boudoir">Bonita Boudoir</a></span></span>, a delicately pretty then raucously rocking Miss Snowflake from </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=1376291936&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/foo.labelle">Foo Foo Labelle</a></span></span> and a Santa with a difference from drag king </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/page.php?id=565502223592371&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/Barry-Island-565502223592371/">Barry Island</a></span> (oooh! those sock suspenders :heart:). Christmas tv shows always had a male double act when I was a kid, and here we had Laurel and Hardy, only much much sexier, played by </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100001769877515&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/didi.curve.9">Ceri Didi Curv'e</a> and <a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100001190180948&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/honey.holiday.7">Honey Asaurus Holiday</a></span></span></span>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><br /> </span></span> </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100000963977004&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/missbetty.blueeyes">Betty Blue-Eyes</a> plays wittily with reluctance and pleasure. She put on a star turn with her prim office worker who hits the gin and starts revving it up. In the second act, she also did a great Bingo stripper, anxiously looking to see what number is coming up and what she will have to remove next. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl">I didn't think anyone could top the version of <i>Let It Go</i> which I saw at the <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/1st-international-welsh-cabaret-festival.html" target="_blank">First International Welsh Cabaret</a> (<i>you can still get the tote bags, BTW! LOL</i>). I was right, but </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100007442954795&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100007442954795">Arabella Sparkles</a></span></span> came pretty close. Words fail me! The way she managed to get Olaf the Snowman into the act was ... inspired! You just have to go and see it. And you just have to go and see it to understand how hysterically funny and sexy Foo Foo Labelle can make rolling around on the floor in a sleeping-bag with tassles on it, in a caterpillar act. The way she made those tassels twirl! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl">Another thing I love about the Cardiff burlesque is that all those taking part in the burlesque classes get to put on a couple of group acts in the show. Foo Foo Labelle works hard to make sure newbies get a good showing too. So if you are thinking you will join a slimming club after going through several selection boxes of chocolates and biscuits at Christmas, I suggest you put the money into some classes instead. You will have so much fun you'll forget to comfort eat and if the weight drops off with the fun and exercise, you'll regret losing your embonpoint as bigger ladies do look better onstage in the sparkly corsets. </span></span><br />
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<a href="http://cdn.images.dailystar.co.uk/dynamic/1/281x351/182548_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://cdn.images.dailystar.co.uk/dynamic/1/281x351/182548_1.jpg" height="200" width="160" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl">Headline act of the show was the inimitable <a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=100000599515976&extragetparams=%7B%22directed_target_id%22%3A562208443926170%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/velma.vonbonbon">Velma Von Bon Bon</a>. Seriously - don't try this at home! Her fabulous striptease while
riding a pink puppet flamingo was just ... a masterpiece. To top the show off, she
did the Natalia Kalashnikov act in which she pretended to be a washed
up alcoholic drunken Russian pole dancer, who wants to imitate Dita von Teese getting into a martini glass. OK, but uh ... look at the von Teese's martini glass - and yes, Velma Von Bon Bon's was up on top of a tall pole. I sort of knew, but I couldn't believe she was going to manage to get up that pole into that little butt-sized bowl on top. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl">Not only did Velma get up there, she did it in considerable style. We were laughing our heads off at her inept drunken attempts to climb up the pole while wearing a tight fitted dress, then ooohing in amazement as she swung herself round and hung off the rim of the glass by only her toes. And of course in a final daring set of swings, she gracefully ended up sitting in the 'glass'. One lucky guy in the audience was invited onstage to help her out. He was allowed to squirt pretend vodka over her from a water bazooka! I expect he is still waking up with wet dreams after that (wink). </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl">Basically, for an evening of fun, wit, laughter, sexiness, sparkle and sheer good times, you just can't beat the burlesque. As if there wasn't enough sparkle, the Glee Club were serving bottles of Prosecco (among other drinks), pizzas, burgers and nachos. Don't tell Foo (wink); I would pay double! By gosh, by golly - they have already set the ticket price even lower for the next show: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/202470516760458/" target="_blank">Dazzling Debuts: New Year Delights</a>!! I'm going on Facebook now to confirm I'm going ... </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="fsl"><br /> </span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-75223618806859037972015-12-23T02:07:00.002-08:002015-12-23T02:07:19.739-08:00Mobile Home for the Holidays<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I mentioned in my <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/an-angels-wish.html" target="_blank">review of the winner from Literotica's 2015 Winter Holiday competition</a> that I know what it is to be homeless. The story I review here takes place against a background of a less well understood homelessness, more likely to be experienced by women. Homelessness doesn't always mean having to sleep rough. Many homeless have a job, but the high price of housing and lack of suitable rented accomodation forces them to sleep on friends' floors or try to find other ways to stay safe - and clean. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When I was a lot younger, I lived in London where it could be near impossible to find decent rented accommodation. (I talked in <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/consent.html" target="_blank">my blogpost on Consent</a> about the lengths to which a young woman might be driven to get somewhere to live.) Like the characters in <i><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/mobile-home-for-the-holidays" target="_blank">Mobile Home for the Holidays</a></i>, by patientlee (<a href="http://patientleewriting.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">Patient Lee</a> - link to quality review blog), I did everything I could to avoid sleeping on the streets. I often had to accept a kind sofa from friends, eventually feeling so guilty about taking a long time to find a place of my own to rent that I would accept excessively expensive and dangerous room offers. I used to joke about one area I lived in where there had been two murders in the previous year, that I wasn't worried about walking home, it was when I got there that I was nervous. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Recently I was in a more unusual position. I work, and had a very large sum of money to put towards buying a house. Because of the wording of my work contracts and the nervousness of banks following the recent financial crisis - precipitated in part by insecure housing loans, I could not get any bank to give me a mortgage. At times I feared I would have to waste my substantial lump sum in the exorbitant rents which are charged for family homes in the area where I live. I also feared I would have to give up our much loved family pets to get a small flat for myself and Piglet. I felt silly getting so emotional about the animals when I had a small child to think of, but I also felt angry that I had to feel like that. I knew I could find the tabby a good home, but that it would be hard to find somewhere for the black mother cat - who became more aggressive after having kittens (not my choice - I was assured she'd been spayed!). I knew Piglet would be distraught if we had to give up the cats; when this happens, children may fear they are as expendable as loved pets, never mind that she is very fond of the cats.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB9E4mNJKBrztxRHNRJ7bn-IOx66duSN5NS_Of8UVGzp8FATyKcpW9C_y0R2DxFE8nvuFohmLVPhVb4AmtSMIHt_emudnOHW8paEGxCrz9QtS_vfzdhIIc1tdSjmANZAzt-Oph6X2xDbCV/s1600/DSC_3549.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB9E4mNJKBrztxRHNRJ7bn-IOx66duSN5NS_Of8UVGzp8FATyKcpW9C_y0R2DxFE8nvuFohmLVPhVb4AmtSMIHt_emudnOHW8paEGxCrz9QtS_vfzdhIIc1tdSjmANZAzt-Oph6X2xDbCV/s200/DSC_3549.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I teach social sciences, currently a Level 1 module which has a lot of economics in it, so I am in the interesting position of understanding the market forces in an economy so predicated on privately owned housing which impact unfairly on some individuals and families. Luckily I did manage to sort out a safe and happy home for all of us (we love it here and the cats spend hours watching birds and squirrels out of the window). I am still close enough to that experience of homelessness to feel intensely grateful for my good fortune and this Christmas I made sure I donated to a local homelessness charity. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In <i>Mobile Home for the Holidays</i>, Hailey finds herself homeless when her grandmother dies and she can no longer afford the rent on the trailer home they had shared. False pride prevents her accepting help from the trailer park owner. She tries to sleep in her car while continuing to work as a carer for the elderly. Although her work is valuable and physically demanding, her salary is so low that she can't afford both food and rent. (Let's not even ask about medical insurance!) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This background is lightly and believably sketched in a soft focus lesbian romance. Characters are credible and appealingly quirky. There could be more to Hailey; the story is told in the first person from her Point of View, and she ends up being more of a lens to tell the story than a personality. A young woman who is willing to cheerfully do the hard and often dirty work of caring for the elderly must have something going for her, but it's difficult to convey this in the first person without coming across as cocky. Maybe writing in a scene of banter with the residents of the home where she works would help? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The main issue though, is in the interaction between characters and particularly around the depiction of lesbian sexuality. This is not surprising, as 'what do lesbians do in bed?' is still not well understood. The joke answer to this is: <i>read books, eat salted snacks and grumble about the crumbs in the bed</i>, implying that lesbian sexuality is not much different to heterosexuality. The major difference, however, is that lesbian women suffer a double prejudice: as gay and as women. Queer women, as women, are as prone to experience prejudice in employment and therefore low wages as straight women, with a much lower possibility of finding a partner whose salary might make up for this. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">What this means for writers who are not 'in the life' is that lesbian sub-culture is hidden from view. Lesbian women are doubly vulnerable, so don't make a big show of socialising, not least in order to save ourselves from men who like to fantasise about two women together. (There's nothing intrinsically wrong with that but there is a world of difference between a male fantasy of lesbian sex such as <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/sexy-summer-sounds-walk-in-park.html" target="_blank">voiced by Kingswoman</a>, and an erotic lesbian story which will turn women on.) Plus, lesbian women have less income and therefore there are fewer clubs, magazines, published books which would showcase lesbian lives. Books and magazine articles don't usually dwell on the ordinariness of lesbian lives, they need a good story-line after all, and are often written with a positive spin on lives which are lived in fear of, if not constant experience of, homophobic and sexist discrimination. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Patient Lee focuses here on a feel-good story about two young women who are in desperate housing straits getting a small hand-up from friends and the care home residents which is all they need. It does not take much to save someone from benefits dependency and unfairly ending up homeless. She creates likeable characters in an enjoyable holiday story, with a light moral message. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This is only a short story, perhaps there isn't scope to <i>also </i>write about the panoply of prejudice experienced by lesbian women, so she brushes quickly over some of this. Hailey's grandmother's friend turns out to be surprisingly un-homophobic. Some of the male care home residents make comments, but this is not too much for Hailey and Morgan. The care home readily offers Morgan, Hailey's newfound lover, a job so the two women can afford a trailer home together. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In actuality, I would expect the women at the care home, who may need intimate assistance from the two young women, to be uncomfortable. Men are usually a bit sly when I say I have had women partners - the kind of men I hang with are too smart to ask if they can watch, but I sort of see them thinking about it. For the care home to offer a job to a young woman straight off the street would be unusual. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hailey and Morgan need some tidying up. The way in which they meet - picking food out of dumpsters and regarding a meal at a Wendy's as deliciously hot - is depicted with fine gritty realism. Morgan is an appealing churlish waif, as attractive a character as the two women in Patient Lee's story of older lesbian love published in <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/hot-summer-reads.html" target="_blank"><i>Hot Summer Reads</i></a>. Hailey's reaction to her story of how Morgan's parents treated her when they found out she is lesbian is curiously flat, though. Hailey's lack of understanding of her own sexuality doesn't quite ring true. Something more is needed here, something to raise the emotional stakes. Morgan's initial appeal for Hailey is that she is this waif who is living off the street at a level even below Hailey's. There needs to be more about the physical attraction Hailey feels towards her and it needs to be made clearer that Morgan finds Hailey attractive, before Hailey launches herself at Morgan for a snog. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Lesbians in bed are not really very interesting to watch, BTW. Lesbian sex is more fun for the participants than for voyeurs. Probably the best guide to lesbian lives is the Alison Bechdel <i>Dykes to Watch Out For</i> series of cartoons (I link to Bechdel's blog in my blogroll). Bechdel maps with humour and insight the lesbian mix of intense political fervour and anxious checking out of other women (is she/isn't she? will she be outraged if I put my hand on her knee?), covering a rapidly changing world with a keen eye. In my lifetime, we went from being in relationships which were legal in Britain only because Queen Victoria refused to believe women had sex with women, to being able to marry. It became almost normal for lesbian women to have children. Tabloid papers ceased to be able to slily discredit teachers, nurses and other hardworking carers by revealing that we happened to be in a relationship with another woman. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Patient Lee can be a magnificent writer of repressed sexuality, as demonstrated in the superb <i>Lost Agnes</i>. <i>Mobile Home for the Holidays</i> is a good read and a little work on the character interaction would bring it up to the high standard of Patient Lee's other stories. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-38551923551823896382015-12-21T21:03:00.000-08:002015-12-21T21:03:25.066-08:00An Angel's Wish<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/57/51/c9/5751c94f6724e743acd3aa575c4a8f7e.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/57/51/c9/5751c94f6724e743acd3aa575c4a8f7e.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Angel Waiting</i>, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">by <span class="irc_su" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">Todd Krasovetz</span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">That this hard-hitting non-erotic story could win Literotica's Winter Holiday competition is testament to the quality of readers of Literotica stories. This is the antithesis of what you would expect a story on an erotica site to be: a mix of romance and tough realism which squeezes the heart and could make even a hardened critic cry. (I said <i>could</i>. It's just some dust in my eye *sniffle*.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Both this and a story I plan to review for tomorrow as a runup to Christmas, have a background theme of homelessness. At this time of year, many of us are 'driving home for Christmas'. I have personally been homeless on more than one occasion. I know that people who are 'homeless' are often not people you would expect to have trouble getting housed. This month, as I gratefully plan for a merry Christmas with my young daughter and our cats in a safe warm happy home, I am donating to a local homeless charity. I hope the small donation helps someone be warm and safe even if only for a couple of days. </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Not content with depicting difficulties of homelessness on the streets of North America, Tara Neale has picked the even tougher topic of ex military homelessness. <i><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/an-angels-wish" target="_blank">An Angel's Wish</a></i> starts with a single mother of a child with cerebral palsy. When Keisha asks Breanne what she wants for Christmas, her child says she wants them to have a marine to the house for a day; to feed him and give him some new clothes. Her father was also a marine, although he was killed in action before Keisha could tell him she was pregnant, so Breanne has never seen her father. (Keisha is also not entitled to any military pension to help her bring Breanne up.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Tara Neale doesn't shy from depicting the harsh reality of homeless ex-military: the behaviour which results from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, the problems coping with ordinary relationships which mean veterans may desert their families, feeling they can only let other people down. Her depiction of Travis Baker as a character is uncompromisingly realistic, so much so that several veterans have commented how true to life the story is, as well as admitting it brought a tear to their eye. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">*spoiler alert!*</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Nor does romance enter into the story where you might expect. Travis and Keisha do not fall in love and give Breanne a new dad for Christmas. The romantic writing is mainly in the depiction of Breanne, who might be the 'Angel' of the title. </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There are also
some improbable twists in the story. We can take in our reading stride that Travis is the
Sergeant to whom Breanne's father had given a last love letter for
Keisha, to be delivered if the worst should happen to him. However, the
ending of the story needs some thought. We have invested in G.I. Joe as a
'realist' character, an old veteran suffering worse PTSD than Travis,
so to have him romantically transformed into the angelic spirit of
Breanne's father - whose wish is to see Keisha and his daughter - is hard to take. The twist from the story being about Breanne's wish to being about her lost father's wish is nice, it just needs a bit more work. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The difficulties of Breanne's cerebral palsy are well sketched, with good understanding of the kinds of issues someone with this condition faces. The romantic Tiny Tim sweetness of her character may be lending the story much of its appeal to readers; especially at this time of year, when we want to read a heart-warming story about goodness. However, in my experience, kids going through a tough time often take that out in bad behaviour towards their mothers. Maybe if Breanne was depicted as sometimes being contrary with Keisha, this might even add to the story. Keisha might argue with Breanne's idea of taking in a marine - "Breanne, you make things so difficult sometimes!" then slowly come to realise Breanne means it and is not just suggesting this to get her mother going. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm going to tentatively compare the romantic characterisation here to a different and harshly real bit of characterisation. In his famous study of creative writing: <i>Mimesis</i>, Erich Auerbach takes a number of pieces of writing through the ages and explores how they represent the world. One of the pieces he writes about forms part of a fifteenth century French work: <i>Le R</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i><span class="st">é</span>confort de Madame de Fresnes</i>. It is the heart-wrenching story of Seigneur and Mme de Chastel, whose young son has been given in hostage to the Black Prince, </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">notorious for contravening the chivalrous edicts of the time in pursuit of pragmatic victory</span>. The son is about to be killed by the Black Prince. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The agony of the parents is vividly conveyed, and so too is the character of the young child. The author of this medieval piece eschews describing a noble child who goes to his death a willing sacrifice. So painful is the depiction that he has to soften it. He reports it through the words of a herald rather than directly describe the child's struggles and cries for help. He does the opposite of what we normally argue writers should do: he tells, not shows. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">What is the purpose of a story of such stark anguish? This is framed as a story told to a mother who recently lost her own child. Its aim is to be cathartic, to give the reader a means of purging our emotions through what Auerbach calls <span style="font-size: small;">'<span style="line-height: 115%;">a
starkly creatural realism which does not shun but actually savors crass
effects’</span>.(By 'creatural realism', Auerbach means a combination of passionate emotion - as in the Passion of Christ on the cross - and mundane domesticity.) The stark visceral horror of the events offers no optimistic vision of humanity, but rather gives an opportunity for epideisis: for teaching us how to behave through example. The mother demonstrates extraordinary loyalty to her husband and understanding of his dilemma when he is faced with the choice between giving up his people and city, or leaving his own son to be sacrificed. The realistic representation of the son's suffering raises the stakes, making it brutally apparent how agonising is the situation in which Seigneur de Chastel is obliged to decide what to do. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It is a literary choice whether to represent a character in a romantic way as a sweet selfless child, or to write a realist representation. The former makes of the child a trope: a figure in the story on whom plot development turns; the latter focuses on the child's character as an integral part of what we are reading about in the story, the story is the emotional work we do in reading such a character. Tara Neale demonstrates considerable writing finesse in combining realist with romantic characterisation. Since she is such a good writer, I would be interested to see what she could write about a child living in poverty with physical disabilities, as well as a veteran and a single mother, characterised with realism. But perhaps that's another story .... </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-21689560350071202492015-12-20T05:39:00.000-08:002015-12-20T05:39:07.300-08:00Serena Williams <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://media.vogue.com/r/h_660,w_660/2015/03/19/serena-williams-april-2015-vogue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://media.vogue.com/r/h_660,w_660/2015/03/19/serena-williams-april-2015-vogue.jpg" height="158" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Serena Williams in <a href="http://www.vogue.com/12135713/serena-williams-april-cover-caroline-wozniacki/" target="_blank">Vogue</a>.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/fashion/NOV/nov30/pirelli-serena-xlarge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/content/dam/fashion/NOV/nov30/pirelli-serena-xlarge.jpg" height="200" width="140" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Serena Williams in </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the Pirelli calendar.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the comments on <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/calendar-girls-and-boys.html" target="_blank">my blogpost on calendars</a>, someone said they think Serena Williams has 'too many overtly masculine features'. This has been a common comment on her muscular physique and was one of the reasons Annie Liebowitz asked her to pose for this year's Pirelli Calendar, which looks to question the very kind of photos of women for which Pirelli used to be famous. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">curl4ever is a keen admirer of muscular women (see <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/curlever-on-brawna.html" target="_blank">my review of his writing</a>), and he wrote these thoughts about that comment. </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am bothered by the (completely natural) shortcut of language we take so casually. A common tool of relationship counseling is to have the parties move from statements like “You are such a ...” to statements like “When you do … it makes me feel …” This might sound artificially long-winded, but it attempts to move the conversation from attacking the other <i>person </i>to attacking their <i>behavior. </i>Not only does this attempt to reduce the offense felt by the other party, it actually gets closer to the central truths of the conflict. </span><br />
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In this case, one might hear: “Serena Williams is too muscular,” but what that person probably means and should say is that: “Compared with the range of images that excite my personal fetishes, Serena Williams is too muscular.” After all, if Ms. Williams were in the room with us, we probably wouldn't want to make her feel bad by expecting her to conform to whatever image of beauty is in our particular heads.</span>
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Second, I rather like fit and sexy women. For example, shapely legs are shapely due to their muscles, not bones. As an author, I have written stories of strong and muscular women whom I consider very sexy. So while Serena Williams might not fit within <i>your </i>range of visually interesting, she might be the very definition of <i>my</i> range of visually interesting. Whether muscular = attractive woman is a matter of personal taste.</span>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Third, I am not very happy with our modern culture trying to impose the idea that there <i>is</i> an absolute standard of beauty that a woman matches, or “tough luck.” My heart breaks for young women (or men for that matter) who chase after a standard of physical perfection, or worse, consign themselves to despair. Unless your partner just happens to be a supermodel blessed with impossibly perpetual perfect health and fitness, they will not fit society’s ideal range of perfection forever. If you are a human, you need to be able to accept your partner as they gain weight, sag, and perhaps even lose central sexual attributes through a mastectomy or impotence.</span>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Talking about other people conforming (or not) to individual standards of physical perfection is an activity that I hope will eventually fade away from human discourse.</span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-14272700892598957102015-12-18T11:11:00.002-08:002015-12-18T11:11:31.891-08:00Her Secret Confessions Parts 1 and 2<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://thecrotchrocket.com/i/2-Kawasaki-Ninja-ZX-14-Crotch-Rocket-Cherry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://thecrotchrocket.com/i/2-Kawasaki-Ninja-ZX-14-Crotch-Rocket-Cherry.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Kawasaki Ninja featured </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">on <a href="http://thecrotchrocket.com/2011-top-crotch-rocket-brands.html" target="_blank">CrotchRocket.com</a>. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here we have <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">two hot little quickies, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the first of which <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">features </span></span></span>a hot red motorbike, a hot man and a young woman who is a little shy about admitting how much she is into the hotness of hot things. The second <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">gives us </span>more action fro<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">m the<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> hot <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">hot </span>pair<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. </span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> anxiet<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ies</span> of the central character <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">are </span>well portrayed in th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ese purportedly biographical pieces. </span></span>As young women, we are heavily schooled <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">in<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">to concern </span></span>about our sexuality. On the one hand, we are given the impression that the world is full of naughty men waiting to pounce on us out of the undergrowth<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> and </span>slaver all over us. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Plus, w</span>e are made to feel it's <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">of the foremost</span> importan<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ce</span> to be closer to 'virgin' <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">o</span>n the social spectrum than 'whore'<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">;</span> I mea<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">n actually mor<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">e important than scoring a Nobel Prize with our school science pro<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ject. </span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The predicament of a young woman who feels turned on by a hot man is a well drawn backdrop in th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ese</span> stor<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ies</span>.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We could argue that he is the one who signals he is up for it, by riding a red crotch rocket in the first place. The protagonist of <i><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/her-secret-confessions" target="_blank">Her Secret Confessions</a></i> demonstrates interest by flashing her lights at him and this totally pays off for her, as the hot M-A-N she has spotted gives her a ride - on the motorbike!<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">,</span> he gives her another ride later <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(wink), then in <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/her-secret-confessions-pt-02" target="_blank"><i>Her Secret Confessions </i></a></span><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/her-secret-confessions-pt-02" target="_blank"><i>Pt </i></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/her-secret-confessions-pt-02" target="_blank"><i>02</i></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">she gets to ride his face</span></span></span></span>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ese</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">are </span>Desiretobedesir's first stor<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ies</span> on Literotica<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. There are v</span>ery few typos, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">these are </span>nice clean pieces - <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">at least as far as the </span></span>punctuation <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">goes. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Do<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">n't worry - t</span></span>he characters get well down and dirty</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span>. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dd
has got good feedback on the Literotica boards: both in Authors'
Hangout and in Story Feedback<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. Her raw talent has been noted<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> and the advice <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">to her now is, to get an editor. There are classic errors in her story which a lot of first time writer<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">s make: notably use of qualifiers like 'slightly' and too many adjectives, worst offe<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nder being </span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>his heavenly soft king bed</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. These are <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">things which a writer needs to draft out and experi<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ment with<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. H<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">owever </span></span>a good beta re<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ad </span>editor <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">might </span>sug<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">gest these <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">make it dif<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ficult </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">for readers to immerse themselves in the story.<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> <i>King bed</i> in<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">stead of <i>king si</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>ze bed</i> is kinda poetic, hinting that he is a king among men as well as having a big bed. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>He</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>avenly</i> a<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nd <i>king </i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">mixes the metaphors, and is a step too far. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">D<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">d's </span></span></span>fi<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">rst story, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">it was </span></span></span>suggested that
talking in specifics about cock size and boobs (8 </span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">½ </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">inches and 34C) is not such a turn-on as might be supposed. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is</span>
something male writers do more than female. We have had discussions on
the board about how, when people write this, we imagine them whipping
out a ruler to quickly measure and make a note before going back to
screwing. Sometimes it can be played with to torque up the turn-on
factor, but if you<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">'<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">r</span></span>e going for good quality writing it's better to
just guide the reader's imagination with adjectives like: big and
bouncy, enormous, fat, etc. Giving the specific measurement starts to
read like a DIY flatpack instruction booklet ("insert 8 </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">½ </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">inch tab into slot B")</span>. In the second story, Dd has taken this advice and uses descriptors which can encourage the reader's imagination ra<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ther than specific measurements which make him/<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">her stop and reach for the mental tape measure.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The titles suggest something more naughty than a young woman having sex with an older man. We usually feel <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">like we a<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">re a very </span></span>ba-a-ad naughty person when we first start writing erotica. Eventually it just becomes the Day Job - <i>oh gosh, have I got time to rub out another quickie before bed - uh ... I mean story, although come to think of it</i> ... that kind of thing. However, the<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> titles</span> are clearly sucking in the readership a<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nd Dd has got goo<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">d <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">scores for <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the Erotic <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Coup<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">lings section of Liter<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ot<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ica, where voting can be <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">harsh. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ese</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">are hot<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">,</span> </span>well descri<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">bed</span> sex scene<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">s (</span>apart from the measurements<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">)</span>. Tension between the protagonist's nervousness and her lust is well conveyed:<i> </i></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>"You can do this," I muttered to myself as I looked in the mirror. "You
are a sex kitten, a sex goddess. You can totally do this."</i> This brings us over to her side, making us place her more in the category of 'virgin' than 'whore who will flash strange men and go to their house for sex'. (TBH, the sex is a bit risky, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I woul<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">dn't rely on the self control of a man <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">who rides a red pocket rocket to pull out before he c<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">um</span>s, but hey - she gets away with it.) </span></span></span> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There are various w<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ays in whi<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ch you can write up the scenario of a young woman who a<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ctually wants a beastly man to sl<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">aver o<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ver</span> her (<i>oooh, stop it, you </i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Bad Thing</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i> ... uh, not right now, but if you could stop in about ... half an hour</i>?) and still retain reader sympathy for <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">your heroine. Describing her <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nervousness, as Dd does, is probably the best way - going into your heroine's emotions adds a layer of realism to the story<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> as well as wor<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">king to <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">get our sympathy <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">on side. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/summertime-sex-ed.html" target="_blank">Athalia's first time sex ed story</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">,</span> which I revi<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ewed <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">previously, </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">presents the h<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ero<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ine as not conventio<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nally <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">pretty, a bit of a geek. S<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ince she's not a cheerleader type, she doesn't fit the category of <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">'whore'</span></span>. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Athalia </span>makes it apparent from the reaction of the young man in the story that the heroine only thinks she is unattra<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ctive, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">so we again feel sympathy and start rooting for her to enjoy her first time sexual experien<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ce. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/my-night-with-internet-stranger.html" target="_blank">story I reviewed of </a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/my-night-with-internet-stranger.html" target="_blank">naughty Suze</a> who arranges to meet up with a man off th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">e int<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ernet, feelings of anxiety and nerves are again <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">well described <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">to<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">make us sympathise with Suze</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. In addition, Suze and her hunky bloke play with the whore reputation. Will teases Suze by <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">talking dirty to her, calling her a slag and saying he knows she charges for it. This is a risky trick which Suze pulls off well: the double bluff. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Will calls Suze a slag and a whore as a tea<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">se<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, so we know that 'really'<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> she is a nice girl<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> who is ju<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">st <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">having a bit of fun. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A more risky strategy is to intro<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">duce other actual slags into the story. While this makes your heroine look pure and virtuous by comparison, it ultimately degrades women generally<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. I always feel <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">s</span>orry for the <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">bit charact<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ers <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">who have to play slag to showcase the he<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">r<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">oine's <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">purity. I imagine them going off afterwards tripping in the<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span>knickers around their an<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">k<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">les </span></span>and grumblin<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">g: "God, the readers should see her when the page<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> turns, she's at it like a bun<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ny. Fancy a drink? Let's go <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">then." </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In P<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">t <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">02, Dd <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">increases our impression of <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the central <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">character as a good 'virgin' type - and also of <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the </span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">male protagonis<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">t's <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">sexy </span>bad boy </span>character - when her heart is b<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">roken by the hot cro<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">tch rocket rider<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">'s faithless<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ness. Male charact<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ers' appeal can be incr<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">eased by <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">them being sex-hungry cheating <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">cads, but female characters will be heartless <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nymphos if they <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">indulge in such behaviour. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">T</span>here's a Loving Wife cate<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">gory on Li<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">terotica where readers revel in <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">their outrage about cheating women</span> ("Burn The Bitch"), but <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">no separate space for </span>Loving Husband<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">s. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>If she is looking for romance, not a quick fuck, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">a young woman is <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">a good girl no matter how much she talks of casting aside <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">her '</span>goody<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">-</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>two-<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">shoes' reputation. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Generally<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">:</span> the purity of the spelling<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">,</span> articulacy of the writing<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">; the near-apology for swearing at the <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">height of orgasm,</span></span> signal a high<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">er class of woman. </span>I<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> wonder </span>what <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">we<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">'re going to get in Pt 03<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, if she is going to be </span>more of </span>a<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> naughty-one-<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">shoe<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">next time<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> yet still p<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">reserve her virginal lustre. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-50661003236395699662015-12-16T11:26:00.000-08:002015-12-16T11:44:36.414-08:00Calendar Girls ... and Boys<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://cdni.condenast.co.uk/320x480/o_r/pirelli-calendar-may-1986-vogue-22nov13-pirelli_320x480.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://cdni.condenast.co.uk/320x480/o_r/pirelli-calendar-may-1986-vogue-22nov13-pirelli_320x480.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is actually quite a rare Pirelli calendar pic (it's by Helmut N<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ewto<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">n<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">) </span></span></span>- as it features a tyre. As a rule, the famous classic girl-y calendars showed beautiful women in pictures that had absolutely nothing to do with cars. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, as Christmas approaches and you are desperate to get something for Auntie Rhoda, you may be turning to the calendar shops for an inoffensive gift. Cats? Landscape photos? Cartoons of cats? Landscape shots with cats in them? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Probably not a nude girl-y calendar, although the old-fashioned staple of every garage has undergone something of a revolution. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NzA3WDUwMA==/z/bA8AAOSwxyRU2z8t/$_1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NzA3WDUwMA==/z/bA8AAOSwxyRU2z8t/$_1.JPG" height="200" width="140" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As 1999 became 2000, nude calendars suddenly turned a new page. Some members of a Women's Institute branch in Yorkshire decided to raise funds for a sofa for their local hospital, in memory of the husband of one of them. For American chums, you should understand that the WI has long been regarded as the most Stepford of stuffy wives' clubs in Britain. When the women posed nude for calendar pictures, it was such a brilliant joke (and actually the pictures are tasteful and rather lovely), that the whole thing took off, became an enormous runaway success and their story was made into a heart-warming award-winning film called <i>Calendar Girls </i>(D<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">VD av<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ailable from <a href="http://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Calendar-Girls/8613651" target="_blank">Hive</a> for £4.15)</span></span>. To date, the calendar girls have raised about £3M for the leukaemia and lymphona research organisation <a href="https://bloodwise.org.uk/" target="_blank">Bloodwise</a>. </span><br />
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<a href="http://www.runraid.fr/2bgal/img/dieux_2001/2001_18.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.runraid.fr/2bgal/img/dieux_2001/2001_18.jpg" height="200" width="145" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In 2001, the French (of course!) rugby team shocked and delighted hetero female and gay male fans of the oval ball by releasing a pinup calendar featuring muscular stars of the </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="st">équipe</span> nationale. The 2016 edition is <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dieux-du-stade-Calendrier-2016/dp/2918504068/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1450094104&sr=8-1&keywords=dieux+du+stade+2016" target="_blank">available from Amazon</a> if Auntie Rhoda is uh ... up for it. </span><br />
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<a href="http://i3.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article6867147.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/Oxford-University-womens-rugby-players-strip-off-for-charity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i3.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article6867147.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/Oxford-University-womens-rugby-players-strip-off-for-charity.jpg" height="133" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This year, the Oxford women's rugby team have released <a href="http://www.ourfcwomensnakedcalendar.com/" target="_blank">a nude calendar</a>, featuring gritty black and white photos in the mud. As a former player at the Other Place, I naturally wish I could say I would expect nothing less of the slags in dark blue (wink), but actually you can see that they are spoofing the Dieux d<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">u</span> Stade and building on the Calendar Girl legacy <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">rather</span> than cashing in on Pirelli traditions. (BTW, the light blues thrashed the dark blues 52-0 this year *snigger*. <i>Wha-at?!!</i> I think it's a highly relevant fact in the context of this <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">review</span>.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Women's rugby receives far less funding than the glamourous professional men's sport. However the Oxford University women have removed their strip for charity, not for themselves, and to raise awareness of <a href="http://www.b-eat.co.uk/" target="_blank">eating disorders</a>. Let's hope even just looking at the pictures of older women and muscular sportswomen helps us all to realise how diverse and attractive our bodies are. </span><br />
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<a href="http://media.vanityfair.com/photos/565f570eb587f921319e820c/master/h_960,c_limit/pirelli-calendar-2016-amy-schumer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://media.vanityfair.com/photos/565f570eb587f921319e820c/master/h_960,c_limit/pirelli-calendar-2016-amy-schumer.jpg" height="200" width="148" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Meanwhile, over at <a href="http://pirellicalendar.pirelli.com/en/the-cal-2016/home" target="_blank">Pirelli</a>, Annie Liebowitz has been commissioned to photograph women who have achieved something more than posing without very many clothes on. This picture is of Amy Schumer the feminist stand-up comedian. Other women depicted (mostly with their clothes on) include <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Serena Williams, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yoko Ono and Patti Smith. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Auntie Rhoda might actually like it. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-36460770300080291702015-12-14T00:22:00.003-08:002015-12-14T00:22:30.205-08:00Summertime Sex Ed<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This isn't going to be a lecture from me about how poor sex education is in schools. It's a review of a story that has a sex education session the likes of which I'm sure we all wished we had had. </span></span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Athalia's <i><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/summertime-sex-ed" target="_blank">Summertime Sex Ed</a> </i>is the first story she uploaded onto Literotica. It's an accomplished piece for a first timer, and deservedly <span style="color: red;">H</span>ot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is a measured realistic look at school from the perspective of a young woman budding into adult sexuality. Athalia conveys well Emily's discomfort with her own body: "My nose is too big, my tits are too small, and my ears stick out", while simultaneously showing how attractive her tennis partner thinks she is. Good guidance about how best to have first time sex is conveyed in a sexy way. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The two young lovers <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">are </span>grateful for the mutual pleasure they experience, however Athalia keeps u<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">p the </span>matter-of-fact tone<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, resisting the temptation to slip </span>into slushy rose-tinted <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">romance</span>: "We kept up our relationship for a while after we went to college, but we
grew apart ... it was primarily the sex and the tennis that was keeping
us together." </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My first sex ed lesson was so awful that I wrote in the questionnaire that I would prefer my future partner to play tennis rather than be sexually compatible! Maybe I was onto something, LOL. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-38345094675994432802015-12-10T07:11:00.001-08:002015-12-11T03:57:21.241-08:00FAWC6<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIA0kBxLaJF8h4QXBeN0XYD2nJN3MWq9H8bLxZBpgq7VreaGuR7zouSZA2k0B_9314TgfDfUarxzrBLhKzVKEkL8PT2wbqC5WPfS1MOItPeyOXJabSJLz6AWn0s_ZeccTkPZwv9MoCcJUX/s1600/FAWC+for+slyc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIA0kBxLaJF8h4QXBeN0XYD2nJN3MWq9H8bLxZBpgq7VreaGuR7zouSZA2k0B_9314TgfDfUarxzrBLhKzVKEkL8PT2wbqC5WPfS1MOItPeyOXJabSJLz6AWn0s_ZeccTkPZwv9MoCcJUX/s320/FAWC+for+slyc.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">OK, I am going to break my rule now! (I know, exciting, isn't it! I occasionally do break the rules; after all, it's not as bad as breaking a finger nail.) Although there are likely to be some stories here which are not 'safe sex', I am going to publish the link to the full list of Friendly Anonymous Writing C<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">hallenge</span> stories, so you can access what is bound to be a cohort of extremely strong stories. Some of the best writers have always participated in the FAWCs, and this will be a particularly memorable list as we are taking part to commemorate our friend slyc_willie, who set up the FAWCs.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">NB I haven't been able to assign a rating to these stories as I haven't read them yet myself. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Past co<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">m<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">petition entries have gone right a</span></span></span>cross the range from <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">0</span> to XXX. Check them out, vote and see if you can guess who wrote which one. (I provide the full list of participating authors at the end of my blogpost.) </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The FAWC was a friendly challenge in which any writer could take part. There were no cash prizes, just the fun of writing to the set question, although the winner did get a virtual trophy designed by BuckyDuckman. slyc_willie thought up cool challenges, such as: 'write a story about a writer', or when he posted a picture and we all had to write stories about the same picture; it was amazing how different the stories were. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My favourite was when he gave us all a 'freebie' of four words and we had to write a story </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">using those four words. That's the one we have reprised in FAWC6 in his memory, and I certainly have had a lot of fun with it. Initially there's the despair of seeing no way the words can possibly fit together, but in a curious twist, trying to write to this kind of challenge sets your subconscious free. You can sometimes end up writing something more meaningful because you are just busy trying to get your words into the story. The ideas you are most interested in float into the story more naturally.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The st<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">o<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ries are listed <a href="https://www.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=1521977&page=submissions" target="_blank">here</a>, have a read</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, see if you can guess who the author is - comment and vote. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We were shocked and dismayed when a message was posted in Literotica's Authors' Hangout to let us know slyc_willie had suddenly passed away due to a pulmonary <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">embolism</span>. slyc was a model for how to take part in Authors' Hangout, which can sometimes be a bit of a roughhouse. He not only set up writerly threads and the FAWCs. He also took part and commented whenever others put up interesting threads about writing. He paid little attention to trolling, just responding to serious or fun posts. He dipped in and out as he wished, sometimes he would be gone for quite a while, then he would be back to write about how he was fretting over a story with a beer in one hand. Or to tell us about the fantastic sex he had just had with his wife (jammy bastard), whom he met at a Literotica convention and whom he adored. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">slyc_willie's <span style="color: red;">H</span>ot stories covered practically the whole range of genres, from Loving Wives and Incest to Non-erotic Poetry and Sci Fi and Fantasy, and can be found on Literotica <a href="https://other.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=748325&page=submissions" target="_blank">here</a>. He also published with <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ex</span>cessi<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">c</span>a under the name <a href="http://www.excessica.com/books/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=32&zenid=bc1d69f1e78067ed58f19d85d2b847eb" target="_blank">Gabrie</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.excessica.com/books/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=32&zenid=bc1d69f1e78067ed58f19d85d2b847eb" target="_blank">l Daemon</a>. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Many writers say <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">we </span>wrote <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">our </span>best stories in the FAWC and I read some absolute crackers. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">P</span>atient <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L</span>ee's <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gay-Greenhorn-Agnes-Patient-Lee-ebook/dp/B00Y5UTU48" target="_blank"><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lost Agnes</span></i></a> (now available on Amazon Kindle) is a tour de force of writing; a master-class in realism which uses the unusual and harsh world of sea-fishing to tell a tender tale of gay male sex. MSTarot's <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/f2-the-golden-ring" target="_blank"><i>The Golden Ring</i></a> again draws on a strong background world, this time of wrestling, in which is set a meditation on the nature of success in life. I've always been fond too of SaxonHart's curious tale <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/fawc-1-curse-of-the-bitch" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Curse of <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"T</span>he Bitch</i></span>"</a>, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">in which terror is keenly conveyed for </span>a character on the run. I've not been able to review those stories before, as they aren't safe sex, although I have reviewed FAWC stories <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/fawcking-good-ts-stories.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/wallpaper-review.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I knew everyone would guess which was my story as soon as I mentioned the word 'condom', so I always had an extra challenge to get round. This would push me to write about diverse kinds of sex. Very often now, I look back and think how much I learnt from writing the entries to this or that FAWC.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We miss slyc_willie: his pragmatic wicked sense of humour and his inventive challenges. slyc was like bacon: hot, salty and sweet - if it's not going to Heaven, you'd rather be in the other place.</span><br />
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">List of participa<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nt<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">s in FAWC<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">6. </span></span></span></span></span></i></b><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(A big thank you to <a href="https://www.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=791491&page=submissions" target="_blank">_Lynn_</a> for organising the <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">comp<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">etition.) </span></span></span></span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gorza <br />
legerdemer <br />
patientlee <br />
MSTarot<br />
MagicaPractica <br />
Saxon_Hart <br />
PennLady <br />
sheablue <br />
xelliebabex <br />
NaokoSmith <br />
litfan10 <br />
Tx Tall Tales </span></span></span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-92060888042687883152015-12-07T02:24:00.001-08:002015-12-07T02:24:51.455-08:00My Night with an Internet Stranger<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This story is well written in a feisty way, and probably is true - as it claims to be. I like it <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">for being </span>a good How To about casual sex. Plus there is plenty of sex described in luscious detail. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In <i><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/my-night-with-an-internet-stranger" target="_blank">My Night with an Internet Stranger</a></i>, lolaenglish - or Suze, as she reveals her actual name to be, finally decides to have sex with someone she has never met, in the flesh. Suze talks frankly about her early enjoyment of wanking off. She describes how she got into exhibiting herself on webcam, having fun with a banana, and how she enjoyed men watching her, while watching them cum in the split screen. "It always felt a bit grubby when it was over, but was always insanely sexy at the time." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After a wh<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ile</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, this isn't enough for Suze. She decides to go on Gumtree and advertise for casual sex. She is amazed by the number of responses, LOL. One of the well-written realist touches of the story is how carefully she describes the way she has to comb through the stack of responses, whisky in hand, in order to pick out Prince Charming-for-the-night. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqDLAjemSKFkxFWYKVJDI6YnGN0AuO4zZzKFZlgSYXJQMuKchYCtR7BmBeaLD-khV9rpypjW4yOC8kJt-pYdN6VS_SZfVypWJ1CLvzc7EvWvzvZtp8Htbdoa0KC_6MZ-LDzu9LsiGTvyzu/s1600/IMG_0779.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqDLAjemSKFkxFWYKVJDI6YnGN0AuO4zZzKFZlgSYXJQMuKchYCtR7BmBeaLD-khV9rpypjW4yOC8kJt-pYdN6VS_SZfVypWJ1CLvzc7EvWvzvZtp8Htbdoa0KC_6MZ-LDzu9LsiGTvyzu/s1600/IMG_0779.JPG" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From <a href="http://ugahealthydawg.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/unrolling-truth-about-condoms.html" target="_blank">Ugahealthydawg</a>'s blog. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Suze</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">talks in deta<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">il about </span></span>issues like personal safety<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">:</span> she is in a shared house, so she knows people will hear her if she needs to call for help; and condoms. (Lots of condoms used in fun ways! Yayyy!)<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> She describes how nervous she felt <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">as she started out on her first night with a<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> s<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">trange<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">r she pick<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ed up online. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Luck is with her and she bags a handsome man 'with a cheeky glint in his eye'. They have a <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">gr<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">eat time, which Suze describes in a way which makes it clear </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">that you should only do this sort of thing if you are well up for it<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. A</span></span>s he leaves, he even says: "Let's do it again some time." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Will has a posh voice which turns Suze on even more: <i> </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>"You hot little whore." He moaned in his cut-glass accent</i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">His filthy talk is interspersed with moments of tenderness and admiration for her body. He accuses her of being a slut who does this <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">kind of thing all the time and </span>charges for it, adding: "I know I'd fucking pay." <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Then</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, as he makes his way off into the night, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">h</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">e kisses her<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span>kindly and sensually</span>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The only <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">realist touch she left out is</span>, she forgot to give us his number! LOL. </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-23996536977136878862015-11-30T04:49:00.000-08:002015-12-07T02:28:42.677-08:00Exploring the Ring of Kerry<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://assets.goodhousekeeping.co.uk/main/galleries/19818/darcey_bussell-black_lace_dress-strictly_come_dancing_judge_2014-celebrity_fashion-good_housekeeping_uk__small.jpg?20141220204306" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://assets.goodhousekeeping.co.uk/main/galleries/19818/darcey_bussell-black_lace_dress-strictly_come_dancing_judge_2014-celebrity_fashion-good_housekeeping_uk__small.jpg?20141220204306" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.goodhousekeeping.co.uk/fashion-beauty/best-darcey-bussell-strictly-come-dancing-dress" target="_blank">Good Housekeeping</a> talk enviously </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">about Darcy Bussell's wardrobe. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The dynamic duo are back! <a href="https://www.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=674577&page=submissions" target="_blank">curl</a> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">is </span>going to review another of Gorza's stories but this time he is going to be Bruno Tonioli and I'm going to be Darcy Bussell. Gosh, why should he get to wear all the pretty dresses (wink). As Bruno, curl gets to be a little bit stricter (oooh! give me that stern disciplinarian glare), and to wave his arms about enthusiastically<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(Actually curl is going to do <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">this review on his own<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">.</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I just wanted to try on that gorgeous black lace frock and say nice things about Gorza's arm<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ogra<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">phy</span></span> - wink<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">.) </span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">curl says: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As you know from <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/mouses-maiden-voyage.html" target="_blank">a previous review</a>, I am very enthusiastic about Gorza, a new author on Literotica. During that review, Naoko painted me as the "Darcy" critic with only sweet things to say. That prior story hit some very special notes for me and I am using a slightly sharper pencil this time <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">on</span> a somewhat longer (seven Literotica pages) and highly enjoyable story of Gorza's.</span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://d1ie6omc61dexh.cloudfront.net/images/fp-strips/ring-of-kerry-bus-tour.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://d1ie6omc61dexh.cloudfront.net/images/fp-strips/ring-of-kerry-bus-tour.jpg" height="160" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From <a href="http://www.theringofkerry.com/" target="_blank">TheRingofKerry.com</a>. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I actually did the tourist thing to tour Ireland's Ring of Kerry many years ago, so I was quite nostalgic at the way Gorza captured Irish speech patterns in <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/exploring-the-ring-of-kerry" target="_blank">Exploring the Ring of Kerry</a>. As I said in the prior review, Gorza uses his skill with languages to very good effect in his erotic stories.</span>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was disappointed </span>with the beginning of the story. I think the opening line is uncharacteristically weak. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Plus </span>several times during the introduction, this story seems to present itself as an adolescent male fantasy, obsessed with the breasts of a female passenger who joins him in the back of a bus.<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span>My own stories are very much male fantasies, because that's the limit of my skill set. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gor<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">za</span></span>'s a much better writer than I am so I expect more of him. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A</span>fter the introduction, he writes a crackling-great story about the sexual fireworks between the male point-of-view character and an intelligent, strong, vibrant, empowered female character.</span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I won't spoil the story by revealing all the different ways they manage to have sex during the bus ride. Gorza's writing is spectacular, providing very patient and engaging descriptions of their lively, quick-witted, and extremely hot sex play. They use condoms naturally and skillfully and as an integral part of the story. The story is written with great freshness and includes a <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">captivating </span>spelling game. Gorza's evocative treatment of the emotions of the characters makes this a delightful and captivating reading experience.<br /> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I usually simply refuse to read anal stories. About ten percent of this story ventures into that territory, but it was so well-handled that I gladly read about things that in a lesser story by a lesser writer I would simply have skipped over. </span>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-85184864709201086722015-11-23T07:13:00.000-08:002015-11-23T07:13:01.056-08:001st International Welsh Cabaret Festival<div style="text-align: right;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUlTNkQEF-0uS2NyYQVClyfB8FQQnMmZ1UnarvvxhDk8a0VQiJzaofJID8doWJId_oLYocAYR8-D5rTmcox2raelHY-Hj4iTtnCuCdYRRLkPgdK1anfAJzt9GpDehm3aD0HxV6dncNAvjY/s1600/DSC_3478.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUlTNkQEF-0uS2NyYQVClyfB8FQQnMmZ1UnarvvxhDk8a0VQiJzaofJID8doWJId_oLYocAYR8-D5rTmcox2raelHY-Hj4iTtnCuCdYRRLkPgdK1anfAJzt9GpDehm3aD0HxV6dncNAvjY/s200/DSC_3478.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful hats and fascinators<br />
by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Loobycreations-store-370445736383879/" target="_blank">Looby Creations</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><b>BIG</b></i> thumbs up to the Sherman theatre for staging such a key event in a central venue. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">P</span>eople worry that burlesque is just an excuse for sleazy strip-tease<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. I</span>n fact it is a witty caricature, simultaneously sending up our fears about sex and celebrating real women's bodies and our sexuality. With its gender bending politics and intellectual rather than physical strip-tease, cabaret and burlesque is an ideal filler for a theatre like the Sherman to put <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">in<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span>between earnest new plays and the kids' Christmas shows, providing something <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">tha<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">t's </span></span>adult <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">and </span>emotionally mature. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Burlesque is the mirror op<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">posite of st<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">rip-tease. In strip-tease, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">w<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">omen are the obj<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ects of Desire<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">; in burlesque we are the <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">su<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">bj<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ects of our <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">own <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">desire<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> to enjoy showing </span>our bodies and our selves. T<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">he 1st International Welsh Cabaret Festival showcased this particularly well <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">with </span>the inclusion of several male acts - who were not stripping for women in a revers<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">e strip-tease<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. They were often engaging with more femini<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ne sides of themselves, e.g. through ba<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">lletic movements</span> - again providing a subjective celebratory <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">vision<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>of <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">fem<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">inine sides to</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> identi<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ty</span></span>.<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bu<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">rlesque is <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">a <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">liberatory subversive art<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">form<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, of the kind th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">e critic Bakhtin called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnivalesque" target="_blank">carnivalesque</a>. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">OK, enough of that, now for <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">what I thought of the actual festival: </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After having wandered the foyer and seeing some of the cool workshops going on, I now regret not splashing out on a weekender ticket and doing some sketching or finding out how to put my hair up in a barrel roll. Plus, I overheard people saying the Friday Night new acts were possibly even better than the Saturday Night Gala performers! I don't see how that could be possible - curses, I will know better next year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As well as workshops, there were stalls selling everything from cakes to sex toys, and I shall decorate this blogpost with my pictures of these. A quick t<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">hank you to <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">kind <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Rockaflower-775972622425194/?fref=ts" target="_blank">Rockaflower</a>, who pitched in to help <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">when we were stru<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ggl<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ing to fix </span></span>the new fas<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">cinator my friend couldn't resist buying to her short h<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">air. Great job<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">! it stayed standing proud and high all night.<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbefk_HbaUj0enBdV3gVliB4qT7gzBJBmFUjRS4QwbHKk3jwY3-wLOHibBGUx8cjqKSoDNlkUyDWw9_12sZr5yo6CB_yfO6_Ne3vnui2aqXPyvOxSX72fmCTLDzKl_ThWfrl2k6tFm2Bci/s1600/DSC_3488+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbefk_HbaUj0enBdV3gVliB4qT7gzBJBmFUjRS4QwbHKk3jwY3-wLOHibBGUx8cjqKSoDNlkUyDWw9_12sZr5yo6CB_yfO6_Ne3vnui2aqXPyvOxSX72fmCTLDzKl_ThWfrl2k6tFm2Bci/s200/DSC_3488+%25282%2529.jpg" width="55" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My own </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">fascinator </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">by </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Loobycreations-store-370445736383879/" target="_blank">Looby Creations</a></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I can't do justice to the acts in mere words. Suffice to say that we had such a good time that next morning I was hoarse with the screaming and laughing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The evening kicked off with the ... inimitable comp</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ère <a href="https://www.facebook.com/dis.charge.10" target="_blank">Dis Charge</a>. Sticking one finger up at taboos in a first act which was a belly dance of a very different kind (pregnancy will never seem quite the same!), Ms. Charge kept us going through the evening with sharp sarky banter. She actually used the F word once! (Feminism). Her style is in your face (literally - so glad we were sitting in the middle of a row of seats) and very funny.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Act 1 saw <a href="http://www.lillylaudanum.com/" target="_blank">Lilly Laudanum</a> doing a majestic Queen Victoria strip tease, hilariously mingling po-faced dignity with crude sexual gestures. <a href="http://www.daisycutterburlesque.co.uk/" target="_blank">Daisy Cutter</a> followed with an incredible and exciting bum dance, of a kind which would lead you to beg people to assure you that you do look big in that outfit. <a href="https://sandysureburlesque.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Sandy Sure</a> as a Mexican wrestler sent up macho man and <a href="https://tuesdaylaveau.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Tuesday Laveau</a> offered a delicious feminine dance.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF1_I-MVcx3zg00lqh-YdD3U3U1HLCoVI3RslTOYtLbeM45ZIMLVvQzWDo_ZN1ohmUF9Y8lg79gCcrhBFluhP0oauHoY-ER1wb8dDaMpCCEltvOiCmE7EXeJEPnWLRjhG1oFCR609pINqL/s1600/DSC_3482.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF1_I-MVcx3zg00lqh-YdD3U3U1HLCoVI3RslTOYtLbeM45ZIMLVvQzWDo_ZN1ohmUF9Y8lg79gCcrhBFluhP0oauHoY-ER1wb8dDaMpCCEltvOiCmE7EXeJEPnWLRjhG1oFCR609pINqL/s200/DSC_3482.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Awww - cute penguins by <a href="http://www.art-by-cathy-b.co.uk/" target="_blank">Cathy B</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now came <a href="http://www.kikideville.com/" target="_blank">Kiki DeVille</a>. Genius! I can't describe it. She made two audience members come up on stage and tear up a sheet of paper each. See, you're not laughing at all! you have to go and see it. <i>Frozen</i> will never be the same again. Sorry, I am larfing now, just thinking about it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pole dancing has had an even worse press than burlesque dancing, with people grumbling about women who go to classes because it's good exercise and - for God's sake - fun. In fact, I'm sorry to say that at one time I signed a petition against pole dancing classes in my institution of employment as at the time I did feel it perhaps wasn't quite the feminist thing. <a href="http://www.sirmidnightblues.com/" target="_blank">Sir Midnight Blues</a> provided a dance of athletic elegance and beauty. He made plainly evident that this is a discipline demanding both grace and muscular <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">fitness</span>.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmrRr6XJN_ntzI-jGJaYFmFmCUVlUziKwWjurrpyjqW7mYcWcH8rrhVy_e9wFyDdWbtK4cRYI1HZdkv2sfUeSiFBDIggSy1hCimNbDpRHD-zD976AqqWxX5sYuDNSXuyTUNaI-sgSg2ysv/s1600/DSC_3486+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="98" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmrRr6XJN_ntzI-jGJaYFmFmCUVlUziKwWjurrpyjqW7mYcWcH8rrhVy_e9wFyDdWbtK4cRYI1HZdkv2sfUeSiFBDIggSy1hCimNbDpRHD-zD976AqqWxX5sYuDNSXuyTUNaI-sgSg2ysv/s320/DSC_3486+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hairpieces by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Rockaflower-775972622425194/?fref=ts" target="_blank">Rockaflower</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After an interval during which we started laughing again at the thoughts of Kiki DeVille's <i>Let It Go</i>, there were a couple of Welsh themed acts. In typical self-mocking style, <a href="http://www.missbettyblueeyes.co.uk/p/about.html" target="_blank">Betty Blue Eyes</a> appeared on stage in a whale costume and sadly held up a sign saying she realised now this wasn't what had been meant when they said do something about being in Wales. If you think staggering about the stage in a clumsy whale costume is not sexy as well as funny, you must beg Betty to reprise her hilarious act - which finished with her bending over to show off dragon-emblazoned knickers to whooping and raucous applause.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tea party in aid of </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.breastcancercare.org.uk/" target="_blank">Breast Cancer Care</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.ladywildflower.com/" target="_blank">Lady Wildflower</a> gave us an ethereal green dragon dance of mystic beauty, followed by <a href="http://www.kikilovechild.co.uk/" target="_blank">Kiki Lovechild</a> doing chapeaugraphy - originally developed by a seventeenth century <i>commedia dell'arte</i> performer. It was amazing what characters he managed to display using just a circle of felt with a hole in it<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Although I did mainly go for the burlesque, this was a genuine cabaret night and so, unusually, there were a lot of men performers including the gorgeous <a href="http://georgeorange.com/" target="_blank">George Orange</a> tightrope-walking across a metal rocking structure<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">.</span> In contrast, next <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">was </span><a href="http://www.ladyfrancescca.com/" target="_blank">Lady Francesca</a> who performed a hilariously funny duckling dance, complete with enormous bouffant red hair.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigu547q-lxrDGMUfQ2LjfWbGBTEPW3dCbOPXs4rd5edeBZnd8gyAUKFcj84OmtYg1v-bCtzCtijRaGJPMEBJON8q7RGDLxdnnIb1lfQCmL-lmJZ90BKRO59vo6dRy7G0mxQ22u01z2ttSh/s1600/DSC_3489+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigu547q-lxrDGMUfQ2LjfWbGBTEPW3dCbOPXs4rd5edeBZnd8gyAUKFcj84OmtYg1v-bCtzCtijRaGJPMEBJON8q7RGDLxdnnIb1lfQCmL-lmJZ90BKRO59vo6dRy7G0mxQ22u01z2ttSh/s200/DSC_3489+%25282%2529.jpg" width="167" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cake by <a href="http://bombshellbakehouse.com/" target="_blank">Bombshell Bakehouse</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The winner of the Cwtch Award from the previous night's show was now given the opportunity to perform. The audience were awestruck at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PiTheMime/" target="_blank">Pi the Mime</a>'s elegant boylesque ballet and made him stumble back on stage in his sparkling high heels to take a standing ovation. Representing an office worker who is overcome with the banal routine and breaks joyously out, his act appealed to all of us who have ever wished for something more in restricted lives. One part of his routine particularly struck me. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">B</span>urlesque dancers usually strip off elaborate costumes quickly as a part of their routine; Pi played cleverly with this convention by slowly and teasingly undoing the buttons on his shirt.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A feisty finale was provided by <a href="http://www.auroragalore.com/" target="_blank">Aurora Galore</a> as a wild circus ringmaster - flinging her black hair and her gold tasseled red tails about.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jewellery by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Melissas-Boutique-Cardiff-Market-1530081490540148/?fref=nf" target="_blank">Melissa's Boutique</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This cabaret is way beyond mere titillation, it's a performance that is wildly entertaining and still does what art does best. It subverts our suburban assumptions and questions our inhibitions, saying <i>Yes</i>, to our innermost dreams - not our fantasies about the 0 size magazine models which advertising persuades us we would like to be, but our dreams about who we really are and what we could be doing if we had the courage to dance like the whole world is watching. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And we don't have long to wait! Never mind Christmas, it<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">'s onl<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">y <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">27</span> sleeps</span> til<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> the <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"Selec<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ti<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">on Box" C<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">hri<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">stmas burl<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">esque party <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">on</span> 20th December<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. Tickets <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">a mere </span>£12 from <a href="http://www.cardiffcabaretclub.com/" target="_blank">Cardiff Cabaret Club</a>. Hope you have got your stockings ready (wink). </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span> </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-68434670687202655772015-11-17T00:33:00.000-08:002015-11-17T00:33:04.297-08:00Consent<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This post isn't exactly a review, rather it's to circulate a cool comic strip about 'consent'. The comic is aimed at guys, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">it explains</span> that a woman's body <i>is </i>her own, and <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">men </span>have zero rights in it. It's <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">help</span>ful for women too. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I run this blog partly to provide some fun that encourages safe sex, and shows young lads that it's possible to get a lot more in life if you ask for it politely than if you rudely try to blag women into giving you pictures of their boobs for your phone. (See my review of <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/watching-and-playing-review.html" target="_blank">Peter Morgan's work</a>.) I also run it to encourage young women to have confidence. If we as women confidently say <i>No</i> more often, men may realise that No does mean No and f*ck off when we don't want them bothering us. Yes, men must do more to respect women's consensual rights. As women we can take courage and be more assertive. </span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaBaFgCHwWXMXjrPDkaJvscETCTUUjCjFLPoVmBK6UL4AG8DfronLcsb_0a0uEVGE2eurVTeF6-gkOi3vgSbmMtPYnBj5AImbluifZjLKUc-awx7q5sXdw2esDELmB2uCcU9sCIfshe5hT/s1600/metaphors-footer1-db1aecfc98874dd2598f543f28a45572.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaBaFgCHwWXMXjrPDkaJvscETCTUUjCjFLPoVmBK6UL4AG8DfronLcsb_0a0uEVGE2eurVTeF6-gkOi3vgSbmMtPYnBj5AImbluifZjLKUc-awx7q5sXdw2esDELmB2uCcU9sCIfshe5hT/s400/metaphors-footer1-db1aecfc98874dd2598f543f28a45572.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From <a href="http://everydayfeminism.com/" target="_blank">Everyday Feminism</a>: link to rest of comic below. </span></td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Everyday Feminism have put together <a href="http://everydayfeminism.com/2015/06/how-society-treats-consent/" target="_blank">this cool comic</a> that sets out things guys say about women who don't want to have sex with them as if they are other social scenarios, demonstrating vividly how absurd this reasoning is.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">To <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">illustrate</span>, I'll tell a story from when I was young. Back in the day, when dinosaurs roamed the land (yeah, they were real old-fashioned sexists then), I was a very naive li'l kitten. I was poorly brought up to be polite at all times. In my mum's Japanese culture men were venerated. My dad would get the best cut of meat, then us kids got something nice, then my mum and grandmother got what was left. For these and other reasons, I was very bad at saying 'No' to men.(I said I <i>was </i>bad at it - I am a total expert at saying <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">'<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">f*ck off' </span></span>now<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, although if that's what turns you on you should click '<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">dirty talk' in the label cloud</span> - wink.<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">) </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This time I'm telling you about, I was homeless in London. I had money but no idea how to find somewhere to live. After a short period at a friend's house, I was staying in a hotel having a final go at finding somewhere. I was very tired after a long fruitless day looking for places and I phoned room service for some food, but they said the kitchen was shut. I had to go out to eat. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Remember that I was very young (not yet twenty), had been brought up in the countryside in far too sheltered a family, and was exceptionally pretty. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While I was despondently eating my meal, a bloke at the next table struck up a conversation with me. He was a businessman who lived and worked mainly in Hong Kong. Well, he was a total stranger so I moaned to him about my situation. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"I own a flat," he said, "and am looking for a tenant." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He invited me back to his hotel for a drink. We went up to his room. He began to grope me and I put up with it for the sake of the flat. But after a while (he had his hands up my shirt and on my boobs by this time), I couldn't bear it and I said: "No, this is wrong! I can't do it." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That man stopped groping me. He walked me back to my hotel. He said I could come to meet him the next day and he would show me his flat. And he did show me the flat (although he said he was surprised I'd shown up the next morning, I was so naive I didn't really understand why - I mean, he had a f*cking flat! and I was desperate for a place to stay). He let me rent it from him for about eight months at what I now realise was a pretty low rate for a central London apartment. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was clinically depressed at the time. I needed <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">a safe place to stay<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> so I could sort out </span>some <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">erapy<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">,</span></span></span></span> get my life together and go back to finish my degree. That guy gave me a total break and I thank him. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I shan't thank him for having the resolution to take his hands off my boobs and beautiful young body, when after going up to his room with him and consuming drinks he had bought me, I suddenly said: <i>No,</i> because, chaps and chapesses, that is normal. </span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-79502173361901316012015-11-08T23:43:00.001-08:002015-11-08T23:43:57.894-08:00Beat-Off Buddies<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.hercampus.com/sites/default/files/styles/full_width_embed/public/2015/08/21/Screen%20Shot%202015-08-21%20at%201.48.47%20PM.png?itok=5O9U7Su9" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.hercampus.com/sites/default/files/styles/full_width_embed/public/2015/08/21/Screen%20Shot%202015-08-21%20at%201.48.47%20PM.png?itok=5O9U7Su9" height="180" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>"Fishnet Stockings" polish </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>as reviewed on <a href="http://www.hercampus.com/beauty/definitive-ranking-best-red-nail-polishes" target="_blank">HerCampus</a>. </i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of the things I like about this story by Carnevil9, is how it immediately leaps into the sex. We are straight in the action, then there is an asterism (new word I learnt this week! meaning row of asterisks) and then we get <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">good </span>back story. </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">College students Jane and Donny are <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/beat-off-buddies-ch-01" target="_blank"><i>Beat-off Buddies</i></a>. They both have long-standing partners living too far for regular sex, and don't want to cheat. When Donny's room-mate asks him to clear out for the night, Donny is mostly peeved because he intended to study. Dylan suggests he go round to Britney's room: her room-mate is also intending to study. However it slips out that Donny and Jane both intended to get a little solo satisfaction until they were thrust together<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. </span>Jane makes <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">a </span>suggestion: why don't they masturbate together? It wouldn't be cheating - would it. And it would lessen the loneliness. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A lot of the story is a guy fantasy, however written in such a respectful way that we girls can enjoy it just as much. Jane: great looks, red nail polish and sexy librarian glasses, is a modern chick with a lithe active mind as well as body. She is a keen student, not a slag like Britney. I feel a little sorry for Britney! who has been obliged to take on this slag role of screwing anything that moves, in order that Jane's forthright on-the-table sexuality doesn't look too down and dirty. Providing an even more slutty character is a smart way to ensure that a female character can be sexually adventurous without looking like a slut, although in the end it does still feed into the old virgin/whore dichotomy for women. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I don't think I've ever read a story which listed quite so many hot ways to pleasure yourself! (I'm not <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">convinced<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> they are all <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">humanly possible, LOL, but who cares whe<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">n the writing is so good</span>.) </span></span></span>It's Jane who takes the lead in inventing interesting games to make the sex ever more exciting. We readers can of course derive God-like amusement from knowing that what Jane and Donny are up to is way more than just 'buddy' behaviour. The anticipation that they are soon going to be in water hotter than the hot tub sex memory (which I am unable to link to as it involves naughty unsafe sex) adds to our gleeful enjoyment of the show. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That it's Jane who suggests the mutually satisfying study sessions does easily away with an issue for writers about consent and coercion. In Real Life, women are so frequently pressured and coerced into sex that any male character suggesting rumpy-pumpy without the benefits of a diamond engagement ring runs the risk of coming across as a brute. Sometimes that's fine: your werewolf and vampire characters are supposed to be so hungry for your gorgeous womanhood that they might get over-enthusiastic about encouraging you to give it up. However by handing the initiative to a female character, honour can be satisfied all round. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jane is smar<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">t as well as pretty, and studies hard - apart from her relief <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">sess<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ions with Donny. (I would like to see <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the introduction of bright intellectual heroines in e<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">rotica as the dawning of <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the Age of Aquari<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">us, however if you remember, I highlighted the disparity between men's admiration for bright young things and <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">what they expect <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">of women once they have married them in my review of Tennyson's <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Victorian po<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">em as read by Kingswoman </span></span><a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/national-poetry-day.html" target="_blank"><i>Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal</i></a>.) </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As an added inducement for the feminist critic<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">,</span> Jane's small breasts get good press, reassuring any<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> young woman</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">worried </span>about <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">her </span>boobage. (Go <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/for-your-eyes-only-gurrlz.html" target="_blank">here</a> if tha<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">t's you. </span>Believe me, wrap 'em up in good lingerie and nobody will complain! except very old-fashioned bra-burning feminists. Gosh, Jane doesn't even bother to do that 'cuz her boobs are so small and we - and Donny - are not in the least disappointed about it.) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I linked above to <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/beat-off-buddies-ch-01" target="_blank">Chapter 1</a>, here is the link to <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/beat-off-buddies-ch-02" target="_blank">Chapter 2</a> and you must find Chapter 3 for yourselves as that's the one with the naughty unsafe sex in it. (Pssst - handy links to the other chapters are provided in whichever one you are reading - wink.) <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BTW, if you are p<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">lanning to go to <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>Spectre</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, which is not as good as I had hoped, </span>I strongly suggest you read Car<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nevil9's hilarious Bond spoof <i>Femme Fa</i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>tale</i> </span>instead <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">- which I am unable to link<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> to again because of the <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">risky activities (I'm not talking about the drugged </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Kokoreç). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-60592042800590580052015-11-03T08:09:00.004-08:002015-11-03T08:09:52.021-08:00An Anal Fantasy for You<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's not hard to guess what Rimminglover is into, LOL. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In this tender appeal, he spells out his passion for arse. If you were wondering how to go about anal sex, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">here </span>is a poetic way to find out. Rimminglover writes about what he would like to do to his lover and <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">lingers in detail on </span>how he would go about fingering and fucking her. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I come across ... er, as it were (wink), a fair few writers who describe themselves as a 'dirty old man'. Often I find this is actually code for: <i>gennelman of a certain age who is not yet braindead and has imagination, living in a society which is embarrassed about sex and makes us all feel guilty about wanting any</i>. So it proves here. Rimminglover is clearly a man who is still up for it and willing to be adventurous. He addresses his would-be lover with respect and consideration, asking about her preferences and promising he will offer safe sex for her ease of mind as well as lubrication for ease ... OK, I will leave you to read about that bit (wink).</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">T</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">he other thing I like about <i><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/an-anal-fantasy-for-you" target="_blank">An Anal Fantasy for You</a> </i>is the realism. Rimminglover talks of his wish to be with a real woman, with body hair, not an airbrushed porn star. His exuberance about shit may not be to everyone's taste ... (I'll just leave that metaphor there <snerk>). We are constantly bombarded with adverts telling us our fluids and secretions can be perfumed<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, </span></span>cleaned up, <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">de<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">n<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ied</span></span></span>. It's good to read someone confessing <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">he enjoys <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the way </span>humans smell<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, to </span></span>remember that sex is sweaty and gooey<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. E</span>veryone has a pimple on their bum or a little excess chub <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">or <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">s<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">weats more than<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> they thin<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">k is acceptable</span></span></span></span></span>. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">e very thing you are worrying over <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">may </span>ma<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ke you </span>even <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">more attrac<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">tive, </span></span>sexy and fun in bed. (Maybe not the pimple; go<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> to the chem<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ist and ask discreetly for some cream for that.) </span></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-69113170300976490642015-10-25T07:05:00.003-07:002015-10-25T07:06:27.889-07:00Mouse's Maiden Voyage<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://i3.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article6517814.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/Craig-Revel-Horwood-and-Danny-Dyer-on-Strictly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://i3.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article6517814.ece/ALTERNATES/s615b/Craig-Revel-Horwood-and-Danny-Dyer-on-Strictly.jpg" height="133" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Craig Revel Horwood - notorious for</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">harsh one-liner critique</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In this blogpost, <a href="https://www.literotica.com/stories/memberpage.php?uid=674577&page=submissions" target="_blank">curl4ever</a> and I are going to collaborate on tearing apart ... reviewing (wink) a story by Gorza. In his innocence, curl wrote: <i>I'm very happy to contribute to Naoko's blog again. In order to make it happen, she offered to "collaborate" which I take to mean that I get to write the easy parts and she gets to write the rest. - curl</i>.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Darcy Bussell - brilliant insights</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">delivered with kindness.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Actually what "collaborate" means is that we are going to be like the judges on the British <i>Strictly Come Dancing </i>show: Darcy Bussell and Craig Revel Horwood. Craig is the one whom the audience start booing as soon as he opens his mouth. Darcy picks up the pieces of the weeping dancers and makes them feel better after Craig has shot them down with a bullet point list of all their faults. curl, naturally, is going to be Darcy while I will play the part of the Bitch of Strictness <snerk>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>curl</i>: I am very excited to introduce you to an exceptional new author on Literotica, Gorza. I've loved both of his first two stories<i>. </i>Today I want to direct you to <a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/mouses-maiden-voyage" target="_blank"><i>Mouse's Maiden Voyage</i></a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Naoko</i>: Yes, yes darling, but his footwork, and that habit of dropping the shoulders. You must keep the topline ... oh sorry, wrong script. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Curl</i>: This is the story of a delightful French female astronaut on the International Space Station. The ISS orbits around the earth and provides an almost "weightless" environment, and you've probably seen videos of astronauts floating around inside. Since I am the science nerd side of this review, I can gush about the technical side of this story. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My very first thought when reading <i>Mouse's Maiden Voyage</i> was: "Hot damn! Somebody's FINALLY nailed the description of sex in zero gravity!" ... And... I can't even remember reading any other descriptions of sex in zero gravity. This one is SO good, I just assumed it trumped all others. (I apologize in advance to all the authors whose stories about sex in zero gravity I haven't read. Send me a link and I will be very happy to read them too.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Second thought was not as a science nerd, just a frequent reader of sex stories: "Hot damn! That's some sexy story about a woman's first time." Yes indeed, our plucky female French astronaut has been so busy with her career that she hasn't taken time out for relationships. With some pensive time on her hands, she decides to use the two male astronauts on the ISS to experience some first sexual joys.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The techie side of me was entranced by the plausible description of sex in zero gravity. The arousable side of me was entranced by the hot description of this two-on-one deflowering. I liked the fact that Mouse is a petite and athletic protagonist; an intelligent and capable woman at the top of her profession. She has the confidence to initiate this first sexual encounter on her own terms.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I was EXTREMELY impressed by the quality of Gorza's writing. Very few first-contributions to Literotica read so well. I liked the skill with which he used two non-English languages and also non-native-speaker phrasings of English. His writing is seamless; so skilled that I can forget I am reading and just savor the experience. (I did have a brief email exchange with Gorza about the captivating discussions between the characters, in which he explained that he translated the English thoughts into French or Russian and then back into English to get a sense of which words could remain non-English, and what their attempts at English would sound like for these foreign-language speakers.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I liked the level of "foreplay": there are lots of non-penetrative sexual activities that are both fun and arousing. The penetrative activities were extremely hot. Oh, and they actually had fun and arousing conversations during sex -- What a concept!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Naoko</i>: Right, well, as curl gushes - one way or another (wink), I'll bring things down to earth.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">curl is right, Gorza writes with exceptional fluid skill (I'm not just talking about the unusual use to which intergalactic wet wipes are put here). This is a hot story written with aplomb. Because it's so good, I'm going to pick on a couple of glitches which could be addressed to make this a much stronger piece of work - a powerful feminist fable as well as a damn Hot story. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Hopefully I'm not becoming one those annoying Anonymous commentators who read your story about vampires and complain that there was no wooden-legged man in it (that being their particular fetish). Who say: why didn't you make the hero take a short walk in the Carpathian Mountains? It would be much better if he met a feisty goatherd! (ignoring the fact that he has ravished a whole village of maidens in a thoroughly heteronormative fashion; I mean heteronormative apart from the sucking blood thing). Oh well, here goes. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The key problems here are: backstory for Mouse, and the lack of dynamism because neither the plot nor the character development is sufficiently exploited. Gorza is such a good writer that he glides over these major problems. With due respect, your average Literotica reader isn't likely to comment on these matters but I think the slackness in the storyline is probably the reason that out of Gorza's three current stories, this one doesn't have a red <span style="color: red;">H</span>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mouse is a convincing and likeable character, recognisably French in her brisk and businesslike way. She and her fellow astronauts are a good mix and provide good contrast, setting each other off well. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mouse describes herself as asexual, but she comes across like a pretty butch, e.g. when as a young woman she poses for photos in her uniform. How did she come to be detached from her sexuality? Gorza has her just shrug her shoulders. <i>C'est la vie.</i> You can tell it is an issue, though, as he spends quite a long time saying it's just how it is, right at the beginning of the story. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Gorza gives away the story straightaway: "<i>Ouai</i>, I lost my virginity in orbit... in space...," Mouse boasts casually. From that point, the story is floating in zero gravity: there is no potential for forward momentum<i>. </i>Gorza could still have dynamism while chucking away the plot: <i>Yes, chaps, the central character is going to have first time sex in space!!!</i>, if he established it as a question how she came to be a virgin so late in life. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This psychological bump and grind continues in the conversations which lead up to Mouse's asking herself to be deflowered. One colleague says she can come to him for recommendations about prostitutes in his home town. She says: <i>Remember I'm a woman</i>. He and the other colleague ask about the men in her life and are incredulous when she says there's no one. They scold her, saying there is something in all humans that longs for sexual intimacy. Mouse has a bit of solo fun that night. Next day she suggests the two guys help her out. She mentions that she masturbated the night before. The one colleague says he often masturbates. There is an authorial aside about the other two being used to his vulgarities by now. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Gah, seriously! It's like a jigsaw puzzle where the picture looks OK but some of the pieces are not in the right places. Writers often say: <i>Show don't tell. </i>The note about the guy being vulgar needs to go in way earlier - we know by now that he is a bit of a lad; Gorza has <i>shown </i>us by having him josh about rudely. Telling us about it at this late stage is just irritating. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Then there is a bit when Mouse says she has not really been kissed, the vulgar colleague launches at her and snogs her jokingly but it goes wrong. <i>All three of us suddenly felt rather uncomfortable about the situation. </i>Really, you amaze me. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">What did Mouse feel? Suddenly she has got a super-intelligent super-fit flirtatious man pressing her up against the side of the Space Station in a kiss that was meant to be brotherly and went a bit wrong. (*gulp!*) If Gorza went into Mouse's feelings, they might explain why she propositions two guys at once the next day, after years of not caring about sex.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It happens that by great good luck *heavily sarcastic tone of voice* I have a possible answer to why a woman like Mouse might have shut her sexuality up in a box marked: 'Property of Pandora'. I am myself a woman who works in what are sometimes called the 'soft' sciences, and my Piglet aspires to be a 'real' scientist - y'know one of those people who wear white coats in labs. (I just have glasses I look over and I talk a lot about method - not in the same breath as the word 'rhythm' usually.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Anyway, the other day, Piglet came home very upset and said one of the boys had said girls are stupid and have no place in Science Club. (I wonder why she is the only girl in her year to join :rolleyes:) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Maybe you think she was a bit of a numpty to get so upset? Maybe she should shrug her shoulders and go: "C'est la vie, there are idiots everywhere," and ignore him. Unfortunately, she knows the boy. He is slightly older, highly intelligent and probably will grow up to be astronaut material. (Not an idiot.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Plus, Piglet - who was the only girl in the troop - had comments made about girls not being blahdiblah in cub scouts too. Akeela for Piglet's troop was the kind of Rubenesque blonde I would not personally dream of making demeaning remarks about women anywhere near. She came down pretty hard on that boy but Piglet always felt like an outsider.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">All through junior school, Piglet had school reports saying how kind she is, what a good classmate, how polite to the teacher, but not saying much about her maths abilities or her highly variable spelling test scores. Honestly, I too thought she was a bit thick - which is fine, she is my own Piglet whatever, then the little blighter scored a Merit in a very tough music exam and I realised that she was just <i>pretending</i>. Fed up with her clinging on in the top spelling group by her fingernails, I offered her a tenner if she could get a perfect score in her next spelling test. She immediately did it. (This was a bit dumb, as it means that whenever she comes home now with a less than excellent score, I remind her that she was able to hit the top mark when bribed so should still be able to do it without having banknotes waved at her.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I can't hand on heart tell Piglet things are going to get better as she has seen me come home fuming after men told me I was no good at statistics (I only teach it after all), research (former Deputy Director of a Research Centre) and equalities (only taught it at postgraduate and undergraduate levels, and wrote a national review on education and equalities, what do I know - apart from my extensive personal experience of discrimination <i>OF COURSE</i>). In fact so many people looked at me with such incredulity when I applied for new jobs that in spite of all evidence to the contrary, I started to believe I wasn't very good at this stuff myself. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.19thc-artworldwide.org/images/resized/images/stories/summer_12/articles/pier16_90_209.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.19thc-artworldwide.org/images/resized/images/stories/summer_12/articles/pier16_90_209.jpg" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">What happens to women whose presence in certain groups is questioned from very young in life? Who from very young continually see that there is a stark choice between being shoved into an undervalued feminine world as wife and mother, or battling to be part of a masculine world of science and adventure? It does not stop when you move on up to the grownup equivalent of Science Club, unfortunately. <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=pF2MmuB_E5kC&redir_esc=y" target="_blank">Ludmilla Jordanova</a> has written about women in the Paris medical school in France walking past a statue of a naked woman entitled: <i>Nature Unveiling Herself Before Science</i>. (The <a href="http://www.19thc-artworldwide.org/summer12/caterina-pierre-louis-ernest-barrias" target="_blank">article online</a> from which this illustration is drawn places the medical school in Bordeaux.) She quotes the philosopher of science Feyerabend explaining why scientists (he means heterosexual men) should choose his new cool school of science:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Such a development, far from being undesirable, changes science from a stern and demanding mistress into an attractive and yielding courtesan who tries to anticipate every wish of her lover. Of course, it is up to us to choose either a <span class="highlight selected">dragon</span> or a pussy cat for our company. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Recently the Nobel Prize winning scientist Tim Hunt had to be sacked, after commenting that mixed gender laboratories shouldn't be allowed because women scientists cry too much, and are distractingly sexy. How did that make women scientists feel? Many of them responded with great humour (and distracting sexiness) in the Twitter feed <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/distractinglysexy?lang=en-gb" target="_blank">#distractinglysexy</a>. ("Some call me a dirty girl, others a soil scientist ...")</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">From <a href="http://easterneronline.com/36007/letters-to-the-editor/letter-to-the-editor-stem/" target="_blank">The Easterner</a> (Eastern Washington </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">University student paper). </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">How does all this make an aspiring girl scientist feel? Maybe it makes her feel that in order to be a (masculine) scientist, she should put her sexuality away somewhere safe. That way she might not be in danger of being distracted by her treacherous feminity; of slipping into becoming a wife and mother instead of a man ... sorry person, in a white lab coat. Maybe a woman who needs to focus on her work, to be twice as good in order to get half as far, to make pretty damn sure she doesn't fall pregnant to someone smart enough to ensure she is the one carrying the baby in more ways than physically; maybe such a woman would become asexual and dress and behave as much like one of the lads as she could. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">At the heart of this story is a lack of tension, of elasticity, of snap. Gorza gave away the endpoint of the story, we know the heroine is going to have sex in space. He didn't take up the opportunity for the psychological development of the characters, for us to explore with Mouse why she might feel shy of sex and intimacy, for her and us to feel that sharp satisfying snap as realisation falls into place: of course, it was all because .... </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">curl is right, mind, this is a damn HOT story, and very enjoyable even if its knickers are falling down because it doesn't have elasticity (wink). The description of cum spraying out in zero gravity is mesmerising and the characters are all great fun. Go! read it and enjoy this exciting new writer on the block. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">PS Gorza originally asked for a different story of his to be reviewed - which I promise we will get onto as well. He thought this one wouldn't count as safe sex. I should call it risky rather than unsafe. It certainly shows that you should never go anywhere without a condom. You never know - even on the International Space Station, you could bump into someone distractingly sexy. Then you want to be able to just fall back with your legs in the air, not fall back on the 'withdrawal method'. Not all of us have the self discipline of a NASA trained astronaut</span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">.(<i>*wistful sigh*!</i> wink) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-83767054308957844442015-10-22T06:59:00.000-07:002015-10-22T06:59:08.060-07:00Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Les Ballets Trockadero are in no need of a boost from me, as they have been playing to ecstatic sellout audiences for decades. However, I enjoyed the show they put on the other evening so-o-o much, I just had to write about them. Plus, I thought I'd use the opportunity to talk about parody. </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"></a><a href="http://trockadero.org/" target="_blank">The Trocks</a> first started up as a spoof event in the 1970s. Nobody, least of all themselves, took them seriously but they have since become an institution. They are great fun - but if you are in any way a ballet afficionado, they are an absolute must-see.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The all male troupe are a send-up of the classic ballet troupes of the twentieth century. While taking themselves very very seriously, these corps de ballets tended to be extremely pretentious and self-dramatising. Ballerinas couldn't be called things like Peggy Hookham (Margot Fonteyn) in a world full of the then highly regarded Russian prima ballerinas. So the Trocks award themselves names like Ida Nevasayneva, and Nadia Doumiafeyva (my personal favourite being Lagavulina Skotchroksova). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The dancers all have a male as well as female persona, e.g. Boris Nowitsky and Velour Pilleaux. There is obvious clowning around with these personalities: pairing up a very small male danseur with a large ballerina whom he drops, or after lifting her, staggers around the stage clutching his back. Beautiful white feathered costumes are offset by chest and underarm hair. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The main reason, though, that the Trocks remain popular, is that they are fabulous superb dancers. They are not clowns in tutus, but magnificent highly trained artistes. While some of their acts involve obvious clowning around, they will spoof up Martha Graham as readily as Swan Lake. A lot of the clowning plays on ballet conventions and their most cherished performances are almost pure dance. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My favourite piece on the night when I was lucky enough to go, was their <i>Don Quixote</i>. The friend I was with was a former ballerina and she was unable to refrain from occasionally whispering to me in awe about the number of <i>assembl</i></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>és</i> a dancer had managed, or the quality of the <i>battements</i>. The whole ballet was delightfully absurd. As you can see, Don Quixote himself had been dropped; it was all just an excuse to leap about in flamenco-esque costumes with tambourines. Don't ask me where the large and beautifully coiffured cupid fitted in! she was very elegant. This is the nature of a highly successful parody: something more skilful than the original, it mimics the original almost perfectly - just touching it up with high colour now and then to draw our attention to some of its more absurd aspects. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And hats off to the Trocks, for even arranging that there should be the obligatory audience members rustling sweet papers at key moments of high emotion! as invariably happens in the 'real' ballet. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">(That last bit was a free example of sarcasm to go with your parody LOL.) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">You can enjoy the Trocks on Youtube, although this is just not at all the same as seeing them in the flesh (and feathers, net, tulle, sequins, gauze etc etc). Before you check out this video of Maya Thickenthighya dancing her <i>Dying Swan</i>, have a look at one of the most famous pieces of ballet footage (ho ho! footage!), <i>The Dying Swan</i> performed by Anna Pavlova: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-3731887211325132712015-10-22T05:41:00.001-07:002015-10-22T05:41:48.334-07:00International Welsh Cabaret Festival <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Image from <a href="http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/international-welsh-cabaret-festival-free-market-place-tickets-18904214013" target="_blank">Eventbrite</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Roll up, roll up! the burlesque is back! Here's <a href="http://www.iwcf.wales/" target="_blank">information and tickets for the festival</a> (13th/14th Nov).</span><br />
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<a href="http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-xfa1/t5.0-1/c0.11.160.160/p160x160/373097_324359757668993_411868711_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-xfa1/t5.0-1/c0.11.160.160/p160x160/373097_324359757668993_411868711_n.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Previously I have reviewed the burlesque <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/fabulous-feminist-burlesque.html" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/fabulous-feminist-burlesque-flying-down.html" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/international-welsh-cabaret-festival-free-market-place-tickets-18904214013" target="_blank">here</a>. I totally hand on heart recommend it as a hilarious heart-warming night out.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Running over three days, at the Festival, you can:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Go to the shops - there will be stalls with all sorts. (Seriously - all sorts!)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">See the New Talent awards (Fri night).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Attend a day of vintage make-up, dance and circus skills workshops (Sat).</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">See the Gala Show!!! (Sat evening).</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I'm sure going to be there! </span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-6679616820065116022015-10-14T01:04:00.004-07:002015-10-14T01:06:28.395-07:00Safe Sex - it doesn't have to be like this<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Honest, safe sex can be a lot of fun. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">People immediately think condoms when the words 'safe sex' pop up. Well, you can have a lot of fun with condoms. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There are also <b>A LOT </b>of activities you can engage in for which you don't need a condom. They are safe and enormous (enormous! - wink) fun. Expand your sexual repertoire, have lots of fun and play safe, LOL. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Here's a quickie about how to have fun with a condom. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Phew! *panting* that was really ... safe (wink) LOL. </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-26326858244259247592015-10-09T12:26:00.002-07:002015-10-09T12:26:51.722-07:00Using a wheelchair<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">OK! I ended up writing a ve-ery long review here so if you are just hoping to find a hot story go straight to electricblue66's magnificent </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/rope-and-veil" target="_blank">Rope and Veil</a></i></span>. Another excellent story I'm going to discuss is Tribad's <i>Alice's Curiosity</i> but I can't give a link to it as there is naughty unsafe sex in it! :eeek!: (It's on Literotica. Just google, dahlink.) Plus, I will talk about my own story which has a wheelchair user as a central character: </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/the-de-winters-tale" target="_blank"><i>The de Winter's Tale</i></a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Yayyy! Go and read, vote - and give feedback. I know I need to edit my own story, so I am really keen for feedback. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">NB </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I have previously reviewed electricblue66's art <a href="http://feministerotica.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/beginning-last-wednesday.html" target="_blank">here</a>. The pictures he mentions in his story are on his Tumblr blog. Sorry about the quick lecture I put in at the start of this review - back to flirting soon, I promise. For those who want to think about writing in a more responsible manner ... </span> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Mainly this review is about the flawed brilliance of the first story I discuss, by electricblue66. I'm glad I wrote my own story about a wheelchair user <i>before</i> reading <i>Rope and Veil</i>, as I would never have had the nerve to tackle it had I read electricblue66's much better piece first.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Why would an able-bodied person write a story about a wheelchair user? Well, for 'real' writers, it's important that we represent diversity in our stories: the world as it is rather than an air-brushed version. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">People with disabilities (PWDs in the States) experience discrimination on what's called the 'social model'. Most people think disabled people have a medical problem (the 'medical model') which could be overcome if they had a prosthetic limb, or better hearing aid etc. However those who argue for the 'social model' say the problem is with society not people who have particular access needs. In one town in Virginia it happens that so many residents are deaf, that everyone can use sign language. Residents don't need a medical aid for hearing because the local society has adjusted. Where there are accessible shops and offices, etc, wheelchair users can engage in society 'normally'. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Clearly a group of people who are struggling to 'get a foothold' (even everyday language can be discriminatory) in ordinary activities are likely to have to face prejudiced views about their sexuality. For able-bodied and disabled writers to write good erotic stories offers an affirmation to disabled readers (as the heartfelt comment on Tribad's <i>Alice's Curiosity</i> demonstrates). It reminds the rest of us not to make assumptions. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">For a writer, to realistically and positively represent a wheelchair user as the central character of an erotic story is an exciting challenge. Plus, I think Tribad and myself have succumbed to the temptation to 'use' the wheelchair, although electricblue66 has resisted. Speaking for myself, to write about someone who is disabled offered a golden opportunity to write about how sex is more of the mind than the body. I think this is utilising an opportunity rather than exploiting one, that certainly was the intention. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">OK, now on with the review-y bits! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The issues with <i>Rope and Veil </i>are small stylistic ones which are even more annoying because of the brilliance of the rest of the story. E.g. the word 'bright' is so over-used in the first few paragraphs that after about the fifth time I saw it, I was having to grit my teeth to prepare for it coming up again. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This is a better piece than electricblue66's last Summer Lovin' entry, which I found mannered and self-conscious. This is a danger when a writer takes him or herself seriously, attempting to produce a poetic beauty through wordplay in the ironic ethos of a postmodern world which does not like us to take things seriously. I could bang on about the moment when romanticism shattered into the sharp world-weary cynicism of modern writing (WWI), but let's get on with banging of a different kind (wink).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">electricblue66 is as forthright as his heroine Amelia herself. He is upfront about her disability, and about the likely reactions of an able-bodied male who notices the wheelchair - because who wouldn't. When he describes the bright (grrr - I just counted six uses of the word in as many paragraphs!) hair and beautiful crafted jewellery (just say 'crafted' if you've already used 'beautiful' in the paragraph above), it's not in a superficial way, drawing our attention away from the wheelchair. He goes below the superficial to show how Amelia uses colour to draw attention to her self not her disability. Nor does he shy from the harshness of her emotions: anger, bitterness, mourning. Like the chiaroscuro shades which make a renaissance painting come to life, these are an integral part of Amelia's vivid attractive personality. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There is some fantastic word play in this story, which I won't spoil for you. electricblue66 also handles expertly the verbal duelling that goes on between Amelia's hurt pride and Alex's efforts to show her he is aware of the wheelchair, <i>and</i> aware of the woman who sits in it. Characterisation is absolutely top dollar: sharp, honest, heart-rendingly appealing. "[A]fter a while I'd figured out what was OK, what was not." electricblue66 demonstrates his understanding that understanding has to be worked for - the friendship Alex makes with Amelia is negotiated. This is the case, of course, for all relationships. The fact that he has to figure out what is OK in talking to a wheelchair user, makes this boldly apparent. We can't intuit what people find acceptable or not acceptable for us to say about them but must always find our way with tenderness around bumps in the road.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The one word play I am going to mention is on 'bound'. electricblue66 was inspired to write this story by a comment on <i>Alice's Curiosity</i> which mentions that PWDs find the phrase 'wheelchair bound' problematic. Some might have been inspired to write a story about a wheelchair user that was more respectful. A true poet, electricblue66 was inspired to write a story about rope. Amelia is bound, but not to her wheelchair, she chooses meditational rope binding to express herself.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The piece as a whole is a meditation on the body and suffering, on the ways we manage our mental pain through physical sensation. Amelia has a history of cutting herself - until her accident left her with no sensation so this became meaningless. This probably is too much for one short story to carry - a loose end. It would be a neater piece of work if electricblue66 just wrote about the rope binding, although less interesting.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The sex is hot: a melange of exhibitionism, voyeurism, sucking mouths and fucking hands. electricblue66 works to make that poetry too; I might advise doing away with the languorous tone induced by using 'And' at the start of paragraphs. Make it rougher, harder-edged, more realistic. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Why would someone able-bodied write about a wheelchair user? The fear is that this would be a fetish, that the perceived helplessness of the wheelchair user would be a turn-on. To objectify others instead of allowing them to be the subject of their own desires is something that again I could write at length about. (In fact I did write a whole PhD thesis about it!) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">All three of us writers want to avoid this. The harsh beautiful realism of electricblue66's story necessarily includes depiction of Amelia's limited mobility. Maybe Tribad succeeds best here. He has an excellent passage where Alice enjoys being Domme - issuing orders to Rick as to how fast, how slow he should wank in front of her, and where to direct his spunk. Tribad doesn't shy away from telling how pleasurable Alice finds this when she is used to feeling that others have control over her. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Tribad develops well the timidity of the two characters as their friendship slips into something more sexual. However as the story develops, his writing becomes rushed. Alice asks for a rough dirty face fuck, but Rick is described as being gentle. An editorial decision has to be made: does he enjoy being gentle and careful with her in spite of her request? or is the sex going to be a bit rougher and what might that do to the back of Alice's throat? When the two have sex with the parents in the house, it's mentioned but I would have liked Tribad to talk about it in more detail, wouldn't the possibility of being walked in on excite the two exhibitionists more?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">On <i>Alice's Curiosity</i> is the heart-felt and revealing Anonymous PWD comment which inspired electricblue66. Its key point is about communication. When you are in a situation of potential vulnerability, communication about consent becomes even more important and one moment where there is a lack of such communication (about anal teasing) is more intensely felt because in the rest of the story this is handled so sensitively. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Communication, consent - these are key in any relationship. Tribad does use the situation of his character Alice to point up human truths, rather than as an object for an exploitative and selfish titillation, although neither he nor I do this as sensitively as electricblue66. I suspect that for Tribad, to write about a wheelchair user offered an opportunity to write about a story that goes gradually into full-on penetrative sex, that can linger over exhibitionism and kissing before the protagonists leap on each other - as often seems to improbably happen at first sight in Literotica stories. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In <i>The de Winter's Tale<a href="https://www.literotica.com/s/the-de-winters-tale" target="_blank"></a></i>, I wanted to show how variable good sex is, and that sex depends not on bodily perfection but on a dirty mind. A comment by MSTarot rightly draws attention to my making too much of Jeff's upper body strength, I must edit the story to keep to my brief. Jeff is weak and physically unattractive but his wife is totally turned on by his pleasure in voyeurism. I wanted to write a story about women's exhibitionism, that describes the way women are made to feel our sexuality is shameful. Then it becomes intensely pleasurable to show our pudenda (the Latin root for this word is <i>pudere</i> - to be ashamed) to someone who is enjoying the view. To do it ostensibly for someone-else's pleasure, allows such a woman to enjoy her own sex. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I snuck yet another layer of story in under that. This became a story about writers, about the ways people who write erotica think about our work. We all start off thinking sex sells, then realising that the internet is full of sex stories. This doesn't mean we can't make our stories work for our living - we work hard enough to produce them for others' pleasure. If you want to sell your stories, though, you must think about what goes on around the story. </span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Full many a gem of purest ray serene, </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear. </span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Full many a flower is born to blush unseen</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And waste its sweetness on the desert air. </span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">There is so much amazing writing which quietly folds itself up and disappears into the infinite space of the internet. You have to go supernova if you want people to notice a bit of hot stuff you have spun out of your dreams. Or get reviewed on here (wink). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2745938734534973412.post-66225233619426334352015-10-08T03:40:00.002-07:002015-10-08T03:55:08.001-07:00National Poetry Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A little bird (OK, a hunky big bloke - yum) has reminded me that it's National Poetry Day. Here is a celebratory recording by Kingswoman: Tennyson's <a href="https://soundcloud.com/kingswoman/now-sleeps-the-crimson-petal" target="_blank"><i>Now sleeps the crimson petal</i></a>. It's more romantic than erotic, in fact Romantic - high Romantic writing of the Victorian era. Like a lot of Tennyson's poetry though, there is heavily sexual symbolism for the delicate ladies to blush over. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The poem comes from a 'verse medley' by Alfred, Lord Tennyson called <i>The Princess</i>. This is an odd story, it starts with a group of young people who are inspired to tell each other a verse drama about a heroic Prince. Young Lilia, the daughter of the house, challenges the young men to it: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>I wish I were</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>Some mighty poetess, I would shame you then, </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i>That love to keep us children! </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">They compose a poem about a great Princess who separates herself from the world in order to pursue learning. But it only leads to 'tears idle tears', gurllllzzzzz (wink - that famous poem is also part of <i>The Princess</i> medley). A Prince falls in love with her, and when she rejects his suit, a terrible battle ensues, her brothers and various assorted hunky Princes are all dreadfully wounded, then finally she agrees to be a good wife and mother instead. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">LOL, it's all very Victorian. Nothing like that could happen today <i>OF COURSE</i>! (wink). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I am always struck by the way Lilia and Ida (the Princess) are depicted as attractive and charming because of their wit and intelligence, how Tennyson shows their frustration at not being allowed to develop their thoughts ("you ... that love to keep us children"), but in the end this is not the Victorian way - love means never having to think any more, apparently. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03366894481117816034noreply@blogger.com1