Done for a while

Gonna take some time off from blogging.  Just not feeling very "bloggy."  Thanks for all the support and comments.  I'll be back in 2012.

Relax!

I'd forgotten how hot this damn video was!

I think this might explain hubby's fetish

We spent 8 years in North Dakota, and this was the view of Mount Rushmore from up North. 

Where Do I Fit In?

Let's be honest.  Isn't it the #1 question on your mind sometimes?  Or is it just me?

The past two weekends have been pretty amazing for two different reasons.  Last weekend was our 3rd AtlantaDominion party at the 1763 Dungeon.  This weekend was the Black & Blue Weekend at the Eagle here in Atlanta.  Both weekends were great, yet both have that capacity to niggle at the nether regions of my mind (a very scary place, hazmat suits recommended).

Here's the deal.  I've been an observant person for as long as I can remember.  And a damn good reader of people.  And probably a little too empathetic (EMpathetic, not pathetic, although sometimes I drift).  It's the co-dependent in me:  I'm not happy until you're happy.  You're not happy, I feel quite certain it's my fault.  I've been the type of guy that if I think you're not having a good time I'll join right in on your misery.  (Do you hear tiny violins playing sympathy songs in the background?)

Despite all this baggage I've managed to have a pretty damn good time the past two weekends!  At the dungeon party we had 26 really hot, playful, kinky guys doing their damnedest to explore, explode, and dive-bomb into their kinks and fetishes and desires.  What amazes me is that we had 46 guys signed up to come.  20 guys.  TWENTY guys who at the last minute decided something was better.  To say it was a drag on my energy would be an understatement.  (In the heat of this "rats deserting the sinking ship" moment I believe I may have said some nasty things.....I'll deny everything.)  Add to that, two of my best buddies in the world, and co-founders of the AtlantaDominion, were unable to attend because of work and travel....I was doing "hang-dog" expressions left and right.   But!  BUT!  I learned long ago that the "here and now" is where you live.  As hubby and I arrived at 1763 we made a vow to put every ounce of energy into the guys who DID show up, and not to worry about those that flaked, begged off, got sick, created excuses, had real excuses, spent too much time at the Eagle the prior night, or were in the midst of their life crises.  "Here and now" means this place with these people.  And that pays off.  Handsomely.

As before there were amazing things going on all over the dungeon.  I lost count how many guys got abused in straitjackets.  Considering it is my favorite piece of equipment ever invented....well, that's one big vote for being in the "here and now."  Having a hand in getting 3 different guys to pretty deep headspace--well that's the nectar of the gods for me.  Way down deep, when I see a guy's eyes flutter, and his neck turn to spaghetti, and involuntary moans escape from him....well, that's the big payoff for me.

And sitting at the pizza joint afterwards with 12 other guys (Yes, there were 13 for dinner, but, knock wood, we're all still alive a week later) was the biggest payoff.  Happy, happy, happy men and not a single ounce of negative energy.   There are amazing people in this world and for that brief moment in time I felt very lucky to be sitting with all of them.  I felt like, "I fit in."

For the last two nights I served as a judge for the Mr. Atlanta Rubber contest.  I blame Pup Nitro, the sweetest-talking little rascal for roping me into this.  I am not a pageant guy.  I have been known to call them "The Little Miss Leather Sunshine Contests."  I wonder why guys want a sash.  I freak out a bit at the thought of parading down some runway showing off my attributes, or lack thereof.  I wonder how the guy feels to end up 2nd in a two-man race.  (Monopoly players know the old "$10 for 2nd place in a beauty pageant" card.)

Needless to say, I got a huge dose of "doesn't fit in" this weekend.  There were about a dozen judges for the Rubber and Bootblack contests.  And one contestant in each category, a statement laden with meaning in itself!  And as the judges were introduced each was introduced along with the title or titles they hold or held.  And as my name was read last....."And Master Dan, from here in Atlanta."   Did I feel 3 inches tall.  Nah.  Maybe 2 1/2 inches tall.  But only for a second.  It's like the lottery:  you can't win if you don't enter.  And I choose not to enter.

Later in the evening every single title holder was invited to the stage for a big group shot.  When the dust settled there were about 30-35 people on stage.  There were about 8 of us left to observe.   THAT speaks volumes to me.  This is a very particular and specific group, many traveling hundreds of miles!, that gathers to support each other.  They celebrate and support each other, maybe to validate their own journey down the runway, maybe to keep the spirit of titleholders alive.  It really helped me to understand all of this by reading a recent article at leatherati.com.  We all recognize that the internet and various phone gadgets have created a whole different way that we interact and find each other.  And this is totally true of leathermen and women, and kinksters of all shapes and sizes.  And the need, the true need for contests as gatherings to celebrate our similarities may no longer exist.  Time will tell whether or not some contests even continue to survive.  I'm not voting on the issue.  After this weekend I can see both sides of the argument all too well. 

Let me be clear on one thing.  Not a single person of the pageant circuit made even the slightest effort to exclude me. (okay, there was one guy, from out of state, who was a dickhead, but I think that's just because he's a dickhead.)  In fact, they were some of the most wonderful people I've met in a long time.  This is a bunch that tries very hard to include you, not stiff arm you.  And I appreciated that effort very much.  Whatever element of "not fitting in" I felt was only what I imposed on myself.  And I'm a pro at that.  Fifty-four years of experience has never let me down!

And I can figure out a thousand morals to this story.  Ways that I can learn from this experience and become a better person; self-reflection habits that I should nuke, burn, mutilate, and destroy;  ways that I can give myself credit for opening myself up to a new experience; blah blah blah blah.

What I really want to remember is to hold a hand open to the young guy who looks at me and thinks I'M the one who "fits in".   Me?  Really?  Me?  You think I'm sane, rational, have my shit together, and "fit in!?!?"   Oh.....we have so much to talk about.

A HUGE thanks to Loren and Alex who shared my table during the judging part of the evening.  Together they put together Leatherati.com, the single best resource of what's going on in the kink world of today.  They are amazing men and it was my pleasure to get to know them better.

And to boy Andy from SC.....I'm looking forward to the next time I get to tie you up!!!

Excited

This coming Sunday will be our third AtlantaDominion play party at the 1763 dungeon.  And I am truly excited.  We have 90 guys on the approved list (some from as far away as Florida and Louisiana) and nearly half of them are planning on attending this time around


The original party was planned as a 25th anniversary celebration for hubby and me.  Shortly after that Sir Brian, Loki, and I met to discuss making this an ongoing event, which in our minds would fulfill a much needed gaping hole (sexual pun intended) in the social life of Atlanta.  I really believe that we just may have accomplished this.


We have a huge variety of kinksters as part of the group, but we share the key elements:  respect, safety, discretion, kink-aware, risk-aware, and fun.  It's not too late to submit an application, and if you're coming from out of town and need a crash-pad, let me know!  Sleeping on the bondage bed here at home can always be arranged.

If you can't make this one, start planning now for the party on November 20th.  We open the doors at 2:00 and try to get the party started by 2:30.  We wind down at 7:00 and a lot of guys head off to a nearby pizza joint for a little post-party socialization.  Twenty bucks.  That's it.  Just twenty bucks for an afternoon of debauchery!

Be Safe

(I have about six thousand comments I'd like to shout from the rooftops on this article.  Besides all the safety issues that were completely aborted, I believe we all have to recognize that our actions and behaviors will ultimately reflect on everyone in the lifestyle.  Please, be safe.)

 

Europe's Dangerous Sex Craze

Sep 15, 2011 9:24 PM EDT

An Italian man is on trial for the death of his girlfriend during a Japanese bondage scene. Barbie Latza Nadeau on what happens during 'Shibari'—and why extreme sex is on the rise.

Apparently monogamous sex gets tedious even when you’re tied up with rope.

Italian engineer Soter Mule, 42, and his girlfriend Paola Caputo, 24, were avid practitioners of Shibari, an ancient Japanese erotic art. More refined than your typical night of bondage, Shibari involves the use of thin pieces of rope to bind the submissive partner in ways that are meant to be both artistically beautiful and also heighten the sensation of his or her orgasm.

But last Saturday night, the couple was looking to spice things up even more. They met up with a friend of Caputo’s at a local pub in Rome and, after drinking heavily and smoking hashish, the three headed to the parking garage where Caputo worked as daytime attendant. The dimly lit space was closed and desolate, the perfect setting for a kinky sex act. Mule strung the two women, with their consent and help, from a rafter with strategically placed soft ropes. He used their weight to counterbalance them, each with one foot on the ground. When one woman moved, it tightened the ropes and intensified the sensation for the other, and vice versa.

Everything was fine until the less-experienced woman fainted. The force of her sudden dead weight quickly lifted and strangled Caputo, even though Mule quickly tried to cut his girlfriend free. She died of asphyxiation, and the couple’s new friend nearly suffered the same fate. Mule was arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter, and later released on house arrest.

In detailed testimony to the arraigning judge on Wednesday, Mule described how extreme sex like Shibari involves total control. He explained how he alternately teased and penetrated the women for maximum pleasure. He admitted that he made a mistake by not cutting Caputo from her bondage ropes sooner, but insisted that the extreme sex was consensual. “No one forced anyone,” he told the court. “Paola and her friend consented, but I was the master and I ultimately made the fatal mistake. I should have had the knife closer, as they suggest when practicing this type of bondage. By the time I found it, it was too late.”

Getty Images

When police searched Mule’s apartment, they found a cache of sex toys, bondage ropes, and albums of photos he had taken of women bound in various contortions. His computer was filled with content suggesting sexual deviancy or erotic artistry, depending on your point of view. Nothing Mule did was illegal. The surviving friend, still recovering in the hospital, backed up his version of events. There were no minors involved, and sadomasochism is not a crime in Italy.

Mule was an active member of several BDSM (bondage, discipline, submission, masochism) websites and posted frequently under the moniker Kinbaku, the name used for Shibari in the 15^th century when its use was first recorded. Many of his followers looked to him for advice on how to practice Shibari. “He was considered an expert,” one friend of Mule’s told the ANSA news agency. “When practicing this kind of extreme sex everything has to be controlled, and he was well aware of that.”

Caputo’s death has since opened up a steamy debate in Italy, which has some of the highest numbers of extreme-sex aficionados in Europe, according to a poll by La Repubblica newspaper. Not to be confused with sexual predators who attack their victims, extreme-sex participants engage in risky, mutually consensual sex that they know could kill them if something goes wrong. One in 10 Italian couples practice “extreme sex,” which is defined as sex that could put one partner’s life at risk—and even those who aren’t doing things that could end in death are still risqué. Sixteen percent of Italian couples use masks and forms of bondage, and 5 percent admit to regularly engaging in mild sadomasochistic practices. Over half use erotic props in their usual sexual rapport. Just under 3 percent of the population has had sex with more than one person at a time, and slightly less than that have had group sex involving three or more partners.

Ayzad (he goes by only one name), author of A Guide to Extreme Eroticism published last year in Milan, told The Daily Beast that sexual extremism is a growing phenomenon across the globe primarily because of the Internet, which hosts thousands of websites and message boards where fetish fanatics can post their ideas and learn how to fulfill the most fringe erotic fantasies.

But the surge in high-risk sex has also led to an increase in accidental death when sex games go wrong. As many as 1,000 young men die each year of auto-erotic asphyxiation, or AEA, which is the practice of cutting off oxygen at the moment of orgasm to heighten the sensation. Michael Hutchence, the lead singer of INXS, allegedly died of an auto-erotic accident, as did Kung Fu star David Carradine. Only a few hundred women suffer the same fate. Many AEA deaths are called “suicide” since the victims are frequently found either hanging from a belt or rope or with a plastic bag over their heads. If a partner wasn’t involved, the victims are often found in the nude with pornography nearby.

But the real question is whether accidental death by orgasmic accident should be treated the same way as other accidental deaths. Every year there are hundreds of cases that make it to court. Last week a Swedish man was sentenced to 16 years in prison for “accidentally” killing a 17-year-old girl he met via the Internet. The girl had been strangled with a live electric cord during consensual sex. She had actually blogged about the thrill of the experience before the game turned fatal. In 2010, an Oklahoma man accidentally killed his wife when they were playing with a pistol during an erotic session. He was not charged with murder but instead convicted of a lesser crime. The year before, a Pennsylvania woman died of electroshock when her husband upped the amps on their “sex battery” which was wired to her nipples and vagina. He was charged with involuntary manslaughter but is already out of prison. In the U.K., a new law prohibits any citizen from possessing “extreme pornography” in the form of photographs from necrophilia to bestiality. Offenders can face prison time of up to two years and hefty fines. But the law stops short of making it a crime to engage in acts that could cause death to a participant.

“Accidents in extreme sex are rare,” says Ayzad. “You understand right away if it is for you or not.” And even if it is, that might not be enough to keep you alive.

You know me and Suit and Tie Bondage....

You can find more pics and the video (not a free site, darn it) at menatplay

Long Overdue, Part II

Some of my other favorite pics from that night at 1763.

Long Overdue

Apologies to all of you for being remiss in posting.  Call it a funk, a dry spell, a lack of interest, misplaced focus.  You name it, they all apply.  Add to it that the pup is ailing and I'm back to a sick work schedule and what you get is a dead blog.  Mea culpa.

We DID however get a chance to do a little play at out local dungeon a couple weeks ago and cameras were allowed inside.  Fun stuff!

Ah! Memories!

This video stunned me when it first appeared on MTV.



The following gave me the best chuckle of the week.

Three Ring Circus

This past Sunday Sir Brian, pup loki, and I hosted our 2nd dungeon party at 1763, the best play space in all of SouthEast America and certainly one of the top five in the nation.  Our first party was back in April when hubby and I hosted for our 25th anniversary.  Our next event is September 25th, a Sunday, from 2-7 p.m., and you can learn more about it at our website:  AtlantaDominion.

One of the biggest reasons we selected 1763 as our site is that it is so conducive to our style of play.   A large dungeon contains cages, spanking benches, a bondage table, a huge shower area perfect for piss play, benches and sofas for relaxing while watching, two electric hoists, and plenty of room to wander about and view the various scenes.  Smaller dungeons offer more suspension possibilities, St. Andrew's crosses, sofas perfect for intimate spanking scenes (right, hubby?), a wonderful bondage "pagoda", and the medical room complete with a bondage ladder and OBGYN table.  Outside there is a secluded patio and deck for smokers and some possibilities for some great bondage.  With the temp in the mid-90s there wasn't much happening there on Sunday, but I expect it might get more use in September.

I played dungeon monitor all day and couldn't have been happier to do so.  This gave me an opportunity to be voyeur extraordinaire.  I, unfortunately, missed a few of the cum shots, but there wasn't a hot scene that I didn't view at least partially.  We've taken a lot of care selecting the men who participate in our parties so the need for a DM is probably not strong.  Still, knowing there's someone available should a scene go wrong or there be a need for assistance adds to the safety of the whole day,

By agreement, discretion is pretty key to our parties.  No photographs, a private system of contacting our participants, no phones in the play space, and a mutual respect mean our men have a chance to play hard and not worry about seeing unwanted pics of themselves on the net later.  We also have an agreement that participants can discuss scenes from the party as long as participants are not identified.  So, pardon the vague references that follow:

l.  One of the best masters of rope bondage in the world joined us this past Sunday and created several beautiful scenes.  In tow were two of his close friends, one who made a beautiful rope bondage model, the other displayed some mighty fine rope work of his own.

2,  The standing cage was pretty much used all afternoon as one of my good friends slid pipes between the bars and laced those pipes up tight.  It's an intense experience for the bondage sub as well as all the onlookers made even more so when the cage is suspended by one of the electric hoists.  I think we spent as much time cleaning up the drool and precum from around the cage as we did cleaning up the cum shots in the cage.

3.  There were a lot of "impact" scenes involving spanking, paddling, and flogging.  All very nice.

4.  The spiderweb made of chain got lots of use as did the pagoda with some great standing bondage created.

5.  I loved hearing the shrieks of joy/agony when a young boy was suspended and tickled quite mercilessly by three men surrounding him.

6.  I guess I'm most proud of the men who "broke through" at this party, throwing caution to the wind, and allowing themselves to experience new thrills.  I know they've been riding high since then.  And the tops who initiated them to these experiences--well, suffice to say, they are some of the best.

I've talked with several of the men who joined us last Sunday and I know they're anxious for the next party.  Great!  I did see more than one couple exchanging phone numbers.  Cool!  And I'm happy for all of us that for a second straight time we had one balls-to-the-wall, drama-free, endorphin-raising, good time.

Want to join us?  Fill out an application at our website! 

Eagle Raid Botched. Big Surprise.

http://www.projectqatlanta.com/news_articles/view/eagle_reports_police_raid_was_botched_mess?gid=8567

Eagle reports: Police raid was botched mess

By Matt Hennie | Jun 29, 2011 | 2:05 PM

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READ MORE | Report from Greenberg Traurig (pdf) and Atlanta police internal investigation (pdf)

Two long-awaited and much-delayed investigations into the police department’s Atlanta Eagle raid in 2009 show just how botched this operation really was: They criticize not only officers and their department, but city attorneys and even the jail.

In other words, the reports confirm what patrons inside the bar during the Sept. 10, 2009 raid already knew. They also reiterated what the public has learned in nearly two years of a steady stream of details that have come out through repeated press conferences, police denials, and a federal lawsuit that was settled for $1.025 million with promises of reforms for the Atlanta Police Department and improved training for its officers.

Late Tuesday – a day after a deadline set by a federal judge—Mayor Kasim Reed’s office released two reports – the Atlanta Police Department’s internal investigation and another from the high-powered law firm Greenberg Traurig that were mandated in the settlement terms of the federal lawsuit.

The takeaway: The raid violated the Fourth Amendment rights of patrons and employees, and violated several provisions of the police department’s Standard Operating Procedure. Potential prejudice and bias, inadequate planning and training, a failure in command staff oversight and involvement, a breakdown in communication between command staff and officers, and a lack of effective coordination between the City Law Department and the police agency all contributed to the problems found in the raid, Greenberg Traurig said.

“The reports conclude that most of the officers involved in the operation did not conform to the APD’s standard operating procedures,” City Attorney Cathy Hampton said in a statement released late Tuesday.

Hampton also said that Reed and police Chief George Turner (second photo) will review both reports and that Turner will “determine appropriate disciplinary action in short order.” Reed, who in the past has pledged swift action if wrongdoing was found in the Eagle raid, has not spoken publicly about the Eagle reports. Turner has repeatedly rejected calls from the Atlanta Citizen Review Board and his own LGBT advisory board to punish officers in the raid, saying he’ll revisit those recommendations once the internal investigation is wrapped up.

In its 343-page report, Greenberg Traurig also says the findings won’t repair the damage done by the raid.

“GT is aware that its investigation and conclusions may not offer complete comfort to the patrons and employees that were involved in or witness to the Eagle Raid on September 10, 2009, to the important gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community that resides in or visits the City of Atlanta, or to other citizens of Atlanta. Nor may this report serve to repair the damage to the reputations of officers associated with this incident and litigation who committed no wrongdoing, especially those who were named as defendants but were never present at the Eagle Raid,” the report says.

Greenberg Traurig also concluded that several factors, including “the sensitivity concerns
presented by dealing with a gay establishment,” should have mandated that a police lieutenant was on hand to supervise the raid. Lt. Tony Crawford, a commander of the Vice Unit that oversaw the raid, has said his presence wasn’t warranted and didn’t review plans for the raid before it took place.

The internal investigation by Atlanta police sustained 42 violations of the police department’s operating procedures involving 26 officers. Some 10 officers were cited for lying about the raid in subsequent investigations, including the chief architects of the raid and undercover investigation leading up to it – Sgt. John Brock (fourth photo) and Inv. Bennie Bridges (third photo).

Its 48-page report also indicates that an internal investigation into the raid was completed before the federal lawsuit was settled, despite claims from police officials that it couldn’t be publicly released because it remained under review.

S&M stigma, drinks, violent sex and other findings of Eagle reports

Those risky leather daddies and bears. Brock, when asked why he ordered patrons to lay face down on the bar floor, offered this: “There’s a risk factor involved when you’re dealing with people you don’t know anything about. S&M, that – that has a stigma of some sort of violence.” Oh, and this: “In the past I have as a patrol officer handled calls where there are gay couples living in residence where one is mad at the other, and they slash clothes, furniture, anything they can do. They’re very violent.”

Bootylicious sex. Officer Jeremy Edwards offered this insight: “Seeing another man have sex with another man in the ass, I would classify that as very violent.”

The thin blue wall. Even in a controversial raid, police officers support one another. Among the nearly 60 patrons inside the Eagle during the raid was an off-duty police officer from Tennessee. When Atlanta police confirmed his identity, he was released while others were forced to lay face down on the bar’s floor.

Injuries during the raid. Mark Danak suffered cuts and was bloodied when he was forced to lay on the floor that included glass from a beer bottle broken during the raid. A second person also was forced to lay in broken glass, but did not report any injuries. Doorman Earnest Buehl suffered an apparent anxiety attack during the raid and was treated at the scene by paramedics. Once booked into the city jail, he was taken to the hospital and remained there for three days.

The case of the missing cash box. Buehl said he stocked the cash box he used as doorman with at least $400 on the night of the raid. He tried to keep track of it when handcuffed and arrested, but officers ignored his pleas. The box, and its contents after an evening of $5 cover charges, has not been recovered since the raid.

My best cop friend is gay. Officers who took part in the raid all denied making the anti-gay slurs that patrons and employees detailed in 14 complaints to the police department’s internal affairs unit and a dozen complaints to the Atlanta Citizen Review Board. Their defense? Officer Stephanie Upton, a lesbian who no longer works for Atlanta police but took part in the raid.

“Officers indicated that they would not use gay slurs or derogatory language in any professional setting, but especially one where Upton was present. Red Dog officers believed that Upton would have alerted supervisors if such language had been used. Similarly, officers believe the use of racial slurs was unlikely because of the large percentage of African American officers on both Red Dog and Vice present at the Eagle,” according to the Greenberg Traurig report.

Book ‘em. The Eagle 8 arrested during the raid were held in the city jail for nearly 16 hours. Police issued them tickets for city ordinance violations and did not include a bond amount because the “offenses cited do not commonly result in arrest.”

Lawyer talk. Officers consulted with city attorneys during their undercover operation and ahead of the raid, yet they weren’t warned to obtain a search warrant for the bar and still breached Fourth Amendment prohibitions on search and seizures, search warrants and probable cause.

Drinks for everyone. Media reports have detailed the use of city funds by police investigators to buy drinks in the investigation leading up to the raid and in the hours before officers stormed the bar. Greenberg Traurig says at least $170 was spent on drinks, cover charges and tips – including $110 on the night of the raid – but no shots were consumed. Bridges says he bought drinks for two patrons, along with a cap in Rawhide Leather, the store in the Eagle building. (Bridges was later arrested for DUI in a city-owned car.)

What about Red Dog? Turner disbanded the Red Dog Unit earlier this year amid criticism over its role in the Eagle raid and accusations that officers in the paramilitary unit fondled drivers during traffic stops. But the unit, which provided support during the Eagle raid, didn’t plan the action. That was done by the Vice Unit, which wasn’t disbanded despite the lack of a search warrant, extensive violations of department policies, and not telling Red Dog officers they were raiding the bar without a warrant.

Hurry up and wait. Officers secured the Eagle in two minutes when they raided it. But patrons were forced to lay face down on the floor for 45 minutes before they were released.

A little God before the gays. The scores of police officers that raided the bar held a pre-raid briefing some three blocks away – in the parking lot of Grace United Methodist Church.

Making a list and checking it twice. Two charts (below) now detail the operating procedures and Fourth Amendment protections that each police supervisor and officer broke during the raid. It’s a quick and handy reference guide and points out that despite the pleas of some officers – including former Red Dog Officer Brian Walters (bottom photo) – that they did nothing wrong during the raid, they really did. So much for Walters and the easy smile and even easier denials he issued during a brief interview during a community meeting with police in April.

Anniversary Of Deadliest Gay Massacre In U.S. History

I remember reading about this a few years later, and am so glad that this article is circulating again. It's important that we keep such significant events in our hearts and souls. We have much to be proud of. We have much to overcome.

Anniversary Of Deadliest Gay Massacre In U.S. History

Written by Brandon Rolph | Friday, 24 June 2011

Tags: upstairs lounge, gay massacre, new orleans, anniversary

The last Sunday of June holds more gay history in the U.S. than possibly any other day. On the fourth anniversary of Stonewall Riots 32 gay people burned to death by an act of arson at UpStairs Lounge in New Orleans. Important but graphic details and images after the jump. This Sunday will be the anniversary of the UpStairs Lounge fire which massacred 32 gay people. The Lounge had just hosted its regular services for the gay-friendly Metropolitan Community Church. In the evening about 60 patrons enjoyed David Gary’s piano playing and discussed the bar’s upcoming MCC fundraiser to help the Crippled Children’s Hospital, Queerty writes: "At 7:56PM the bartender Buddy Rasmussen heard the downstairs buzzer and asked Luther Boggs to go check the door. Normally cabbies would ring the buzzer to tell people that they had arrived, but when Boggs went to answer the door, he found no cab driver. Instead he found the flames of a molotov cocktail engulfing the wooden staircase and climbing towards the bar. Rasmussen led about twenty or thirty people out through an unmarked exit behind the bar where they emerged onto the roof and hopped from roof to roof until they found a way down. But the thirty others remaining in the lounge ran confusedly to the barred windows where they tried to escape. One man managed to squeeze through the fourteen-inch gap between the bars and the sill—he jumped onto the street, his entire body in flames, and died there. The Reverend Bill Larson clung to the bars and slowly melted into the window frame where his charred body stayed visible for hours afterwards. MCC assistant pastor George 'Mitch' Mitchell escaped but when he realized that his boyfriend Louis Broussard was still in the bar, he went back to save him—workers would later find their charred bodies holding each other among the charred wreckage. The fire only lasted 16-minutes. It killed 29 people and three more who later died from their burns, including Boggs the man who had answered the door. New Orleans had never seen a larger death toll by fire up to that time nor had the United States seen such a large mass murder of gays and lesbians." I had never heard this story until today. HuffPost remembered the largely forgotten tragedy in 2008 during Pride season: "It was almost assuredly the largest mass murder of gays and lesbians to ever occur in the United States. Yet the city tried mightily to ignore it. Public reaction was grossly out of proportion to what would have happened if the victims were straight. The fire exposed an ugly streak of homophobia and bigotry. It was the first time New Orleans had to openly confront the existence of its own gay community, and the results were not pretty. Initial news coverage omitted mention that the fire had anything to do with gays, despite the fact that a gay church in a gay bar had been torched. What stories did appear used dehumanizing language to paint the scene, with stories in the States-Item, New Orleans' afternoon paper, describing 'bodies stacked up like pancakes,' and that 'in one corner, workers stood knee deep in bodies...the heat had been so intense, many were cooked together.' Other reports spoke of 'mass charred flesh' and victims who were 'literally cooked.'" Furthermore, media was extremely unsympathetic and even mocked the victims, HuffPost recounts: "The press ran quotes from one cab driver who said, 'I hope the fire burned their dress off,' and a local woman who claimed 'the Lord had something to do with this.' The fire disappeared from headlines after the second day. A joke made the rounds and was repeated by talk radio hosts asking, 'What will they bury the ashes of queers in? Fruit jars.' Official statements by police were similarly offensive. Major Henry Morris, chief detective of the New Orleans Police Department, dismissed the importance of the investigation in an interview with the States-Item. Asked about identifying the victims, he said, 'We don't even know these papers belonged to the people we found them on. Some thieves hung out there, and you know this was a queer bar.' In the days that followed, other churches refused to allow survivors to hold a memorial service for the victims on their premises. Catholics, Lutherans, and Baptists all said no. Even more stunning, some families refused to claim the bodies of their dead sons, too ashamed to admit they might be gay. The city would not release the remains of four unidentified persons for burial by the surviving MCC congregation members. They were dumped in mass graves at Potter's Field, New Orleans' pauper cemetery. No one was ever charged with the crime, and it remains unsolved." This is a tragic reminder that fighting for our rights is the same as fighting for our lives, and dignity thereafter.

For a wonderful pup, bootbrush

I read your entries from your wonderful Amsterdam trip.  And I know we share a love of Joni.  So a video of Joni on the banks of the Amstel?  Yeah.  I thought of you.

Is Monogamy Obsolete? New Books Challenge Our Ideas of Fidelity

Yeah, it's all geared toward Weinergate and heteros, but it's a good article encouraging all of us to reexamine our perceptions of monogamy and 19th century parameters of relationships.

Is Monogamy Obsolete? New Books Challenge Our Ideas of Fidelity

Pup Play

Hubby and I recently had a chance to host two pups for a little frolicking and some bondage.  You'd think it would be two times the fun, but actually the multiplication table goes off the charts by just adding one pup to the mix.  There were all kinds of great moments, from frisky, well-behaved pups, to horny, begging boys.  I was amazed at how quickly the time went.  And so pleased to have been a part of hubby's evil designs.  Hubby's heart isn't really into topping, but I could see how pleased he was at having been the one to coordinate the whole event.  Besides!  he got his nips chewed on by two pups!

For My Buddy

For Mike, who is currently helping the Las Vegas economy.



I hope you win a bundle!

ROFL

Happy Memorial Day Weekend, All!

Published!

Kudos to loki for writing this article and submitting it to Leatherati, a terrific on-line resource for the BDSM and leather communities.  I'm just a humble contributor to his thoughtful sharing of a personal journey.

I'm really proud of him for sharing his insights and giving something back to the community.

The article website is: 

http://www.leatherati.com/leatherati_issues/2011/05/bringing-home-a-new-puppy.html#

I'm Booorrrrrrred

So I went to http://www.amctv.com/madmenyourself/ and made these.  LOL.  For my new identity on Christwire.  Very funny satire site that enjoys talking about homogays and their threat to society.

Very Gratifying

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What a Gift

I am so amazed at times.  I celebrated my 3 week anniversary since surgery on Wednesday.  There's been lots of progress and I felt like it was time to at least venture back into the dungeon for a short bit.  No heavy lifting, no bending, no twisting, but I've been dying to try out the new humane restraints I inherited.  So pup had a change of schedule today that allowed him to sneak away from work a bit early and we got to spend a couple of hours in the dungeon.  Yay.

Pup has put himself in an "honor," "sympathetic" chastity mode because a good friend and fellow pup asked him to share his own chastity journey.  Today was day 11 of that journey, but he'll have to start over!  Actually, it might be more appropriate to say that like many others who endure chastity, he's fulfilled his duties by not whacking off, and only cumming when I allow it.  That's a pretty nice gift in itself!

But when pup appeared today, he took my breath away.  Now, if you've read this whole blog you know I sort of have this thing about men in suits and ties.  Personally I think it goes right along with all the other uniform and gear fetishes so many of us have.  There's a power image seeing a man in suit and tie, but there's also so many other feelings that go along with it.  For me?  Feeling starched shirts, stiff collars, silk ties, and some really wonderful silk boxers that I'd given him and asked him to wear, WOOF, and as a bonus he was wearing the black suspenders I'd given him, MORE WOOF.  Well, the total picture was nirvana for me.

On went the new, shorter dog collar and padlock, off came the suit jacket and wasting no time we trotted up to the dungeon. On went a leather hood and a pretty severe posture collar, right over all the other clothing.  Using several ropes and the humane restraints I restrained pup to the floating bondage table.  Balls and dripping penis were exposed and a couple hours later a very nice load drenched his shirt.

Somewhere mid-session pup surprised me by asking to "go deeper," presumably a desire to go much deeper into the submissive headspace.  We accomplished some of that, but I know he craves going into deeper and darker territory than he's ever experienced. (I know it took him a full fifteen minutes to return to this world post orgasm...)  We're working on that!  And we hope maybe that he'll have a chance to experience some erotic hypnosis with another Top.  How cool is that?

For pup to endure wearing the suit all day, more dressy than he needed to be for his work day, meant a lot to me.  Yeah, it's a control issue (I LOVED yanking on his tie whilst jacking him off, growl!), but it was a tremendous gift to me made with great respect for my own fetishes. As I was snapping a few pics I told him it would be enough for me to whack off to for a few months.  LOL.  Totally true.

Thank you, Loki. 

Totally Hot

Just a little more music

Poll: Given Choice Between Palin and Trump, Most Voters Choose Suicide « Borowitz Report

Poll: Given Choice Between Palin and Trump, Most Voters Choose Suicide « Borowitz Report

daddy's birchboy: video - those were the days

OMG, OMG, OMG
LOL, LMFAO, LOL

The sex is so-so, but the music is the best, and the dialogue is incredible. Cannot wait to see the wall-to-wall carpeting!!!

daddy's birchboy: video - those were the days

Quiet Time

I wish I could say this post was about time in a sleepsack, hooded, gagged, and floating off to that quiet place.  But it's just a reflection of how quiet life is right now.  Surgery was a little over two weeks ago and if you'd asked me 5 days ago I would have told you that the 12 week recovery period was gonna be waaay too long.  I was beginning to feel like I could get back to work much sooner, and back to sex even sooner.  Then this pothole in the road to recovery appeared.

All of a sudden my left foot started getting a little numb, then after a couple days of that I kept looking at my foot trying to figure out how I'd burned it because that was the overwhelming feeling.  Right now it feels like I've got 3rd degree burns on the tops of all my toes and major blisters on the big toe and ball of the foot.  Grrrr.  So a call to the Doc and I find out it's not unusual, with the possibility that it could be anything from a slight inflammation of the sciatic nerve, to scar tissue developing on the nerve, to the nerves not healing correctly.  So we added another drug to the regiment which means more drowsy and dizzy time.  Ick.  It's discouraging to have a setback.  I'm walking less than I was and a lot slower than I had built up to, mostly because putting on a sock and shoe is torture (um. the bad kind of torture, not that good kind.)

At least now I know why we scheduled the full 12 weeks for recovery.  Meanwhile I'm cleaning gear, making rope floggers, chatting up a storm, and learning this thing I've never known:  patience.  Ugh.  I hate patience.

A big thanks to Sparky and TrapperSmith for the nice comments on their blogs.  I hope to have some new material at the blog before too long!  The rope is gathering dust and I HATE that!

Latex Football Shirt

I'm not usually one to repost pics here from other great sites, but I know at least a couple of guys who might not have seen this one.  It's from Metalbond's site (see my list of blogs).  I also know a certain pup who recently purchased some leather football pants on whom this shirt would look quite handsome!