A Gap in our Selves? Erotic manipulation of our purchasing decisions.

Do you worship at the The First Church of Christ, Mallwalker?

This video by Jessedocs explores the intersection of art, religion and marketing via the classic manikin. While I abhor stereotypes, it's difficult to say which are more stereotypical, the artificially perfect female manikins created by this company, the males creating them, or the marketing of them.

Personally, I can't say that the artificial perfection of display manikins has ever done much for me, artistically or erotically. But then, they don't exist to work on me - these forms are not aimed at men; they are made by men in order to construct in women the ideal of a perfect form.

I must be honest, at first, I thought I was watching a documentary about the people behind the "real doll" poseable sex toy.

By the way guys, if you are going to do portraits of your dolls - hire a hairstylist!!!

I was surprised and more than a bit creeped out to find that the people at realdoll seem far less creepy - and their products a little more realistic - at least, unless they are just utterly absurd.

My wife watched a full documentary about the men who buy real-dolls, sort of creeped out by the idea, but you know how it is; you keep waiting for the trainwreck. Well, there were indeed some creepy scenes - but more simply moved her to tears. Here's some YouTube examples - take your chances, if you will.

They actually have several fairly realistic bodies to go with faces that could easily be Faux News Spokesmuffins. In other words, these are not perfectly idealized faces. Yep, even men that want to have sex with a manikin would like a little more individuality than the people who make store manikins think is appropriate.

But then, when it comes to self-image, we have no sense of humor about our own appearance and far less tolerance for individual variation than the people looking at us. I've always found that the most attractive women who are accepting of their bodies whatever shapes they may be blessed with, and however divergent their faces are from the current whims of fashion

So, if you want to go for an idealized stereotype ... consider something like this.

It's no harder to have your head inflated and your skin plasticised than it is to become a perfectly symmetrical 35, 24, 36.

Come to think of it, Miss July reminds me of Dolly Parton. But then, they are both cartoon-inspired.

(The thing I most love about Dolly Parton is that she'd laugh and agree with the statement. Personally, though, I prefer her interpretation. On the other hand, she's a lot harder to book. )

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The Sex Project: Blowjobs

Truer words were never spoken....

Really and for true.

The Sex Project: Blowjobs: "Sucking a man's penis is one of the pure pleasures in life. It's sad to think that many women don't appreciate just how much fun it can be. The reason for this is they don't know how to do it correctly and so it doesn't end up being much fun because if you mess up, you don't get your reward. The penis doesn't get hard, the man doesn't have a good time and the woman feels like a failure."

Many more true words at the source. Permalink to full story.

Moaning Lisa and Kyle

Moaning Lisa and Kyle
Originally uploaded by seanbonner

By way of illustrating the previous post, here's Kyle with Moaning Lisa and her piezoelectric pussy. Permalink to full story.

Women are like a Videogame, artist says.

Moaning Lisa: A Blow-Up Doll, Upgraded

She looked at me with her motion detectors as I rubbed the piezoelectric sensor between her thighs. Then I spun the potentiometers that jutted out from her chest like nipples. But it wasn't until I stroked the piezosensor on the back of her neck that she began to moan, first quietly and then loudly, like a thousand women reaching orgasm together.

The article, written by Annalee Newitz of alternet AlterNet describes an installation at Arse Elektronika, "a conference in San Francisco last week devoted to pornography and technological innovation." [Her creator, Matt Ganucheau] "..designed Moaning Lisa specifically for Arse Elektronika, with help from conference organizer Kyle Machulis, to demonstrate the videogame-like properties of the human body. Ganucheau used neural network processing in her programming, and the result is that her responses are randomized. Each time you try to give Moaning Lisa an orgasm, your sensor stroking has to follow a slightly different pattern."

I don't quite know what to think of it, or his reasoning behind not creating a male version. Men, apparently, are just too easy. Just grab the joystick, jam down the button and head straight for that Big O in the sky.

Me, I think it's a little more complicated than that, and of all the things this reminds me of, it reminds me most of a hardwired simulator I saw in the seventies - the "limits to growth" simulator, where no matter what you did, eventially the earth perishes from overpopulation.

It's a novel idea, but I think perhaps the simulator is simulating what the artist has in mind more than the actual behavior of an extremely complex system.

Technorati : Matt Ganucheau, Moaning Lisa, art, artwork, sexual behavior, sexuality
Del.icio.us : Matt Ganucheau, Moaning Lisa, art, artwork, sexual behavior, sexuality

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Retro Punk Pinkup By Ariel McMillion framed artwork at ImageKind.com

One reason for this blog is that it gives me the place to put wonderful, sexy things when I run across them. Ariel McMillion is a fellow ImageKind Gallery owner, and has quite a selection of his pinup art for your enjoyment. Hey, if you own a bar and need some great art to spice it up - check out his gallery.

Retro Punk Pinkup By Ariel McMillion :

Originally featured as full-page pinup art in Slitz magazine, Stockholm, Sweden, this alluring piece features a rose-haired, tattooed, lollipop-sucking nude beauty at the wheel of a classic American gas-guzzler, framed in celluloid the color of money. Can little Johnny say "decadence"?

Now, I was intending to brag about my own art, but when I got there, there were kudos in my inbox from Ariel, and I had to go look. Well, I liked what I saw well enough to give him top billing, but now it's my turn. I've just uploaded a couple of new images, and I'd like to show you this one in particular.


This is Eve. And at 36x27" it's just the thing to turn your rec room into a proper bar. It's one of my earlier photomanipulations, and I was surprised and delighted to find it again. By the way, this is probably the perfect "apartment-warming" gift for the young bachelor.

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Right, Girl, suck all the fun out of it...

Cathryn Michon, writing in iVillage, speaks of "girl crushes" and how they lead, ideally, to mellow friendship and not hot girl on girl action.

She's So Fine: The Anatomy of a Girl Crush Annotated

A recent New York Times article postulates that one thing men and women have in common is that we both get crushes on women. This interests me greatly because I just went through a bad "girl breakup" that was the result of a "girl crush."

If you ever try to discuss the topic of girl crushes with a man, his eyes instantly glaze over and you automatically know it's because he is hearing the "do-wacka-wacka" of cheesy porn music in his head. Sometimes you have to clap your hands together really loudly right in front of his face just to pull him out of his catatonic state.

No, it's not that kind of "girl-on-girl action." A girl crush is where you meet a woman whose sense of style or brilliant achievements or personal charisma makes you kind of adore and worship her.

She then goes on to explain very clearly why developing a relationship that is based on an unexamined mutual attraction can lead to bad relationships, based on unspoken commonalities that can - and perhaps should - change.

Amen, sister, amen.

Our subconscious minds are rather good at grabbing our groins as a means to getting us to make changes we should make or proceed in directions we should go. But, alas, our subconscious is no smarter on it's own than it is in concert with our conscious minds, and it certainly isn't verbal. It pays to learn to take those lubricious urges very seriously - and think about what the old hind-brain might be trying to say; if not before, certainly afterward.

And I would like to point out that while hot lesbian sex might not have changed anything in the long or short run you would at least have had *hot* *lesbian* *sex*. I'm not so much advocating it as I am gently poking fun at the author's need to immediately rule out anyone thinking she had had *hot* *lesbian* *sex* with one of her crushes. Gee, all of the unpleasant hormonal whipsawing and no payoff? Does sex somehow devalue the basis for the crush? It seems like a poor reason to suffer a needless bout of Green Disease.

To the extent that this apparent dynamic reflects the absurd tragicomedy of the male "Madonna/Whore" double bind, it's, well, I suppose I expect more of women as intuitive social beings. The whole "I wouldn't be caught dead in a serious relationship with anyone slutty enough to want to have sex with me" is, from any perspective or sexual orientation, evidence of a serious issue of self worth - and projection.

But on the other paw, I've often observed that Lesbianism is not as significantly a gender preference as it is a culture with a distinct approach to and understanding of sexuality. Yes, the overwhelming gender preference of Lesbians tends to obscure that, but once you have known a few, you start to realize that an interest in bumping fuzzies is truly the least significant difference. Further, there are many women who have a sexual preference for women who work within a much more classically male/male or male/female dynamic. It's these exceptions that illuminated the rule for me.

I encourage everyone - of all sexual orientations and preferences, to try it out at least as a thought-experiment. Males do have to make some adaptations. For instance, falling asleep immediately is just rude and wrong. If it's unavoidable, request that your partner awaken you in fifteen minutes so you can snuggle and process.

Yes, this is referring to the classic joke about lesbian sex - an hour of sex followed by three hours discussing the meaning and implications. The joke implies that to be a silly female thing, but it can save you from making either more or less of what happened than you should. That doesn't seem inconsequential to me.

Sex is the expression of the sexuality, urges, needs , comfort and security drives of the persons within a relationship. How could that NOT be worth talking about, if you value that relationship beyond the moment?

I think one of the most important things I have learned from the lesbians I've known over the years is that there is no hard "line" between affection, snuggling, fooling around, physical play and sex.

For most that I've known, it's part of a whole while for most men I've known, gay and straight, it's distinctly separable and most seem to prefer it that way. Personally, I can't imagine wanting that, much less settling for it. While I know that mileage does vary dramatically, I still see the vast majority of people settling for less than they want and need for the sake of a mistaken propriety, or worse yet, seeking out in private what they deny to themselves and others in public.

This has led to so much conflict, death and madness in our culture that it's time that we suck it up and decide to be honest about these things, at least with ourselves. Face it, girls. While a "pash" is not the same thing as the sort of crush a boy has on a girl, it's not entirely asexual either. There is a physical component. There are physiological effects that could and often do lead to a walk on the wild side. It's common enough that in some cultures and contexts, it's considered to be a normal teenage phase of sexual development.

So factor that in. Admit it to yourself. Then do, or do not as seems best, informed by your ethics, your morals and common sense. Remember that whether or not you admit it, our sexual urges and our personal sexualities are part of the whole package that makes another person attractive or unattractive to us, whether or not they are of a gender we will choose to have sex with. Permalink to full story.

Japi Honoo - Erotic Surrealist

And as a picture is worth a thousand words, I think few of mine are needed. Click the picture to visit the site. Oh, and this from the artist:

Prints can be purchased at DeviantArt.prints
for information on images which aren't available yet, please contact me by email.

If you are a serious collector, I'd suggest you get right on that. Permalink to full story.

Please visit our sponsor - or is it the other way around?

Domai.com: Beautiful nude models

Domai.com is a very unique site, and my love for it goes back to when I was running munchltd.com - now not mine and not linked.

At the time I was running a reviewed link site for the adult web, and Domai was one of the few listings that I had added on my own hook, as I recall. I used it to floss my brain after rejecting some particularly grotesque site.

One thing about Domai is that it is a unique site, devoted to the positive, personal and non fetishized nude female. Despite the nudity, these images are more akin to the best sports action photography or the most stunning wildlife images. They are stunning, beautiful. Compelling. Oh, right, they aren't wearing clothes.

It really is about the third thing to hit you, and on fourth thought, you realize that if they were, or shot so it was, it would be annoying and distracting. In other words, no more than you have come to expect.

Domai.com is a site I'd enthusiastically recommend to anyone, especially to people who need to see how uplifting and beautiful what the best can be, to understand that in this - and by extension, in most other cases - the difference between the sacred and the profane is a matter of perspective and choice.

This is portraiture of women as individuals, and in it's obvious exploration of nude photography as a collaboration between talented equals, it is on a par with the very best of Lesbian Aesthetic photography, an equivalent respect for the model, but from a male perspective.

There is a zen sort of feel to Domai, an aesthetic and an ethos. There are, for instance, no pop ups, no sales previews, no stealth code and a generous amount of ever-changing materials for people like me, who simply cannot justify the time to enjoy such a site, but would like a moment of pure beauty from time to time.

Speaking personally, I am extremely picky about who and I directly promote - I feel that my reputation is affected by it, and this is even more true when there's money on the table.

I feel affiliation with Domai.com reflects well on me, rather than the other way around, and if you take issue with the art here, you will certainly have issues with my own work.

The founder, Eolake Stobblehouse, is generous with his gentle wisdom, his appreciation of beauty, and his bandwidth, and if you have a love for the pure art of the nude - I cannot think of a better, more rewarding way to spend a few dollars.

tag: Erotica, nude women, nude females, art, artistic nudes, Domai.com Permalink to full story.

When you told us you were gay ...

[ Your setup here ] by webcarve
customize card at Zazzle

I can't think of a more neglected "special occasion" than a "comining out." I suppose I'm strange that way, but I think a moment of such ... ah... outright courage deserves praise. And speaking as a parent, I'd have to say such lush opportunities come only a very, very few times in one's life. One should not neglect them. So, if you customize this card and target it especially for that festive young person who thought you had no clue... make sure you order two or three. You know, in case the original is lost.

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From the mentality that gave us "don't ask, don't tell."

Teacher arrested under peeping-tom law - Yahoo! News

Ware was charged under a 2001 law meant to protect people from ultra-small cameras that can be used to peek into dressing rooms or up women's skirts. Under the law, filming a person without consent for sexual arousal is a felony.

...but merely watching teenagers wrestle and perform gymnastics in skintight Lycra fetish gear is perfectly OK - as long as you refrain from obviously masturbating.

Every time the Olympics or Pan-Am games comes around, we are treated with front-page crotch shots of apparently pre-pubescent gymnasts, who's fan bases sound as if they are not entirely unaffected by the Reuters-supplied "upskirt" images.

While it's admittedly impressive that these hormonally-depleted dwarfs can plant their tushies on their cutely pigtailed heads while doing a hand-stand, a side-view would be more impressive and less... suggestive.

But then, American Anti-pornography laws have always seemed to be less concerned with protecting women and children from sexual exploitation and more concerned with the social threat of calling attention to the plight of the exploited. So we all are supposed to pretend that there is no possibility that anyone looking at such displays of sweaty hard bodies rubbing against one another and posing to display their perfectly sculpted backsides would ever, ever cause the minds of good Church-going PTA members to stray. Proof to the contrary - as the above story shows - is entirely unwelcome!

Under current law, you can get far more time for possessing photographic evidence of a child being raped than for actually raping the child. Believe it or not. The penalty in law for raping your OWN child is often far lower than if you molest another person's child. But preserving evidence of EITHER act - that's FAR worse. You might make use of it in some socially-unapproved way, like, say, busting a child rapist.

It makes me question the legislative intent, and this new law causes me to wonder even more, along with the real (as opposed to the touted) morality of our nation.

I've been through the wars on this issue, from nearly every angle. I spent several years working in the capacity of online councilor with people who had grown up being molested and raped every day, people who finally broke down under the pressure of not being able to talk about it, people who faced crushing scorn and disbelief from entire organizations dedicated to spreading the idea that any allegation of incest was either the lie of a spiteful child or a therapeutically-suggested "false memory."

And the whole time there was a flood of evidence over in alt.pictures.binaries.erotica.children.

But it's illegal for a survivor of such an event to have a photo proving that it occurred, much less computer records of the sort of search needed to find one, that's right out. "It's MY picture" is not an exception under the law, making this the one sort of crime where a search for evidence of a crime is in itself a crime. I find it increasingly difficult to believe this is an unintentional situation, especially in light of Right-Wing Christianist movements to legitimize and sanctify their patriarchal "ownership society," in which women and children can legally be kept isolated from any reality checks. This is why I'm deeply suspicious of the motives behind most homeschooling movements and most voucher programs. I've seen the alternatives they recommend as being more godly or "accurate." And I thought a public education was an exercises in badly presented social propaganda.

Prudery kills. Toxic secrecy kills. If you disbelieve me, check the suicide statistics for abuse survivors. Or spend an hour a week manning a suicide hot line.

It's a hell of a price to pay for the benefit of those folks who would prefer to believe that we ever lived in Mayberry.

tag: covert pornography, sexual ethics, Morality, Ethics, Republican Values, pornography laws, prudery, patriarchy Permalink to full story.

On the matter of boobs, and what sort deserves more consideration.

I found this lingering on the spike. Very old news, and yet, likely to erupt again at any moment, because this is an issue that cannot, will not and should not go away.

Breast isn't best: readers tell US parenting magazine - Yahoo! News:

"The picture in Babytalk was aimed at illustrating the controversy surrounding breastfeeding in the United States, where a national survey by the American Dietetic Association found that 57 percent of those polled are opposed to women breastfeeding in public and 72 percent think it is inappropriate to show a woman breastfeeding on television programs.

Babytalk executive editor Lisa Moran said though most of those who responded to the poll about the cover photo gave the magazine a thumbs up, she was surprised that some 25 percent expressed outrage.

'There is a real puritanical streak in America,' Moran told AFP. 'You see celebrities practically baring their breasts all the time and no one seems to mind in this sort of sexual context.

'But in this very natural context of feeding your child, a lot of Americans are very uncomfortable with it.'"

It seems to me that this is such an wholesome and innocent image that taking offense at it amounts to a genuine perversion; a degree of fetishism and outright filthy-mindedness that it needs far more, widespread and consistent mockery.

The idea that a breast is always sexual and never just there is an astonishingly juvenile view. Sometimes breasts are sexy. Sometimes they are nurturing. And sometimes, I've been told, they get in the way. That's a more grown-up way of looking at boobs. Context matters. And the fact that a woman's breast is partially exposed when a baby is attached should not bother you. Why? Because babies are good things, and don't deserve having their feeding disrupted by their prudery, or stuffed under a hot blanket so that you are "spared" the vision of a nipple being used as nature intended.

When a breast is displayed partially covered by a scrap of fabric that manages to be just barely adequate in a legal sense, there is little outcry, even in the same context where people would be upset at this. Lo, the baby covers more than many bikini tops.

I've been long convinced that cultural taboos involving the human body create the very pervesions they are supposedly intended to prevent. While they may serve to spare the delecate sensiblities of a few prudes here and there, I question the legitamacy of that demand, or why rigid, shame based conentions that have the effect of warping our natural sexual behavior into paths that are often compulsive and distructive. It seems to me that a modicum of courtesy would be a far better way of going about not scaring the horse-faced. Permalink to full story.