A Lovely and Loving Weekend

Friday Kitten and I drove down to Poet’s place in SC.  On the drive we listened to an episode of On Being that featured Nadia Bolz-Weber, a Lutheran pastor who is 6’1”, has tattoos and pricings and used to be a stand-up comic.  She is really fun, down-to-earth yet wise, self-deprecating, and really exemplifies Christianity at its best: charity, tolerance, and forgiveness.  Kitten really liked her – as did I.  My thing is, I’m less interested in a person’s particular religion as I am in the spiritual, ethical, and wisdom qualities of that person, be they Christian or Muslim or Buddhist or Pagan or atheist.  But it was particularly nice this time of year to hear from somebody who really does exemplify the best of Christian values (not the Religious Right’s talking points, ignorance, xenophobia, and prejudices – or the crass commercialism of overly-capitalized, consumer culture).

Friday evening, we went out to a beer tasting and then had a great home-cooked meal w/ Poet’s parents, and settled-in to watch some Monty Python before I fell asleep on the couch pretty early.

Saturday was Twisted Toyland in Atlanta w/ the pack.  Our Alpha was back in town.  Which I guess I should explain, since I’m not sure it I’ve mentioned it on here – but the quick synopsis is: Recently, Sir Loki divorced, took a new job in DC, and moved up there w/ his new boyfriend.  He’s still the Alpha, we still belong to him, but the pack is now stretched out from Atlanta through North Carolina to DC… so getting us all together is likely going to prove more difficult in 2015.  We’re still in the process of figuring out how best to make this work…

After getting to spend time w/ pack-mates and family, the next best part of Twisted Toyland was that Ma’am let me put on my puppy gear.  Yay!!!  It felt so wonderful to be out in public, on-leash and in my suit, hood, and indefinitely-borrowed harness.  That really does wonders for my spirit, and I left Twisted feeling like a million bucks.  (Of course, there were also four fairly strong run-and-cokes involved.)  I’ll post some pictures as soon as I get them.

Saturday night we got to relax w/ the pack at Gwynn and Bishop’s Safe Haven.  There were some gifts exchanged.  Two were particularly noteworthy:  Bishop got to present Gwynn with her official pack vest.  Also, the pack commissioned from yours truly an anthropomorphic pack portrait which we gave to our Sir as a Christmas/moving-away/housewarming present.  Pictured left-to-right: Gwynn, Sir Loki, Bishop, Hunter, Shdwkitten, and Emrys.

Sunday was the winter solstice… and wedding day for pack-mates Gwynn and Bishop!  Their hand-fasting was a really lovely eclectic Celtic/Pagan/Leather-pup mix that was just tonally perfect.  I think most of us got a little teary eyed.  Congrats and best wishes again to Gwynn and Bishop.  We love you two.  And their “something borrowed” was our Treehouse’s Tree of Life banner which was also the backdrop in our wedding and they got to use it as their alter-cloth.  That made me smile even more.

So after spiritual wisdom/humor and beer Friday, dawning pup-gear and giving gifts Saturday, and then helping two of our favorite puppies get hitched Sunday you would think my weekend couldn’t get any better and I couldn’t get any higher… but I had one more cool event in store.  My Owner’s ex-boyfriend Pirate (that’s his nickname, Pirate) was back in town, and we got to meet-up for dinner at our favorite sushi place on our drive back home.  Well, Pirate wrote a children’s book and I did the illustrations for the second edition – which is now out, and he gave me a copy Sunday.  I am so pleased with how the illustrations came out.  Love it!  So that was the cherry on top of my very full, very uplifting, very fun weekend.

Everybody have a very merry Christma-Hanu-Kwanza-Yule! 

Milking Machines, Pupies 69'n, Beer, Leather Vest, and 2 Good Questions

Last weekend was CAPEX, but I’m going to start two weekends back w/ Atlanta Dominion.  That Friday, Kitten, Cuddles and I drove down to Poet’s in SC where my Owner cooked a delicious steak dinner and we watched Restoration – this pretty good period drama w/ an outstanding cast: Robert Downey Jr, David Thewlis, Sam Neill, Ian McDermott, Meg Ryan, High Grant, Ian Mekellen...

The pug and I spent Saturday w/ Sir and my pack.  We called it a pretty early bedtime, right after dinner – but not before we put Cuddles on the Venus Milking Machine, a $1000, high-end, hand-free masturbation toy that can be used for edging or milking scenes.

Sunday, we brought the Venus w/ us to Dominion, Atlanta’s all-male dungeon party.  Naturally, a lot of guys wanted to try it out.  Because of that, Sir didn’t get an opportunity to beat the fuck out of me, but I did have fun puping-out in the mosh w/ Cuddles, Rex, Jimmy, and Tetsuo.  Hunter joined us and he and I enjoyed doing a 69 on the puppy mats.  *wags*  (Can't do that at CAPEX!)

It’s going to be strange: I don’t know how often Sir will make it back to Atlanta for Dominion from now on.  He took a job in DC and moved up there last weekend.  We’re going to miss him a lot.  It might end up being a little easier on me than the Atlanta puppies.  From me, he’s just moving 6.5 hours away instead of 4.5 hours, so he’s still a weekend trip… and the Treehouse is now the halfway point for gathering the pack, so hopefully we’ll have some good pup gatherings at the Treehouse/Charlotte in 2015.  Since it was a natural stop-over, he (traveling w/ the pack) stayed in Charlotte last Saturday and joined us (Poet, Shdwkitten, me, and Cuddles) at CAPEX.

Before I get to that, let me back-up.  Friday night, the four of us went to “Beers and Gears” as the Charlotte Discovery Place.  They do an after-5 adult only event where all the local breweries come out to share samples, and this one had a steampunk theme.  So the Kitten, Poet and I got on some of out steampunk-ish garb and enjoyed an evening tasting beers and playing w/ the science toys.

Saturday, we joined-up w/ my packmates at CAPEX.  The presentation was good – some cool rope stuff for people who aren’t big on rope.  During the intermission, we sprung a little surprise on my Owner: her official pack vest!  She’s been a part of Loki’s family as long as I have, so we decided that we needed to make her an official second-Handler in the pack.  Since, Ma’am identifies as a white tiger, we had the most amazing vest made for her w/ a leather white tiger carved and sewn into the back below our pup-pride flag.  Ma’am almost cried.  :)

Sir turned-in early after dinner, but I stayed at the party for a bit and did some puppy play w/ the omegas.  The bad news is that, during the mosh, I re-bruised my fucking tailbone.  *whimper*  This happened once before, years ago, and it continued to hurt for over a year.  I’m really, really, hoping it doesn’t take that long to heal this time – but for the time being, it hurts really bad any time I put any weight on my tailbone.  :(

At CAPEX, I got asked two excellent puppy play questions.  One was the basic: “I’m curious about this; where can I go to learn more?”  My usual answer to that is to point people towards the NoSafeWord podcast.  It’s a great show, and about a third of their episodes are related to puppy play.  The most recent one is about “the other end of the leash”: Handlers and Handler headspace… and the polyamours aspect of a pack of puppies (I wouldn’t know anything about that).  Love that show.  NoSafeWord.com

I was also asked an excellent question about: is it cool to approach a group of pups who are playing and (w/o being invited) interact w/ them, pet them, play fetch, etc. or does that violate their scene space?  Great question!  My answer was this:  If there is a Handler present, ask him or her if it’s okay to interact w/ the puppies – just like you would w/ real dogs: “Can I pet your dog?”  If there isn’t a Handler present, then I think, generally speaking, most pups like to interact w/ people and like people interacting w/ them as puppies, so I think most pups won’t mind if an outsider comes up and, w/ good intent, starts playing w/ them and petting them.  For the most part, we enjoy that… a lot!  And if the pups aren’t okay w/ that person entering their scene, then they will probably signal it by just ignoring them or turning away… hopefully no growling.  But, if you see some puppies at an event, feel free to pet them and interact respectfully – the whole idea is that we want to be treated like pets!  (Key word: respectfully.  If you act like an ass and treat them badly, you may get bitten.)

 A good couple of weekends... with ups (congratulations, Ma'am) and downs (we miss our Alpha already).  I'll take the bad w/ the good.  Woof! Woof!

CAPEX Halloween Party 2014

We all had such a great time last weekend.  Friday, Poet, Sir Loki, Hunter, and Cuddles joined me and Ma'am at the Treehouse for some drinks, good eats, hot tub time, great company... and sexy fun time.

Saturday morning we drove down to Charlotte to help set-up and decorate for the big CAPEX floor party, and on the drive down, we got to introduce Hunter to one of my favorite bands: They Might Be Giants - music that always makes me happy.  Unfortunately, when we got to Charlotte, we first had lunch at Chilli's.  I got sick later from that burger... then Hunter got sick... then Cuddles got sick Sunday morning.  Yuck!  I don't recommend eating at Chilli's - at least not the one in Charlotte on Tyvola.

Set-up went pretty easy, and I skipped the demo to stay and help w/ the decorations.  (Which worked-out for the best anyway, b/c at one point I had to go lie down b/c I was starting to feel yucky.)  Kudos always to maggie for doing such a great job decorating.  We had dinner at a Japanese stir-fry, and my stomach settled down.  Then we returned to the party hotel to change into costume.  The pug and I were doing Nightwing/Robin.  (And I do mean Nightwing-slash-Robin.)

Sir and Hunter as Deadpool and Weasel:

It was some pretty unusual slash fiction we were making.  Marvel and DC... and then throw in some Harry Potter. My lovely (and talented) Owner and her boyfriend dressed as deatheaters Belatrix LeStrange and Lucious Malfoy.  I think these two looked amazing.  Poet (a pro costumer and tailor) made that robe he's wearing.  The Kitten and I hand-painted the deatheater masks and made the wands (stripped, shellacked, and added leather cord handles).

Group photo (sans Weasel):

There were some really good costumes at the party.  But only one can win the coveted Stick and Maggie "special" award.  I honestly thought Kitten and Poet were going to win it... but I was surprised and equally happy when Stick presented it to the puppy pack.  *wags*  We are now the collective owners of the coveted Red Skull trophy.  (Yep... Stick gave me head.  Or should I say, he gave me his bone?)

We had a fun time at the party - even though the scene I had fantasized didn't come to pass.  Having selected our costumes, I envisioned a scene in which Sir tied Nightwing and Robin together in a compromising position and tortured them w/ electro toys.  And/or since CAPEX has a suspension rig, Sir made plans to suspend us from it.  However, Sir was pretty tired (and most of the elcetro toys were in storage in Atlanta) and I was just bouncing back from a mild food poisoning, so we decided w/o much debate that it should be a low-key night.  Nothing wrong w/ that.  Besides, having a rain check gives me an excuse to put Cuddles and myself into these costumes for another event!  Maybe next Dominion...?  But in the meantime, Sir did, still, put me and the Boy Wonder in rope harnesses.

There was also plenty of sexy shenanigans among the five of us (plus an other or two) during the party in our room... and during the after-party... and after the after party back in our room... and then again Sunday morning...  I discovered that one distinct advantage of having two omegas is that I can get-off twice in the same weekend - 'cause, you know, I have to make sure nobody feels left out.  I think the Alpha was pretty satisfied as well... and I know my Owner had a plenty of fun, naughty hijinks involving violet wands and vibrating devices w/ remote controls.  I guess even when we have a "low-key" CAPEX Halloween weekend it's all still relative.

A special shout-out for our wonderful, little Dalmatian.  Hunter was really on top of things this weekend and was an invaluable help to me and Sir as well as Ma'am and Poet.  Extra good boy!

Atlanta Pride 2014 Photos

The previous post was a little narrative of my Atlanta Pride weekend.  Here I'll share some photos w/ you.

Here I am w/ my two omega pups getting suited-up before the parade starts. 

The "children" and I just chilling on a wall waiting to go.  I look like I'm grabbing a quick nap on Hunter's shoulder.

Getting lined up in front of Sir for the group photo of the Southeast leather contingent...

Beginning to march: an Alpha with three pups on-leash.

Finally a shot with all five of us: Myself, Cuddles, Hunter, Bishop, and our very sexy Alpha-dog Sir Loki.

Along the parade rout...

That's most of what I have.  I'll repeat my request that if anybody has or finds some photos of our pack, please share with me.  Wruff! Wruff!

It Didn’t Rain on our Parade (Atlanta Pride 2014)

Our pack had a great time last weekend at Atlanta Pride.  Friday, Cuddles, my Owner, and I drove down to Poet’s place to have dinner with his family.  We missed the fun at the Atlanta Eagle Friday night (Sir was tending bar), but we didn’t mind very much because the home-cooked meal was superlative.

Saturday morning began with me and my omega having some sexy-fun-puppy time – starting the day off right.  Unfortunately, my Owner and Poet had some costuming work to get done before next month’s steampunk convention, so they weren’t able to make it to Pride.  (And friends Max and Jake couldn't make it down this year b/c they just bought a house.)  So Cuddles and I drove alone the rest of the way into Atlanta and met-up with our Alpha.  Sir Loki took us to the Boy Next Door clothing store so we could find Cuddles some sexy jeans – which we did.  While there, we also got to watch a gay porn star try on underwear.  Saturday afternoon, the pack gathered at Sir’s place for burgers and booze and bad movies.  It was a fun, laid-back evening.

Sunday was parade day.  It was raining Sunday morning… but cleared-up by noon and stayed nice.  Yay!  Bishop and Hunter met me, Cuddles, and Sir at his place and we drove over to the nearest Marta to catch the train – a much better plan than driving into downtown and trying to park like we did last year, which almost caused Shdwkitten to kill me and Bishop out of frustration.  Still, it was not without its difficulty since it took Sir’s four puppies like ten minutes to buy Marta passes from the machine.  He now better understood Kitten's frustration.

We took the train to the staging area and got suited-up.  I was super-super happy to be wearing my Lycra bodysuit and rubber pup hood out in public, and I borrowed a really great rubber harness from Sir.  Cuddles was shirtless and rocking his new, sexy jeans and leather pup hood.  Hunter had on his Dalmatian zantai under his leather pants and pack vest, and Bishop was wearing his vest, tail, and booty shorts.  Sir looked amazing in his leather pants and harness… leading three puppies behind him on-leash.  He was one seriously hot, muscly alpha dog.  Woof!  I was impressed that he was able to hold all three leashes for me, Cuddles, and Hunter (while Bishop remained free to fetch water for us). 

The parade was great fun.  We passed the Shakespeare Tavern (a place I've loved for many years) and the beautiful Fox Theater.  We moved along at a more steady pace this year, so there was a lot less stopping than last year, but every time we did stop I dropped to my knees which inspired a lot of photo ops.  Last year I was the only pup on all fours, but this year my three pack-mates joined me.  *wags*

I think our pack looked great and really rocked it!  We had quite a lot of people shoot photos of us or with us – both in the parade and later in the park.  I admit I love posing for photos.  (“Puppy” is another name for “attention whore.”)  If anybody has/finds any photos of us, please send me a copy/link: pupemrys@gmail.com .  If I get any good ones, I'll share them on here.

While I have no photos, 11 Alive once again caught us on camera passing by.  The link below is part 8 of their video.  At 7 min. 45 seconds in, the Southeast Leather Contingent arrives, beginning with the Atlanta Eagle’s float.  Right about 9 minutes in you’ll see two great-looking pups dancing on the back of the Eagle’s float.  I don’t know who they were, but they looked fantastic.  Immediately after that you see us walking in front of the Onyx group.  Sir is untangling our leashes so that he can send Cuddles back to fetch my bag from the Panther’s float.  They cut away to a bear they were interviewing, and then cut back to Sir smoking a cigar leading three of his puppies (Hunter, me and Bishop) past the TV camera.  Next, you’ll see the Panthers’ Halloween-themed float.  If you watch the blue cooler at the base of the Jack-n-the-box, you can see Cuddles retrieving my bag from off the float (at about 10min. 15 sec. mark).  And then you can see our pack's boy Isaac riding shirtless on the back of Panther float (wearing a yamaka and flagging yellow).

http://www.11alive.com/videos/news/local/atlanta-pride/2014/10/12/17155623/

We had a great time this year (even through I did miss my Owner).  Happy Pride, everybody.  Looking forward to doing it again next year.

Guy Baldwin on the Old Guard (Must read!)

Guy Baldwin, the man who popularized the term "old guard" in 1991, sets the record straight. This is an extremely good, fascinating essay, and I really hope a lot of people read it.

http://www.leatherati.com/2014/09/old-gods-die-hard…

Best part, for me:

"Thus, the phrase, “The Old Guard” was first coined by third-generation guys in the late 1980s. They intended the phrase to be critical of that condescending elite. "

In other words, the label was originally a slam on stuck-up assholes in the 1980's who made shit up.

And:

"In general, much of the stuff they made up was about high-Leather formalism, formalism to the point of being “Masonic,” when as far as I could tell, from playing with men in Denver and San Francisco through the 1960s and into the 1970s, very few first and second generation guys had a style dominated by formalism."

The conclusion is so good I must quote it in full:

"At this point you may ask, “What’s the harm, really, in promulgating one or another greatly oversimplified Old Guard story?” Myth, after all, is so much more attractive, more coherent, more comforting than truth, which always bristles with contradictions and loose ends.

"But off-the-rack identities and hand-me-down answers are crappy substitutes for the self-exploration required to build one’s own, personalized identity, from scratch. And the blind embrace of a counterfeit “structure” to escape having to make our own choices is — in my opinion! — antithetical to our paths as erotic seekers.

"Consequently it is my fondest wish that everybody would shut up about the “Old Guard” and do what feels right, as long as it does no harm.

Bottom line: There is no one right way to do anything in our world. As is true of all other kinds of fundamentalism, erotic fundamentalism is the real enemy here."

But please take a few minutes to read the whole essay. Seriously. And pass this on.

Three Inspiring Characters for Subbies

 We had yet another great Atlanta Dominion weekend last weekend.  It was very cool Saturday to actually get the whole “official” pack together (something that rarely happens) plus a few friends from the extended pack and family.

Sunday at Dominion, I greatly enjoyed just cuddling on the couch w/ my two wonderful omega puppies.  Both of my little brothers are real treasures.  *wags*

Then, in the mosh, Loki made a rare move by dawning his pup gear and joining us.  That was fun.  Playing w/ Sir in the mosh, I can’t help but think of that classic Sylvester the Cat Looney Toon that features the two dogs Spike and Chester.  Spike is just indifferently strutting ahead while Chester bounces all around him: “What do you want to do today, Spike?  Huh, Spike?  You want to chase cars, Spike?  Do you, Spike?”  Yeah, that’s pretty much Loki and Emrys in the mosh, right there.  LOL.

Okay, so… Sir gave his pack a homework assignment.  Name three fictional characters who, to you, embody your ideal of service or submission.  He gave us two examples: Alfred the butler from Batman and Radar from M*A*S*H.

So here are my three:

Lassie

So let’s get he big one out of the way first – and if you are a puppy-dog, then Lassie is as big as they get.  Lassie first appeared in a 1940 novel turned 1943 movie Lassie Come Home, “a story about the profound bond between a Yorkshire boy and his rough collie, Lassie” who undertakes a dangerous “trek over many miles to be reunited with the boy she loves.” (Wiki)  It’s a story of profound devotion and loyalty – traits that for me, exemplify a great pup.  In the American TV series, Lassie was described as “caring, nurturing, and responsible with an unyielding commitment to her family and community.”  A good pup like Lassie will walk through Hell and high water for his Owner and his pack.  (And is always there for you if you ever fall down a well.)

Zero

For most of The Nightmare Before Christmas Jack is moping around all depressed and his ghost dog Zero is “just” standing by him.  Puppies aren’t fair-weather friends, you see?  They are loyal and stay w/ their Owner through thick and thin.  Then comes the moment when the fog prevents Jack from taking off in his Christmas sleigh and it’s Zero’s nose which lights the way – and Zero is sooooo happy that he finally gets to do something to help Jack.  He’s been waiting this whole time, and now there is something he can do to help his master out, and for a puppy, that’s the best there is.  Doggies love to be useful.  (Another one of my favorite moments from last Sunday’s Dominion was when Sir asked, “Did anyone think to lay out the wrestling mats?” and I could respond, “Yes, Sir, taken care of.”)

Old Yeller

Everybody remembers Yeller’s sad demise, but let’s not forget that before that he saves his family from a bear… then a herd of wild boars… then a rabid wolf!  Puppy-dogs are loving and devoted and helpful, but we don’t take kindly to anyone who threatens our family or pack.  If a fight is required, we’re ready to pass out the hurt.  There have been an occasional few who foolishly messed with my Owner and found out what it meant to have the Puppy Paw of Doom descend upon them.  There’s a reason why the Irish wolfhound motto is, “Gentle when stroked; fierce when provoked.”