One nice bit of news is that I will be visiting Los Angeles again at the end of October and into early November, and I’ll be at the Club Fantasy party on November 5th! I’ve really missed those parties and it’ll be great to see everyone again. I’ll be without a car, which is tough in L.A., so it’ll be public transportation, occasional rental cars, and bumming rides off of friends. I’ll be doing a few photoshoots while I’m there, hiking my favorite mountain – San Jacinto, and generally enjoying the L.A. ambience, which I do miss, even though I complained a lot about it when I lived there. I’m really looking forward to seeing all my friends again – and palm trees!
Monthly Archives: August 2010
That Blue Skirt from Hottbonds
When I was at Thunder in the Mountains I got a couple tight shiny skirts from my friends at Hottbonds, and I just love how they look. They’re so tight that they’re almost like a hobble skirt (and they do have a longer version), holding one’s thighs in close together. I shot some pictures with the blue skirt a few weeks ago and I’ll have the full set up for this week’s update on Friday, where I end up tied up in a closet with my elbows tied off to the clothes bar behind me. In the meantime these are a few “extras” from that upcoming set…
Been Listening To
This song from Arcade Fire, Neighborhood #1 – (Tunnels ), is about six years old, but I remember the first time I heard it on the radio and had one of those “stop in my tracks” moments. I just heard it again recently and it brought tears to my eyes (in a good way), which happens almost every time I hear it. Arcade Fire rocks!
Designer Abductions in France
It looks like there’s a company in Paris that’s doing pretty well with the “kidnapping for hire” business, where for about $1,200 dollars (900 Euros) you can be grabbed off the street and bound and gagged for several hours. Surprisingly the police don’t have any problem with it, but just ask to be forewarned beforehand in case someone witnesses the “kidnapping” and reports it as a real crime. Apparently they’ve been getting about two requests a day. Geez, maybe I’m in the wrong business – although after doing a dozen kidnappings I’d probably be yearning to be in the client’s role ;-)
Speaking of Marathons
Last year, crossdressing comedian Eddie Izzard ran around the UK, doing the equivalent of 43 marathons in 51 days. Holy crap! It boggles the mind that he could possibly do that! His doctors said that the effort could cost him his toenails…and his nipples.
Georgetown to Idaho Springs Half Marathon
I consider myself more of a hiker than a runner, but my buddy J. and I want to attempt the Pikes Peak Ascent Race next summer in 2011. To qualify for that you have to finish a half marathon, so I’ve been training the last couple months and we ran the Georgetown to Idaho Springs Half Marathon this morning, which is held in a really beautiful setting in the mountains up along I-70. We both did pretty well; I finished in just over two hours, but man, that last mile was a bitch! I was never completely sure that I could run the full 13 miles but now that it’s done I find myself considering other races, though a full marathon would be really out of my reach at this point – I’d probably crap out around mile 15. The half marathon, though, with a few months of training, really is do-able for anyone who’s in moderately decent shape. It was a terrific morning and very exciting doing the race with probably close to 3000 other runners. But oh, my toes are sore tonight. No high heels for a few days.
FetishCon 2010
Well, I came back totally sleep deprived from FetishCon but had a really good time, saw a lot of old friends, and met some new ones. As I’ve mentioned before I’m kind of shy and have social anxiety, so these big events are never easy for me, but I find that it’s usually worth the effort.
Things started right off with the Meet N’ Greet Thursday night. There were so many gorgeous models there and lots of producers and photographers whose sites I’ve admired for years. I know I’m forgetting lots of people but two highlights were meeting JJ Plush, who’s really funny and very sweet, and also Gina Rae Michaels, whose work I’ve always liked. She does some of the most amazing mouth stuffing gags and wears some fabulous business suits.
Over the weekend I was able to catch a few presentations, and one of the best was a scarf bondage demo put on by BondDave from Florida. He was funny and entertaining and really knows his scarves, having studied with Richard Volcane, well known by the readers of Harmony’s Bondage Life magazine back in the day. BondDave did a terrific demo, tying up Mallory Brooke, who clearly was enjoying herself.
Later I got to hang out and shoot some pictures with Cindy and Audrey from the Yahoo Group. It was really great to see them both again. And later that weekend I got to shoot some more pictures of Sybil, who dressed up in a fantastic “cold shoulder” secretary outfit – of course, this secretary got into a bit of a bind.
Another fun shoot was with Jeff Jamm and a lovely model named Kimberly Sinical whom I only had met that morning, with our mutual friend Rik. Later that afternoon I was over her knee, tied up and getting spanked, and then finally we ended up on the floor tied up together and gagged with one of Jeff’s double ballgags. I’m really looking forward to seeing how those pics turned out ;-) Kimberly was a delight to work with and I really hope we have a chance to do more.
Back on the vendor floor it was really great to finally meet Sandra Silvers, whom I’ve always liked, and another high point was meeting the beautiful Paige Richards, who was a total delight to chat with – very down to earth and a very classy lady.
Saturday there was a party away from the hotel in a club called Czar that I was able to make. The weather was hot and humid but thankfully they had a shuttle bus to and from the place. Jean Bardot and Rubberdoll both put on terrific stage shows there. I often find it kind of intimidating to just walk up to women and start talking, but being in a strange city somehow makes it easier. I saw a really attractive girl wearing this wonderful office girl outfit with a tight pencil skirt and green blouse with puffy shoulders. She turned out to be really nice and although she wasn’t a model, I told her she should be. We hung out for a while and danced and I wanted to take her back to my room to tie her up but, well, I didn’t have the guts to ask. It was very nice though meeting such a cutie.
The final Sunday night party at the hotel is one of the best, though I found it a little bittersweet, knowing that I’d soon be back on the plane and heading home. I met a very lucky crossdresser named Sasha who was there with her adorable girlfriend K. – very nice people – and chatted with JJ Plush again and also Elane Hershey, whom I’ve always liked. Andre the Toon Man and I hung out for a while, talking about life, at the end of the night, and then it was getting close to packing up. They wrapped up the party with the crazy Reverend B. Dangerous, who puts screwdrivers up his nose and has a big guy stand on the back of his head while he’s lying in a pile of broken glass. I’ve seen his show twice now and always enjoy his crazy flirting-with-death antics – I see his self infliction of pain as a metaphor for the desire to break free from the constraints of day to day life (no, seriously), something so many of us yearn to do.
To be honest, I always feel a little funny about all the name dropping when I report on these events and hope it doesn’t sound like I’m showing off. People sometimes write me and say I’m kind of a big deal with Trannies in Trouble, but when I’m at these events I just feel like another fan wandering around starstruck. In some ways it almost feels like being in High School again. There are the big name models and the major website producers, who seem like the cool kids, and then the rest of us walking around hoping to fit in and be a part of the crowd. I do well enough but I’ll probably always have that little edge of insecurity.
In any case, it was a really nice weekend and great to see old friends whom I hadn’t seen in a few years and to meet so many new people. I never know from year to year if I’ll be able to make it to Tampa again, but hope to be back in 2011. If you’re into damsel in distress bondage this really is about the best convention of its kind out there and is worth visiting if you can afford the trip.
The Bondage Cafe booth at FetCon
In my new shiny skirt
BondDave with Mallory Brooke
Sybil with the fabulous Rubberdoll
With the lovely Paige Richards
Two Sandra’s – with Sandra Silvers
Cute secretary Sybil in a bind
Tied up back in my room, bondage by TC
Canon 7D versus the Barbie Video Girl – Camera Comparison
For all you bondage photographers there’s always that question of which camera to buy next, a new DSLR with video…or the Barbie Video Girl? Brandon Bloch made this funny video comparing the two cameras feature by feature – a very tough call.
FetCon – I also just got back from Florida yesterday and hope to have some pictures from FetishCon up here on the blog in a few days. It was a fun time!
Gay Marriage Ban to be Lifted in California
It looks like there’s still a lot of work ahead, but this is terrific news about the gay marriage ban being ruled unconstitutional in California. So very nice!