February 15, 2006

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Just Some Views... by Tatu

With this edition of the D/s ARts Newsletter, I have decided to publish and archive them at the Ds ARts website. I was not happy how the Yahoo Groups would handle all the material. The finished product was always unreliable. So we will use the Yahoo Group Newsletter List to announce each new edition only, which will point you to the actual newsletter which will be maintained at the website. We have been publishish Newsletters since 2001, but I have no plans at this time to go back and archive all of the previous at at this time, maybe someday..

For example this edition is archived as:
http://www.ds-arts.com/newsletter/DSA_2006_0215.html

A complete listing of archived newsletters will be listed at:
http://www.ds-arts.com/newsletter/index.html

"The Notorious Bettie Page"

The long awaited release of the new movie about Bettie Page is scheduled for release . It opens in New York, LA and San Francisco on April 14, 2006 and in full nationwide release in late April or early May.

Plot Summary: Page was the ultimate girl-next door, and one of the most popular Playboy centerfolds. Page challenged the conservative 1950s, posing as a fierce dominatrix and earning both a cult underground following and Senate Committee investigation on juvenile delinquency, essentially a witch-hunt orchestrated by a senator from her home state of Tennessee bent on exploiting her as a stepping stone to the White House. At the height of her popularity, Bettie disappeared. But in 1979 and 1982, Page (a diagnosed schizophrenic) tried to stab several people to death and was institutionalized.

View Trailer Here: http://www.apple.com/trailers/picturehouse/thenotoriousbettiepage/trailer/

Movie Night anyone????

Shibaricon is coming May 26 - 29 (Chicago)

If there is one thing I could say to anyone interested in rope. Don't miss this event. This is our rope homecoming each year. I was honored to be the keynote speaker in 2005 to about 400 registered participants. 2006 promises to be ever bigger and greater. For more details see the Shibaricon website at:  http:/www.shibaricon.com

A response by Tatu to an article written about Seattle's "Kimono Boys"

Recently an article written by a Seattle based Mistress entitled "The Nawashi Syndrome" was published on an online E-Zine called the "Control Tower & Kink Calendar".

"I'll be the first one to say it: People absolutely get to create their kink however they like it. Having acknowledged that, however, I feel that a small dose of reality needs to be injected into my community. So, guys, at the risk of being a party pooper, we really have to talk about this kimono thing.

You see, in the last few years, complex rope bondage has become hip in the American BDSM world. Such ropework is popular and prevalent in Japanese porn, and the American bondage scene has definitely been inspired and influenced by Japanese images.

That's all good so far. But the unfortunate side effect is the influx of what I call "the kimono boys." They're American white guys who call themselves "authentic Japanese rope masters." (Interestingly, I've never met a woman who made this claim.) These rope masters say they have studied "the traditional Japanese way of the rope"-although most of them have never actually visited Japan. But their conversation is strewn with Japanese words, and they often give themselves the title "Nawashi," which they say means "rope bondage artist." And, yeah, they often show up at fetish events wearing kimonos."

continued at:    http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=30655

Here is my response:

With all due respect, I've been told by those who know her, that this Mistress is something of an accomplished Rope Artist and a nice but opinionated lady who lives on the west coast, however, I had never heard of her. This is not about her personally, but the fallacy of her words.

I suppose if she had written an article simply about the people who feel it necessary to fabricate lifestyle credentials; that would have been a point well taken, however she should have read what she wrote in her first  two sentences and perhaps she would have not fallen victim to her own devises.

She wrote;

"I'll be the first one to say it: People absolutely get to create their kink however they like it. Having acknowledged that, however, I feel that a small dose of reality needs to be injected into my community."

Our 8500 Adult Rope Art yahoo group, where serious students of rope gather and learn from one another, has already vetted this topic. A number of those people, including me, occasionally incorporate some aspects of Japanese culture and dress in their Japanese Rope art and play in order to enrich their experiences. So you can imagine the responses.

Her biggest error was in failing to recognize the difference between BDSM and Fetish people and the nature of their gatherings. Fetish people for the most part are at these events for basically one purpose, to "see and be seen", they "dress for pleasure". Aspects of BDSM are secondary to their involvement. Often there is no BDSM at Fetish Events at all.  I have seen these collisions of cultures in my own back yard a number of times. BDSM people go to Fetish parties and make the mistake of expecting everyone to behave like they do, with certain understood protocols. Then they get upset when they are turned away at the door because they think dressing in black is sufficient to gain entry, when the point of these events is to dress fetish. Often the events are sponsored by Fetish Dress stores who want to sell you fetish attire. That is perfectly legitimate and entirely reasonable. Usually, you can't even get in the door unless you are wearing leather, PVC or some fetish glam attire..  If a "BDSM scene" happens at a fetish event it is rare and usually incidental to anything SM or D/s or Bondage related as Fetish people usually have limited if any experience in BDSM.

So, does anyone besides me find it absolutely ludicrous that this author is trying to "inject reality" into a fetish scene? What's that all about? Hello? Perhaps the author needs to take another look around or, in fact, into her own mirror. What she may observe as silly in her skewed view of others, those folks may see her as bizarre in her practices or manner of dress. Does this 'Mistress' not know the meaning of "role-play"? Her article reflects the height of egocentric haughtiness. In other words, what "I" do is right and appropriate, what you do is not real, but is silly. So she finds it necessary to put down those not like her, or those she does not understand. Frankly if there is one thing I despise in this community is that attitude.

I understand her thoughts about fetishizing culture, but there are those of us who study culture and aspects of culture seriously and even appropriate some of it in order to enrich our personal lives or occasionally even play. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with that. I have been studying Japanese culture since college, seriously since 1988. And I find nothing wrong with fetish people dressing in kimonos or silk robes for pleasure ... so what?

Fetishizing culture, however is a two way street. I mean I love the kimono Randa Mai wears…oh wait, he wears jeans and dark sun glasses on a Brad Pitt 3 day old stubble... or was it Don Johnson that started that? And I love Osada Steve's Kimono, NOT. I see in his videos he wears something that looks like baggy pajama bottoms and sunglasses.... I would think if we were going to fetishize something of Japanese Rope Bondagers it would be sunglasses.

What about tattoos? This is another art form I love and study. The most popular theme in Japan these days is not traditional "tebori" (hand injected body suits) with dragons and snakes and Sakura.... nope their young people are into "one-point tattoo" as a "fashion trend" as pointed out Mieko Yamada in his essay authored in 2000, "Japanese Tattooing from the Past to the Present". Additionally, those "one-point tattoos" are most likely American Traditional style (like pinup girls, nautical stars, etc).... Should we be writing articles making fun of them?

I suppose there is some Japanese person in Japan however, who feels it necessary to do so. I can only imagine how pissed the Yukuza must feel about all these people getting symbols of their crime organizations (Irezumi) inked and showing such off in public.

By the way, the word "Tatu" comes from the Polynesian tattooing process. The French coined the word from the tapping sounds "ta-tu" made when the ink is injected into the skin by the hammer tapping the needle bar. That is where I took my lifestyle name from, not "Tatsu-jin" which means master ... just to clarify.

Just about every thing we do in terms of fetish or dress was appropriated from someplace not of ourselves, something outside our own reality, other wise it would not be "fetish", or "role play" etc.... Even with our "vanilla" society, we in America are called the "melting pot", as practically nothing has historic or cultural originality with us. So I guess as Americans, we are all screwed in the eyes of everyone else. Don't forget the Japanese stole, (cough) I mean appropriated much of their cultural practices from the Chinese.

So the next time one straps on that leather or PVC; or laces up that corset, or puts one of those "Story of O" rings on, or a "slave collar", perhaps we should all think twice about how silly we are being perceived by this Mistress and others in the "fetish scene".

This article reflects what I see as something very sad in our kinky culture. I will be the first to say that as I look out across a club or fetish or BDSM party, I do not understand all the kinks that I see people involved in, but one would think that in a sexually open and diverse community such as the BDSM / Fetish / alternative lifestyles; that we would be celebrating and supporting others kinks, not ridiculing or putting them down. The first principle every one should have learned in BDSM 101 as they entered this scene is ... "you don't have to understand".

We get enough of this as it is, as rope practioners from some of the corporal SM-ers, who laugh and make jokes about us saying we ropers are not "real SM", or as some noble master, recently felt it necessary to say behind my back in a local club, "that's not real SM, that's just making out in public".... heavy sigh...  I know he doesn't have a clue and he is just jealous, but still it is very disconcerting.

Is this article amusing? In some ways maybe, but I find it more sad than anything else, as it reflects what divides us and not what brings us together. But some people seem to have that need to distinguish themselves away from the pack in order to satisfy some self serving need, something I have found not uncommon among a few. Usually there is either a low self esteem issue or a profit motive at work somewhere in the background driving that belittling need.

Respectfully,

Tatu

***Note: I attempted to email the author at the address provided at the end of her article, but my email came back undeliverable.

**** In response to all of this, we understand there is a group
of female type units aka rope sluts who are forming a new

       "Kimono Girl Society",

which may be revealed for the first time at Shibaricon in Chicago.

Step aside Kimono Boys, the ladies want to show you what it's all about.

"Tie The Knot"

(Images by Tatu)

On February 12th, I gave the toast to a lifestyle couple in our local south Florida community.
Here is the text of that toast which I themed "to tie the knot".

A Toast To The Bride and Groom

by Tatu

I have known the bride and groom for about a year and a half, so allow me to say how honored I am that I was asked be in this position as the groom's best man and to give this toast. I met them while having a holiday dinner at a mutual friend's home. I learned soon that our groom is man of straight talk, a man of honor, and is not afraid to speak his mind. He is a stand up guy, someone you can count on when you ask for his input. Our lovely bride is a fully self-empowered woman, a fellow martial artist, who I am sure could kick my butt in the dojo any time she wanted to, but also embodies a beautiful sensual energy that we have all observed melt into his loving leadership.

You (to the groom) are a very fortunate man to have found such of bright and caring soul mate.

You (to the bride) you are blessed to have a man of conviction share your dreams.

So when I was asked to do this toast, I of course started thinking about something meaningful that I might say. I started thinking about all the sayings related to a wedding. As I searched the Internet and being an Eagle Boy Scout one saying in particular caught my eye as some 40 years ago, I literally earned have a merit badge in this; and that was to "tie the knot".

I found articles with these titles:

* Ashton And Demi 'Tie The Knot'

* Kidman set to 'Tie The Knot'

* J Lo and Marc Anthony 'Tie The Knot' in Puerto Rico

* Elton John and Partner 'Tie The Knot'

* And of course we all want to know, "Will Brad and Angelina 'Tie The Knot'?"

I learned that in 2003 thousands in India postponed their wedding plans due to a planetary alignment that made 2003 an ominous time to tie the knot; while in 2006 couples in China are rushing to get married in the Lunar year of the Dog because it's considered an auspicious year to tie the knot.

Which leads to the question, where did this phrase 'Tie The Knot' come from?

To tie the knot is simply slang for getting married. It is a visual of marriage tying two souls together in wedlock. What became confusing is that there are a number of claims as to where the phrase originated.

It seems that the expression may have its root's in history in ancient Rome, where a bride's girdle was fashioned or tied securely prior to the wedding. It then became the groom's job to untie these knots. Undoing the girdle's knots was called "nodus Herculeus", and was a well known post-ceremony tradition.

Then I learned that with the Carthaginians, the bride and groom would tie their thumbs together during their ceremony.

The Hindu marriage ceremony uses knot as symbol of a promise. As the groom speaks his sacred vows, he ties a ribbon around his bride's neck and hence becomes his completely, and he in turn pledges to never lead her astray.

The Kurdish people have a custom of the bride and groom tying a strand of silk around each other's wrist, a symbol of a binding covenant of everlasting love.

In more recent history, many modern weddings still feature some sort of physical knot representing the bond between husband and wife.

In the British Isles Handfasting at one time was the only way that couples could be engaged and/or get married because the church was not involved in marriage matters. Then the churches got involved in marriages and outlawed "Handfasting" in England 1753. Regardless, this old pagan ritual of marriage still endured and it remained legal in Scotland all the way up to 1939. There was a Scottish border town, Gretna Green, which became a target destination for eloping couples from England who fled there to perform their own "Handfastings".

"Handfasting" is the custom of tying the bride and groom's wrists together. Yet even today a number of modern wedding traditions will include a minister or priest draping some sort of sacred cloth over the joined hands of the bride and groom.

I looked for some tradition in the Jewish wedding ceremony and consulted a Jewish Lady friend of mine, but we could not find one, but I noticed that at the end of the ceremony the bride and groom were wrapped in a special cloth or shawl called a "Tallis", picturing for the guests the binding together of the bride and groom in their intimacy.

I looked to Japanese history, and while everything is tied in Japanese history from the armor plating on samurai armor to the obi worn with kimono, I could find nothing specific reflected in the marriage event. The only mention of tying with lovers was in Kabuki theatre, which a repeated theme of "Shinju" is found. This is where desperate lovers in true Romeo and Juliet style tied themselves together and jumped off a bridge to their deaths. Seems that some Japanese love to find creative ways to do themselves in.

So I consulted my Boy Scout manual, and recalled a knot I had learned as young boy. It is called "The True Lovers Knot".

(Produced a thick cord with tassels on the ends tied into this knot.)

It is a lovely knot. Like many knots; not all that hard to tie. It just takes the commitment to learn it; so you can create something beautiful from nothing. Not unlike relationships.

When thinking of building a relationship, some mistakenly rely upon the "feeling of being in love". This knot teaches us that in order to create something beautiful there must be a basis of commitment to learn, communicate, care, forgive, try and try again until you get it right.

If there is one thing I have learned about life and relationships is that sooner or later the one you care about the most will disappoint and hurt you. In fact we will in time do the same to the ones we love the most. Nobody is perfect and given the right circumstances anyone is capable of inflicting great pain upon those they love. So remember, "it is not your love that will sustain your marriage, but your commitment that will sustain your love".

With this toast I present you with this "True Lovers Knot" in the hope that you might find an appropriate place to have it in your home where it will remind you of the lesson it teaches so that the knot you have tied today will be something beautiful that we may all see and enjoy; and will endure the test of time bringing happiness, beauty and joy all your days.

We love you, and may God Bless You.

~Tatu

I have placed a series of photos at the following link showing how to tie a True Lovers' Knot.

www.ds-arts.com/RopeArt/TrueLoversKnot/index.html

Some interesting follow-up, from some of our ARA members about wedding customs:

From RonIndian

" I am from India. and I have always maintained to my girlfriend ... that BDSM has always been an inherent part of Indian culture and relationships in that context. Just that no name was coined for it. It just is. In a marriage the most important act is when the groom ties the "mangalsutra" or the "thali" around the brides neck. This is typically a thin thread that's red or orange in colour with a little locket with either the "om" or a little trinket in the shape of a leaf. This signifies along with the "sindoor" (a red powder) ,which is put along the parting of the woman to signify that one; she is married and most importantly belongs to another man. Just like a collar if u look at it; and typically a man - woman relationship here has inherently a Dom, sub flavour and thus when the man ties the knot (usually it's a reef knot that either the man's sister or mom helps tie from behind) the bride has to bend her neck and lower her eyes, a pretty much submissive gesture.

Also a garment like a shawl from the groom's dress is tied to a long end of the saree of the bride before they take the sanctified 7 rounds around the fire."

From Lady Samantha concerning Jewish wedding traditions:
"The Wrap you saw was a Prayer Shawl, or Tallis (Tallit, Israeli/sephardic pronounciation)

...it's purpose in the wedding ceremony as the Canopy above the couple symbolizes their first home (tent). Draped over the couple the intimacy of the marriage bed.

The purpose of the shawl is a reminder of one's relationship to G_d and a reminder of the commandments.

It is not the material of the shawl, however, that is important, but the carefully hand macreme knotted fringes on each of it's four corners.

The knotted fringes in this instance, marriage, remind a Jewish man of the obligations, responsibilities and commandments that pertain to marriage and family to which he is now bound as a Married man.

In some Eastern European communities )Askenazic) it is traditional for a man to receive his first Tallis when he is married, although it is now traditional to purchase a small tallis for a son's bar mitzvah and a bride to purchase her husband's tallit as a wedding present."

(Please refer interested readers to:  www.AskMoses.com for additional Rabbinical interpretation and Halakhic (Orothodic Jewish written) law.)

Another note in follow-up from subshevah.

"In Jewish weddings the ceremony begins with the bride circling the groom 7 times, while 7 blessings are recited. This is called the "sheva".  

For more on this see: http://www.ou.org/wedding/7brachot.htm  "

Continued Studies… Coming Soon…

"A Comparative Study of East vs West Rope Art Styles"

"Study on the Origins of Japanese Rope Bondage Terminology"

Virtual Rope Lessons
(Image by Tatu)

A couple of days ago, I was solicited into giving my first virtual rope lesson. A lady from Australia, with whom I chat from time to time, wanted to show me what she had learned, so via webcam there she was dressed in black leotard with her rope anxious to show me on herself a karada and then some arm gauntlets.

Which has raised the question, could this be something we could do with DsARts or ARA? Probably so. I am going to look into the technology and perhaps we will be hosting such live events in the future where many can observe certain rope art activities.

One thing I have learned is that you have to spend about $100 to get a really good web cam set up in order to see and be seen with any clarity. Those $20 webcams are not worth anyone's hard earned cash.

"Occupied"  by Lochai

I am pleased to pass along the fantastic news that that our good friend, Lochai, has published his first book entitled "Occupied" is now available. If you don't know him personally, you have probably seen him at Fetish Factory or Shibaricon snapping away his fetish images.

This book is a collection of erotic bathroom images... perfect for your bathroom reading....

There is some rope in there too.

Lochai is a great rope artist and photographer and  I am proud to call him my South Florida
Rope brother. As most of you know he is also a co-moderator of our Adult Rope Art Yahoo
Group.

You can see his work and information about how to purchase his book at his site:  
http://www.kirinawa.com

He is also participating in Traveling Erotic Art Show:

http://travelingeroticartshow.com/index.html

Hatsume Fair - February 25 & 26
(Images by Tatu)

If you are one of those people who like to incorporate a little culture or dress into your Japanese Rope or Eastern School role play, you might enjoy this iIf you live anywhere near the Ds ARts Home base in south Florida. Hatsume Fair (The First Bud of Spring)  will be held in Delray Beach on Sat and Sunday, February 25 and 26.

From the Morikami.org website:

Celebrating the first bud of spring, The Morikami's largest annual event, Hatsume, transforms the normally tranquil Morikami Park into a unique Japanese spring festival. Hatsume Fair features four stages with continuous entertainment including taiko drummers, Japanese tea ceremony, flower arranging, martial art, bonsai and origami demonstrations, a koi show, and debuting this year our first ever Morikami Master Chef competition! Also included are avenues of artisan booths, plant sales, a Bonsai exploration area, Asian and American food vendors, the Mt. Fuji rock climbing wall and guests can travel japan making paper art through Origami Extravaganza!

Introducing the Inaugural Morikami Master Chef Competition! Taking its cues from the Food Network's Iron Chef show, The Morikami has enlisted chefs from the area's well-known restaurants, using the key ingredient ginger to create their masterpieces. The Master Chef semi-final competitions will be held Saturday, Feb. 25, one at 12:30 p.m. and another at 2:30 p.m.

On Sunday, Feb. 26 at 2:30 p.m. the Finals will be held between the two chefs who emerge victorious Saturday. Please check our website regularly for the announcement of the participating chefs!

Attention Bonsai Lovers! Do you have a sick tree that could use some love and reviving? Bring it to Hatsume and make sure you visit our Bonsai 911 area where experts will be available from 10am - 4pm to answer questions, give advice and work on your tree. Please note that there are no appointments and our experts will help people on a first come first served basis.

Calling all Koi Enthusiasts! The Tropical Koi & Water Garden Club of South Florida will be holding its 5th Annual Show as a part of Hatsume Fair! Featuring several vendors offering great deals on koi, goldfish, pond fish, feeds & pond related items the show will highlight many of the best koi in the United States including the 2004 National Champion & the 2005 National Champion runner up - all competing for awards! In addition, there will be a goldfish show under the direction of club member & chairman of the Goldfish Society of America. Four Tropical Koi & Water Garden Club members are certified by the Associated Koi Clubs of America as Koi Health Advisors with many years of experience & training will be available to share their expertise. The mission of the Tropical Koi & Water Garden Club of South Florida is to promote the koi keeping & water garden hobby through informative meetings, newsletters & goodwill. There are many types of ponds & many of today's pond builders have insufficient knowledge of how to construct and maintain a healthy koi pond. For more information please visit www.tropicalkoiclub.org and/or www.akca.org.

Entertainment Schedule

Hatsume features four stages with continuous all day entertainment. For a full entertainment line-up, please click here. Please note that performance times are subject to change without notice. If you are interested in viewing the tea and/or Ikebana demonstrations, please note that seating is limited. Upon your arrival to the festival, please stop in the museum lobby to pick up your ticket and secure your seat. Tickets will be distributed on a first come first served basis.

2-day Admission

$10 for adults

$5 for children ages 7-18

FREE for museum members and children 6 and under

*Groups of 10 or more can enjoy a discounted admission rate.

Parking - FREE on-site parking is provided

The Morikami's Cornell Cafe will be open and serving from an a la carte menu. Outside vendors will also be providing Asian and American food on the festival grounds.

For more information see: http://www.morikami.org

Here's where I will be teaching Rope in the upcoming months:

2006 Workshops - So Far...

Sinsations In Leather (Chicago, IL)  It was fantastic !!!!
Feb 3-5, 2006
http://www.sinsationsinleather.com
* Japanese Chest Harnesses
* Japanese Body Weaves
* Japanese Crotch Harnesses for Sex
* Spirituality and Rope

Shibari South Florida  (Ft Lauderdale, FL)
Feb 18, 2006
http://www.ds-arts.com/SSF

Shibari South Florida  (Ft Lauderdale, FL)
March 18, 2006
*** Featuring Mademoiselle B, self bondage artist.
http://www.ds-arts.com/SSF

Shibari South Florida  (Ft Lauderdale, FL)
April 15, 2006
*** This will be Bettie Page Damsel in distress struggle bondage night.
http://www.ds-arts.com/SSF

Beat Me In St. Louis (St. Louis, Missouri)
April 21-23, 2006
http://www.stl3.com/events/bmsl/home
* Courses TBA

ShibariCon (Chicago, IL)
May 26-29, 2006
http://www.shibaricon.com
* Courses TBA

Orlando Bash  (Orlando, FL)
June 1-4, 2006
http://www.orlandobash.com
* Courses TBA

A New Face for D/s Arts

Check out our new entry pages logos / banners:

Main Site Entrance
http://www.ds-arts.com

Rope ARt Entrance
http://www.ds-arts.com/RopeArt/index.html

Shibari South Florida webpage got a face lift too
http://www.ds-arts.com/SSF

Japanese Rope Art   We also have a new domain name that right now points people directly to the Rope ARt section, but some new and exciting things are coming to that domain:

http://www.JapaneseRopeArt.com

* Our model for these new banners / logos is the delicious "Yumi" !

What's New at D/s ARts?

In the Academy section   http://www.ds-arts.com/academy

"European Slaves" by slave kara
www.ds-arts.com\academy\european_slaves.html

"The Submissive's Toybag" by subshevah and Tatu
http://ds-arts.com/academy/sub_toybag.html

"Sample Contract" by subshevah
http://ds-arts.com/academy/contract_example_1.html

In the Rope Art section

"Nihongo I - Basic Conversational Japanese Language Tutorials"
http://ds-arts.com/RopeArt/nihonto.html

Rope and Spirituality by Tatu
http://ds-arts.com/RopeArt/spirituality.html

The new tutorials are up !   More coming !
http://www.ds-arts.com/RopeArt/tutorials.html

"Finishing Hemp" by Angeline Black
http://ds-arts.com/RopeArt/FinishingHemp.html
We are very excited that Angelina Black who once finished the finest hemp in our scene, now retired, has shared with our DsARts and ARA community her instructional on how she finished her hemp. Thank you Angeline… we love you girl.  

DirtyPretty Things (http://www.dirtyprettything.com)
Angeline Black is teaming up with fetish photographer Valerie Place (http://www.vplacephoto.com) to publish a new website. Due to open soon.

(Image by Tatu)

Shibari South Florida / SILK

http://www.ds-arts/SSF

In 2000, I started something I called "Shibari South Florida".  We met in my home for a while and have met periodically since. Our numbers grew too large for my residence and so we have now ventured out into renting space for our workshop and social gatherings. Our next workshop will be Saturday, February 18, 2006 in Ft Lauderdale, Florida, followed by a social time we have named "S. I. L. K." which stands for:

"Sensuous Intimate Loving Kinbaku"

Or,  Sadistic Intimate Lascivious Kink, depends on our mood that night...

If you live in South Florida, and are interested in rope, please contact us about future gatherings.

February 18th - Special Guest Master Z Chicago teaching his 12 point suspension. Also sharing will be Lochai on "Fun in rope.... or don't take yourself too seriously" and Tatu will be sharing some basics on safety. Also visiting with us will be Steve from the Austin Rope Symposium!

March 18th - Topic "Self Bondage" Tentatively scheduled is a self bondage artist Mademoiselle B from the mid-west. Details coming.

April 15th - Topic "Bettie Page Damsel in Distress" In celebration of the new movie "The Notorious Bettie Page" due to be released in late April or early May, our group's theme will be on western-styled struggle bondage. We hope to have one of Bettie Pages' photographers with us that night.

D/s ARts & Shibari South Florida has teamed up with Sir Michael of Erotic Ropes in Chicago to provide a quality hemp rope product to the Florida Community. Tatu will have 30' & 15' lengths of 6mm finished hemp rope available at SSF and other South Florida events.

Hemp rope is the traditional material used in shibari; a Japanese form of rope bondage. It is becoming more and more popular among bondage enthusiasts. Hemp rope is strict yet soft, it holds knots tighter with less slippage and it doesn't stretch. Erotic ropes are created from grade Romanian twisted hemp. Twelve hours of work go into each piece of erotic rope. Each length of rope is washed and then dried. The rope is then oiled, boiled, dried and singed to remove stray fibers. This process is repeated three times by a most loving rope slut so we can offer you the finest quality twisted hemp for all your bondage perversions.

(Image by Tatu)

C.A.R.E.   D/s ARts is also hosting a page for the Cincinnati Area Rope Enthusiasts, which meets once a month for what they "Rope Rendezvous". They have been having their maximum for the space which is 25 and have had had to turn people away virtually every month. This event is led by Master David of Kentucky and subshevah.

See: http://www.ds-arts.com/shevah/CARE.html

subshevah... We are also hosting a page for lifestylist and educator, subshevah. See her essays and teaching schedule at:

http://www.ds-arts.com/shevah

Some interesting news articles:

Lusty Lady

Big Bucks for Pain Sluts

Inside the kinky world of professional submissives

by Rachel Kramer Bussel

February 10th, 2006 6:34 PM

Joan Kelly, author of The Pleasure's All Mine: Memoir of a Professional Submissive

Over the course of her career, Joan Kelly (submarnie.net) has been strung up and splashed with freezing water, had her labia sewn shut, gotten caned, and taken countless bare-bottomed spankings—and has loved almost every minute of it. As "Marnie," the Los Angeles–based kinky gal works as an independent professional submissive. For $260 an hour (to start), you can hire her to lie across your lap and get whacked good and hard (her favorite) or, for several thousand dollars, go deeper into your dominant fantasies. She'll even come right to your hotel room, or you can use a local dungeon.

It's clear from Kelly's The Pleasure's All Mine: The Memoir of a Professional Submissive (Carroll & Graf, 2005) that this job's about much more than money. Her excitement is evident over the phone, as she reveals that she's been single until recently, getting her pain fix on the job. "When I started, I had that Pretty Woman fantasy, thinking I'd meet Mr. Kinky Right. If that had ever happened, I would've quit in a heartbeat," she confesses. "If I don't have someone in my personal life [to be kinky with], I'm physically compelled to do sessions. I've tried to quit a few times, but I couldn't—I have to have this in my life." Kelly's current paramour, whom she met online, is "getting kinkier by the minute," responding to her cues.

To read the entire article go to:  http://www.villagevoice.com/people/0607,bussel,72157,24.html

Sex in the First Person

Dirty Girls

Reality is the best fantasy for females of all persuasions

February 7th, 2006 3:38 PM

Our call for raunchy, true-life adventures to grace this special issue yielded lots of juicy material, nearly all of it from women. Below you'll find the cream, as it were, of the crop. Elizabeth Zimmer

Double penetration isn't as easy as it looks.

To read the entire article go to: http://www.villagevoice.com/people/0606,spot,72098,24.html

Pucker Up

Tomatoes Can Be Torture, Part 1

In the first of a three-part series, meet a couple who eroticizes humiliation

by Tristan Taormino

February 3rd, 2006 7:20 PM

The first time I met Phantom and Femcar (not their real names), I was in the audience of their class at a BDSM event. I've been to hundreds of kinky classes around the country, on topics ranging from predicament bondage to master-slave relationships. People gravitate toward the topics that interest them, but I think that it's also important to check out those classes you think you won't enjoy or won't learn from. This was one of those classes. It was called Erotic Humiliation.

Humiliation is a form of s/m play for some people; as part of the dominant-submissive dynamic, a submissive wants to be embarrassed, degraded, or even verbally abused. I know a woman who likes to be called a bitch, a whore, and a filthy slut as people do nasty things to her. Hell, I like that too, in the right situation. I've met a guy who wants to be led around a party on a leash while wearing a diaper. Humiliation, I get it.

I went to Erotic Humiliation with an open mind, but...

To read the entire article go to:
http://www.villagevoice.com/people/0606,taormino,72054,24.html

Binding Agreement

Who’s to say you can’t have a little fun. Even when you’re all tied up.

Carolynne Burkholder

A cademics weren’t the only thing taught at UBC on 1 February. Students acquired skills of a decidedly different sort at “Bond with Friends: You’ve got the hands, we’ve got the rope,” a “how-to” event about bondage organized by Kink Vancouver: The Next Generation.

Bondage has many stereotypes, but no leather masks, whips, chains, or dungeons made appearances at the event. Instead there was a brightly lit classroom, 30 students, and lots of rope.

Defined simply as a “sexual practice that involves physically restraining one of the partners,” bondage has gained notoriety in recent years through portrayals in films such as Killing Me Softly and Mr and Mrs Smith......

To read the entire article go to:  http://www.gateway.ualberta.ca/view.php?aid=5714

Tattoo ARts

Comedian Margaret Cho's Tattoo

For all you Japanese Tattoo Art fans you might appreciate this article about comedian Margaret Cho's tattoo experience.

"In a world where celebrities spend much less time thinking about their permanent body art then their temporary award-show hairdos, there is one comedian/actor/writer/activist/belly dancer whose tattoo intelligence and style makes up for them all. And the Oscar for Best Tattoo goes to ... Margaret Cho.

In December, Margaret began blogging about her desire and plans to get a Japanese-theme tattoo from the godfather of modern-day tattooing, Don Ed Hardy. Hardy is not just..."

To read the entire article and see lots of photos of her new ink in progress go to:  http://www.needled.com/archives/2006/01/margaret_chos_ed_hardy_tattoo.php

At Margaret's Blog she writes:

"In the last few weeks I have been furiously researching, planning, preparing and obsessing about my new tattoo!!!! I have wanted a tattoo since 1986, when I saw my friend and good stepfather Forbes get one.....

....I’ve spent weeks now, poring through design books, tattoo books, art books, collecting images on my desktop, hoping, fantasizing, dreaming. It is amazing how many people have tattoos, and big ones....

...I love tattoos because they represent a brief glimpse of a person’s insides, their passions, their true heart. It is like a riddle, a complex haiku that you may or may not be able to decipher, that you are fortunate to even have the opportunity. Even after the thrill is gone, the tattoo remains, as a reminder of a personal history, a life lived, flawed yet genuine, faded yet viable, and if it is visible to us, in daily life, it modifies the public personae in a way that no other physical alteration does....

...I love heavily tattooed women. I imagine their lives are filled with sensuality and excess, madness and generosity, impulsive natures and fights. They look like they have endured much pain and sadness, yet have the ability to transcend all of it by documenting it on the body. Women’s bodies are fraught with controversy, because it is believed that our bodies belong to the state. We are not supposed to choose what we can do with them. We don't have complete control over reproduction. Though we can get abortions (right now) we must be in the right place at the right time, and even then we might need the consent of someone else (a man) in order to take care of OURSELVES!!! ...

...Having lived under such a regime for so many years, I am finally free, and for once in my life, actually able to do something with my body that I have always wanted to do, because I feel safe enough to. Nobody is going to judge me for wanting to wear a beautiful piece of art on my skin. I will not allow it. This is my body, and this is my body with tattoos. Any questions? Slide show to come…. "

To read the complete blog go to:  http://margaretcho.com/blog/tattooplanning.htm

Tattoos Honor Marines Killed
In Iraq and Help the Survivors

By MICHAEL M. PHILLIPS
February 15, 2006; Page A8

"RAMADI, Iraq -- Not long before the invasion of Iraq, when death still seemed far over the horizon, Jason Lemieux joked that he would tattoo Ruben Valdez's name on his arm if his buddy were killed in action.

A few months after Lance Cpl. Valdez died in a gunfight on the Syrian border, Sgt. Lemieux remembered the conversation and decided the joke was a promise. When the sergeant made it home, he walked into a tattoo parlor and had the artist dye a rifle-helmet-and-boots memorial into his upper arm. Beneath is written "Never Forget," for Lance Cpl. Valdez and three other Marines who died that day in April 2004.

Somehow, the needle's prick relieved the sorrow of loss and the guilt of survival. "When I was feeling the pain of the tattoo, it was actually making it OK that those guys got killed and I didn't," recalls Sgt. Lemieux...."

To read the entire article go to:  Wall Street Journal Online - Tattoos Honor Marines

Web Sites Fight
Proof-of-Age Rules
For Porn Performers

By DAVID KESMODEL

February 13, 2006; Page B1

"The adult-entertainment industry is embroiled in a legal battle with the federal government over new regulations that many online purveyors fear could put them out of business.

At issue are rules established last year requiring any Web site carrying sexually explicit videos or photographs to maintain records proving that the performers are at least 18 years old. The rules apply whether the Web site owner produced the content or merely republished it. And they were made retroactive, so site operators must maintain records for all content filmed or photographed in the past 10 years. First-time violators face prison sentences of up to five years.

The Justice Department issued the regulations after Congress instructed it to update a 1988 child-protection law applying to filmmakers and magazine photographers. The new concern, the government has said in court filings, is the proliferation of Internet sites promoting content featuring "teens" and "young-looking performers."

Critics say the record-keeping rules are overly burdensome and part of a widening assault by the Bush administration against legal forms of sexually explicit material. "This has nothing to do with protecting children," Lawrence G. Walters, a Florida lawyer who represents several porn sites, said of the new regulations. "They're trying to shut down the adult-entertainment industry with overregulation."...... "

To read the entire article go to:  Wall Street Journal Online - Websites Fight

Dominatrix Acquitted in Bondage Death

Dominatrix Acquitted in Death of a Man During Bondage Session in Massachusetts

DEDHAM, Mass. Jan 30, 2006 (AP) — A dominatrix was acquitted of manslaughter Monday in the death of a man who prosecutors say suffered a heart attack while strapped to a replica of a medieval rack..."

To read the entire article go to:  : http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1559287

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