<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846</id><updated>2012-02-16T04:24:50.392-08:00</updated><title type='text'>What the...?</title><subtitle type='html'></subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default?max-results=100'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>46</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>100</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-7313643298707196222</id><published>2011-07-23T08:55:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2011-07-23T08:56:24.444-07:00</updated><title type='text'>End point</title><content type='html'>I no longer continue this blog.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-7313643298707196222?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/7313643298707196222/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=7313643298707196222&amp;isPopup=true' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7313643298707196222'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7313643298707196222'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2011/07/end-point.html' title='End point'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-9046768558803139446</id><published>2010-08-31T18:31:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-09-01T17:10:06.912-07:00</updated><title type='text'>let me fix it, starting with me</title><content type='html'>Been kind of a busy couple of weeks for me mentally.  One of my Ladies has been severely weakened by all the stress and fear of these last two years.  At the moment she's on meds for it and so has been advised not to drive.  This leaves her basically trapped in the house when her sister and I aren't here.  Granted, she has alternatives, but all of them are at best inconvenient.  Plus, and this will be important later, she hates to to be any trouble.  "I don't want to be any trouble" she'll say.  And if I'm not paying attention she'll do without rather than bother me.  She tries to handle it alone.  Not in a sneaky way, but to avoid being any trouble to me.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So the other day I come home, I'd taken a short term job on top of what I normally do to help make up for the income I've lost over the last couple of years.  I'd worked 15 hours, and I'd driven a total of 3 more to do it, so I was ready to call it a day.  But as soon as I'd eaten, I was informed my Lady needed some things from the store.  She was polite, not at all out of line, but she'd been home all day with her sister who'd been off that day, and they'd already been out a couple of times.  I really lost my temper.  I mean, they couldn't handle this?  I didn't yell or any of that.  I got up and took her to the store, but I'm certain it was obvious I was angry.  Intellectually I felt justified in my anger, but for some reason something nagged at me. Something felt like I was out of line to have taken issue with this situation.  But I was tired, and I was scheduled for the same kind of day next day, so I just went to bed.  My reaction bugged me for several days but I kept telling myself I was justified.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In previous posts I've mentioned my garden.  It's large and pretty intricate.  It's electrically lit by about half a dozen lights or so, but because of the layout there are pools of shadow as you walk through it.  Unfortunately, the stress has caused my Lady to suffer a certain level of vision impairment, and pools of shadow are a serious issue for her.  Not a big deal, a few cheap tiki torches and we're back in business.  Except last night the torches ran out of fuel, and I didn't have any to refill them.  Now for a while in the military, my job was expedient methods recovery.  When they tested my team the evaluators literally removed everything they thought would be helpful in making our needed repairs, intentionally did damage, and then told us to fix it.  We scored well by successfully using things that were in no way intended to be used the way we used them.  Along comes this issue, and I am going to fix it.  Hmmm, what to do, what to do?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Immediately Lady points out she has her flashlight.  (Due to her condition I got her a couple of super-bright mini lights she is able to carry conveniently, and she is supposed to have them at all times just in case)  I responded that I knew, and kept working on the problem.  "But I have my flashlight" she says.  "Good girl, I heard you".  It occurs to me that I have some gel fuel in the house, that stuff you usually see under the chafing dishes at catered events.  "But, I have my flashlight.  I can just use that.  Don't take any trouble".  I respond "Sweetie, I KNOW, I heard you, thank you, now let me fix it the way I want to".  So the gel fuel, with a bit of finagling, became a garden torch and the problem was solved.&lt;br /&gt;  &lt;br /&gt;Fortunately this time I pretty well hid that I was frustrated with her, because I knew she was just trying to be a good girl and no trouble.  I needed to chill so I went in and popped in "Black Rain" by Ozzy (So now you get a sense of one part of my musical taste) and half way through this song pops up called "Lay Your world On Me".  (Youtube video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqKF-0Xusr8)  It's not my favorite song by any means, and it doesn't really apply overall to our relationship.  But the first time I played the CD and heard it, it really grabbed my attention because I work a difficult schedule, and I have a LOT of responsibility at home as well.  It is pretty intense a lot of the time, and the Ladies sometimes express concern for my well being.  I always reply "Don't worry, I can carry the weight".  The main refrain in this song is &lt;span style="font-style:italic;"&gt;Lay your world on me, I can take the weight&lt;/span&gt;.  And I realized that's been the problem these last two weeks.  Last night she wouldn't let me pick up the weight.  And she almost always tries not to.  She doesn't hand it to me, I have to order her to give it to me.  Her sister can be that same way in a different manner.  She'll try to deal with her own personal problems because she thinks they aren't mine.  And they are, that's the deal.  If my Ladies car breaks down, that's &lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;my &lt;/span&gt;problem.  If a Lady has a doctors appointment she's worried about, I go because that's &lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;my&lt;/span&gt; worry.  I have told them repeatedly, they don't have problems, they have me.  &lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;I&lt;/span&gt; have problems.  I may ask them to fix the problem by doing exactly [this], but it's up to me to find the solution and make it possible to implement, via money, creating time in their schedule, or whatever.  Stop taking my problem!!  The irony is I don't find them an unwarranted burden until they try not to be a burden.  Then they can be a real pain in the ass.  I want that weight.  I want to take care of both of them.  That's part of what is fulfilling to me.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And then it occurred to me that maybe that's my fault.  Last week in full view of her sister, one Lady layed her world on me, and I dropped the weight.  Not only did I make it clear I was annoyed at the inconvenience, but I'm certain she felt like she had been a huge burden which would be just plain punishment to her.  Absolutely not acceptable.  So, I think it's time I applied a little self correction, and manned up.  With apologies to The Hollies, they ain't heavy, their my Ladies.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Hollies are here for you youngsters out there.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1KtScrqtbc&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-9046768558803139446?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/9046768558803139446/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=9046768558803139446&amp;isPopup=true' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/9046768558803139446'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/9046768558803139446'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/08/let-me-fix-it.html' title='let me fix it, starting with me'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-7087404644340292020</id><published>2010-08-29T14:29:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-08-29T15:04:57.445-07:00</updated><title type='text'>A nice relief</title><content type='html'>If you've read the blog for a while, you know life has been kicking us all this time.  We've been hunkered down and simply enduring the onslaught, awaiting the time when fortune and opportunity turn our way again and we can counterattack.  Lately we've even gotten in some solid counter punches.  Something I learned in the military however, is to snatch what pleasures can be had even in the midst of tragedy and chaos.  We had a local music-fest today, so I took the Ladies up to see it.  A couple of my favorite local bands were playing and we grabbed seats in the shade and just stayed all day.  The music was good, and lots of sexy young women were dancing around.  I spent triple what it should have cost to eat the food you can only get a street fairs.  We had a great time.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There were bittersweet moments as well though.  There was a very young girl there, maybe three or four, and her father was letting her hold his hands as he twirled her around in the air while she giggled hysterically.  Another time a girl of about eight was on the "dance floor" just doing what 8-year-olds do when they dance.  Sort of a spastic jerking around.  These were reminders that our Goddaughter has moved out.  I had prepared myself for the fact that she would probably want to get her own place for college.  It never occurred to me that she might choose to accept an offer to go to high school halfway acrossed the country from us.  I used to twirl her, and carry her, and watch her dance.  I wasn't ready to lose her yet.  I love her, and I miss her terribly.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Still, it was good to hear the Ladies laugh and sing.  It was good to eat ice cream in the beating sun and just be together.  It feels good to love them so much.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-7087404644340292020?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7087404644340292020'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7087404644340292020'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/08/nice-relief.html' title='A nice relief'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-98612798678797354</id><published>2010-08-05T21:25:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-08-05T22:36:04.147-07:00</updated><title type='text'>It means "Go to Hell"</title><content type='html'>I'm a history buff.  Tales of endurance and courage leave me spellbound.  I have several favorites, but one I like pretty well is the tale of Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe, commander 101 Airborne Division (The Screamin' Eagles) during WWII.  You may be familiar with it.  At one point he and his men were cut off and surrounded. They were literally freezing because they had been rushed into the action and had not been issued winter gear, and now the worst winter weather in decades had descended on Germany.  The German Army surrounding them prevented resupply by ground, and the weather prevented air operations.  They were running out of ammo, food, medical supplies, pretty much everything.  The German commander, after a week of bombardment against the Americans, sent a note demanding surrender.  General McAuliffe sent back a one word reply, "Nuts".  The Colonel delivering the message had to explain the meaning of the word to the Germans.  He told them that "In plain English, it means go to Hell".  I sometimes think about that outrageous act of defiance in the face of certain defeat when things get really bad for me.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I think of it because the men held out still, even after that demand.  They did not surrender and they did not allow themselves to be overrun.  They held the ground as ordered until General Patton's third army arrived.  I find it interesting to note that most historians will say the Screamin' Eagles were rescued by Patton.  However, the 101st Airborne Division itself points out to this day that their orders were to hold that ground until relieved and they did so.  Their relief (Army ground forces) was merely late.  Once the Army did arrive, the 101st was ordered to advance and attack, which they did, liberating another 4 towns in the next week and three more the week after that.  The lesson I take from that is that no matter how bad things look, how overwhelming the odds seem, or how hopeless one feels defeat is never certain until one quits fighting.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I've been thinking about all my family has endured, all we've survived, and all we still face.  I've thought about all the nay-sayers and disbelievers that thought the consummate good girl and stereotypical bad boy were doomed from the start, especially when we married less than a year after meeting.  Of all those who insisted poly relationships never last when we began to explore this avenue.  Of the many who snickered with satisfaction each time a poly partner did not work out for us, and of all those who yell the louder as year after year ticks by now with the Lady we found and bonded to. I'm afraid I must deliver to them bad news.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Today marks 21 years of marriage for my wife and I.  The last decade we have shared with our partner.  Our relationship is not on the edge of collapse.  We are not at each others throats.  While we have been laid low by life for a time we stand united as one still, and are growing stronger every day.  To my Ladies I say I love you more everyday.  Every night I think I could not possibly feel more love for you than I feel as I fall asleep, and every morning I awake to find I do.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And yet I know there are still those who hope we will fall.  Who long to see us fail ourselves and each other.  Who insist we have no chance.  I hope they are listening now.  I have something to say to them as well.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Nuts.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-98612798678797354?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/98612798678797354'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/98612798678797354'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/08/it-means-go-to-hell.html' title='It means &quot;Go to Hell&quot;'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-4330963158371478799</id><published>2010-07-29T21:56:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2010-07-30T20:04:48.921-07:00</updated><title type='text'>This topic was GG's idea, and it was a good one.....</title><content type='html'>Last night I read Greengirls latest post.  In case you haven't read it, it's here: http://greengirl-whatiwonder.blogspot.com/2010/07/from-island-of-misfit-girls.html.  In sum it basically discusses how she feels about never fitting in even as a kid, and how that affects her sometimes.  I had a really strong reaction to the comments that had been offered by the time I read the post.  I was a bit taken aback at the attitudes expressed in the comments, and that's what has motivated me to write this tonight.  It’s important to remember that the views expressed here are mine and Greengirl will get them just as the rest of you do, when (And that’s IF) she even reads this blog.  The views are mine, whatever you think of them.  Please remember that.  And Greengirl, I know I never asked but thanks for letting me crib your notes.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I thought I shared the pain of what GG was describing until I read the comments.  But the comments seemed to me to just minimize the things that were described.  The impact of them on a person.  Advice saying just ignore the other folks and do what you do, just be yourself, just be happy.  These types of statements fail to acknowledge the real struggle that living out of sync with the entire world can be.  One doesn’t just CHOOSE to be fulfilled, one needs to be in an environment where they actually ARE fulfilled so they can feel it.  My question is simply this; Where in all the great wide world are the other people like me?  I want to meet other people like myself.  When you leave the vanilla world for the world of misfits and edgeplayers, and you realize you don't fit into the misfits' world either, where do you go for companionship?  Where do you go so you can NOT feel like the weird one, at least for a little while?  Where can you go so that you can be truly comfortable "Being yourself" with absolutely no lingering feeling of a potential need for defensiveness?  In these circumstances, where can you expect to truly be allowed to completely "Be yourself"?  I don't know.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I’m an intelligent, articulate, fairly tolerant guy and I find that often people I meet come to like me.  But I never seem to meet people that ARE like me.  People that feel just what I feel and think just what I think.   I enjoy meeting people with ideas that complement mine, but isn’t it possible that somehow, somewhere there are a few people whose ideas MIRROR mine?  Again, I only speak for myself, but it occasionally feels like I’m the stranger in a strange land, unlike anyone else I will ever meet.  Unable to make myself truly understood by the world at large because my ideas are just a little too foreign and just a little too different to ever be completely accepted.  Different in subtle ways maybe, but so deeply different that there is no overcoming it.  It’s like dealing with a constant case of culture shock.  You are always a little on guard.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The comments seemed to either not understand that fact, or just not consider it.  When I hear a group discussing “TTWD”, in my ears that rings a bit hollow because the closest thing to a “We” I find in the life is the group made up of my Ladies and I.  I hear these kinds of statements and I think “Who’s this WE I keep hearing about?  Where is this wonderful group?”  Because it feels a lot like my Ladies and I are out here all alone, even among friends.  And what that means is, it gets lonely.  You don’t just ignore that and find joy and happiness in life.  It leaves a hole that sometimes is noticeable.  A hole I for one would like to fill, if only I could find what I need to do it.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So, GG, assuming I understood your post correctly let me say I understand how you feel.  I enjoy my uniqueness and individuality, as I think you enjoy yours.  But I sometimes long for the anonymity that can be found in being just another face in a very like-minded crowd, and the comfort of knowing I'm with a group of people among whom nothing I do or believe will be challenged, or questioned, or seem out of place or the least little bit shocking.  A place where there is no unique aspect of my day-to-day life to steal attention from whatever topic I am discussing.  I want to brag about my Ladies talents without the basic nature of our relationship becoming the center of attention, and I want everyone in the room to see their spectacular magnificence without any chance of our everyday lives being a distraction to it.  Sometimes I feel the absence of the existence of such a place very keenly.  When I do I know intellectually that it's a passing feeling and everything is really all right, but there really is no way to just shrug that feeling off.  It's a terribly uncomfortable feeling and it can be very persistent.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When I attempt to discuss that feeling, or see someone else attempting to, and I then see several opinions that "What others think doesn't matter, just shake it off", my feelings of being different are actually increased, because once again, I seem to be the only one not in sync.  Once again I'm the one that doesn't seem to fit in.  Ironic, isn't it?&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-4330963158371478799?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/4330963158371478799'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/4330963158371478799'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/07/this-topic-was-ggs-idea-and-it-was-good.html' title='This topic was GG&apos;s idea, and it was a good one.....'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-5303280505348192722</id><published>2010-07-28T21:29:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-07-28T22:01:11.005-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Captain's Personal Log; Stardate07282010</title><content type='html'>I think I've gained another smidgen of understanding into masochists, and therefore my Ladies as well.  It's been a long day and I was tired when I got home.  One Lady likes a fire in the pit out back, and I built her one even though it was late and had rained earlier.  Wet wood isn't eager to burn, but I got it to do so.  In the process I blistered and cut my hands a little.  Lady 2 feels spoiled by virtue of having her coffee made in the morning.  We have a machine that does it automatically.  But tonight we are out of the usual bottled water, and I hate to use our tap stuff.  So even though it was well after 11 and I get up early for work, off I went to the store.  While there I noticed a guy looking at me, especially my hand.  It was then I realized I was splitting wood and building the fire, then ran to the store, so I am dirty, smell like smoke, and this guy is staring at my hand because it's slowly dripping blood.  It didn't really hurt, but it was bleeding.  Intellectually I knew he was thinking I should be embarrassed.  But the reality is I felt arrogant, cocky, even defiant.  I felt like saying "Yes, my women are sitting in front of a crackling fire despite the earlier rain and the wet wood.  They are enjoying that while yours is not because I bent a force of nature to my will for no other reason than I wanted it to be so.  I will have coffee in the morning because I simply won't allow circumstances to decide otherwise for my Ladies.  I wanted to tell this guy to his face that my Ladies were better off than whoever he happened to be with because I was stronger than him, and he couldn't have hacked it.  I didn't of course, but it was really a powerful feeling.  I don't plan on changing my life over this, but I think I get my partners better tonight than I did last night, and that's good.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-5303280505348192722?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/5303280505348192722'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/5303280505348192722'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/07/captains-personal-log-stardate07282010.html' title='Captain&apos;s Personal Log; Stardate07282010'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-8137544431653823282</id><published>2010-07-17T21:07:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-07-17T21:36:40.660-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Captain's Personal Log: Stardate 07172010</title><content type='html'>Life's been pretty good these last few days.  I've had to sell all but one of my motorcycles, but I've gotten the last remaining bike out of storage and on the road and I've put in almost 200 miles in the last three days.  I'm getting the budget back under control, and we've all agreed we want to re-establish the authority levels we used to enjoy before the storm I've mentioned began.  But there's always a catch.  One of my Ladies has a cousin that has been very ill and is not expected to last much longer.  The Lady has gone to visit the cousin hoping to bring her some comfort.  This means Fairlady 2 and I will be alone together, which for some reason invariably leads to a fight.  I really don't know why, but it seems that every time she and I are in the "Traditional couple" roles, she get's nitpicky and naggy.  It happened again, and I confess I shouldn't have been surprised but I was caught off guard.  This time though I handled it differently.  The complaint this time around had to do with the house not being kept to her satisfaction.  This time I decided not to bother with logical arguments as to why I'd arranged things as they were.  I just reorganized things so as to meet her newly expressed desires.  Unfortunately this involves her being assigned a couple of tasks she really finds unpleasant, but when she pointed this out I responded that her sister and I had both had a shot at those particular chores prior to this, and clearly we couldn't manage them, so she'll just have to do it herself.  I also listed several things as far as outdoor chores I handle that were not even mentioned in her list-of-things-we need-to-do-better just to show the time and energy put forth, and reminded her that I also decide the menu for dinner at home, do the shopping for the most part, and all the cooking.  Oh, and by the way, even with the destruction wrought to my business by the storm, I still make about the same amount she does, so I think I'm pulling my weight.  It's not like I'm sitting on my ass all day.  So, we'll see how this goes.  Either she'll decide her standards were too high and shut up about it, or I'll have an even cleaner house starting next week.  Either way I win, and there was no fight.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-8137544431653823282?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8137544431653823282'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8137544431653823282'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/07/captains-personal-log-stardate-07172010.html' title='Captain&apos;s Personal Log: Stardate 07172010'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-3938762718166294293</id><published>2010-07-17T20:37:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-07-17T20:49:02.706-07:00</updated><title type='text'>An Experiment...</title><content type='html'>My intentions for this blog have changed quite a bit since it's inception.  Part of that has been talking to folks I know, and part has been reading the blogs I either don't know at all or know only virtually.  I've gotten quite a bit out of the blogs that are near-daily diary's, and recently I was told both that I need to put myself first more often and that I should try putting things in writing as a means of "Venting" that would have little or no actual consequence.  SO, immediately following this I'll be posting the first (And fair warning, possibly last) diary style post.  In order to differentiate these from the more typical commentary post I've decided to steal a page from one of my favorite TV series (You have to guess which one) and label them "Captain's Personal Log" with a date.  I thought of making a second blog, but life's too complicated as it is, so I decided to "Put myself first" and leave the task of sorting between them to the reader.  On the upside it's one less blog for you guys to manage as well.  Thanks for being out there.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-3938762718166294293?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3938762718166294293'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3938762718166294293'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/07/experiment.html' title='An Experiment...'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-4918953395928327255</id><published>2010-07-09T15:35:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-07-09T15:51:02.490-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The reports of my demise are greatly exagerated (Which is sure to be a great disappointment to some...)</title><content type='html'>I know, I know, it's been quite some time since I've written anything here.  In fact I've not even visited to read others blogs much actually.  I've been dealing with some things here in real life that were taking precedence.  It has to do with that storm of shit and razorblades I've mentioned a couple of times.  We have won a significant battle on that front and that's a positive thing, but the cost of what has been inflicted on us has recently been underscored as well, and I think things will never be what they were again.   However, the war is not over so at this point I can't tell you any more.  I intend at this point to come back to the blog as I am able.  I've not decided on a direction yet.  I might change everything or nothing.  I'm sure I will continue to be a moody, opinionated bastard, so for better or worse don't expect anything different on that score.  I just wanted to let everyone know I was still alive and pushing back, the Ladies are still loyal to the core, and posts will begin to flow again soon.  Take care all.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-4918953395928327255?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/4918953395928327255'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/4918953395928327255'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/07/reports-of-my-demise-are-greatly.html' title='The reports of my demise are greatly exagerated (Which is sure to be a great disappointment to some...)'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-4754385101840635370</id><published>2010-05-12T07:58:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-07-14T15:57:02.641-07:00</updated><title type='text'>As the blog name says..........</title><content type='html'>I'm tired today.  Not physically tired(Well, that too, but that's not the point).  I'm sick and tired of being told we are odd in some way.  I mean, exactly who isn't?  Anyone know a long-term married couple that are ecstatically happy to be together?  Because I know exactly one.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Granted, we live in a consensual triad, and that's unusual.  On the other hand, there's the "Couple" (I guess that's still the correct terminology since they cohabitate) near us (All to near honestly)who have been divorced 25 years, but still live in the same house.  They still argue, he still drinks and pretty much everyone around here thinks she's a bitch, although most of them humor her antics, I suppose because they think that's easier.  They still argue a whole damned lot, quite often outside where the neighbors have to hear it.  As far as I can tell the house has been effectively divided into individual territory, and he has a small apartment in one corner, though he's usually in the garage.  He get's home after work and walks straight5 to the garage, and doesn't enter the house until midnight or 1 a.m. after she's gone to bed.  His friends come to visit him out in the garage. Isn't that weird?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There's the woman down the street who I thought was single all these years.  I was told by someone that would know recently that she's married, but the husband is rarely home.  Hey, I can promise you he's only been home maybe three hours in the last three or four years, because from where I live I could tell if he was.  Having met the wife, I can't blame the husband for always finding somewhere else to be other than home, but it still seems weird to me.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There's the guy I work with that speaks as if he despises the person on the phone with him, and wants that prson to know it from his tone and demeanor.  He only speaks that way to one person as far as I can tell, normally he's pretty polite.  I asked one day who it was on the phone.  "My wife" he says.  I just said "Oh", and moved on, but later I asked another co-worker if it was his ex after a bad divorced.  "No, they're still married, why?" was the reply.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Oh, no reason.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Weird.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There's the guy I knew who wouldn't keep a girlfriend for 7 years, because that makes her a common law wife.  I found this out when he mentioned one day he needed to break up with his current, whom prior to this he had seemed extremely happy to be with.  They were one of the most happy and contented couples I knew from what I could see.  Certainly she was attentive and very flirty with him, and she was smart and good looking to boot.  I'd thought he was kidding, but three weeks later she was gone, moved out.   Turns out he actually does have this personal rule that after 6 years he has six months to end a relationship, so that he doesn't end up "Married".  According to his sister, the girl I met was the third to suffer this fate.  Three perfectly happy relationships tossed away.  Weird I tell you.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When I was in the military I knew a couple who had a rule that said if one spouse was more than 200 miles from home, they were allowed to "act single".  The oddest part of this relationship to me was that the partner at home was never to know what the partner away had done.  It was never to be discussed.  I would want to know.  Not because I'd be jealous or forbid it, but just in case that fling ever happened back into our lives.  Life is funny and people happen to bump into you 30 years later more often than one would think.  That could get really weird!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And of course there are the more typical relationships.  Married but playing on the side, lying about it to the spouse and giggling over that fact with friends.  Guys on the "Down Low", women with friends they "Are comfortable" with.  Friends in both cases that the spouse doesn't know about.  All that lying and sneaking seems weird to me.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In fact, it strikes me as ironic that I personally know of exactly one stereotypically "Good" marriage, one relationship where the man and woman never married but were dedicated and loving for 35 years until death parted them,  one marriage in which the couple screams, yells, throws things, kicks holes in the walls and then makes up, one couple who divorced but never separated.  I know two gay couples (One m/m, and one f/f) that are several years old and seem to be working well still, and I know of one situation where the woman and her first husband divorced, she remarried, and she lives now quite happily and peacefully with her ex and her current in their home.  I don't know the sexual dynamics there, and shouldn't since who sleeps with who is none of my business in any relationship not my own, but look!  A consensual triad that isn't ours!  That makes two!!  That means we are part of a larger whole.  That means that in my experience the relationships that are most common are gay relationships and consensual triads like mine.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I know, right!?  That is so &lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;weird&lt;/span&gt;!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-4754385101840635370?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/4754385101840635370'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/4754385101840635370'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/05/as-blog-name-says.html' title='As the blog name says..........'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-1909109504785843113</id><published>2010-04-29T17:11:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2010-04-29T17:18:27.777-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Actually this is typical of me...</title><content type='html'>I was reading along, posts and comments, when I saw this sentence.  Now this post has nothing to do with that comment or that post.  In fact this sentence isn't really critical to the meaning of the comment or related to the post that was being commented on.  But occasionally I will be calmly trotting through my day, and I will see or hear something that might as well be highlighted and hanging in the air as if it is in a movie because it is so blatantly true, and to my way of thinking covers so many different areas and situations.  Here's the sentence I saw...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"I know it's semantics, except it's somehow important."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Yes indeedy.  If only more people would recognize that simple fact, and a whole lot more often.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Because this post isn't a comment on that comment or the post being commented on I have not identified the person originally making this statement.  But if that person would like me to I certainly will.  Thank you all, and goodnight.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-1909109504785843113?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1909109504785843113'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1909109504785843113'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/04/actually-this-is-typical-of-me.html' title='Actually this is typical of me...'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-5239638501714901746</id><published>2010-04-25T21:16:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-04-25T21:53:24.010-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Again, short and to the point</title><content type='html'>So, I've had a long day, I'm exhausted, and after a nights rest I might think what I'm about to write is disjointed and nonsensical, but I just had the chance to sign on and I immediately ran into the announcement of the Boobquake event.  In case you haven't heard it seems some Iranian cleric claims all earthquakes are the result of immodestly dressed women and the promiscuity they engage in.  In response a woman named Jen McCreight offered the idea of all women everywhere dressing immodestly all at once tomorrow to test the theory.  By Islamic standards as I understand things, "Immodest" ought to accidentally cover almost every female over the age of 3 months in the Western world as well as those naked savages in the third world countries, many of whom don't bother to cover their breasts at all according to National Geographic.  I thought this was an excellent response to such an ignorant proclamation, but some of the criticism I think might actually be more stupid than the clerics original statement.   &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Most prominently, a clearly written, calmly made, well reasoned (As far as it went) response by a self described feminist who complained that this was exactly the opposite of Feminism, and that feminists should realize the oversexualization of women was what feminism was fighting. Therefore women baring their breasts for this cause was anti-feminism.  She insinuates strongly that the men supporting this cause are engaging in "Show me your tits" behaviour, which is only typical and par for the course in these situations.  She also pointed out that women should be able to wear whatever they want and be completely safe from male sexual advances in her complaint.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So let me get this straight.  First off, Miss McCreight suggested SHE would show some cleavage, and others should dress in a fashion considered immodest BY THEMSELVES.  So if a knee length skirt is racy to you, feel free to stop there.  When did bare breasts become involved, and why was it a womans idea if it's the men with one track minds?  No one was showing her tits until the feminist cried out!  Next let's consider this.  The Feminist positon is that a woman ought to be able to wear a thong bottom and nothing else while sunbathing and expect to be free of any male advance, and in order to support that ideal when faced with obviously sexist stupidity they should then respond by covering up as much as possible?  Is it just me that sees that as being somewhat contradictory?  If Feminism supports the idea that a woman should be free to dress as she wants without fear of inappropriate reaction, why is tomorrow suddenly subject to different rules?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;There's more, but I'm tired.  I'm tired of the blatant stupidity, the constant male bashing, and how completely acceptable it is.  I'm going to go to bed now, and maybe there will be an earthquake while I sleep that will take out some of the stupid people.  One can hope.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-5239638501714901746?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/5239638501714901746'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/5239638501714901746'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/04/again-short-and-to-point.html' title='Again, short and to the point'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-1835154824118650554</id><published>2010-04-22T08:13:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2010-04-22T08:37:43.537-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Just a quickie.....</title><content type='html'>I was reading through the various blogs I follow, and a topic was broached that breaks down to the idea that those involved in "TTWD" have some obligation to help newbies.  On it's face this seems like a fine, communal, utopian ideal.  In practice it's just plain moronic in my opinion.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The fact is, we are speaking of the most intimate parts of ourselves when we speak of our desires, hopes, and beliefs.  These are things I have discovered to be both highly personal and potentially extremely controversial with the power to do real and serious harm if they are used against you.  That being the case, let me put forth my opinion that the first duty of any person is to their families, then themselves, and if there is anything left over that can be conveniently and safely offered then it is a choice whether or not to help others.  You have no duty to another person to help them find themselves.  Certainly not just because they claim to share an interest with you in some alternative lifestyle.  It's wonderful to find like-minded people, but you have no obligation to trust them with your most private and personal thoughts and feelings.  This goes for people that were friends prior to discovering their newly found interest as well, and in my opinion doubly so.  A stranger may decide they aren't as enamored with a specific lifestyle as they expected to be and just leave, but a "Friend" will try to "Save" you from your "Mistake".  So to those of you that feel pressured to share your experience one on one, just understand the risks.  The consequences could harm you, harm your family(including your children) and destroy the relationship and life you've built.  Don't allow some guilt trip to push you into a risky decision.  Don't assume that because you would have valued and honored a mentor when you were coming up, that anyone you offer your knowledge to now will respect you for it.  You are placing yourself at serious risk every time you extend that hand.  Don't do it without thinking it through.  You may well come to regret offering that kindness more than any other decision you ever make in life.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-1835154824118650554?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1835154824118650554'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1835154824118650554'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/04/just-quickie.html' title='Just a quickie.....'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-9028854356708694350</id><published>2010-03-31T20:10:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-03-31T20:29:49.505-07:00</updated><title type='text'>The difference.</title><content type='html'>Sometimes I see a statement and I just have to wonder how the vision gets so far from the verifiable reality.  I have now seen it claimed that what defines a slave is that she is motivated by a dedication to her master that is far more intense than a submissive experiences.  How does one even get to that point B from the point A of defining the term slave?!  Here's the truth, slaves are motivated by fear.  They may even enjoy their masters discomfort when it occurs, so long as they aren't the one punished for it.  A slave fears her master.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A submissive is the one that is motivated by dedication.  She is the one that feels affection and love for her master, dominant, partner, whatever she might call him.  It never occurs to her to fear her master, though she might fear for him, because she knows he will sacrifice himself before he allows any harm to touch her.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Sometimes I just can not fathom what these people see when they look at a relationship like mine.  Do they really think it is anything like theirs?  Do they really believe decades of love arose from fear?  Is it conceivible in their world that the dedication, loyalty, and support openly displayed by each of us for the others is anything related to fear?  And if so, HOW?  Do you suppose these people have any inkling how insulting and derisive their attitudes are to people like my Ladies and I?  Probably not, but one wonders how that manages to elude them.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And once more I ask, WHAT THE.........?&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-9028854356708694350?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/9028854356708694350'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/9028854356708694350'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/difference.html' title='The difference.'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-7357816317091576930</id><published>2010-03-25T22:30:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-03-26T17:59:13.621-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Another problem not being D/s solves.....</title><content type='html'>Those who've read this blog for long at all will know I do not refer to myself as being part of "D/s".  I am both disappointed and disgusted with what is now passed off as D/s, and I have no desire to misrepresent what I do by referring to it by that term and risking someone mistaking me for one of the pop-culture "Masters" parading around, falls of their overpriced, boutique provided flogger dangling from their rear pocket like some kind of badge of office.  I also don't call my Ladies slaves, and in fact we never used the term.  My Ladies are submissive.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;My problem of late has been with the term slave, because so many seem so proud to call themselves that, and they so completely aren't.  Now frankly, this post is not in response to the others I've seen in the last couple of days broaching this exact topic, but has been sitting in my drafts box for quite some time.  I pull it out, work on it a bit, and then real life intrudes so I put it away again.  However, I confess, the recent posts-at-large have motivated me to get the damned thing finished already.  One of the reasons I have taken so long to post it is simply, I can't think of a polite way to put this.  But, as is so often the case, that is because I insist on a greater level of reality than most.  I use terms intending their meaning to be exactly what they have meant for the last 100 years, and I tend to stay away from slang and variants in meaning.  When I say a thing is (Insert negative term here) it isn't to hurt feelings or insult an individual, it's because I mean what I said.  So for instance, if I say something is a "Dumb" thing to do, I don't mean, "Gee, you are a real idiot".  I mean it was an action "Lacking in intelligence and good judgement".  By the same token, when I say slave, I mean "a person who is the property of and wholly subject to another; a bond servant.  A person entirely under the domination of some influence or person".  This in no way describes someone living as the consentual submissive partner in the context of a D/s relationship.  Unless of course one is willing to allow an extreme amount of lattitude in one's meanings.   &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I've never quite gotten the whole rabid apeal of the "Slave" thing.  Mainly because, in a lifestyle that purports to be based foundationally on consent, there is quite simply no way for there to be any level of "Slavery".  Everyone is capable of leaving if they want to make the choice.  As soon as they are physically held captive against their will, the consent rule is broken and they are no longer acting within a D/s relationship.  The fact that it looks similar does not make it the same thing.  Further, what's the soul wrenching appeal of claiming you are a slave, especially since those that proclaim it the loudest seem to be the ones that enact the most limits and have the most rules for their "Masters"?  You are consentual submissives, what's the shame? No one has insulted my Ladies (At least lately) by insinuating they are somehow less because they do not refer to themselves as "Slaves"  Which is just as well, because I don't get too goggle eyed over someone claiming they are a "Slave" anyway.  I mean, if that's the fantasy you want to live, so be it, but don't think I have some obligation to jump down that particular rabbit hole with you. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I actually spent some time looking into this, because I have been repeatedly told that there were slaves with rights in the past.  In fact, not really.  At least no rights that weren't granted by the master himself at his whim, and could be removed just as easily.  The closest thing I can find (And I note the irony) is Islamic Sharia law, which stated slaves were "...your brothers whom Allah placed under your hands. Feed them with what you eat, clothe them with what you wear and do not impose duties upon them which will overcome them. If you so impose duties, then assist them. Whoever kills his slave, we will kill him. Whoever slaps his slave or strikes him, his atonement is to free him".  Over the course of ages, it apparently became an accepted understanding within Islam that the natural condition of man was to be free, or so I read.  Actually I could not verify this statement is actually in the Koran.  However, I admit I am not Muslim, do not own a Koran, and have only the internet to lean on for this research.  It may be there, or it might not be.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Everything else I found, from current trafficked sex slaves, to the slave trade in the U.S. in the 1800's, to the Greeks, to the Romans states that the person held as a legal slave is chattel property without rights by law.  If there is no law recognizing that lack of any rights, then they are illegally held slaves that the law would free if they were found.  People with rights were indentured (a contract by which a person, as an apprentice, is bound to service) not enslaved.  These people were held for their labor by virtue of a debt.  Often these people understood the terms of these agreements and entered servitude for a preset term of years immediately the loan had been made and the moneys transferred.  At the end of the term they were free to leave.  It was illegal to hold them longer, and the law would have protected them if they were not freed.  Any investigation into Indentured Servants will show this.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;European serfs were held by the master of the land, and were forced to work it on his terms and at his whim.  However, they were not slaves, because they could not be bought and sold.  If the Lord of the manor sold his property, the serfs stayed with the land.  They could not be legally forced off, and their families could not be split up and sold off.  If they could somehow manage to save enough, they could buy their freedom at any time.  Peasants were legally capable of leaving if they wished to go live elsewhere.  Of course, in the Middle Ages, there were very few options concerning where to go, but they did have the legal right, useless as it was.  You can verify these things by investigating The Manorial System"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Roman gladiators were slaves, because they had no right to make their own choices. Most of these were criminals sentenced to the arena, their only hope for freedom being to survive for three to five years, at which time they were normally freed.  Criminals convicted of capitol crimes such as murder were regularly sent into the arena unarmed, a virtual death sentence.  A slave could be purchased and made a gladiator, but obviously no question he was a slave.  He fought to survive, or he would be (And legally could be) executed.  Finally, some free men chose to become gladiators.  Here we find the closest thing to consentual slaves I've come acrossed.  But slaves they became, because in order to become a Gladiator they had to take an oath in which they agreed that they would submit to a) being branded; b) being chained; c) being killed by an iron weapon; d) to pay for the food and drink they received with their blood; and d) to suffer things even if they did not wish to.  I reiterate that they were required to agree to being killed.  REQUIRED, or they were rejected.  This constituted an official renunciation of their citizenship of Rome and all the social benefits that citizenship provided.  This at a time when a traveling citizen was literally kept safe simply by proclaiming himself a citizen of Rome, because an attack on a single Roman could be seen as an attack on the Empire with dire consequences.  Free men who entered the games by volunteering to fight for a wealthy sponsor understood that the sponsor would then legally own them for a term of years.  The gladiator was then trained at the owners pace, and if that training killed him, no punishment would be offered that owner.  If the gladiator did not fight well for his sponsor, that sponsor could order his execution with complete immunity, and in fact would be considered weak and lose societal respect if a gladiator that regularly lost his matches were allowed to live.  When given the thumbs down sign, a gladiator was expected to kneel and lift his head to his opponent, so that the sword could be thrust directly through his throat and into his heart.  This provided a relatively quick and painless death, at least by the standards of the time.  And yet these men were well respected and honored.  But they did not have any rights.  Any search for the conditions of Roman Gladiators should be able to verify what I've said here.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In Greece, slaves were often abandoned babies saved from death by being taken into a wealthy home as a slave, or were the children of slaves born into slavery.  They were assigned their names by their owners, and required the master's permission even to use the restroom.  They were thought of as the property of their masters and were not recognized as citizens of Greece.  A search on Roman slavery can verify this from many sources.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I could go on and on here, but I think you see my point.  Slaves are people with no rights at all.  They may have had some level of protection in a society, but not rights.  And when they did have protections, they were the protections offered any private property by that society.  A chariot, a horse, a water jug.  A sponsor could order his own gladiators death with complete impunity and for no reason, but if his owned man cheated and injured or killed a competitor, the owner of the cheat might be punished by society.  Not for murder, only for destruction of private property.  And the consequences to the cheat himself were completely up to the owner.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Within the context of D/s, supposedly the worst possible act is to engage in some activity without consent, in other words, against the partners will.  This requires the partners consent prior to any activity being engaged in.  This requirement of consent absolutely precludes any potential for actual slavery to occur.  So if folks out there want to proclaim themselves slave, certainly I will keep my mouth shut and let you play with your fantasies.  But don't push things.  Because when you get right down to it anyone insisting they are a slave involved in a D/s lifestyle is making a statement that is both contradictory and ignorant, and I'm prone to telling the truth even if that offends some people.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-7357816317091576930?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7357816317091576930'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7357816317091576930'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/another-problem-not-being-ds-solves_25.html' title='Another problem not being D/s solves.....'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-1643860974368983019</id><published>2010-03-23T19:05:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-03-24T15:24:01.696-07:00</updated><title type='text'>That's sweet but..............</title><content type='html'>Normally I wouldn't tell you this, but for the moment it is part of the context.  So FYI, I'm ill.  I wasn't feeling poorly yesterday morning really.  I've had a bit of a tickle for the last few days but nothing serious.  Why is this important you ask?  I'll tell you.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Yesterday morning I had to literally push one of the Ladies from the bed, and I waited until the last possible moment because I was enjoying her presence.  That being the case, I said "Don't make the bed, I'll do it today".  Then the day hit me.  I planned to go to work and then come home, get some chores done, and just move through the day.  But one of the chores turned out to be a much larger fight than I'd planned, so I was a bit behind schedule and pretty soon it was 8:30.  By then I was running a fever and feeling pretty piss poor.  I had taken a bath, planning to get to the bed-making after, and without thinking downed some Nyquill (The nighttime sniffling sneezing sleep-on-the-bathroom-floor medicine.  At least for me, this stuff works).  As soon as I swallowed it I realized my clock was ticking, so I headed into the bedroom and started to sling the sheets over the bed.  My Lady must have seen me, because the first sheet was still hanging in the air when she entered and proclaimed she'd do that.  "No, you won't" I said.  (I did allow her to help, that wasn't precluded by my statement)  But here's the thing, I said I'd do it.  I was sick just isn't relevant.  I said I'd do it.  I hadn't forgotten, I just hadn't gotten there yet.  She wasn't waiting on me.  And yes it was sweet of her to forget my statement, but I hadn't.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This post is the result of someone telling me that seems a little silly to them, after all, I was sick.  It wasn't like I was breaking my promise or anything.  But the fact is, it's EXACTLY like I'm breaking my promise, because essentially I am.  Granted, I will allow there might need to be exceptions made on the rare occasion, but this wasn't one of them.  I am not that sick.  And that's one of the things I'm so disappointed about and tired of these days, is that just about everyone, even people that walk around talking honor and chivalry and so on, are completely blase' about blowing off a commitment.  Late for work?  What's the big deal?  The company won't go under.  No showed for a dinner date?  Big deal!  It's a free country, right?  Didn't provide proper after-care?  So what?  She's a big girl, she ought to be able to take care of herself.  Left an obvious bruise where coworkers can see which directly contradicts her limits and concerns she'd expressed?  Give me a break, it was an accident.  No one's perfect, O.K.?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;No, it's not O.K.  There needs to be some concern there.  And while I know my pushing myself as hard as I do sometimes irritates my Ladies, I also know that when they hear of a sub who was "Accidentally" caused some major issue and not offered so much as an apology, much less any help dealing with it they are grateful for the way I think.  I know when they show up for work and there's some major issue with one of their projects because a coworker "Overslept" AGAIN despite knowing about the all important meeting that morning, they understand why I feel as I do.  And I know when they realize they are in need of help themselves, the can find comfort in the fact that I will absolutely be there for them, because that's just how it should be.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-1643860974368983019?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1643860974368983019'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1643860974368983019'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/thats-sweet-but.html' title='That&apos;s sweet but..............'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-6704374209301343549</id><published>2010-03-20T19:11:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2010-04-04T13:23:46.114-07:00</updated><title type='text'>R E S P E C T.  Find out what it means to me..... OR, A post motivated by Aretha</title><content type='html'>I've been thinking about the many times I've been approached by someone and told one or both of my Ladies have misbehaved in some fashion, or didn't behave as "Slaves" or "Submissives".  The irony is I've also on a regular basis gotten comments on how perfectly they've behaved, and how submissive they are.  I suppose it does seem an odd paradox at first, but the reality is actually very simple.  They choose to obey.  They are never forced to.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I've never really found a need for formal, intentional punishments.  Successful relationships aren't based on punishment and reward, they are based on mutual respect and in adopting the role within the relationship you want to fulfill.  That said, I've never pussy-footed around about whether I was satisfied with a specific behaviour or not.  I can clearly remember having one of the Ladies approach me after the other had made a pretty glaring error and been told I wanted the task completely redone.  I wasn't cruel, or rude, or even angry.  This was an unusual situation, I didn't feel the failure was intentional, and I didn't assign any punishment other than doing the task correctly and never intended to.  I also was not at all flexible.  It wasn't good enough, it wasn't right, and it needed to be redone.  This failure and my recognition of it left the Lady that had made the mistake a little depressed.  Her sister seemed to think I should feel badly about that and cut her some slack.  My response was "She let me down, she SHOULD be upset.  If I'd let her down, I'D be upset.  Isn't that how it's supposed to be?"  I'm not certain she agreed, but no more was said.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Another time, the sister had not met the standard.  This was pretty early in our relationship, and she basically said she felt it didn't matter how hard she tried, that nothing she did was ever good enough, so maybe she should just leave.  My response was to point out to her that in our case "Good enough" had clearly been defined before she started.  The standards had not wavered at all.  They had not changed in any way.  In this specific instance I had repeated what I expected to her three times.  She had agreed to do it each time.  She had not gotten it correctly done.  I told her if she wanted to leave, that was certainly her prerogative, but I wasn't going to coddle her by pretending she had met the standard when she hadn't, and I wasn't lowering my standard.  Obviously since we're still together she tried again, and this time succeeded.  She's even come to me since and thanked me for being so hard on her in the beginning, because now she realizes she was capable of better, and just not willing to put in the effort until I insisted.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In fact they are each tough, brilliant, dedicated, loving, and loyal to the core.  When I get a complaint about the behaviour of either of them, I usually listen.  But the truth is it's usually a matter of some individual that doesn't even know us trying to apply his standards to the Ladies, and expecting I'll simply agree either as a courtesy or because it's some version of a standard within a style we don't adhere to (Think Gorean, for just one example).  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The reality is that if the Ladies don't respect someone in fact, they aren't going to respect that person in action.  And if that person thinks I will simply "Order" them to pretend to respect them, or to aquiesce to them out of respect for me, or some supposed D/s "Tradition", or some other silly, intangible, fantasy reason then they are in for a rude awakening.  Further, trying to manipulate me into forcing the Ladies to do something just to prove I can is only going to result in me losing all respect for that person as well.  Now the Ladies don't respect the complaining party, and I don't either.    &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In fact I'm quite certain the Ladies would do any number of degrading, debasing things, either sexual or not, to please me if I asked them to.  But the thing is, I value and respect them far far far too much to play such a silly, moronic game.  I simply get absolutely nothing out of that kind of activity in "Real life", and very little in "Scene play" situations.  Now in play I can kind of understand it.  I mean people like all kinds of different things.  And if the a Lady likes a particular thing, I like to do that thing to some extent just because I like to see her slipping into her happy place from what I'm doing.  But I've seen so-called "Dominants" require things just to prove their submissive would do it if ordered to.  And I've seen the submissive do it, while giving off an aura of being totally horrified by the act.  I can't fathom how that submissive has any respect for that dominant after the dominant has been so blatantly and easily manipulated into some action they otherwise wouldn't have taken, especially since the act basically gained neither party anything.  I mean I just don't get that.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To my mind it comes down to respect.  Yes, simple RESPECT for your submissive, or slave, or dirty little bitch, or whatever you call her in your personal dynamic.  My dynamic happens to involve respect for my loving partners, but even if we are discussing one of those relationships where the submissive is nothing more than a thing to be used, the dominant partner should respect that.  We should all respect even the THINGS in our lives, at least if we want them to be around for long.  I don't care if it's your dog, your classic car, or your refrgerator, if you treat it with disdain, a lack of attention, and begin to take it for granted and offer it no maintenance then that thing will immediately start to deteriorate.  It seems blatantly obvious to me that no matter what the dynamic of a relationship, mutual respect is critical to the continued success of the relationship.  I would suggest that anyone that claims to be dominant but feels respecting their submissive somehow diminishes that dominance, isn't actually dominant at all.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-6704374209301343549?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/6704374209301343549'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/6704374209301343549'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/r-e-s-p-e-c-t-find-out-what-it-means-to.html' title='R E S P E C T.  Find out what it means to me..... OR, A post motivated by Aretha'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-1191258210406186860</id><published>2010-03-19T16:43:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-03-19T17:04:25.665-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Once again I ask, what the......?</title><content type='html'>Call me crazy, but I have to say I find it odd that the person that was chewing my ass recently for refusing to accept that crap about men not wanting women as anything but a fuck toy is now looking for advice on where to get Victoria's Secret style lingerie.  I know, I'm not supposed to notice things like that if I want to fit into polite society, but things like this are exactly how I end up asking.....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What    The     Fuck?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Since it's been made clear that I am simply too dense to ever be made to understand, I've decided to simply try to be amused by the irony in these kinds of things.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-1191258210406186860?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1191258210406186860'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1191258210406186860'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/once-again-i-ask-what.html' title='Once again I ask, what the......?'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-7094095451149456875</id><published>2010-03-14T21:31:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-04-22T08:56:06.533-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Probably irrelevant, but I wanted to get it off my chest.</title><content type='html'>I wanted to clarify something about the controversial prior post entitled "A truly offensive post". It isn't that I wanted to defend (Or attack) total objectification. And it isn't that I think the public groping of unknown women should be allowed. And there's an easy line to see being crossed there, it's consent. What I objected to was the idea that enjoying a woman's charms purely on their feminine appeal was somehow patently satanically evil. That "Objectification" is simply wrong on an ethical level in any form, and that as a man if I see a woman and know nothing about her, somehow I'm some kind of low-life jerk because I think she has a nice body, and therefore I might want to meet her. Notice I haven't groped her, not even ogled her, but just thought "DAMN she's good looking, I wonder what she's like?". That simple thought process makes me some kind of monster according to the theories postulated in the original post that I was objecting to. . &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Maybe I took it personally. Certainly I have done exactly what was described. In fact, the lady Samantha that I spoke of in an earlier post was exactly that. I saw her in a lifestyle club almost wearing a sexy leather something-made-of-straps-and-nothing-else, and I decided I was going to meet her. I talked with her for about 15 minutes that night and when I left I had decided I was going to do all I could to seduce her. That led to a years-long very affectionate relationship that ended on a friendly note once it had run its course. The relationship is related in more detail in that earlier post, so I don't see the need to detail it again here, but I certainly don't regret it, and I have never had any indication she does. I still hold great affection for her. While I haven't seen her in years, if she ever should show up on my doorstep needing help I would absolutely reach out to her not just as a fellow human being that needed help, but as a woman I still care very much for on an emotional level. And yet, I blatantly decided to meet her based solely on her looks. I simply don't accept the argument made that I did anything wrong there, and I don't see who was harmed or where the evil lies. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I also object for the hypocrisy. These comments came from people whom at other times have sung the praises of exactly and specifically objectification. So apparently that type of thinking is O.K. at least part of the time, but only if the woman wants to play just then. I don't abide anyone that changes the rules as they go. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The irony is, I don't do objectification. No human furniture, no puppy play, pony girls, mummified statues as decoration, nothing even remotely like objectification really interests me. In fact, as you might be able to tell by reading the list I just wrote, I'm not even terribly clear on what qualifies as objectification and what doesn't. Nothing I've ever explored has ever been called any method of objectification. What I do know is that I adore femininity, and I adore seeing a woman when she is wanton, or when she is floating in what is usually called subspace. I presume that by now if I had any interest in something that qualified, someone, somewhere would have pointed out that the activity was considered objectification. I do not understand things like objectification, tears in play, pony and puppy play, and a dozen other things I've seen being done which seem to me to reduce the submissive partner to at best a stupid beast and at worst a mindless thing. I do though, respect others right to play as they wish so long as there is informed consent, so when I see something I don't understand or even plain don't like being consentually engaged in, I don't scream "Monster!" and then make sweeping derogatory generalizations. I just go in the other room. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I must say that I find it just plain disgusting that after having made such sweeping derogatory generalizations, no support to the idea was even offered. You know, STAND for something! Even if it's something I don't agree with or approve of, if you make a reasoned case and show me how all the parts fit, at least I'll understand it. If I can understand it, I can probably at least respect it at some level. If you can't do that, then don't expect me to go along just to be non-confrontational and easy going. Somehow I am offensive when I demand to see the logic, but it is in no way supposed to offend me that I am not allowed to question overly broad generalizations or "Folk wisdom". I don't understand that attitude and I don't respect it. And yet when I challenge it, somehow I am the bad guy, and of course THAT can't be explained either, I am just supposed to accept that I am. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I'm afraid I don't, and won't.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-7094095451149456875?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7094095451149456875'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7094095451149456875'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/probably-irrelevant-but-i-wanted-to-get.html' title='Probably irrelevant, but I wanted to get it off my chest.'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-3249643166813740082</id><published>2010-03-14T21:14:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2010-03-14T21:23:29.943-07:00</updated><title type='text'>I guess it's like that.</title><content type='html'>For those brave souls remaining, there will be a new style to the blog.  It's been made clear that no amount of explaining or instruction will ever bring my thinking into line with the accepted norm.  Therefore I no longer intend to exert any effort to understand it.  For the time being I will offer this blog for those poor lost souls that do agree with me, in order to demonstrate that they are not entirely alone.  For those of you that find this, I wish I could offer you cheerier news, but I'm afraid it's as bad as you fear.  For the rest of you, well, I harbor no ill will to you, for whatever that's worth.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-3249643166813740082?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3249643166813740082'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3249643166813740082'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/i-guess-its-like-that.html' title='I guess it&apos;s like that.'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-3894465487774686377</id><published>2010-03-13T23:47:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-03-13T23:48:55.246-08:00</updated><title type='text'>ROFLMAO</title><content type='html'>I notice I lost two followers today.  Hmmm, just after the irate post.  Hey, I told them not to read it.  Pussies.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-3894465487774686377?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/3894465487774686377/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=3894465487774686377&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3894465487774686377'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3894465487774686377'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/roflmao.html' title='ROFLMAO'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-3553168681304399133</id><published>2010-03-12T18:08:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-03-12T18:16:45.046-08:00</updated><title type='text'>A truly offensive post, PLEASE do not read this.</title><content type='html'>Jz, I have to admit I know exactly how you feel.  Not about having been the target of rack recon, but about the “I want to just scream” reaction.  Because that’s exactly how these kinds of complaints make me feel.  So let me just say "What a crock of poo"!  And for the comments to be called "Offensive, well I'll just leave it there.  Shall we discuss women's choices a bit?  And to justify the offense, I'll just speak plain.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Women are just as predictable (And every bit as shallow) as men.  For instance, back when I was trying to meet women I noticed the questions came in a pretty standard order.  1)"What's your name?"  2)"What do you do?"  Now if I was interested in keeping her attention past that second question (By then I'd gotten a good look at her body and face you see) I told her I owned a facility maintenance company.  That would keep her interest for quite a while, especially the part about how I owned it.  If I wanted to see her leave, I told her I was a janitor.  Notice, both are true (I really do have a small FM company, and part of the work is janitorial) but once the janitor came out, we were done.  How long the exit took depended solely on how polite she was.  Occasionally it took about 30 seconds.  Now I ask you, is that really so much more offensive than "I want to date you for your nice body"?  I think not.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now let's discuss the fact that women need a C I A background check before the first date.  You know what?   I don't like people all in my business like that.  Someone tell me why I would allow that.  I've been asked for my social security number by a prospective date twice (Different women) and they were "Offended" that I found that insulting.  Tough shit, you don't need to know that number, where I work, where I bank, or where I live until after we get to know one another a lot better than we do. If you don't agree, keep walking.  Here's an irony, I use the first date to decide whether I like a woman’s  personality a lot more often than if I like her tits and ass.  (Which only makes sense, since as a man I wouldn't have asked for the first date without a picture, right?)  If she fails the test, no second date tits or not.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Oh, and I LOVED this...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"A guy coming up to you and looking you in the eye and talking to you because he feels some sort of attraction to you. Introducing himself and carrying on a normal conversation while making eye contact with you (not your chest). And then after a short (or maybe a long) conversation and getting to know a little about you initially, then asking for your phone number so you can talk and get to know each other better. THEN if that goes well asking you out on a date... {Is different than} … a guy coming up to you wearing a cheezy grin while staring at your tits and saying "hey baby... how about you come to dinner with me this friday night". &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Here's some insight, the pressure is on the man in this situation.  That cheesy grin might just be nerves.  He might not be looking at your tits, he might be looking at his shoes.  No one likes to get shot down, and it happens more often than not to men looking for a date.  Here’s another point.  If I was that guy, and you'd said yes, then all that stuff you wanted to do in the hall and on the phone would have instead been done in a nice restaurant, and in person (Where you could see my emotions and responses, AND keep check on whether I'm looking at your eyes or your tits as well).  And BONUS, at this point I don't even know your last name or phone number, so if things don't go well, you're still pretty secure aren't you?  And I thought women liked that whole safety thing.  But they sure seem to bypass it as often as they can.  For the romance I guess.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And let me ask something else, anyone is invited and encouraged to chime in, but  I would especially like you, Spirited to answer this since it was you that was quoted.  In that little scenario, what was I supposed to be attracted to exactly, since it was blatantly stated that I was approaching you in order to get to know you a little.  I don't know anything about your personality, but I can't approach you because I think you're hot (Tits or whatever), so just why would I have walked up at all?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Here’s another little tidbit for the women out there.  When I ask you out to do(X), it’s because that’s something I like to do.  Let’s be blunt, you are being judged, and not on your tits.  If you don’t like what I suggest, nor the next two alternatives, then that massive rack isn’t going to be enough.  If you don’t have the guts to try something new, the tight ass in the pink spandex won’t cut it.  Don’t get me wrong, if you want to put out I’ll take it, but what you don’t know is that I’ve already judged you on your personality and Joie de vivre, and you failed.  Stop whining that I never gave you a chance or wasn’t serious.  I was, I was extremely interested and even hopeful that the person I was looking for was wrapped in your bangin’ bod.  Too bad you didn’t make the cut (After all, your body had!)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And now, for the amusement of the misogynists, and so as to justify the feminine feeling of offense, let me say the following.   I certainly hope that all the women that chimed in to the feminazi pity party are in fact under 25.  Your lack of life experience would explain a lot.  Do get back to me in ten years or so.  I realize you won’t be as taught, you might sag, and there may be a wrinkle or a scar, but there is half a chance you’ll be able to deep throat without puking and take it in the ass without crying, and that’s what I’m really looking for.  :P&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Wow, that was BETTER than scream therapy.  Hey, I warned you all in the title.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-3553168681304399133?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/3553168681304399133/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=3553168681304399133&amp;isPopup=true' title='9 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3553168681304399133'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3553168681304399133'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/truly-offensive-post-please-do-not-read.html' title='A truly offensive post, PLEASE do not read this.'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>9</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-7639169186067836648</id><published>2010-03-06T19:29:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-03-06T20:46:15.900-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Rambling</title><content type='html'>So often I seem to see things opposite to the way the world seems to see them.  Relationships are a good example.  I've often heard of a relationship that went bad and it bothers the submissive that she wasn't enough for her partner. This is especially bothersome to submissives that seem to think they somehow “failed” to be the perfect “slave”, and there are so many doms that are eager to blame them. I have to say in most cases I think the sub is right, they weren’t the perfect slave, but I don’t see the failure part. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I’ve had relationships fail before. Some called D/s and some not. They failed because we weren’t compatible enough. And sometimes it was weird things that weren’t compatible. I had a partner I'll call Samantha in a previous relationship. At the time we identified as D/s, me the dom, she the sub.  Samantha had almost all the qualities I look for in a woman. Intelligent, eager to please, bubbly and bright, self motivated, hard working, honest and I have to admit, the fact that she was a complete knock-out in the looks department was certainly a bonus. We were together for quite a while really.  I think it was over two years.  We ended for a lot of reasons. We lived in different cities. She was unemployed, getting by on modeling jobs she traveled around the state to do. My business was here in my town, and it seemed like a no brainer in my opinion that she would move to be with me, not the other way around. But she didn’t like it here. To slow a pace. I didn’t like her city either, to fast a pace. She felt we didn’t have enough sex (I know, hard to believe) but I was working 18 hour days getting my business up and running, and I thought once or twice a day when she was here was adequate. I thought she was at times incredibly naïve. People would use her and take advantage of her, hurt her and abandon her, and she would immediately forgive them and open herself to them again. I’m sure she thought I was at times a hard-hearted, insensitive prick who lacked understanding and compassion because with very few exceptions you only get the chance to screw me once. Eventually we parted amicably. I heard she married and was and is happy. I’m glad for her, she was a sweet woman and deserved happiness. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;But she wasn’t perfect for me. If you look, I purposely put my perception of her point of view with mine in the paragraph above. You might notice I wasn’t perfect for her either. That’s not my fault, and it isn’t hers. That’s just reality. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;People, you are you. Submissives are supposed to flex and bend, but they all have a core that is just inviolable. Some things are hard wired into their heads, and that’s that. Same thing with doms.  Samantha was perfectly willing to gulp down my piss, for instance.  An act I'm aware of but have never done nor had a particular desire to do.  She also amazed me once when I teased her about cutting off her fingers. I was using a power saw, and it was some smart-assed comment that was obviously BS.  But she looked at me for a minute and then said she would have to believe I was really committed for life, and then she’d consent.  The thing is, I could tell she meant it seriously. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Pardon me? &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Samantha had hair down to her thighs, and when I teased her about cutting it she got seriously pissed. THAT was a hard limit. Even discussing it was a hard limit. But fingers are negotiable? Sorry, but I like how a lady’s fingers feel wrapped around me. I have better uses for those than filleting them. The fingers stay. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On the other hand, I did choose the hairstyles both my Ladies wear. Color too. It always sort of irritated me that haircuts were a hard limit with Samantha. But the thing is, Samantha always had long hair. She was proud of her long hair. In her mind it set her apart from other women. In a way she defined herself with it. It was something that made her extra desirable, or so she thought. Certainly few women had hair like hers. Think the singer Crystal Gale. It was absolutely unique and most men’s fantasy. Honestly however, two things I learned from Samantha. Clit rings and really long hair are more trouble than they’re worth. But she was very proud of her body jewelry as well. She actually told me that touching her rings in certain ways really set her off. I don’t think she’d have cared to give that up. What she needed was a dom that enjoyed those aspects of her, rather than one who tolerated them. And what I needed was what I got. Ladies who like the fact that I make those choices for them, and who like the choices I make. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I don’t think it’s reasonable for anyone to expect another person OR themselves to be capable of being completely reinvented. You can’t inject your fantasies into her body and completely reprogram her already existing soul. And the older she is, the more things there are inside her set in stone. The more complex and rich her history, and therefore the more complex and rich the experience she offers, but only to someone sophisticated enough to appreciate it. You don’t become someone’s soul mate. You either are, or you aren’t. A dominant can make two kinds of changes to a sub. He can reveal to her parts of her very nature she had never been aware of, and he can reorganize her existing style to suit him better. All anyone can do is be honest with themselves about what they offer and what they want, and then try to find someone that fulfills their needs and wants. But you have to find that person. You can’t take a pretty package and force it to like what you want it too.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-7639169186067836648?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/7639169186067836648/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=7639169186067836648&amp;isPopup=true' title='5 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7639169186067836648'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7639169186067836648'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/03/rambling.html' title='Rambling'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>5</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-6631453349762891870</id><published>2010-02-25T21:15:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-02-25T23:12:46.672-08:00</updated><title type='text'>AN open letter post, AKA Sorry about your penis......</title><content type='html'>I think everyone that follows this blog is familiar with Mouse. If not, let me say I have never met her in person, but I've followed her blog for a bit, and within that context exchanged ideas and thoughts via the comments section and so on. I've also spoken via the WWW with her master, Omega. She seems a wonderful, submissive woman, he seems quite "real" and appears to have his head screwed on more-or-less straight, and for the most part both of them seem to be on the same wavelength as I am concerning relationships and how things should be done so I think I get them a little bit. Mouse' most recent post was about (And here I quote her) &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;" A man contacted me via email and offered his opinion on what a bad slave I am." &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now maybe this is because I have such an absolute and ironclad idea of what D/s should be (And SO is not), or maybe it's because this exact kind of thing has happened to my Ladies, or maybe I'm just a puffed up prick that doesn't understand REAL D/s. Who knows, but I feel like answering this guy. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Who in the fuck do you think you are? I know I'm taking a risk here, because I don't know anything about anything outside of Mouse' post on the topic, but I want to start with that basic question. I start there because of some basic presumptions that would have to be true for your actions to be in any way acceptable. I presume you did NOT contact Omega to ask why he allows Mouse to behave so, because if you had he would have explained things to you and you wouldn't have made such an ass of yourself. I presume you think you have enough understanding of Mouse' and Omega's relationship, not to mention a close enough personal relationship with Omega, to have a clear understanding of what Omega wants from Mouse as well as his leave to scold her on your own responsibility. I also presume you feel, and Omega agrees, that you have enough experience to be capable of instructing someone with the history and experience of Mouse. I presume that your actions do not in any way conflict with Omega's plans for Mouse and will not interfere with his achieving the goals he has for her. Of course it goes without saying that you are a personal friend of Omega's, and therefore understand perfectly what his end goal for Mouse is. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Actually, I don't presume any of that. In fact I believe you are just a limp dicked, wannabe, poser.  A (So called) "man" that would treat a sub like that is the same kind of middle aged bozo that pulls up in a red sports car with a bought and paid for companion that put her collar on in the car and will be taking it off the same way this afternon.  Thus the title of this post, because when I see guys like you that are so obviously compensating, I just want to say "Sorry about your penis"  I can't help with that, but let me offer an alternative to your world view. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I have two Ladies. They would never hesitate to tell me when something I do irritates them. Most of the time, I even alter my actions for them. I have eliminated the word "Irk" from my vocabulary because one of the Ladies disliked that word. I have modified how I handle overseeing vehicle maintenance because one Lady was uncomfortable with my simply taking the car and modifying it or having work done to it without her direct involvement. This relates to her past and a need to be physically able to leave at any time. You have to respect how her experiences in the past make her feel right now, and you won't know that if she is afraid telling you will be a disappointment somehow.  This Lady wants to know exactly when the oil is changed, when the tires are rotated, things like that.  Now me? I don't want to do that stuff.  But to be blunt, if I'm the boss that stuff is my JOB.  Back when I called myself a dominant, I told the Ladies that submissives didn't have problems, submissives have dominants. Dominants have problems, and it's the dominants responsibility to see the problems are handled. I never cared for a minute that my Lady wanted to see to her own car care. I just never would have thought that was the case. Damned good thing she felt comfortable telling me, don't you think? Hell, if she wasn't so busy with her career, I'd assign her ALL the damned care for all the cars AND the motorcycles. Shoot, I'd put her in charge of everything right down to the lawn mowers and the weed whackers. I guess I'm just weak willed and that allows her to push me around. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Call me crazy, but I have been with one of my Ladies for over 20 years. That's right, two decades. And our partner? 9 years. I know, still just the Honeymoon, but we all have a good feeling that this will last.  Just a hunch.  And the crazy thing is, I believe that this success is a direct result of the fact that they are allowed to express their feelings, and I will listen. Now don't get me wrong, occasionally I just overrule them. And yes, they respect that and accede to my wishes (Usually)if I overrule them. But over all those years one thing has become extremely obvious. If they both think I'm making a mistake, I almost certainly am whether I can see it or not. I have on more than one occasion absolutely slammed on lifes brakes because they said I should. I have learned about myself, become a better person, and found new interests all because one or both of the Ladies said she wasn't happy with some choice of mine and offered an alternative. YOU mister "My slave wouldn't even THINK such a thing" are missing an awful lot. Since your "slave" would never tell you when you're being an ass, allow me point a few things out. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I don't know who you think you are, but you aren't him. First off, I don't need you undercutting my Ladies self confidence with your posturing and blabbering. I've had guys like you undo months of confidence-building work by planting the seeds of doubt in her mind. I don't coddle them. Believe me, I don't pull my punches, even the figurative ones. If she wasn't up to par, I'd say so. My Ladies don't need to have even one percent of their brain worried about what you said or trying to reconcile that opinion with what I taught them. Unfortunately, any submissive person is vulnerable to criticism, even moronic criticism. What you need to get through your skull is, they are mine. If you feel they are dressed inappropriately, acting inappropriately, or thinking inappropriately you need to remember one thing. I could not possibly care less about your opinions but I will care if you express those opinions inappropriately. If you feel slighted or offended in some way by the Ladies, you take that up with me and you do it at your own risk. I won't be coddling you either, and you're likely going to be told to get lost. But let me be very clear, if you do take it up with them you will find I've taught them exactly where the respect line is.  They won't cross it, but it goes both ways.  If YOU cross over it by disrespecting them the way you did Mouse, you're liable to get your ass handed to you.  When that happens, do not expect me to make it all better by taking your side.  The fact that you call yourself a dominant doesn't make you one, or entitle you to the respect you could earn if you managed to act like one.  Not from them and certainly not from me.  You are free to chat with them as you wish if they agree, but you do not directly criticize them AT ALL. Because the fact is, they choose to be with me, they don't have to be. They can leave anytime they want, and I have arranged things so that they have the income and property to be capable of doing just that. Each of them is capable of being wholly independent and self-sufficient immediately. They stay because I have a code I live by that they respect and admire, and part of that code says that as long as they wear my collar I'm responsible for them. They understand what guys like you don't seem to grasp. So long as they wear that collar I might say things they feel are critical or even insulting to them, but damned sure nobody else will.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-6631453349762891870?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/6631453349762891870/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=6631453349762891870&amp;isPopup=true' title='6 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/6631453349762891870'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/6631453349762891870'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/02/open-letter-post-aka-sorry-about-your.html' title='AN open letter post, AKA Sorry about your penis......'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>6</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-8014773055872843056</id><published>2010-02-17T20:36:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-02-18T16:52:57.481-08:00</updated><title type='text'>My response to a response to my response to....wait, whose idea was this anyway?</title><content type='html'>I just finished reading Spiriteds second response to my latest blathering in response to her, and I'm still processing all that was (re) written there.  I noticed one thing absolutely screaming at me from the page, and it just boggles my mind that so many seem to not see it.  Consider this one paragraph. And fair warning, I'll be using an all caps phrase soon.  In this instance I actually would be yelling those words (Out of frustration) if I were speaking instead of typing, so it seems apt.  Here's the quote.....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;"The thing is... they had rules... it was just that the rules fit so nicely with society that you could hardly notice they were there. The rules were there for one reason and one reason alone... not to make dominants feel more dominant or submissives more submissive... they were there to protect people against someone who was intent on harming another. Those rules made sure that any predator or player would be weeded out of their community right from the start."&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Exactly!  The rules were there for one reason alone, to weed out anyone they saw as a "predator or player" right from the start.  They were there to EXCLUDE A SPECIFIC TYPE OF PERSON, and for no other reason.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;End of discussion, story finished, done deal.  No PC tolerance of others, no "It's all about what works for you" crap.  Those rules were there to exclude certain people from that group, period.  The reason they were hardly noticeable is because they represented common shared values that all those involved wanted their society to be conducted by.  I guarantee the first steely-eyed, resolute, Gorean master or hardcore, steadfast, devoted Gorean slave girl to attend would have caused all manner of disruption, because they don't want to live like the described group did.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Look, we as a group have to deal with reality.  And the reality is, we are a fringe group.  If we want to make any progress towards being open in society at large, we have to face the fact that we scare some people.  The fact that the fear is unfounded and unnecessary is irrelevant.  If we want society at large to respect us, we need to do two basic things.  We need to hold to values that prioritize safety, health, and consent.  We also need to then demonstrate the courage of our convictions to publicly decry anyone that takes the fantasy too far into reality.  No sane and healthy human being at even the most extreme levels of submission or massochism, even if they fantasize about amputation, bone breaking, actual forced slavery, being blinded, being starved (I've heard all these by the way) actually wants to experience them, though they might enjoy the fantasy.  In their attempts to live the fantasy, some folks end up at risk from those that would use their fantasies against them, or simply dont protect their partners in their own pursuit of their fantasies.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If our little counter-culture group doesn't stand up and protect it's own from those that go too far, then society will never believe they do not need to protect themselves from us.  In that event, none of us will ever be free to live as we want because society at large will never see a distinction between us and the BTK serial killer who took his initials from his motto "Bind, Torture, Kill".  They will believe we are all crazy and dangerous, and they will try to eliminate us in any way they can.  The easiest way we as a group could protect ourselves and advance our cause is to simply have rules and be loud about them so newbies, both dom and sub, would know where the limits are.  If a new dom understood he was absolutley expected to protect and care for his scene partner, even if that partnership lasts just an hour, then many fewer would take sceneing so lightly.  If more new subs were told at every turn that that is what they should expect from any dom they ever play with, no exceptions, then far fewer would end up as damaged than currently do.&lt;br /&gt;It really is just no harder than that.  And why it is made to seem so very complicated is a mystery to me.  I can only believe the "Predators and players" out there are actively promoting all this PC tolerance though, because it does nothing but enable them to continue to use and discard those that amuse them for a moment without any chance of their being any serious consequences for their actions, at least not to themselves.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-8014773055872843056?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/8014773055872843056/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=8014773055872843056&amp;isPopup=true' title='3 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8014773055872843056'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8014773055872843056'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/02/my-response-to-response-to-my-response.html' title='My response to a response to my response to....wait, whose idea was this anyway?'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>3</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-1951360480795858117</id><published>2010-02-15T20:17:00.001-08:00</published><updated>2010-02-17T20:38:34.601-08:00</updated><title type='text'>See?  It ought to just be done my way....</title><content type='html'>Saw this on Spiriteds blog (Spirited Meanderings), and it made me think to post.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;What would you do if confronted by a dom of the oppisite sex? &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;That's a very difficult question to answer in general terms. It would really depend on his intentions. I'm an owned slave and I don't have much respect for Doms who do not respect that. I also do not respect Doms who automatically think I will submit to them just because I'm submissive. To me, they are not Doms, but boys trying to pretend to be dominants.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;To dominants who approach me in a disrespectful manner, I usually as calmly as possible tell them what I think of their behavior and just walk away. If they are being respectful, though, and just want to talk or have questions they want to ask me... then I have no issues with that.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The reason I decided to post is, this type of situation is a perfect example of why "The community" needs to have specific expectations and definitions of what is done.  The reason any "Confrontation" would occur it seems to me, is because each party expects the other has their same values and expectations of one another.  Spirited seems to feel she has no duty, obligation, or expectation to offer more than minimal courtesy to a dom confronting her, something I get the sense she would offer pretty much any human.  I know another person though, that claims he is dom, is NOT Gorean, but does seem to honestly feel that women are property to be used as a man sees fit, that all women owe obeissence to a man simply based on gender, and that small tasks such as fetching drinks or food is something any woman should do at the request of pretty much any man.  Larger tasks such as sexual "Use" he would negotiate with her "Owner" and she would simply be informed of what was expected, or even simply handed over and used without any explanation.  This person was articulate, polite, and made a pretty strong argument.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I happen to think this type of person is the most dangerous to the lifestyle, since an articulate, intellectually capable fool is much harder to spot or counter than the typical shit-for-brains fool one normally stumbles over in the "Scene"You know, the guy with the flogger molded into his back pocket, falls dangling down his thigh?  But see, here's the problem, I'm guessing Spirited feels the dom-in-question is rude, arrogant, and lacks an understanding of what the lifestyle is all about.  But stop for a minute and think.  The dom almost certainly feels the same things about her.  And the reason is that neither of them can be told that their way is not the right way, because the PC Police insist "There is no right way, it's all about what works for YOU".  Except it isn't about what works for you.  Not on a lifestyle community level anyway.  It's about what works for US as that community.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Ironically, this problem is another that seems to be entirely solved by my simply not calling what we do BDSM.  Last time this happened to one of my Ladies and she told the dom where to get off, he (As would be expected I think) came to me and told me about my Ladies "Poor behaviour".  The conversation went like this....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Me:  "Don't you name yourself a dom, and one known for his experience and ability?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Him: "That's right, and I don't think you're girl's behaviour was at all acceptable"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Me, giving a shrug: "Well I'm just a vanilla guy.  Hell, if YOU can't handle her, I can't see how I can be expected to".  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He just sort of blinked at me as I walked off.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What's needed, like it or not, is some basic, inflexible rules of engagement.  Standards that are the same in Michigan and Minnesota.  Kentucky and California.  Until we get that far, there will always be these conflicts.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-1951360480795858117?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/1951360480795858117/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=1951360480795858117&amp;isPopup=true' title='3 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1951360480795858117'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1951360480795858117'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/02/see-it-ought-to-just-be-done-my-way.html' title='See?  It ought to just be done my way....'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>3</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-841260018987903846</id><published>2010-02-12T18:10:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-02-12T18:28:46.553-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Just to share...</title><content type='html'>Just wanted to share the wit of one of my Ladies.  She's reading some bodice-ripper romance novel, and in that novel there is a description which she shared with me of a gentlemen interesting to our ladyfaire main character.  I will relate the conversation as it went.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;She, reading aloud:  "She thought, too, of his tall athletic figure, his strong jaw and cleft chin, his chocolate brown eyes".&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Me, wretching slightly:  "Stop it, or I'll send you out to make dinner right now and not let you finish that chapter!  I suppose this fellow has a pecker that thumps him solidly in the chest as it rises!"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;She, all deadpan and innocent:  "Where did you suppose the cleft in his chin comes from?"    &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I just love her!!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-841260018987903846?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/841260018987903846/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=841260018987903846&amp;isPopup=true' title='3 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/841260018987903846'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/841260018987903846'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/02/just-to-share.html' title='Just to share...'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>3</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-8593881267285753552</id><published>2010-02-12T16:14:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-02-15T20:59:19.648-08:00</updated><title type='text'>There's a joke that goes like this.....</title><content type='html'>There's a joke that goes like this:  "What do you call a man with two wives?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Answer:  "Insane!"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;An aquaintance was discussing my lifestyle today, and it was clear he didn't really understand it.  It was mentioned that I don't come off as a "Dom" kind of guy in the sense that I don't flaunt my relationship with two women, I don't act all that cocky, and blah blah blah.  Something that made me laugh was when I was told I don't spout off about "My bitches" and so on.  I thought I'd write a post for those just considering trying it about how it really is going to work, so they will know what they are getting into.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;First off, if you are very lucky each woman will compromise about half of the time.  Since there are three of you and each of them is taking turns, YOU will be compromising every time.  Oh, you'll get some of what you want.  At least in one sense that's what a compromise is.  But when one lady wants to buy a new car in trade for the 17 year old beater you have, another wants the down payment money spent on new living room furniture to replace the stained and sagging stuff you've raised the kid on, and your hope was to get a little caught up on the credit cards, YOU will have no chance.  This is true because as the team lead you really only have two options.  You can disappoint one of them or you can disappoint both of them.  How many women do you want sulking and pouting for the next couple of weeks?  How many women do you want to catch heaving a patient sigh while casting longing looks at the object of their desire that you denied them.  One, or two?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Well?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Not a difficult question is it?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Further, since you are the highest authority, it is your responsibility to see to it that they are keeping their lives straight (You know, in all the spare time you have outside keeping your own life straight).  You have to make sure the cars get serviced, the household appliances are maintained, and that the driveway is passable after two feet of snow falls.  You have to be at the medical appointments so you know what's going on, at the various family functions (Where you will be at your MOST charming at all times, even when insulted, because aunt Martha already hates your living arrangements), and at every school play, ball game, and orchestra concert where you will meet the teachers and mingle with the other parents.  As family CEO, everything right down to everyone being up on time for work and school, and creating the bathroom shower schedule that can accomplish that, is ultimately your responsibility.  You won't be spending a lot of time watching the game on the big screen with one scantily-clad babe running for beers while the other kneels holding the chips and dip for you demurely.  You'll be (Do you see it coming?) slaving away.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Granted, you can stamp your foot and say "I'm the boss and we'll do it my way!" anytime you want, but you won't have a successful happy relationship.  Real women don't put up with that shit forever, and most not for long.  Some pack up and leave, others will eventually just kill themselves out of hopelessness, but they'll leave you one way or another.  And one way or the other, a woman generally leaves a mess behind for you to deal with.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So basically the reality is this.  You will work twice as hard at the relationship as any other man you know, and you will spend twice as much money doing it.  You will compromise more often, get your own way much less, and unless you have one big-ass house you will be using the bathroom only when you are allowed to.  You will have double the chance of forgetting a birthday or anniversary, in fact twice as many details of all types to keep up on.  Oh, and you will have two "Her mom"s to deal with in some fashion. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Why do it?  Well, you know that warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you overhear your current partner bragging about you to a friend?  Or when you come home from a long day and she's made your favorite meal?  Or the pride when she solo's at a task you taught her how to do?  That kind of thing?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Yeah, I get that twice as much.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Whenever anyone asks me about living this way, I quote the character Kay from the movie Men in Black, when he was asked if trading his whole life for that other one was worth it.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"Oh yeah!  It's worth it.  If you're strong enough."&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-8593881267285753552?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/8593881267285753552/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=8593881267285753552&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8593881267285753552'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8593881267285753552'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/02/theres-joke-that-goes-like-this-what-do.html' title='There&apos;s a joke that goes like this.....'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-822886118970158865</id><published>2010-02-03T19:50:00.001-08:00</published><updated>2010-02-03T19:50:54.572-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Iyam what Iyam, you be too.</title><content type='html'>So in an effort to distract myself from my real problems, I have been reading about "D/s" relationships a bit.  I've been seeing submissives talking about being "trained". They present themselves as a blank canvass or fresh clay from which the dom can make anything he desires.  They claim that all they want is a man that will make them into whatever it is that he wants, so that they can be pleasing to him.  Just for entertainment value I thought I'd post.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;First off, submissives you have the right to seek whatever will make you happy, but not the right to complain if you get it.  Far too often in my experience I have heard a woman ask for a man to make her anything he desires and then complain that he is not accepting her for who she is.  To them I say this; if you offer yourself as no more than a pretty container that can be filled with whatever he would like, you are likely to get a man that likes the color of your eyes and the length of your legs and expects he can change everything else about you.  You will be expected to cut and color your hair, maintain a certain figure, and learn to enjoy certain acts while never desiring others because that will suit his taste and your own is of no importance.  That is what he was offered, so that’s what he expects.  I grant you only one small concession, and that is that I believe the man should have ascertained more accurately what you were really offering before accepting you, and in that way it would be his fault.  But understand even there that what I am saying is that you were nothing but a poor choice to begin with because you were either not honest about what you wanted, or not as self aware as you presented yourself as being.  It will be the doms’ mistake, but his mistake will be in having believed you.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now the rest of this is simply about my personal taste.  I enjoy the full richness of a woman as a person.  I don't want a toy, I want a partner.  I want someone that meshes with me like a puzzle piece and adds to my life as I add to hers.  What attracts me is someone that has her own experiences to share with me, new ways to please me, and skills I don't possess but that would benefit me greatly.  To be honest, having to "train" her to much kind of ruins it for me.  I don't want to learn what pleases her so that I can be sure to do it without regard to what I want, and I don't want to teach her to like every single thing I like while disregarding her own opinions.  I want us to coincidentally like at least some of the same things.  I don't mind at all if she expresses preferences and favorite activities.  I don't mind at all offering my ideas and experiences while exploring an interest of hers that we share but that she has no experience with.  I want it to be a natural flow though, not a forced routine that’s performed, even if it’s performed well.  It’s my opinion that if the woman enjoys specific activities or pleasures, she ought to just be honest and let her partner know, D/s or not, and she should be respected even as he is obeyed.  It really doesn't bother me that I didn't teach her EVERYTHING she knows, and usually the submissive seems pleased to be able to offer me something that is from her alone.  Don’t get me wrong, I expect to change her, to help her learn (I prefer “Teach” to “Train”) But I want to add to all the positive things that are already there.  Because there's really no way a woman is a blank canvass in this aspect of life.  Anyone old enough to even be reading this blog about the topics we discuss is going to have lived enough life to have had experiences that affected and shaped them.  Those experiences are the foundation of who a person is.  That's what should be offered to a life partner, because that's what enriches a life.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-822886118970158865?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/822886118970158865/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=822886118970158865&amp;isPopup=true' title='3 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/822886118970158865'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/822886118970158865'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/02/iyam-what-iyam-you-be-too.html' title='Iyam what Iyam, you be too.'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>3</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-8858758182002633910</id><published>2010-01-31T19:45:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-01-31T21:36:06.523-08:00</updated><title type='text'>A What the...? Question.  Why do "Feminists" hate femininity?</title><content type='html'>You know, I don't believe feminists are correctly named.  They ought to be called anti-feminists in my opinion, because they generally deride anything feminine.  Their message seems to be that women are no different than men, unless of course it benefits them to notice that difference.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Feminist females are the first to attack the choice my Ladies have made to build a life with me.  The male is in charge?  Abusive!  One man and two women?  Degrading!  Clearly they have self esteem issues and have been brainwashed, right?  Now we're pretty lucky in this regard.  My Ladies have careers with major organizations and they do pretty serious shit.  A mistake by either can literally cost their organizations multiple HUNDREDS of MILLIONS of dollars in any of a number of deals they handle everyday, and all of which they are handling simultaneously.  My wife not only has a prenup agreement, but also can easily demonstrate many of the things that might be contested in a divorce were gifts.  I mean things like the car and the house.  Where I live, a gift is not subject to a divorce decree, as it is recognized as the sole property of the person receiving it regardless of marital situation or length of time between the gift and the divorce.  Like that old song says "When you leave, don't take nothin', Cuz' not a damn thing belongs to you."  Legally, I don't have much of anything.  My name isn't even on her checking account.  Our partner, aside from her career, has never had my name on her checking account, her car, or anything else really.  In fact one of her limits is that I have to keep her informed of anything I do to her car.  This ironically stems from a time when I would simply take her car to get it repaired or serviced without discussing it with her.  It is my responsibility to take care of her, and the car was hers, and therefore my responsibility.  That's radically different than thinking it was my car, but my just arranging it would piss her off.  Turns out it left her a bit panic stricken.  She had a bad childhood including the teen years, and had spent some time acutely aware that the car was her escape route if she needed it.  Not being aware of everything involving it at all times left her nervous.  To that end, I simply see to it that she's seeing to it, and I've never asked for any legal authority over it or anything else.  She gave me a key, that's good enough for me.  If she wants it back, all she has to do is ask.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The point of all this is, since in many legal ways I am actually at their mercy the feminist screeching tends to come to an abrupt halt when we encounter it.  But why in the world does it exist?  Shouldn't those seeking to elevate the power of the female in our society fight for the right of women to make any choice at all involving themselves?  I jut recently found out that the US is in a sticky spot with the UN because in order to join some of the UN treaties, the US would need to legalize prostitution and completely let go any chance of ever making abortion illegal, because most other countries consider these womens rights issues, and women should have control of their own bodies.  Apparently most first and even second world countries consider prostitution the womens choice, but have laws against pimping and trafficking.  In other words, she can sell sex if she chooses, but no one can push her to do it.  Now, if you can step back from the issues themselves, doesn't it seem reasonable to see these things as womens choice?  Isn't it odd that the US of all places is the last country to grant a woman freedom over what she is allowed to do to and with her body?  Where are the Feminists?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;On a smaller scale, I just read JZ's post about showing or not showing cleavage.  Isn't it sad it's an issue?  Like JZ, I'm not talking about going to work with a bandaid on her nipples, just leaving the top two buttons on the blouse open.  Does it strike anyone but me as terribly odd that an adult female (And no offense JZ, but I mean over 30 here) in a professional position should be forced to worry about the acceptibility of such attire in a world where the waist of jeans on (And I'm sorry again for the youngsters, but I'm old now) the waistband of jeans on a college KID absolutely requires that she be bikini waxed?  And oh yes, the thong may well be showing.  A whale tale is at worst a very minor fashion faux paux, and is quite possibly a fashion statement.  So butt cleavage is OK but breast cleavage isn't in our world now?  Or is it that the 20 somethings can show, but only until the age at which they should have graduated.  Can grad students get a cleavage extension?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Cleavage is feminine, as are hips and, yes, a cute butt.  Don't get me wrong, I think there's way to much societal emphasis on how women are supposed to look and not enough on their mental abilities and technical skills, but certainly the way a woman looks can create pleasure in a man.  If a woman enjoys a glamour look, why can't she pursue that without somehow betraying the cause?  Why is a gay woman perfectly acceptable to the feminist movement, but a plural marriage participant abhorrent?  Shouldn't a feminist support femininity instead of trying to crush it?  Shouldn't someone fighting for the Feminist Movement attack the 350 pound butch dyke in greasy jeans and leather with a cropped haircut and leave my pantsuit or skirt attired, lipstick and eye make-up wearing, demuring to me by CHOICE Ladies alone?  In fact, shouldn't they be defending, if not my Ladies personally, at least their right to make the choice to be who they are?  Why do the Feminists hate the feminine?&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-8858758182002633910?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/8858758182002633910/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=8858758182002633910&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8858758182002633910'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8858758182002633910'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/01/what-question-why-do-feminists-hate.html' title='A What the...? Question.  Why do &quot;Feminists&quot; hate femininity?'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-4925154255075416300</id><published>2010-01-27T17:27:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-01-27T19:58:41.342-08:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>I've seen a couple of things lately that, to be honest, seem silly to me.  These deal with the ideas that a dom should never prevent a sub from seeing friends or family, and another is that a sub should never tell someone she isn't allowed to do something because her dom forbids it.  The theory behind this is that the vanilla folk involved have rights too and we need not to step on their toes or make them uncomfortable with our lifestyle.  I disagree.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Sometimes the submissive's nature is recognized(If not understood) and she is being taken advantage of because she is submissive.  Sometimes the cure for that is for the partner in charge (Whatever the title) to simply have the submissive tell the user that she isn't available because the boss said so.  My Ladies get vacation time from their employers.  When first we met, one had never used all her allotted time even though she'd been with the company for several years.  What that means is she effectively worked several days a year for free.  To this day she has a rule (My rule) that insists she take all her time.  I don't think the situation was intentional, but she has a submissive nature and a desire to please.  She works in a busy department for a large multinational corporation and it is a burden to her colleagues if she takes time off.  It increases their workload.  This made her feel somewhat guilty, so she didn't take time off unless she had to.  Sick time, family emergencies yes, but never simple vacations for pleasure.  Now she has no issue with it, and understands she not only deserves it, but that as a component of her "Compensation package" she actually earns the time, it is not  gift.  Back then she began taking her vacations somewhat reluctantly only because I insisted on it.   &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Further, I place the order in restaraunts and the Ladies have both indicated that this is an aspect of our relationship that they each enjoy.  They don't even look at the menu.  This tends to throw the server and often gets looks from other patrons.  Occasionally it is apparent that we are the source of conversations.  If these people are uncomfortable, to be honest I plain don't care.  Generally these people have obnoxious children or get into arguments with their spouses all with absolutely no regard for our right to enjoy our evening.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;As far as friends and family go, I'm fortunate that I've not faced that dilemma.  Lady 1 has a loving family that has accepted our situation and hosts ALL of us warmly for family holidays and so on.  Lady 2 has parents that are truly vile people, and the conflict between she and I for a time was that she has simply totally shut them out of her life as far as possible.  No calls, no gifts, most of the time they may as well not exist.  At first I felt she should try to reconcile with them, but on the occasions they force themselves into our lives they conduct themselves with such a vicious demeanor that I've come to completely agree it would be best if they were to suddenly vanish.  They bring my Lady nothing but pain and sorrow, and worse they both go out of their way to do so and obviously relish doing it.  It's clear in retrospect, but it hadn't occurred to me at first that a father that sexually and physically abused his daughter as a child and a mother who knew and both allowed and covered it up would not become decent human beings just because their daughter grew up.  If Lady 2's attitude were not what it is, I'm afraid I might have to limit contact for both her health and her safety.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In a way, this comes back to my previous post concerning labels and defined limits.  Plain obligations would also be involved.  No matter what term you use, if the partner with authority both understood and accepted that he was literally responsible for the life of the other in all ways, and if as a community all those involved applied peer pressure to maintain a standard, then there would be very few problems and there would be a support network for those few that fell victim despite all efforts.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In that vein and in my opinion, at least in regard to my Ladies, I as team leader have an absolute obligation and duty to at times restrict who my Ladies associate with even to include family.  I also positively must, at times, insist that they refuse a request that they would otherwise grant.  Of course I would also be obligated to both allow and encourage healthy relationships and life-expanding opportunities.  In fact that would be my duty and my obligation.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-4925154255075416300?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/4925154255075416300/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=4925154255075416300&amp;isPopup=true' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/4925154255075416300'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/4925154255075416300'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/01/ive-seen-couple-of-things-lately-that.html' title=''/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-3171519307356858467</id><published>2010-01-26T20:50:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-01-26T20:51:19.035-08:00</updated><title type='text'>As a distraction....the abuse issue still makes me angry</title><content type='html'>I'm in a venting mood so I'll vent on this.  Basically just wanting to blog because it bothers me I haven't been, but I have nothing relevant to say, so I picked this topic.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I so resent both that what is called the BDSM lifestyle is used to justify abuse, and even more that those involved allow it to be used in such a fashion.  I have had people in the past ask about my feelings about abuse. They want to know how I see a line being crossed for someone that has agreed to or even asked to be “hurt”.  It’s pretty simple really, anything that is damaging to the submissive is abusive no matter how it is justified.  Notice I did not say injurious, because I understand there are those out there that play a whole lot rougher than I ever have had the desire to do, and sometimes some pretty weird stuff (By my standards) seems to have a positive effect on the people involved.  Note too I don't limit hurt to the physical.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When asked how a person can tell where the line that shouldn’t be crossed is in regards to “punishing” a submissive, I often use an analogy referencing owning a classic car.  The point being, if your classic car doesn’t start one morning the way to address the problem is not to get out, kick the shit out of the fenders, and expect that now it will run fine.  If you do that you will now have a slightly to severely damaged classic car (Depending entirely on how hard and how much YOU the owner kicked it) that still doesn’t start.  Now you have the original problem and some new ones to overcome.  Instead I suggest remaining calm in the face of your frustration and conducting a logical investigation into what is causing the no-start problem.  Once you find the problem, it’s likely to be an easy fix, and it will be the only problem that needs to be resolved.  Finding the problem might take a while, and it may not be anything obvious.  It’s likely to take a little patience to get to the cause, but then if owning rare and beautiful things was easy everyone would have three, wouldn’t they?  I think just about anyone should see the truth in that analogy, but somehow an awful lot of people claim they don’t see the correlation.  They claim women aren’t machines; they are more like “Pets”.  O.K.  Let’s follow that concept out.  So instead of a Mustang or Camaro, you are kicking a misbehaving dog.  Let’s say a Chihuahua (Sorry ladies, but it needed to be something that seems at first glance to be non-threatening).  Not a dog with a reputation for aggressiveness.  Not one usually seen as a pit-fighter.  But let’s say you kick that dog a few times.  What do you suppose that dog is going to do?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Uh huh, she’s going to bite you.  See, living creatures have an ability inanimate machines don’t.  They can strike back.  So to those that disagree with me on this, just remember fellas if you ever wake up one morning with your hands tied to the bed above your head and your amputated dick stuffed in your mouth as a gag, it could get worse.  I could find out, and I’ll say I told you so while I laugh.  After all, I’m the guy that said there IS a right way, and yours isn’t it.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;But here's the thing that irritates me to a much larger degree.  The "Community" that refuses to take a stand against abuse and irresponsible activities because they don't want to risk being accused of claiming "My kink is O.K. but yours isn't."  I've got news for you.  If your kink has the effect of destroying a submissives self esteem and self confidence, of removing from her the ability to function independently and making her physically dependent as a method of controlling her, then your kink is not O.K. under any circumstances and yes that means even if she asked.  And if in your opinion that makes me an intolerant bigot that's trying to label you, I'm fine with that.  It's just a simple fact that if any level of power exchange relationship is ever going to be acceptable in general society then we who practice it are going to have to police ourselves.  That means we have to create labels that we can use to define ourselves both to the outsiders and to ourselves, and then we have to enforce those limits.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-3171519307356858467?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/3171519307356858467/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=3171519307356858467&amp;isPopup=true' title='4 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3171519307356858467'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3171519307356858467'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/01/as-distractionthe-abuse-issue-still.html' title='As a distraction....the abuse issue still makes me angry'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>4</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-259484384921482250</id><published>2010-01-09T21:37:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-01-09T22:32:03.980-08:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>The railroad engineer woke up groggy, looked at the clock and sat bolt upright wide awake.  He was 20 minutes late!  He shot from the bed to the bathroom where he showered and then nicked himself badly shaving.  He grabbed coffee as he headed out the door, only to spill it in his lap on the way to work.  Getting out of the car quickly he started to run, only to hear a loud RIIIIP as he tore the coat tail that was caught in the door of the car.  The sudden stop jolted his cap from his hand, and it landed squarely in a mud puddle.  Freeing himself from the car he grabbed up his cap and made it to the train he was to drive.  He fired it up, hooked to the passenger cars and pulled out of the station.  He worked diligently to shave seconds here and a minute there, and a little more than an hour later was nearly back on schedule.  Running at his top allowed speed he rounded a sweeping curve only to see another train on the same track barreling straight toward him.  Calmly he turned to the fireman and said&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"You ever have one of those days when just nothing goes right?"&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Well I just did.  It occurs to me I've had one of those days most days for nearly two years, and I'm pretty worn down.  I'm starting to wonder why I try, and possibly worse, sometimes I decide not to try.  I've been told I'm wound too tight.  Things bother me when they shouldn't.  I've been told I don't charge enough for my labor, I shouldn't worry if I don't meet every expectation of a client, I am obsessively honest, I shouldn't be such a perfectionist, I should occasionally put myself first before even the Ladies.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I always try to consider the other person, and help if I possibly can even if it means some sacrifice on my part.  I'm the kind of guy that comes to a red light first in line and pulls into the left lane in case the guy behind me wants to make a right.  I'm the sucker that tosses the bum a buck.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And all I get is screwed.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I have stood for what is right and decent my whole life, and lately I can not remember why.  And I don't know what to do about it.  I seem to be losing all motivation to be the person I am, or at least was, mostly because there always seems to be a pretty high cost and there never seems to be a reward.  I have this little voice in my head that just says "Fuck it", and I find myself agreeing.  And the sorriest part is, it's working.  I'm putting in less effort but still getting "Atta-boys" at work.  I've got more free time, and actually, I spend less money.  I hope soon to finally climb out of this pile of shit my life has become, and I actually hope I can keep this attitude.  I want to focus 100% on my Ladies and not get involved with the rest of the world, which apparently only resents my efforts anyway.  And if I can just not get involved for long enough, hopefully I will no longer be the one people call when they need their car fixed and they're broke.  When they need the snow cleared from their drive for free.  When their violent husband (Who I told them not to get involved with in the first place) is beating them to death and they need some help.  When they need a ride to the hospital and then a place to stay.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Because I don't want to be that guy any more.  It hurts me and it hurts my Ladies.  So fuck it.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-259484384921482250?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/259484384921482250/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=259484384921482250&amp;isPopup=true' title='8 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/259484384921482250'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/259484384921482250'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/01/railroad-engineer-woke-up-groggy-looked.html' title=''/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>8</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-3964595346675312242</id><published>2010-01-02T21:18:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2010-01-02T22:09:02.729-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Happy New Year, I guess</title><content type='html'>So, a new year.  I have to admit I'm having a hard time seeing the point.  I'm not going to cry a river, and for several reasons I'm not really allowed to discuss a lot of things.  But I must admit, lately I have had a really hard time remaining positive and seeing the potential in this new year.  I've reached a point where I don't even see the point assuming I am successful with the things I want to do.  It's after Christmas, the first of the year, fresh start and all that,and supposedly a joyful, hopeful time but I'm not feeling it.  I'm realistic enough to understand I couldn't do it alone anyway, but I've come to the conclusion that if somehow I could actually grasp the world by it's shoulders and pull it's collective head from it's ass, the world would simply yelp in fear and shove it's head right back in.  Everytime I overcome an obstacle it seems a bigger one is thrust before me.  No good deed seems to go un-punished.  I catch myself wondering why I bother.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;My amazement, respect, and awe of my ladies has grown larger than ever.  For nearly two years I have been in a virtual whirlwind of shit and razorblades, and the Ladies have stood resolutely by my side despite each paying a tremendous personal cost.  Their loyalty, strength of character, and dedication can simply never be questioned by anyone.  I will always be grateful for, and thankful to, each of them.  Thank you, and thank God for you, my Ladies.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-3964595346675312242?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/3964595346675312242/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=3964595346675312242&amp;isPopup=true' title='3 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3964595346675312242'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3964595346675312242'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2010/01/happy-new-year-i-guess.html' title='Happy New Year, I guess'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>3</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-1796810230911855440</id><published>2009-12-15T21:26:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-12-15T22:08:26.710-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Uh Oh, Politics...</title><content type='html'>This post will reveal to an extent my political bent, or at least many of you will likely think it does.  So you've been warned, if you aren't willing to go there, don't.  Leave now while you can still think well of me, lol.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;First I suppose you should know this is pretty much the most public electronic contact I have with the outside world.  I don't Tweet, I don't have a Facebook page, or any of that stuff.  My Ladies do, and more power to them, I just don't see the need.  One thing this avoids in my experience is the online backhanded comment.  That's where someone tries to slide in an insulting shot by virtue of an ostensibly innocent social network site comment knowing you'll see it if they do.  Most people let those things slide.  Most people.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So the other day one of my Ladies is reading her friend's facebook comments, and this friend made a comment I'm sure we've all heard before to the effect of "I can't understand how so many people can claim to be kinky AND conservative at the same time".  My Lady saw this, apparently felt it was pointed at her (I can tell you I don't know it was, but it's easily possible it was exactly that) and shot back "And I can't understand how so many people can claim to be liberal and conscious at the same time".  I laughed so hard my eyes were tearing up.  She doesn't let anyone push her around, that one, I can promise you.  The irony of it all is that, of the two, she's not the tough one.    &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;No long post here, I just wanted to share.  Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah, and Merry Kwanzaa.  And if I still missed you, I hope you're happy too, with a very few exceptions.  That's it for tonight.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-1796810230911855440?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/1796810230911855440/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=1796810230911855440&amp;isPopup=true' title='3 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1796810230911855440'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1796810230911855440'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/12/uh-oh-politics.html' title='Uh Oh, Politics...'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>3</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-1444634548590660016</id><published>2009-12-05T21:46:00.000-08:00</published><updated>2009-12-05T21:50:41.655-08:00</updated><title type='text'>Hello again</title><content type='html'>Just to let my followers know, my computer crashed and my life situation was extremely demanding to begin with.  I have aquired a used computer that is plainly cranky.  The Ladies are a bit high maintenance lately, but it's justified and deserved.  That's where I've been and am at.  I'll be back to the blog shortly, assuming no new disasters befall us that I have to react to.  I hope all had a nice Halloween and Thanksgiving.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-1444634548590660016?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/1444634548590660016/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=1444634548590660016&amp;isPopup=true' title='4 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1444634548590660016'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1444634548590660016'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/12/hello-again.html' title='Hello again'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>4</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-1705221802580510821</id><published>2009-10-18T21:11:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-18T21:16:40.407-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Is this what they mean by "Bitch slap"?</title><content type='html'>So, have you seen the Dove Soap commercial about how the model get’s on the billboard?  I think it’s called the evolution of beauty.  You can see it here…&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2gD80jv5ZQ&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I stumbled acrossed this and a few others.  WOW!  That’s all I can say.  No wonder we have such issues in women’s health.  I’ve been thinking about how the “Vanilla” world treats women.  Not just D/s women, but all of them.  Ever think about the subtle messages that society sends?  Based on paying attention to the commercials, products offered, and news stories I’ve seen in the last couple of weeks, here is what I now know about the female ideal.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;If in front view your stomach is smooth and flat but does not display a six-pack, you are overweight.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If in side view your hip bones &lt;strong&gt;are not &lt;/strong&gt;the forward-most part of your body you are overweight.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If in side view your hip bones &lt;strong&gt;are&lt;/strong&gt; the forward-most part of your body you are anorexic.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Stretch marks must never be seen.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You have failed in life if you do not have children.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Your bust line should not be smaller than a 36d, but not larger than a 38dd.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You should have hips no wider than 36 inches, but somehow an ass no wider than 30 inches.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Your skin can not have a wrinkle, scar, sun spot, or freckle.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;(A whole array of signs and signals is covered by this one) Your hair must look and feel entirely natural, but can not under any circumstances behave naturally. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;(This one too)  You smell.  Bad.  Fortunately there is an arsenal of products to overcome this.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you do not enjoy casual sex you are a prude.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If you do enjoy casual sex you are a slut.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Your nude body, pictures of your nude body, and descriptions in literature of your body are all obscene.  These are rightfully banned as sinful and harmful to society.  The fact that you’ve somehow met every one of the above impossible goals notwithstanding.  &lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I think I’ll go tell the Ladies they’re strikingly gorgeous and give them each a hug.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-1705221802580510821?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/1705221802580510821/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=1705221802580510821&amp;isPopup=true' title='5 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1705221802580510821'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/1705221802580510821'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/10/is-this-what-they-mean-by-bitch-slap_18.html' title='Is this what they mean by &quot;Bitch slap&quot;?'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>5</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-3938345749233878876</id><published>2009-10-18T10:36:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-18T21:17:22.423-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Obligations</title><content type='html'>This was motivated by my thoughts on Spirited Meanderings' post "Slavery Is Not About Abuse".  If you haven't read it, I think you should.  It's here, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;http://spiritedmeanderings.blogspot.com/2009/10/slavery-is-not-about-abuse.html&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In the post, she offered the following thoughts (I've edited it for my use, but the idea is still the same).....&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;It really bothers me when I see other slaves talking about things that their Masters do with them. Things that are neither safe nor sane. Things that can cause potential harm (physically and mentally), which means their Master is not caring for them the way he is obligated to... yes, obligated. When a slave surrenders herself to her Master, it is his "responsibility" to look out for her well being.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;What makes it worse is when I hear a slave in those kinds of situations say "He's my Master and I'll do whatever he tells me to"......one was one girl who had said that her life belongs to her Master. If he decided that she should die, then she would........You know what? Fuck that... seriously people! One man (or woman) has no right to play with the lives of people that way.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I have a hard time dealing with stupidity. I hate people who can take a beautiful lifestyle that I find joy in and turn it into something that I wouldn't wish on my worse enemy. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I couldn't agree more with these sentiments!  I believe that for every "Bill of Rights" ever created there should also exist a "Writ of Responsibility".  This would spell out the rights given AND the responsibilities the possession and exercise of such rights requires in exchange.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It sometimes seems the antithesis of responsible control is modern D/s.  The idea that a dom has any obligation whatsoever to the submissive is rejected with the argument that "She agreed to it". This argument seems to me to be plain stupid.  The people that make such an argument will inevitably offer two other "Standard rules" about the D/s lifestyle.  These are...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;1) "The submissive is owned property and therefore has no right to refuse an order given by the dom even in an effort to protect herself from harm."  The idea being the dom has every right to harm or even kill the sub, yet somehow has no responsibility for her safety.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;2)  "If you expect to be accepted by the community you have to accept others in that community."  My answer to that was to leave the community.  I have no desire to be acceptable to the kind of people I can't, won’t, and don’t accept.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In considering the points made though, I did see one thing I agreed with that Spirited did not.  The submissive who claimed her life belonged to her master I suggest was correct.  However, this leads us back to the point about responsibility and obligation.  No submissive would willingly give her life to a master that would not respect that gift.  I simply can not be made to believe that she offers her life to be thoughtlessly wasted or foolishly squandered if he so chooses.  She offers the gift with the reasonable expectation that it will be cherished as it deserves to be.  In my opinion, the master has an unquestioned and &lt;strong&gt;unavoidable &lt;/strong&gt;responsibility to protect the submissives' life just as he does his own, and in all ways.  Her health, her job skills, her ability to operate in society, her peace of mind and level of contentment with her life, all are the masters’ responsibility.  If she is failing in any way, it is he who bears the blame.  It's a simple if-then situation.  If her life is truly his, then any and all life failures are his as well.  If he isn’t prepared to accept that level of responsibility, he has no right to any level of control over her life.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-3938345749233878876?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/3938345749233878876/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=3938345749233878876&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3938345749233878876'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3938345749233878876'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/10/obligations-post-ready.html' title='Obligations'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-924018143910933957</id><published>2009-10-10T05:12:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-10T05:19:42.780-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Why does everything have to be dark?</title><content type='html'>One of the things I’ve never liked about D/s as I’ve seen it presented, in fact one of the things that causes me to think it must not be what I do, is that everything is dark and evil.  I’m not dark and evil.  My Ladies aren’t dark and evil.  They are bright and shiny and joyous to me.  I hope I’m that to them.  Why can’t D/s be that?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I realize normally I write a novel, but this time I have nothing more to add.  My Ladies and our relationship are nothing but good to me, it’s the rest of my life that is dark and difficult.  Ecstatic, Joyous, thrilling, uplifting, bright and happy, why isn’t D/s described like that?&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-924018143910933957?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/924018143910933957/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=924018143910933957&amp;isPopup=true' title='11 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/924018143910933957'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/924018143910933957'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/10/why-does-everything-have-to-be-dark.html' title='Why does everything have to be dark?'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>11</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-2149490286016173883</id><published>2009-10-03T10:37:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-04T13:22:30.274-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Referring to the "I'm hard to offend" post</title><content type='html'>Well, this started out as a response to JZ under the “I’m hard to offend” post, but ever since JZ posted her latest thoughts I can’t seem to post.  The difficulty is ONLY on that one post.  I think JZ was just trying to get the last word by sabotaging my blog with her Techno-Ninja Computer Blogging skills.  HA HA, I will just start a new post!!  If you haven’t read that post, you might want to refer to it and the comments first, then read  this.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I had said that in debating a topic, if I win the debate it adds validity to my ideas.  I don't seem to be able to express what I mean about convincing someone or getting them to agree with me.  For one thing, it's more about them NOT being able to make me agree with them.  Let’s say a person I have observed and that I personally believe has a deep understanding of the kind of relationship we are discussing (Whatever they choose to call it) has a specific point of view.  If when that person and I discuss the relationship we agree for the most part, then I gain more confidence in my view because I feel like they know what they are talking about and we agree.  If it's a group of that type of people, so much the better.  If we are discussing an aspect of relationships that I am uncertain or undecided about, then that helps shape my own opinions and I have confidence in those opinions, especially if they mesh with my own instinct on the topic.  Now JZ I want to use you as the example, I hope you don’t mind.  You've described yourself to me as submissive but in no way slave.  Obviously we don't really know each other, but based on what I've experienced via your written opinions, I can accept that.  If most people claimed someone with your attitudes and opinions could make a good slave I’d not believe it.  However, if YOU were to tell me that, I now have a personal conflict.  I respect your opinions and would consider them informed and generally trustworthy and accurate, but the one just offered flies directly in the face of everything I believe.  So I would invite you to make your case, I'd offer my deeply held beliefs on any point that we disagree with, and you would need to knock those beliefs down with your logical arguments.  If you could convince me that you were even possibly correct I might well change my opinion based solely on your statements.  If you couldn't, I'd have to conclude that my opinion was correct all along.  Even if we part agreeing to disagree, that adds ....validity, substance, whatever you want to call it...to my opinion in my own head, because someone that knew as much as you, had not been able to show me the flaw in my thinking.  No flaw means no mistake, at least so far in that search for truth you mentioned.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I'm still not certain I'm accurately describing what I mean, but that's the best I can do for now.  However (And this is in a way a "Eureka" moment of it's own) You're correct in your statement that I think I'm right to start with when I offer an opinion in a post.  In that way I can see your point that I appear to be trying to "Convince you" as you say.  Actually, I just don't care if I convert others.  However, it occurs to me that maybe it would be more effective to ask for further explanation rather than point out my perceived flaws in their logic.  I'll try that.  Bear with me, it will mean changing a 30 year old method of debate I was taught as a child.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;AS I said, Greengirl and Mouse have been very helpful.  Both pointed out in comments to another post that they use "Dominant" as an adjective.  Everyone I've ever had even so much as a serious conversation with represents it as a noun.  I hear it used as in "He is my dom", and in that context the word appears to me to be a noun being used to describe a specific, and SINGLE, thing.  An expectation of seeing that thing is created.  If I say "I'll bring my boat” what do you expect to see?  A water vehicle.  Variations exist, but the word boat at the least means a class of things that share common traits.  I can arrive with a pontoon boat, a ski boat or a paddle boat, but those are verifiable boats.  If I show up with a 1959 Cadillac you’ll probably immediately understand “boat” was slang, but it would still be a momentary surprise.  If I show up with a 500 cc Honda motorcycle, you're just plain going to think “That’s not a boat” now aren't you?   By the same token, I sometimes think “That’s no dom”.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You point out that maybe this experiment will fail because no one wants to argue their case, or just won’t see the need.   I’m usually pretty clear about the purpose of the blog.  I consider it more about legitimate debate than arguing, but I do see what you mean.   If this source dries up because no one was willing to pursue the goals I have for the blog because they don’t like my technique, then it wasn’t much use and therefore no loss.    &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Take your time with the rewrite, and I hope you enjoyed your weekend.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Tomcat};{&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-2149490286016173883?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/2149490286016173883/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=2149490286016173883&amp;isPopup=true' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/2149490286016173883'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/2149490286016173883'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/10/referring-to-im-fard-to-offend-post.html' title='Referring to the &quot;I&apos;m hard to offend&quot; post'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-6212861622829120329</id><published>2009-10-02T14:01:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-02T14:47:27.727-07:00</updated><title type='text'>I'm ugly</title><content type='html'>I'm writing this in response to something Greengirl posted in her blog.  That post concerned women and their often negative perceptions of their bodies. Ive heard this from lots of women.  Some not stereotypically attractive, and some just plain stunning.  At first I thought "I know just what she means".  But in fact I realize I don't because when women say this they invariably mean they personally are undesirable, and so they wonder why their man didn't choose a different woman.  Now me? I don't get male attractiveness or eroticism in general. When I cuddle her she's soft and smooth to the touch.  When I go down on her she trembles at first and then maybe kicks and thrashes, but I hold her down and keep going at my own pace, then I enter her and she's so silken and hot, clutching  me with her internal muscles, taking me all the way in.  Then I think about it from her point of view......&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When she goes down on me she's forcing me into her throat, often until she chokes herself.  If she really gets me going I might unconsciously grab her head and control her motions.  When she reaches up to encourage me, she grabs a furry ass with which to guide my member deeper into her already struggling throat until my hairy crotch is grinding her cheeks.  When she allows me to enter her, I penetrate into her, INSIDE of her.  I have always taken a womans word that she enjoys this, but I can never imagine it feeling anything but painful.  Yup, the more I think about it, the more sense lesbians make to me.  I can't imagine why a woman would find me attractive, I'm male.  Ick.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-6212861622829120329?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/6212861622829120329/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=6212861622829120329&amp;isPopup=true' title='5 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/6212861622829120329'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/6212861622829120329'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/10/im-ugly.html' title='I&apos;m ugly'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>5</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-7370470539171382983</id><published>2009-10-02T14:00:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-10-02T14:34:53.292-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Actually it's hard to offend me, and if you do you'll know.</title><content type='html'>Hi Ho!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Just wanted to let the few here know.  It's actually hard to offend me.  And if you do you will not wonder if you did, it will be real clear.  Now there have been occasions where people went from my "Well respected" list to my "Too stupid to deal with" list in one fell swoop, but if someone does that it will be painless because I won't be offended, I'll just be done interacting with them.  I had a woman tell me once that my trouble was not that it was hard to read between the lines of what I said to get to what I really meant, but rather that I didn't use lines and instead smacked people in the face with the truth, at least as I perceived it.  :::shrug:::  Probably true, but I can take it as well.  It's actually been a relationship issue, though not with the Ladies I'm with now.  A little more than a decade ago though, I was seeing a woman and we would occasionally be somewhere and she would hear me insulted.  She would fly to my defense and then I'd come over to see what the problem was.  She'd tell me what was said and I'd just laugh at it.  Then she'd be angry that I wasn't angry.  My favorite was "Wal-Mart dom"  I'm not sure what that was supposed to mean, but in retrospect it didn't seem very insulting.  I happen to know some folks that work with Wal-Mart, and the week before I was called that, Wal-Mart, already the biggest corporation in the world, had bought the local Airport in their hometown and turned into a private field for just their planes.  If that's the definition of failure, at least I'm failing huge!!  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Now I say this because in the short time I've been blogging, at least two people have indicated they thought I was upset or offended.  I want the gallery's opinions not necessarily its' approval.  So now you know.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-7370470539171382983?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/7370470539171382983/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=7370470539171382983&amp;isPopup=true' title='3 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7370470539171382983'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/7370470539171382983'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/10/actually-its-hard-to-offend-me-and-if.html' title='Actually it&apos;s hard to offend me, and if you do you&apos;ll know.'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>3</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-9147219502584108223</id><published>2009-09-28T14:00:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-09-28T15:29:43.948-07:00</updated><title type='text'>That's the question.  Oh, and pardon the language.</title><content type='html'>Recently was asked if my family doesn't identify as dom and sub, how do we identify?  I know I just got advice on etiquette but since there are, what, four followers?  I'll point out that it was Greengirl, because we probably are all going to know that. It's a very good question, and in fact the major reason I'm here.  I don't know how to identify.  Thus the name of the blog "What the..." And the address, "But then how..."&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Understand, I like lables.  I know that's wholly politically incorrect in "The lifestyle", and I plain don't give a damn.  I'm certain I mentioned this before, but I'll reiterate that I was involved in D/s for a long time.  I've wanted a relationship where the man leads and the woman supports as long as I can remember.  I think men should be men and women should be ALLOWED to be feminine if they choose.  I have no argument with the most butch dyke out there, I just don't want to date her, and I don't want her running down my Ladies for liking frilly girl things and wanting to please me.  In fact as a man I'm not going to allow it, because as a man I CAN NOT allow it.  See how that works?  Lable!  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I want to know what we are.  And from there what I should do about it to make life as good as it can possibly be for all of us.  I like this, not that, the Ladies like this and not that.  What does that make us, and what else fits into that?  And where and how do I then go get it?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When I enlisted in the military, I did it for all kinds of reasons.  But one of those reasons was I wanted to live my life by a certain code, being required to meet certain minimum standards.  I was taught to respect the military by men that served in WWII.  The military had the reputation of being made up of people that were honorable, selfless, dedicated, and committed.  People that had that code.  It turned out not to be exactly so.  D/s was the same.  I had been exposed as a fairly young teen, again when I was not quite 20, and I was told it was all based on honor, chivalry, commitment to your partner, and commitment to a high personal standard that had to be maintained or there would be consequences from this little self contained community.  Instead I found a place where people use the desires and hopes of others to manipulate each other.  Where physical abuse is supposedly not if the submissive who suffered it offered some kind of blanket agreement "To do anything". A promise that seems always to have been given to someone the submissive felt safe trusting that much because they genuinely believed that person would never hurt them. They believed they were safe offering such unconditional trust because the other person would value their safety and well being as much (Or even more than) they themselves did.  And let's not forget that it's a place where almost anything can be excused because "I like them".  You know what I mean, "I know he or she does this or that, but I LIKE them" as if that has any relevance at all.  It's a place where when the standards are clearly broken YOU are the bad guy if you point that out.  Instead you are supposed to look the other way because it's none of your business, at least not now.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I really don't mind being called "Dom", except that the "Well respected dominants" I've seen are more often than not just self-centered jackasses more interested in image management and getting laid than their submissive's well being or living up to the high standards they claim all dominants have to meet. I don't think either of the Ladies has any problem with being called submissive, except for the two-faced lying bitch submissives they've seen who pretend to be perfect little obedient SLAVE girls when their partner is in the room, and then deride and insult him or her behind their backs when they aren't, all the while suggesting to my Ladies that if I never find out they disobeyed my wishes it doesn't count. So basically, that's where we are.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Just today I heard a radio program discussing that because of the current American culture, in high school they are teaching students that a healthy relationship means the people involved are happy to be in the relationship.  There's all kinds of things involved in that according to the class that I'm not going to go into, but I think at the core that's exactly right.  If you're happy to be in your relationship, it's probably a good and healthy one.  I am happy in a relationship where I am looked to to set the tone and lead the way, and the Ladies are happy in a relationship where they express their needs and desires and are offered guidance on how to meet them, or simply have them met outright.  Where our roles are clearly defined and are gently enforced.  ALL our roles, not just theirs.  What we are NOT interested in is "Fair" or "Equal".  If things turn out equal, great.  But if we're all happy, equal is kind of irrelevant.  Fair is a point of view.  Nothing anywhere is ever completely fair from all possible points of view.  It's a waste of time to fight that.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So, I'm looking for that lable.  I would like to find it so I can gain a better self understanding, a better understanding of the Ladies so I can take better care of them, and maybe we can find a community of actually like minded people.  People I can respect instead of tolerate.  So, at any point, anyone that thinks they can define me please do so.  Don't be shy or feel uncomfortable that's why I'm here, to hear your opinions.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-9147219502584108223?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/9147219502584108223/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=9147219502584108223&amp;isPopup=true' title='11 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/9147219502584108223'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/9147219502584108223'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/09/thats-question-oh-and-pardon-language.html' title='That&apos;s the question.  Oh, and pardon the language.'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>11</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-2934502158165227932</id><published>2009-09-26T20:18:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-09-26T20:25:05.257-07:00</updated><title type='text'>etiquette help requested</title><content type='html'>I've been browsing blogs, and seen a couple of things I'd like to post about myself.  Is there an etiquette to that?  Do I identify the original poster (As I would expect to do)?  Or should I leave them ananymous so I don't appear to be addressing them directly (Occasionally I'll be disagreeing with someones opinions)?  If I am motivated by a claimed sub to write my own post, do I discuss that with the dom first, or is it fair game when it's made public?  I'm not usually concerned with political correctness but I do believe in common courtesy.  If I offend someone I want it to be legitimate and intentional.  ;)&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Thanks for any advice.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Tomcat};{&gt;&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-2934502158165227932?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/2934502158165227932/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=2934502158165227932&amp;isPopup=true' title='4 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/2934502158165227932'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/2934502158165227932'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/09/etiquette-help-requested.html' title='etiquette help requested'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>4</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-8631837327176606164</id><published>2009-09-25T19:18:00.000-07:00</published><updated>2009-09-25T20:45:59.032-07:00</updated><title type='text'>A funny thing happened to me while I was out looking for myself.....</title><content type='html'>So something a bit jolting happened to me a while back.  I was mistaken for submissive.  Please don't misunderstand me, I wasn't offended, but I was shocked.  In fact I was a bit flattered in a way, because I've always said I don't think I have what it takes to be submissive.  Submissives, at least good ones, are fluid in a way that just flabbergasts me.  It just amazes me how quickly and how smoothly my Ladies can altar their entire days schedule at my whim seemingly effortlessly.  In fact I've learned to be very careful about certain things because they will cheerfully accomodate some meaningless request that just drifted through my mind by putting off something else that is truly important and finishing it later, often at a time when they would normally be sleeping.  And often I won't even realize they changed their plans until days and days later.  I often wonder how many things they do I just never know about at all.  Now I'm former military, but I don't have anything like that kind of grace under pressure.  Give me a mission and I'll get it done no matter what happens going around, over, or as a last resort through any obstacle I come up against, but I don't smile sweetly while I do it.  If I get too far away from my expected plan it pisses me off even if I'm eventually successful.   &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;My Ladies just roll with things.  I don't mean just that they don't complain, but that they don't even mention it, even much later when it would be irrelevant anyway.  And it's not just with me, it's with their family, with their careers.  It's like they don't mind sudden and unexpected departures from the plan.  That's the part I couldn't do.  I mind.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I mind last minute changes.  I mind busting my ass for days only to be told what I have now accomplished is irrelevant because there's been a change in plans by upper management.  I REALLY minded it when one came home early and said she needed to go out of state on business for three days, and she needed permission to leave in 45 minutes and a ride to the airport unless I wanted my car to sit out there.  Understand she had let them know I might refuse which would mean her answer was "No, I'm not going", but also understand my point that she just went with it.  Cheerfully.  I'd have gone, but I'd have been pissed.  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I asked how this person had come to that conclusion and it seems the Ladies were discussing our everyday life, and it came to light that I went to work first, I came home last, I did the cooking (Which is true, but I don't do it every night.  I cook mass amounts and we heat-n-eat all week) I pay the bills, I handle the home maintenance, and I custom built a lot of the features in their respective rooms. They park in a garage where the lights come on automatically whenever they enter through any door.  They walk from there to the house through a garden complete with multiple fountains, statuary, gargoyles and landscaped paths which is completely enclosed by an eight foot flowering hedge.  When they leave in the morning their meds and coffee are on the table waiting so they don't forget them.  Things like that.  Apparently all this created the impression that I was the servant.  And I got to thinking, maybe I am from a certain point of view.  Aren't all caretakers?  &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I've pointed out that I don't really identify as "dom" any longer.  If someone calls me that I don't object or get offended, but I like lables and clear definitions and I can't get one for dom.  And based on what I've seen as examples, I'm not sure I'd care to claim I am such.  I am however, head of the family.  Large and in charge. Taking excellent care of the Ladies is, in my opinion, just payin' the cost to be the boss.  I understand very clearly I am fortunate enough, graced enough, blessed by God enough to have two of the most amazing women I've ever known living with me in a committed relationship we all hope and work to make last a lifetime.  If they appear a little spoiled, good.  But maybe that's part of my issue with identifying (or not) as D/s.  In a lot of ways I do put them above me.  I bust my ass on their behalf, and I like to do it.  And yet, I'm very set in my ways and fairly uncompromising.  I do things based on my personal principles and code of conduct, and I don't waiver.  So isn't that more dominant?  Is it possible that in order to be a good dominant, you have to not only understand submissiveness, but be submissive in certain ways, to feel it?  Does the pleasure I find in making their life paths as easy as possible qualify me as submissive?  Like the blog title says, What the............???????????&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-8631837327176606164?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/8631837327176606164/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=8631837327176606164&amp;isPopup=true' title='8 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8631837327176606164'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/8631837327176606164'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/09/funny-thing-happened-to-me-while-i-was.html' title='A funny thing happened to me while I was out looking for myself.....'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>8</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3643189378638708846.post-3717648210179139224</id><published>2009-09-18T18:17:00.001-07:00</published><updated>2009-09-18T18:41:22.248-07:00</updated><title type='text'>Uhm, Hello..........</title><content type='html'>I've never had a blog before, and I will be making this up as I go along.  What I hope to accomplish here is a deeper understanding of the D/s lifestyle.  I have....I don't know...Something.  I thought it was D/s many years ago, but there seems to be no clear definition of what D/s is, versus what other things are.  I find it difficult to find people of like mind when definitions and labels aren't allowed.  Some of you were invited, some of you might have stumbled upon this by accident.  Either way, the point is for me to pick your brains.  The way I expect this to work is that I'll see something I have an opinion on, blog on it, and then the group can bat it around a while.  However, I'm certain this blog will evolve over time. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I think I'll leave it there for now.  I imagine as time goes by my attitudes and opinions will quickly become apparent.  So, thanks for reading my first-ever-anywhere blogpost!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/3643189378638708846-3717648210179139224?l=but-then-how.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/feeds/3717648210179139224/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3643189378638708846&amp;postID=3717648210179139224&amp;isPopup=true' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3717648210179139224'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/3643189378638708846/posts/default/3717648210179139224'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://but-then-how.blogspot.com/2009/09/uhm-hello.html' title='Uhm, Hello..........'/><author><name>MagnusCattus</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry></feed>
