Polyamory and Introversion: The Anxiety of it All – A Blogiversery of Sorts

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Nine years ago...Nov 15, 2010...I began the Stranded in Toronto site on WordPress. It seems like eons ago. I recall sitting at the computer and debating the title, finally settling on Stranded as I simply missed my Rocky Mountains. That's right. They're mine. You gonna make something of it? I was listening to the song linked above by Billy Joel as I began writing this mess. A melancholy song about trying to evolve before it's too late. During that time, I did evolve. I began to push myself outside my comfort zone...made easier by the fact I found an audience that fed my need for assurance and was single, giving me the ability to search without restraint as I needed. I went so far out of my comfort zone, in fact, that I declared myself solo [Read more...]

The Shame Of It

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shame /SHām/   verb gerund or present participle: shaming (of a person, action, or situation) make (someone) feel ashamed. There is a problem with the definition above. The word, shaming, has become a word that is associated with how people are made to be ashamed over that which they cannot control. We have all heard the damage this does and how it is a form of bullying people for something they cannot necessarily control. I'm not a little guy and I've been shamed over my size being a shape, not in shape. We all have heard how a certain president was accused of raping a 13-year-old only to have it go away when the accuser was bullied through slut shaming and death threats. That same president has also shamed [Read more...]

Steph Curry and the Jets

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This morning a radio story made me angry. I'm heading into work on my usual short commute and the broadcasters tell a sad story of basketball star Steph Curry. First off, I don't like basketball...not my thing, but I understand how it is to be a fan. This, however, is not about basketball. It is not about Curry, either. He is one of, not the one, in this scenario. It seems they feel bad for Mr. Curry as he took a flight from Shanghai to New York in order to talk another player, Kevin Durant, face to face about signing with his team. He took a private jet with his own money and found out it was all for naught as Durant signed elsewhere before the flight landed. Poor Mr. Curry. All that money and time lost. Poor us. All that jet fuel [Read more...]

Escitalopram and the Erotic Blur

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erotica mental health

I claim to be an erotic writer but seems I’ve not been writing anything of much lately. In September of 2017, I left work for six weeks due to stress. The firm our company hired to “assist” employees going through short term leave bullied me back to work by demanding I get on medication or lose my job. This writer does not understand how such company reps, without medical degrees, are allowed to do that even when one’s own doctor does not agree; but that is a story as old as the hills and for another time. Thanks to the aforementioned bully, I began taking Escitalopram; a medication intended to assist with anxiety and often used in cases of PTSD. Admittedly, shell shock was not my situation, but the meds did the trick. It curbed the [Read more...]

I Heard

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erotica C.P. McClennan

Author's note: This post was inspired by my being a judge for Smut Marathon this year. The fourth project had me coming up with this as I was reading the entries. Thus, this follows the rules that it must have some reference to "eavesdropping" and must be 225-250 words long. I had more trouble with that last part but, ignoring this note, I did it. The result is the first part in a new series I'm not working on called "Oh, That Couple." After hearing that I was doing this, Marie Rebel insisted I add this for Wicked Wednesday. So, here goes... “You heard it all?” Malcolm smoothed a crease out of his pants that protested and reformed immediately. “Yes, Mal. Everything.” Ruth leaned forward with her elbows propped on her thighs. Her green [Read more...]

New Entitlement

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Let the next person help. I don't feel like it. This bus has just departed downtown Windsor, Ontario and will deposit its passengers in Toronto about five hours from now. Getting in this bus was a challenge as this is a continuation of a journey that the coach began in Detroit, Michigan. It was already two-thirds full when it got here and those waiting to board added another quarter to capacity. Good for Greyhound Corporation, but not so much for passenger comfort. Especially when there were many asleep on two seats after the ten minute trek from Canadian border services to the Windsor bus depot. The first person asked to "excuse me" to move his baggage and free up a seat ignored me. This was rather shocking but, rather than make a [Read more...]

A Triad of Parallel Men

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erotica polyamory ethical non-monogamy

Maggie woke with a snort as her snoring habit went off to hide too late. She blinked her eyes a few times before closing them tightly to help them adjust. To the left, grey daylight filtered in through the blinds of the sliding doors. Through those blinds, white snow passed sideways as the wind carried it along. April, she thought. This is spring, dammit. Not supposed to fucking snow in April. Bob gave a snort-snore of his own and shifted on to his right side, facing her. Sleep held him, however, as his eyes shifted beneath his lids in search of dreams. Will, on her left side, held his position. He slept like he was dead, on his back and with his hands intertwined over his belly. Maggie grinned and considered how few [Read more...]

Polyamory and the Celebrity Couple

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Amanda Palmer Neil Gaiman polyamory ethical non-monogamy

One thing that I despise is celebrity culture. When I was really young, Star Wars first exploded through cinemas and I had my first tastes of pro sports. Back then, I cared. I wanted to know what Mark Hamill was doing, I wanted to watch Chico Resch or Craig Morton practice, and I had a massive crush on Lynda Carter. Things were different back then, however. In the early 80s, Entertainment Tonight was just starting out while TMZ and Twitter still a quarter Century away. Since then, the combination of paparazzi and social networks combining in the age of acceptable Big Brother has left us with a ridiculous level of gotcha journalism. We now know too much about celebrities. These are just people who often have pretty faces. Many [Read more...]