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Do you have a fetish?
It's a phrase many of us have heard, but not all of us know exactly what it means.
Lots of people have lots of fetishes, and sometimes they don't even know it.
My attitude toward fetishes was always this: I'm easily bored with missionary-until-orgasm sex. That being said, I'm not so sure I'm into someone sucking on my toes as a form of sexual satisfaction, either.
It wasn't until attending a sex workshop hosted by Good Vibrations, a San Francisco-based sex toy boutique, a few semesters back, my attitude began to change.
The one thing I took away from it all, besides visions of my best friend Jackey modeling a large purple strap-on dancing in my head, was this phrase:
"Don't yuck up someone else's yum."
Basically, don't be an a-hole and hate on people based on what they like in the sack.
So I decided to stop yucking up the yum and open my mind to sex of the kinkier variety. I did a little research and found there are many styles, levels and mind-boggling varieties of fetishism.
I've laid out a few of the more popular - and printable - fetishes. Maybe you and yours will be inspired to take your own sex lives somewhere you never thought they would go.
Sweet feet put some in heat
I've never been a big foot fan. The one physical attribute my wonderful father passed down to me was his long feet and seemingly longer toes - I can hold and peel a banana with mine. It makes for a great party trick.
The foot fetish is much more deep than a little toe sucking. Depending on the context and the agreement between partners, it's considered by many to be a moderate form of erotic humiliation, according to shoeandfootfetish.com.
Aroma, taste, sensation and visual stimulation are key to a foot fetishist. Some are only attracted to people who are barefoot. A good French pedicure on a partner can sometimes be all a person needs to reach orgasm.
Some prefer fur
My favorite stuffed animal as a kid was an otter. George stuck with me until I came to college, but now that I'm an adult I don't own a single plush toy. Some people, however, never outgrew their love of the cute, cuddly creatures.
"Furs," also known as "plushies," are people who have a fascination with, and like to pretend they are, animals.
Many furs consider themselves "anthropomorphized animals" and attend conventions to meet, connect with and even role-play as animals with each other, according to the WOW Report, an alternative news blog.
However, not every fur encounter is a sexual one - one fur's personal Web site stresses most role-playing is nonsexual.
The sexual part of being a fur starts with the furry suit. If you've seen any animal school mascot - lion, cougar, badger - you've seen a furry suit.
Furs around the world buy costumes of animals they feel connected with and usually modify the suit with a small opening on the crotch. Most of the time during furry sex, the partners will act like the animal they are dressed as, adding even more of a role-play element to the sex.
Sadism can be sexy
BDSM stands for - are you ready? - bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadism and masochism. Different combinations of each exist, depending on how extreme an experience is desired, according to sexuality.org. To some, it seems bizarre: You are supposed to be gentle and loving toward the person you have sex with, right?
Wrong. Some people straight up get off on being smacked, yelled at and tied down.
In a BDSM scenario there is normally a "top" and a "bottom." The top partner is dominant and instructs the bottom on exactly what he or she wants their bottom to do. The bottom partner willingly gives up control of the situation and must follow the top's orders or is punished - the punishment being up to the dominant.
Practitioners of BDSM stress that the roles of dominance and submissiveness must be well defined, and limits must be set beforehand to ensure no unintended harm comes to either party.
Here's hoping I've inspired some of you to explore yourselves and your sexuality this summer.
Andra DeForest can be reached at sexcolumnist@theorion.com
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