A Blogiversary Spanking

Yes, it's true! The last time Ludwig and I saw each other, we still didn't have a private kinky play session, but at least we managed to "squeeze in" filming my blogiversary spanking for you. And after an extremely quick edit – here it is! The clip is a rather straightforward spanking video this time. We hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

Thank you very much to all the readers who contributed to the clip. And we hope that those who weren't able to take part enjoy the resulting video nonetheless. If you like the clip, you can still participate in creating this year's LOL Day video. The deadline is this Friday (the 16th), 11:59:59 pm German time.

The great news is that I have finally accomplished an important milestone concerning one big project with Ludwig's help, which means that the next few weeks are going to be a bit less stressful. So hopefully Ludwig and I will have the time and be in the mood for some private play the next time we meet. I think I deserve a proper spanking for my achievement and Ludwig deserves some relaxation for having supported me so wonderfully, too. It looks like the LOL Day spanking / switching is going to be a long one as well. But let's go to the current video clip first.

WMV format, resolution 720 x 576, 132 MB:
Uploaded.net link

(Click on "Free Download", wait for the counter to count down, then solve the captcha and download the file.)

Global Day of Delurk 2012

It's true folks, another year has passed and here is the next instalment of Love Our Lurkers Day or, as we call it here on Ludwig's Rohrstock-Palast, the Global Day of Delurk. It is the day on which we thank our readers for accompanying us on our journey and encourage especially our silent readers to step out of the dark and leave a comment to let us know you are out there. This special day was invented by our fellow blogger Bonnie and we would like to use this occasion to thank her for all the things she does for our community.

The first time Ludwig heard from me was on the Global Day of Delurk in 2008, when I left my first-ever comment on this blog. The rest is history. Now, as you know, Ludwig and I had a very busy time recently and we didn't even manage to shoot the clip for my blogiversary, yet. But hopefully we will be able to do that this weekend and you will be able to watch the result very soon. I haven't been spanked in months, so that should be a very interesting experience (and one I am looking forward to).

Despite of already being behind one clip, so to speak, we still want to use this day for some creative collaboration with you guys. And this time, we have a very special (and most probably non-recurring) choice for you!

The rules are very simple: Leave a comment on this post and decide whether Ludwig or I should be on the receiving end of this year's Global Day of Delurk spanking! The one who gets the majority of the votes will be the spankee in the resulting clip. Every comment made by a reader who has commented on our blog before will result in two strokes with the hand. Every comment made by a real delurker, which means someone who has never commented on this blog before, will add three strokes with a switch, which we found a suitable implement given the special premise of our vote.

The strokes count no matter whether your preferred spankee "wins" the vote or not. Comments which don't include a name for the spankee just count for the strokes. The deadline is Friday, November 16th, 11:59:59 pm German time. Anonymous comments don't count, you have to write your comment under a nickname. The resulting clip will be published for free on this blog. In case you don't have any clue how such a clip might look like, here is last year's clip.

We are very curious to see how the vote will turn out and whether we are able to get more comments than last year. And of course we hope that we will have some real delurkers, too! Please don't be shy, we look forward to hearing from you. No matter whether you decide to participate or to remain silent, thank you very much for reading and we hope you have a good (and sometimes also thought-provoking) time here at Ludwig's Rohrstock-Palast!

Anarchy!

Life has been a bit of a roller-coaster in the recent weeks. Sometimes I was feeling fine, but quite often things didn't go so well. So it was great to share a cheerful time with wonderful friends at a Halloween party. And I found a costume which kind of reflected my current mood. Obviously it also affected my behaviour! You think I deserve to be spanked for the gesture in the top picture? Well – bite me (if you dare)!

Okay, this one is just to show you that I can still be nice as well. Did you go to a Halloween event this year? In which costume? And, what was your kinkiest costume and Halloween experience ever? Last year, I was a vengeance demon. Do you like the whip? I hope you had a happy Halloween, everybody!

Kaelah's Corner (Oct 2012): Too Real

 (A historical whipping scene. Hot as a kinky fantasy, but undoubtedly horrible for the victims in real life.)

Several days ago when watching TV, I came across a news report about Pakistan where a 14-year-old girl who fought for women's rights had been shot in the head by Taliban extremists. The report showed how awfully women had been treated under the Taliban regime. It also included a short scene of a woman being held to the ground by several men and being flogged. The whole report moved me because the thought of being oppressed and violated like women (and men) are under extremist regimes is one of the most horrible things I can imagine. But the report also made me think about my limits as a kinky woman and blogger and that's what I want to post about today.

As most of you certainly know, I am against any form of physical (and psychological) punishment, be it severe judicial canings or slapping a child with one's hand. The only exception are consensual (i.e. informed consent) discipline agreements between adults who really have a free choice in that matter and the possibility to withdraw their consent at any given time. I don't practise any kind of consensual corporal punishment and I openly admit that I even consider some forms of consensual discipline arrangements to be rather unhealthy for the people involved. But, as long as the above conditions are given, adults should have the freedom to do whatever they want, in my view.

I don't want to talk about real-life discipline, though, but about erotic kinky role-play. Because even consensual kinky role-play scenarios are often based on (historical) forms of corporal punishment which aren't (or weren't) consensual at all in reality. Be it canings in school, judicial CP, naval floggings or maybe even dark abduction and rape scenarios. Now, I am of course absolutely convinced that one can be strongly against any form of violence or non-consensual CP in real life but still enjoy consensual role-plays which resemble scenarios that would be horrible if they were real.

I admittedly belong to those kinksters who easily feel uncomfortable with consensual non-consent, though, and I often prefer at least semi-consensual role-play scenarios - where the spankee, albeit reluctantly, agrees to a punishment. But that is just a personal preference. In my opinion there is nothing morally wrong with consensual non-consent. And even my fantasies can be stimulated by non-consensual real-life scenarios. For example, when Ludwig and I once visited the museum at the Churchill War Rooms in London, a school punishment book caught my attention. The fantasy of brave school boys taking their canings definitely pushes my kinky buttons. But still I am absolutely against any form of real-life CP for school children. Because, let's face it: While I hope that Churchill and his classmates didn't suffer any permanent trauma from the canings which they received at school, it still was a non-consensual act which might have caused mental harm (not to mention the physical one). The same goes for me for naval floggings which I find hot in the not bloody role-play version, but which must have been horrible in the historical real-life version.

I think it is absolutely possible to acknowledge the horrors of real-life violence and to feel with the victims when coming across (historical) references of real-life CP, but to find the idea of a consensual role-play scenario which involves elements of these real-life events appealing at the same time. The question is how to deal with that topic as a blogger. And that is where I have to say that I have certain personal limits of what I would or wouldn't do. I have to admit that I personally wouldn't really feel comfortable to present, for instance, historical newspaper articles about specific non-consensual real-life CP which involve real people's names here on the blog as a basis for erotic kinky fantasies. I can deal with others doing that, though, as long as they clearly distinguish in their writing between the objectionable and horrible real-life event and the consensual erotic fantasy which was triggered by it.

What I can't deal with, though, are depictions of real-life violence (especially when it comes to current events) that are used on kinky blogs without any further comments and without a clear sign of compassion and respect for the victims. For example, a while ago I found one link between several kinky ones which led to a newspaper article about a young woman who had been subjected to judicial CP in Saudi Arabia. The article was presented on a Tumblr blog between erotic kinky pictures. In this case it was a first person real-life account and it obviously was a yellow-press article, so it isn't even clear whether the woman depicted was a real victim. And there was one comment which clearly spoke against real-life judicial CP, too. But there were of course also several "like" notes, uncommented reblogs and even one person who clearly supported the idea of judicial CP.
 
Regardless of the exact circumstances and the question of whether we are talking about a real victim or a fake in this special case, I would like to use the presentation of this article as an example for the kind of depictions which are clearly outside my comfort zone as a kinky blogger and blog reader. Because looking at it from the perspective of a real victim, I find these kinds of posts, especially without any further comments or with inconsiderate comments which don't distinguish between fantasy and reality, tasteless. If I were a victim of violence and then found a newspaper article or news report about my suffering on an erotic blog (maybe even with people saying how cool and sexy that is or that this is how "naughty women" should be treated), I would feel violated once again. And that's why I am very careful about these things.

I only ever once asked Ludwig to delete a link on our blog. It was a link to a blog that regularly published articles about real-life CP and lacked any kind of disclaimer in which the authors distanced themselves from real-life violence. Ludwig agreed with my request after taking a second look at the blog himself.

How about you? What is your personal comfort zone regarding (historical) real-life references to corporal punishment and their presentation on kinky blogs? I am curious to hear about your opinion!

P. S. Right now, I only manage to write the regular posts for this blog, but not to answer any e-mails and comments or to comment on other blogs. I am still reading, though, and I will come back to your comments and e-mails soon.

Blogosphere Appreciation Day

I was finally going to resume my movie reviews today, but something else has caught my attention in the last couple of days and inspired me to write this spontaneous post. It seems that our fellow bloggers have (also rather spontaneously) declared October 23rd "Bonnie Appreciation Day" to honour Bonnie, the author of My Bottom Smarts, for all that she has done for the spanking blogger community over the years. It is a nice gesture, and quite deserved I think. Bonnie maintains one of the most extensive blogrolls in our community, which often helps new bloggers to first get noticed. She hosts "Sunday brunches" for her readers to discuss a spanking-related topic of the week, like scheduled spankings or the use of mirrors to enhance a session. Last but not least, Bonnie organizes the "Love Our Lurkers Day" every year, where bloggers encourage their formerly silent readers to step out of the shadows and leave a first comment. All of them beautiful efforts that help to bring the community closer together. Thank you, Bonnie, for that!

I am not going to make this an official "Bonnie Appreciation Day" post, though. While I appreciate what Bonnie is doing, I can't claim that I was ever a very regular reader of her blog. So I would feel kind of hypocritical if I just joined in that chorus. However, the "Bonnie Appreciation Day" got me thinking about how the spanking blogosphere, as a whole, influenced my life. Without it and without me getting involved in it, I would never have met my mate Kaelah. Meeting Kaelah was, without a doubt, the happiest stroke of fate I have ever had. I have had other happy strokes of fate, but none comes close to this one. And it all happened here.

Anyone who has read this blog for a while probably knows the story already. For those who are new, here is the highly condensed version. To begin with, everything is Niki Flynn's fault. I first met Niki in 2006. I was mostly a spanking video buff at the time. I had already made some practical experiences with spanking as well, visiting pro dommes, but I did not really know anyone in the Scene privately. Niki was the first person I met who lead what one could call a spanko / BDSM lifestyle, who had a whole circle of like-minded friends who got together for conversations, parties, play sessions. I thought to myself, this is pretty cool.

Right around the time when I first met her, Niki started her own spanking blog. I had never spent time on any blog on any subject and was not a blog reading type of person at all. But I became one of the regular commenters there. With Niki living in the UK and me in Germany, there were few times when we could meet face to face. Her blog was a nice way to stay in touch. It also introduced me to some other interesting people. Niki's blog is where I first "met" Indy, for instance, as well as Pandora Blake. While Niki is responsible for first getting me into this medium as a commenter, Indy and Pandora are probably largely responsible for keeping me there. I remember discussing the finer points of spanking and feminism with them back in the day - those were some great, stimulating discussions. I realised that there were people in the spanking blogosphere who had the same propensity for annoying intellectual wankery as me!

Adele Haze was another early acquaintance from Niki's blog, as were Prefectdt aka Spanked Hortic and quite a few others. Many of them had blogs themselves, so naturally, I started thinking about doing my own as well. I knew that I was a good writer and that my perspective as a male top and occasional switch, as a movie buff and as a philosophical rambler could be an interesting and unique one. I eventually launched the blog in January 2008, and before I knew it, I was also publishing free video clips with Niki.

Kaelah, who was just beginning to explore her long-standing fascination with spanking online in mid-2008, saw one of those video clips on Spanking Tube. Through it, she found my blog and became one of the silent readers. On the Global Day of Delurk 2008, she left her first comment on this blog or any other. So this is the part of the story where I can be particularly thankful to Bonnie - Kaelah was planning on commenting sooner or later, and would have done so even without Bonnie's invention of the "Love Our Lurkers Day", but as things turned out, it was exactly the occasion Kaelah had been waiting for.

The rest is history. If you have not read Where No Man Has Spanked Before yet, I encourage you to do so now. It tells the story of how Kaelah and I got to know each other and became a couple, and it is probably one of the best posts I ever did in terms of the writing as well. A bit verbose as usual, but hey.... That's just moi.

Looking back at that whole string of events, some likely, some unlikely, some of them total coincidences, I marvel at how life works out sometimes. The relationship of Kaelah and me is about much more than spanking, much more than a shared erotic fetish, obviously. But the erotic fetish is how we first met, and the fact that we were right for each other in all the other ways as well is another one of those happy coincidences.

I am thankful to Niki, Indy and Pandora, Spanking Tube, Bonnie, and all the others who somehow were a factor along the way. And so, I declare October 26th my personal Blogosphere Appreciation Day. The spanking blogosphere is a place where good things can happen. And they can happen to you, too.

Short, Sharp Shock

A few days ago, I took a day off from my working routine and went to the sauna in order to relax a bit. The sauna has a pool filled with cold water (19° C / 66.2° F), which not only offers the opportunity to cool down after a sauna session, but is even big enough so that one can actually swim in it for a while. After my first sauna session and a shower, I decided to take the challenge. After all, I am a masochist with brave girl fantasies – and who doesn't like the feeling when the pain starts fading afterwards?

I made an interesting observation, though. My method of entering the cold pool is quite different from what most visitors do. The majority of people definitely seems to prefer the short, sharp shock tactic. Which means entering the pool as quickly as possible, swimming for a short time only and then getting out again almost as fast as one got into the pool. That's not for me. I literally enter the pool step by step. Every time I walk in a bit deeper, the coolness takes my breath away for a moment. I wait until my body has acclimatized to the new level, and then I take it one step further. If I tried to run into the water as others do, I would be gasping for breath for quite a while and feel like I might suffocate. So, I take it slowly. But once I have entered the pool, I stay in there for much longer than most of the others do and I enjoy the feeling of swimming in the cold water. Afterwards,  I leave the pool relaxed and happy.

Now, why do I tell you this? Well, it struck me that what I described is a common pattern for me. I was never good at any sports discipline that requires a short intense explosion of power. I am much better with the things that require less explosiveness but a longer endurance. And: I am not into short, sharp shock spankings, either. Especially with severe spankings the chance that my body freaks out and that I am not very happy and relaxed afterwards is rather high. On the other hand, I don't mind to bend over again and again for sets of severe strokes, as long as the breaks are long enough to give my body a chance to adapt to the situation and to prevent it from freaking out. I know that for several fellow spankos, it is exactly the other way round. Severe short, sharp shock spankings are okay for them, but having to adopt the position again for a second round after a break is what they find horrible.

I am not sure whether this only has to do with different body conditions or whether it is a mental thing as well. I wonder, though, whether those among us who prefer the short, sharp shock tactics when it comes to spanking are the ones who also jump into the cold pool as quickly as possible and the ones who prefer to run short distances? And are those who go for slow spankings with breaks the ones who, like me, take their time when entering cold water and prefer to walk longer distances? I am curious to hear about your observations!

Jason the School Decorator

A while ago, I introduced you to the first-ever severe caning clip with a female bottom that I found on Spanking Tube and liked. I already mentioned then that there was another clip (apart from Ludwig's clips which led me to this blog and are responsible for me finding my mate) which was a kind of revelation for me.

It is an amateur M/M spanking clip, produced by Jason King and his friends. Now, one could certainly find several reasons why said clip isn't perfect. For example, there is only one static camera perspective, the top isn't fully visible, and Jason's clothes could have been arranged better for the caning in order to present the target more fully.

But I love the clip for several reasons. First of all, it definitely is a labour of love made by real amateur spanking enthusiasts. Secondly, while it is not perfect, the clip has a good quality overall, a creative storyline, actors who appear quite natural, a handsome bottom and a solid caning. For me, the clip generates the feeling of watching a light-hearted scene between fellow kinksters with a serious storyline, but a not-so-serious atmosphere between the participants.

Jason the School Decorator was the first M/M clip that touched my heart and made me realise that clips which fit to that rather unusual core fetish of mine really exist. That's why I am very thankful to Jason and his friends and why this little clip will always have a special place in my memories. And here it is:

I have to admit that I am not always keen on the amateur clips at Spanking Tube because of the often bad quality, heads which are cut off for anonymity reasons and missing storylines. Well made amateur clips, on the other hand, can have a certain charm that many professional clips haven't got. How about you: amateur or professional spanking clips – which do you prefer?