Tuesday, October 31, 2006



Tambo, Nerdy, Alex and I all got together and carved us up some jack-o-lanterns. Any guesses as to who carved what?

Monday, October 30, 2006

10k in 10 days

The Black Rose show is coming up in just over a month. Any readers going? Anyone care to share some info on the event? From what I have heard this is THE big east coast event. Estimates are saying that they will be expecting 2-3000 folks that weekend? Those are some impressive con numbers, extra impressive when you take into count that it happens the weekend after a major holiday.

Aside from booking flights and hotels, I've really not even begun to prep for this one.

In classic Monk fashion, in between trying to shake off the cold and ingest more coffee that most would consider healthy, I'm pondering the inevitable Death March that is to come. Nerdy and I calculate that if we can kick out just shy of 2 miles in the next two weeks, we will be golden. Making 10,000 ft of rope in 10 days is not impossible. Hard, but not impossible.

My coffee is all gone, save a thick resedue on the bottom of the cup, best get to work.

Saturday, October 28, 2006

Today marks the birthday of the most important person in my entire world, Tambo. Happy birthday my love, in all the wild madness that is my world you have always been my constant. Thank you, I could not do any of this with out you.

So today while I do my best to constantly remind her of how awesome I think she is and generally make her feel like the queen of the universe, please join me in wishing her a happy day.

Also huge thanks to my “kids”, Nerdy and Alex, for their part in all this. They invaded our house last night with gifts, flowers, laughter, and made us a fantastic meal (complete with the most intense cheesecake ever). You two are great (maddening some days, but great)

Then, then there was the carving of the pumpkins…more on that later.

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Letters to Monk

Monk,

Your instructional videos are excellent. They're simple, direct, personal, and effectively instructive. The establishment shots and close-ups are well intercut and illustrative. I sincerely hope you'll develop and post more of them. Do you plan to make an instructional DVD?


I must say that the response to the instructional clips we posted last week have been huge. (So huge that we needed to move them over to a higher bandwidth server). We are kicking around ideas for 5-6 more clips, but shooting them and meeting our current production deadline (aka “Oh shit, we need to make 12,000 ft of rope in 2 weeks” death march) will be dicey at best. There will be more, I promise just not sure how soon this will happen. As for an instructional DVD? Wow, while I am flattered that you think my teaching skills are so good, I prefer to keep the actual teaching to those much more qualified than I. We will post more clips but there is no “Monk Teaches Bondage” DVD in the works.

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Happy birthday to my...

Erotic Gumby, bootblack, show pony, Emo-Smurf, mini me, gender bending little queer, personal masochist, punk rawk star of stage & screen, rope wrangler, lil bastard, baker extraordinaire, footstool, Sparky the wonder pup and the best boy a leather daddy could ask for.

Adoringly,
-Daddy

Monday, October 23, 2006

You just had to be there…

In response to the comment left yesterday:
“Are you going to blog about your scene at the WS last night? It was awesomely awesome.”

There are some scenes that just beg to be blogged, and some that are private affairs that will only exist as a memory between the players involved. Then, then there are those scenes that, while done in public, no amount of blog time would do it justice. So no, I’m not going to even attempt to describe that scene in question.

If you did happen to see Alex and I play at the wetspot last Saturday night, consider yourself lucky, it was a hell of a scene.

What I will say about the event is this. To the wetspot director, staff and event volunteers thank you, thank you, THANK YOU. You guys just bent over backwards to make Alex’s birthday scene something really wonderful. I came to you with what felt like a huge wish list of items I needed in order to deliver the scene and you guys just came through in spades for me.

Seattle is very lucky to have a space like the wetspot. Keep up the great work.

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Wardrobe moments

The cold, damp weather has returned to my beloved Seattle. In response, I have pulled out my trusty army surplus wool pants. Sturdy, warm and shockingly comefortable, these green/gray trousers will be a permanent fixture till just shy of April. Of course there is a downside, they are COVERED in crimson dye stains. Today as I was walking up to the gym with Tambo I noted that I must look a bit like a serial killer, crimson stained army pants stuffed into boots and such.

Tambo, pointing to the crimson splashes across the front and crotch of my pants, responds, “Or like someone with a SERIOUS health problem.”

Perhaps it is time to toss these bad boys into my next black dye bath?

Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Timing is everything

So there we were in the Abbey today. Alex, bless his little emo heart, brought me lunch (homemade mac & cheese. Yes, yes I do have the best boy in the world) and was perched upon the toe of my boot as we talked about his upcoming birthday scene. Now one of the more charming little rituals we share is the pre-scene “to do” list. I always make a point to give him a list of tasks and jobs to do before we play. These may range from what to wear or what items to have in his possession to requiring him to get enough sleep before hand. While he never really is quite sure what I have up my sleeve (save that I’m going to kick his ass nine ways to Sunday) he knows that he must follow all the instructions to the letter. This is also a grand way to help build that pre-scene tension by dropping slightly threatening hints as to what may (or may not) go down.

“I’ll pick you up at 6, have your boot blacking kit with you. Oh and have you ever gone into shock before?”

Chin resting on my knee as he listened intently, who should call but my friend Jester. You remember Jester? He is the guy who knows how to kill a man with like a taco sauce packet and is my general go-to guy when it comes to needing ideas on how to do really, really terrible things to someone. Answering the phone, Alex cocks his head to one side and looks at me with a look of worry as he listens to my side of the conversation.

“Hey Jester, what’s that? You have some more ideas for my interrogation scene? Needles, under the fingernails you say?........Uh huh......Conducts electricity you say?......Damn, that sounds like it would hurt like a son of a bitch......Like what, a 30 gauge or would you need something smaller?.....Banned by the Geneva Convention? Really?.......Cool, thanks for the tip. Bye”


Hanging up, the boy stares at me. Mouth agape and pale with fear. “Please tell me you planned that call to happen!”
Calmly, “nope”
“I’m ……so…………… screwed………”

I just have to laugh when the universe throws me a bone like this. The trust Alex puts in my hands when we play is an amazing thing. He knows that I will push his limits, hard, but in the end return him safely and in one piece. However that slight tint of fear, that unsure worry about as to just how I’m going to go about doing it. Well that, dear readers, makes the giving of trust all the more sweet. Yes, Jester’s call was totally out of the blue, but the timing could not have been more perfect.

Saturday, October 14, 2006

New stuff to lust after!

Oh boy do I have a pile of updates to talk about today. First and foremost would be this month. As you know, we get lots and lots of requests for custom colors. Rather than try to stock them all I make a limited run of one new color every month. When that color is all sold out, it is gone for good.

This month’s color is… Pumpkin. What? Its October, I love Halloween and have a thing for pumpkin baked goods. You expected something else? Mauve perhaps?!
Whle we are on the topic of new rope, I’m very delighted to announce that I finally have my new stock of jute in from Japan. I’ve teamed up with one of the top performance riggers and teachers in Japan, Osada Steve, to bring in his custom spun jute for sale. This jute, dubbed “Osada Steve’s Authentic Shibari Rope” is the rope of choice for many of the top rope artists in the Tokyo scene.

Speaking of Osada Steve’s performance work. Take a look for yourself on one of the 3 DVDs of his live shows that we are also now offering. I’ll post a review and photos on this blog later, but suffice to say that they are pretty damned amazing live shibari performances featuring some gravity defying rope work.


What, you want something more practical? Well we finally finished the first of our “how to” videos and have them online for your viewing pleasure. Tambo and I show you a few simple ties to get you started using your rope. Based on the response from these videos we will see about shooting some more complex ties in the future.



Speaking of complex ties and video, I've recived several requests to post more videos of me rigging and doing "performance" bondage. Hmm, I'll need to think about this a bit more.

Ok time to pull this black off the boil and set the dye, have a great Saturday folks.

Friday, October 13, 2006

And now a note from your Kinky Ms Manners

When at a public play party you will see (if you are lucky) a wide variety of play going on. While most folks are pretty hip to the behavior around your classic “scene”, as in person x is tying up/ flogging or generally being delightfully mean to person y. What about those D/s scenes that may not follow such a clear delineation between when folks are actually in a scene and not? For those who may not be familiar with D/s play it is, in short, play were one person gives up their free will to another for a period of time. This may be manifest at an event by person x wearing a collar around their neck, kneeling in front of person y and generally having ALL their attention devoted to the person with whom they have given their submission to.

First off, just because there are not floggers falling or rope out, respect the scene’s space. Just the act of putting a collar on another human and the building of the dominant/submissive headspace is a scene unto itself. A smart person will respect this space and approach with caution. Address the top directly and only after asking permission, speak to the bottom.

Next, respect the role/gender / space that the players are in at the time. If the person is in pony gear and introduced to you as “Bob the pony”, don’t argue to the contrary. Smile, ask the top if you may scratch behind the pony’s ear and respect the role that they have chosen for their scene.

And the big one. Never, under any circumstances, ever, EVER touch a bottom/submissive with out first asking permission from the top. Uninvited touching is just plain rude and is always to be avoided, but uninvited touching while someone is wearing a collar and giving themselves to another person is a huge, gross violation and you are lucky if you don’t get snarled at or worse.

While this may seem overly formal, you may not know what the rules or nature of the D/s dynamic is at the time, everyone’s play is different. So a bit of formality goes a long way in helping to not disrupt the mood that the players are trying to create.

In the end, an ounce of common sense and respect goes a long way here.

Thursday, October 12, 2006

It’s the first day (of the rest of your life)

Damn, life has been overwhelming these past few days! Between battling the crud (feeling mostly human now, thanks), taking care of those I love who have said crud, and keeping up with the sheer crush of work that has been flowing into the shop this week. Well lets just say that this poor journal has been getting the short end of the attention stick. That is not to say that I don’t have some awesome surprises in store for all of you in the next few days. Keep your eyes out for a new color of the month, a sweet new exotic and some video updates as well.

Along with all the swirling madness that seems to be October, yesterday was a huge day for us. Yesterday was Tambo’s last day at her hellhole of a tech job. After years of prodding, she decided to make the jump and take her destiny into her own capable hands.

She used to work in a high security office, yesterday marked the second time in like 5 years I have seen her desk. Now I spent the better part of a decade working in tech. So I am familiar with what it is like to work in that environment, spending more time with machines than humans, but damn seeing it first hand again was a shock. A dark, dimly lit in that sickly pale fluorescent lighting, no windows, artificially cold and that constant whine of a cpu fan… I actually had to step out of the room for fear that I was going to throw up. Yes, it physically made me sick. Funny, I’ve seen people willing get their mouths sewn shut, inflate their scrotums with saline and happily act as human toilets, but this place squicked me.

I know I complain about being cold and damp here at the Abbey, but damn at least I can see the sun!

And so, yes dear readers. We are about to embark upon another chapter in this story that is Monk and his little rope company. Tambo put up with her soul sucking office job for far too long in order to support me while the company was in it’s infancy. Now, it is my turn to return the favor and be her safety net.

It is going to be a very interesting few months…

Monday, October 09, 2006

Great, just great. After spending the weekend in a vain attempt to take care of those around me who were sick it looks like I am about to fall victim to it as well. Oh joy, like I don’t already have too much on my plate already, now I gotta deal with this.

While I dose up on vitamin C and other pharmaceuticals wonders, enjoy. Tambo took this shot of us while in SF. Remember that birthday present from my “kids”, Nerdy and Alex? Where here it is, a custom T-shirt that reads, “I 'heart' my non-biological, queer, leather children



Yeah, yeah I do. I must admit that this is a new role for me, one that I’m constantly struggling with, worried that I’m doing it wrong or going to do more harm than good. They are great kids, nerve wracking some days and often hard to explain to folks but in the end when they both come running up to me screaming “Daddy!” and wrap their arms around my waist while burying their faces in my chest… I feet very proud and want nothing more than to wrap my leather jacket around them both like a shield and keep them safe and warm for just a bit longer.

Friday, October 06, 2006

Random quotes from a long, lazy morning spent in bed with Dancer

“I’m thinking that I’d rather enjoy violating her in every hole god gave her, and a few I plan on putting there myself.”

“Cross-eyed? Honey, I think you fucked me Picasso”

“Sometimes having a penis is like sharing a dorm room with a drunken exchange student from Brazil. You are never quite sure what he is trying to tell you, he can be insufferable inconsiderate, he never pays his half the rent on time, always eats the last of the pizza and comes roaring into the room at the worst possible times.. but damn does he fun to have around at parties.”

Thursday, October 05, 2006

My ears are still ringing from the Muse show last night. Missed the show? No worries, just go do a search on youtoube. I think every other person there had a damn camcorder in their hands last night. But I digress, how was the show? Not bad, not bad at all. The band are amazing musicians and produced a serious wall of sound. I’m fairly certain that my collarbones are bruised from all the sheer bass impact alone.

Thing was, I really wanted to like the show more but I couldn’t. I mean they are amazing musicians, the stage/light show was stellar and all that and the album is one of my favorites to come out this year. However the concert itself just left me a wee bit cold. On the drive home, Tambo and I were trying to figure out just why we were both feeling blah about the event when we agreed that they were not playing for us. Nope, their attention and energy extended to about the end of the stage and maybe a couple of rows into the floor. Not the entire space. Now I am not saying that the Muse show was bad, just that the band are great performers. Not great showmen.

There is a difference. Someone might be able to create amazing, intricate music that you cannot stop listening to, but ask them to fill a huge theater with said music (with out just turning the amps up REALLY loud) and everyone (even those of us not standing in the communal sweat stain that is the pit) feel like they were singing just to us. That is a whole other thing. Rob Zombie, while not the most technically complex or talented of composers, knows how to put on a show that makes even the guy in the cheap seats feel glad that they came.

Charisma? Stage Craft? Playing to the crowd? Who knows, but interesting food for thought with parallels into the rest of life.

Being a kinkster, I started making associations to one’s sm play. Someone might be able to throw a hell of a flogger or tie a fantastic bowline hitch, but if they cannot engage their audience (in this case, the audience of one-their partner) and deliver an experience that makes them feel like they are the only thing in the world that matters at this moment… well perhaps I am rambling here and need to further flesh this idea out at a later date?

In the end, if you have not listened to Black Holes and Revelations, go do it now. Again an amazing freaking CD. Muse live? I’d say 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

While driving Tambo to the bus stop today we were remarking at how seemingly overnight the once vibrant green trees that line the road have all turned into an explosion of reds and oranges. Folsom is sort of that marker for us, before the event it we are enjoying the last of the late Seattle summer. Upon our return the switch is made and we are now headlong into fall.

Fortunately I rather like this time of year…

10 things I really enjoy about fall in Seattle. (in no particular order)

1) Pumpkin based baked goods.
2) Getting to wear my faithful, dye stained wool fisherman’s sweater again.
3) Listening to dark, brooding music like Type-O Negative does not draw the same stares as it once did.
4) Seeing new horror movies in the theater. To hell with the summer blockbusters, I want to get the snot scared outta me!
5) 3 of my favorite people all have birthdays soon; yes I have a thing for Scorpios.
6) Thanksgiving. I used to be so-so about this holiday but the last couple have restored my faith in the concept of a drama free holiday.
7) One of my fav local theater companies does their annual HP Lovecraft show. (Tambo and I have tickets for the Friday the 13th performance)
8) Piling more quilts on the bed and snuggling up close on those cold nights.
9) School restarts. Seems like everyone I know is returning to school this fall. Part of me misses that… that part is soon slapped down by the part that does not miss the mountains of homework associated with said activity.
10) The smell of wood smoke in the air.

Monday, October 02, 2006

Mess of other people’s photos.

Sorry for the lack of posts, the re-charge time from this recent trip to Folsom has been much longer than expected. Of course it does not help that we came back to nearly a mile of new rope orders too! Trust me, I’m not complaining in the least. Just a bit overwhelming some days. On the plus side, I did get some great play in this weekend and have a date to get the “monk re-set button” thumped by the one woman who knows just how to do it.

In the meantime, here are a mess of links to photos from Folsom. Many thanks to Veggie Goddess for finding these. If you have photos you took of the booth or the crew and have them posted online, please post a link in the comments section.


http://www.pbase.com/3horn/image/67500748
http://www.pbase.com/3horn/image/67500748 -photos of Midori's scene start 202
http://www.pbase.com/markwp/image/67611065
http://www.pbase.com/markwp/image/67610975
http://www.pbase.com/image/67610973
http://www.pbase.com/image/67611063
http://www.pbase.com/image/67610976
http://www.pbase.com/markwp/image/67652779
http://www.flickr.com/search/?s=int&q=folsom+2006+suspension&m=text
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shoplifters/251910924/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/57715480@N00/253886465/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aiyahh/253175988/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aiyahh/253175723/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fredarmitage/253087457/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shoplifters/251910924/