Potent Quotables

“The world is but a canvas to our imagination.” -Thoreau

"Forces of inspiration and rejuvenation are converging upon me. Each moment fueled with intense desire. I tug upon the intangible, those threads of shared experience linking minds. Fragments snap back to nourish my spirit. The unvarnished truth is assembled piece by piece. Life is merely a mosaic. Endeavor to craft a bold and intricate work of art." -Sauda Namir

***I know I'm verbose. If you only want to scroll through the photos, there is a CliffsNotes version at the bottom***

Modeling:

Gilded Missile on GodsGirls.com is my 6th set for the site, and my first hardcore photoset ever. The members left some fantastic comments on this one. It makes me really happy!

Surprise Weekend Rerun of Hit the Sheets on GodsGirls.com

Naughty in Nature by Something Real Media on Zivity.com was published Monday, September 8th.

Splash Effect by Reflected Reality is a two girl water fight photoset. Those 65 images are available exclusively to Zivity Fans who've voted fifteen times on Naughty in Nature + fifteen times on Mewtinie's Graffiti in the City. You'll get all the Zivity set specific incentives PLUS the set of us together! What could be better?!

Shockaholic is my most recent submission (heh) to GodsGirls. I can't wait for this one to hit the site. Bondage! Y (Nipple/Clit) Clamps! Neon Wand! OH MY!

Sweet Sweat with Louis Fitch ... not for a site. Purely for the fun of making art together.

Beautiful day spent in Rogers Park with Martin Class, too.

“Sex is emotion in motion.” -Mae West

Burlesque

This year, the Fierce International Queer Burlesque Festival was held in Madison, Wisconsin. I had the supreme pleasure of attending the showcases, learning from the incomparable TIGGER, and even performing at the goodbye brunch show.

Image: copyright Geoffrey Harley

The main stage showcases were spiritual experiences. I have attempted, time and again over the last few weeks, to adequately describe the profound effect so many artists had on me, or the complete comfort I gain from being among so many queer/ally positive creatives. To date, this is the closest I’ve come:

Home from Fierce: International Queer Burlesque Festival, and I cannot begin to form cohesive sentences to describe the flurry of creativity, kinship beyond community, fearlessness, talent, and extravagance I experienced last weekend. The withdrawal is real, folks.

Special thanks to Viva Valezz, Peach Pies Caburlesque, and the entire Wisconsin crew for organizing such a wonderful festival! Endless gratitude to Tigger-James Ferguson for a stellar class! To each and every one of the performers, your art is breathtaking. Thank you for baring yourselves mind, body, and spirit; your energy is infectious.

People of Madison, your town is so welcoming and wonderful. Every time I visit, I have an experience more fulfilling than I could ever hope for. The audiences there are consistently a joy to perform for. We feed together on an enthusiasm loop radiating between stage and house. The feeling is deeply divine! Burlesque church. Extra special thank you to fans both familiar and new. I hope to see you again soon.

HIGHLIGHTS! All FIERCE images below are courtesy and copyright of Geoffrey Harley of the Burlesque Box.

Crimson Kitty (Left) and Femme Brulee (Right)

Miss Poison Ivory (Left) and Red Bone (Right)

Steele Starling (Left) and Horchata Dentana (Right)

Po' Chop (Left) and Sweetpea (Right)

Stephan (Left) and TIGGER! (Right)

Rasta Boi Punany (Left) and Sauda Namir (Right)

I enjoyed time outside the festival as a couple’s weekend away. We biked around town, and consumed so much great food... especially cheese and beer. Speaking of beer, since we were so close, New Glarus beckoned. As much as I’d love to take the hard hat tour, those are booked well in advance. Maybe next year! Still, we were able to poke around the brewery, and meander the courtyard for a tasting. Of course, we left with a trunk full of goodness. The magnum of Serendipity was especially delicious! I only wished I’d had the foresight to buy more of that one.

Bella's Goodbye Show

Chicago is one starlet dimmer, after Bella Bathory has returned west. She is a remarkable beauty and wonderful talent. Her goodbye show really drew the community together, which speaks directly to how very special she is to all of us. There were some strong feels, and selfish desires to keep her. LA better know how lucky it is to have her call it home.

Good to sit on Rev while he was hosting, too.

No-Tell Cabaret

I had the pleasure of popping my No-Tell Cabaret cherry at Debonair Social Club last week. Special thanks to Shana Vaughan-Gabor for putting together one of the best bar shows in town. It was excellent to meet some new burlesque friends, as well. Helena Handbasket, Nyxie Temptress, ThomAss Edison, and our host, Sammy Tramp were all exceptional in their own unique ways. I hope to grace stages around town with them all again soon.

All this inspiration has me thinking about where I am, and where I’m going with burlesque. I’ve reaffirmed my commitment to expanding my portfolio of acts, working cooperatively with all interested producers in town, on an engagement selective basis. I’m no longer interested in running myself ragged to the point of watering down my own brand, as I’ve fallen victim to before. Nor am I content in this semi-retired state. Ultimately, I’m happy for my time away from the hustle, but I’m ready to settle the pendulum center.

Playtime

This summer has delivered some really wonderful nights. Like drinking wine, cuddled up at the lakeshore, and gazing at a blood red moon rise. The reflection of a reflection dancing in the waves crashing onto shore. In a futile attempt at brevity, I’ll just make this a rapid fire barrage of my mini-adventures.

Drunk Driving is a thing my buddies Andy & Myles host. We take shots and play Mario Kart very poorly. I don’t have photos, mostly because they’d just be blurry anyway. At the last of these parties, Andy presented all of us with a tiny little cup she made in pottery class. Each was unique in shape, and had our name fired into the glaze. She’s so thoughtful and crafty!

Hattip to David Mendoza for this:

IML! I went shopping at the International Mister Leather Marketplace, and walked out with some great toys. Browsed the floor with two of the kinkiest guys I know (my pal Chris and boyfriend Michael), which kinda made me feel like a badass bitch. I simply adore being in an environment where I can just talk bluntly about sex and personal idiosyncrasies. Perfectly comfortable exchanges like, “Do you squirt?” “YES. A lot. Life preserver recommended.” “Awesome! This would be the one for you…” I was an easy sell on some bottles of Liquid Silk (best. lube. ever.) and a steel cat claw skin scratcher. There were a few gorgeous latex dresses I wanted ever so desperately to buy, and even more in the way of ultra-sexy leather pants I wish I could have afforded for boyfriend. In the end, the big ticket item of the day was a Neon Wand. I’d played with one before, and the same lovely lady that introduced me to the pleasures of electrosex - none other than Bella Bathory - sold boyfriend on a unit of our own. He even sprung (teehee) for the Power Tripper, too. That thing is torture ecstasy. Michael was kind enough to help me out with filming of “Shockaholic” for GodsGirls.com (as referenced above), so you can all have a tiny peek at how much I like it.

“Sex is as important as eating or drinking and we ought to allow the one appetite to be satisfied with as little restraint or false modesty as the other.” -Marquis de Sade

To celebrate his 36th successful orbit of the sun, Michael assembled his elite team of puzzle solvers (besties) to aid him in a room escape adventure… from a zombie! Yes, Trapped In A Room With A Zombie was a ton of fun. If I say too much, it would ruin all the fun for anyone local, or tourists, who might want to play. The goal is to get out alive in one hour, but we sadly needed another 30 seconds to have accomplished it. I like to think that with being so close to winning, we weren’t killed, but got out with a few bites thereby infecting all of society. I’m content being an almost winner, which is to say an intelligent loser.

I love summer weather, and always want it to last much longer than it ever does. My ideal distribution of seasons would go something like 6 months of summer, 3 months of fall, 1.5 months of winter, and 1.5 months of spring. Beach time is some of my favorite time.

Part time, I live with a Very Fun Cat™. Doctor Light has taken to perching on the headboard, meowing at lover and I to wake up. I'm anxiously awaiting the return of BatCat; he perches atop the open closet door, but has refrained to do so in warmer weather. He’s quite fond of his cat grass. When I brought home a catnip strawberry (toy) he went wild for about twelve hours until the thing was in tatters.

I’d picked it up when boyfriend took me to Tree House Shelter for cats. We met some very fine kitties on our visit, and I know it will be from there when I’m ready to adopt again. One in particular commanded my attention. A one-year-old, shorter hair black beauty with a little bib of white fur, jumped into my lap. I held him like an infant and gave the tummy rubs. He was such a sweetheart! After which, he immediately had to check out boyfriend, who wouldn’t put him down. Holding him in a one arm crook, I had to scoop him away just to move on before (and perhaps altogether too late) anyone became overly attached to one another. I wish I were in the position to have taken in another fur baby right now. My prevailing theory right now is that Michael has some St. Francis of Assisi mojo. He makes friends with every cat he meets.

There are two reading events that I found rather interesting: Write Club at the Hideout and White Rabbit at Quenchers. Very different to the point of no comparison. I anxiously await the next Write Club event, which is three series of head-to-head bouts, with a single overall winner chosen from the final three. White Rabbit was more of a straight forward poetry and prose reading. Both were immensely enjoyable. While I was sitting in Knockbox this weekend, I was thinking about how both of these make me look forward to the next Bizarro Hour, and where that might call home after the coffeehouse closure this fall. Changes like these tend to bring out melancholy with their uncertainty, but I remind myself to look past it to the excitement of possibilities that lie ahead.

Two new things on YouTube I’ve become obsessed with FIRSTS: the series and Sexplanations. The former is starring Troy Ruptash, whom I worked with on Dig Two Graves, and follows a new relationship through their firsts. First kiss, first phone sex, first game night, first meeting of the ex. Brilliantly written with razor sharp wit. The latter is sex topic infotainment with clinical sexologist Dr. Doe. It is my alternate reality dream job, and I’ve developed a crush on her because I’m sapiosexual.

Bands

Now I’m Nothing has been performing quite frequently! I’ve had a great time following them with my camera.

I had the extreme pleasure of performing along with them to Closer at MoJoes in Joliet. Because it was an all ages show, we kept it PG-13. Hopefully I’ll be able to join them in this capacity more often! Show images copyright Anthony N. Camastro Photography. It was a surprise for everyone in the audience, including our photographer, so I'm extra impressed with the documentation captured from the crowd.

The Flood Damage album "Instructions For The Assembly of God(s)" is nearing completion. I couldn’t be happier for Michael, or more proud of the whole crew for their parts in helping create this. Everything I’ve heard so far has my heart racing. I am amazed with the evolution of individual songs. I have some very old recordings, which have grown in their live experience, and now have a super thick sound in their current incarnation. SeXee is sounding incredible, and I can’t help but wiggle while choreographing in my head when I hear it.

Behind the scenes peek, at Glitch Mode Recording:

I tend to edit dirty pictures while I listen to music creation.

Sean Payne, producer of the Flood Damage album and connoisseur of Angry Robot Noises, just released a new album today - Worst Case Scenario Vol 1 - with his project Cyanotic.

It isn’t often (ever) that I get to see my honey in the role of drummer. He did a fill in spot for JILT at Cobra Lounge, where they opened for Leæther Strip. My multi-threat artist is so goddamn talented. *swoon* Show photos copyright Sackie Krikorian.

"I wanna live 'til I die, no more, no less." -Eddie Izzard

Books

If you’re into Goodreads, here is my profile.

Fireside Popsicles - Review:

There are 26 of these Twisted Tales Told by the Fire in all; each one a unique flavor. I’m pleased with Fireside Press for including such diversity within their anthology. The flow of the book is beautifully curated, each story carefully placed as if they were tracks on an album. Keeping a tight pace, and yet allowing for significant shifts in genre, tone, and style. A perfect example of which is the pairing of Rick Austin’s tale “The Mysterious Case of the Post-Apocalyptic Oxymoron” just before Michael Allen Rose’s “Confession and Redemption of the Apostle Abbot Technobabble.” Austin plays linguistic gymnastics, ripping colloquialisms apart and quilting them together again. This master wordsmithery provides a beautiful segue into the delightful madness of MAR’s pastafarian prophet.

I’m floored by Emily Stern’s ability to paint a layered portrait and turn it on its head (“Mellow Yellow”), I simply have no words [adequate] for “A Moment of Silence” (by Max Booth III), and Gabino Iglesias’ “In the Tub”… well, I’ll tell you what I told him, “You hit me right in the heart, and turned the knife in the only way that could make me laugh and dry heave simultaneously.” It was the first time I’ve ever been compelled to write an author, for the express purpose of lauding their work.

Having said all that, the three stories which made a profound impact upon me were: Becky Flade’s “Elementary Contract,” J.C. Michael’s “Closing the Deal,” and Jeremy Maddux’s “The Street Artist.” Each of these stories are easily worth the price of admission on their own. I could discuss their strengths at great length, but I’d rather not spoil the thrills for you!

While I haven’t written a proper review, I must recommend Vampire Dominatrices From Mars Vs. The Zombies of Christ. It was a really fun read, and toyed with some heavy themes in an interesting way… ever mindful and respectful of their weight.

Declension is now available on Kindle and Amazon. I have raved over this before, when I received my limited edition copy. Now, the mindfuck is available for the masses.

Currently Reading: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, Obsidian Butterfly

World of the Weird Monster Show

This is the first shot of the new studio. We’re transitioning to the new digs, and then we’ll be back with new episodes. For now, tide yourself over with this bit of insanity:

TL;DNR?

I make fabulous art with other amazing artists of various stripes. Media is consumed at a ravenous pace. My fortune is comprised of the chosen families I have, which makes me the richest I have ever been. Also, copious amounts of sex[ual expression].

All My Lust,

-Sauda