And I've got the bruises to prove it.
I spent the first couple hours just kind of sitting around watching other people play and eating snacks, 'cuz I didn't know anyone and I'm not good at approaching people and anyway the music was too loud to talk much. (They had a socializing hour just before the party, but I arrived too late for it.) Then finally the person who invited me showed up, and introduced me to a few of her friends before going off to play with her date. And one of those friends happened to be a cute FTM who asked if I wanted to play, and before long I had my shirt off and my wrists tied to a St Andrew's cross while he showed me a variety of floggers from her toy bag. Then he gave me a little taste of each one. I think, on the balance, I like belts more than floggers... although the five-pound flogger was definitely interesting. Damn near knocked me off my feet! ^_^
I had a great time. I would urge everyone here to try attending a play party in their area, if they can find one.