Interesting Topic....
How did you find out about the BDSM lifestyle?
I knew from a very young age that I found bound women attractive. I loved seeing Daphne in Scooby Doo tied up. I just wish one of the villians would hogtie her. At the same age I watched a couple of japanese live action shows, Johnny Socko and his Flying Robot, and Ultramam, where the japanese heroines were regularly tied up. Always thought that it was soooo cool. Wanted to be one of the villains. I always thought I was a bit odd for liking those images. Later in Jr. High I would sit in class and fantasize for hours about pulling one of my teachers into the basement, tying her up and exploring her body in detail. I tied up two girlfriends in high school. Still thinking I was odd. Then I joined the Navy, while in port, I'd work as a barback at a local dive bar, which had a private party once a month for the owner's friend's.... who were in the local scene. At last I was not alone or a freak. Been learning ever since then. I learned ever so much about it from a very nice korean woman who spanked the bargirls when they misbehaved.
What was its appeal to you?
Not entirely sure, I just know that no woman looks more beautiful that when she's laced tightly in rope.
What misconceptions did you have of BDSM before you began that have been changed now?
Always thought I was an oddball for fantasizing about it, that I was broken somehow. I used to think that I could hurt a woman very easily, surprisingly, they're pretty tough when you consider what you can do to them.
What do you hope to learn/teach/pass on to others about BDSM?
Safety & Respect. I'm very much a YKIOK kind of person, and just because some folks want to be wrapped in saran wrap with peanutbutter and egg yolks... who am I to judge? I have a tremendous amount of respect for subs, both male and female. It takes incredible inner strength to walk to a post and let yourself be attached when you know someone is about to flog the bejesus out of you.
Do you consider yourself a "lifestyler" or just an occasional player?
I've never considered it in that way. I took a zen approach to life a while back and only consider it a part of who I am. I used to play more often, but with my wife's sickness our activities have curtailed immensely over the last two years.
What do you enjoy about being dominant/submissive?
It's hard to put into words. When I'm in my Dom headspace, the world is just different. I'm not a meglo-maniac, but when I'm there, I KNOW the world is mine, it shudders where I walk, and it trembles at my voice. I feel the power, and know then why some folks refer to it as Sex-Magik.
What do you like about your dominant/submissive(s), if you have one (them)?
There have a been a few over the years.
One that I think of often is Sessy. She was a true pain-slut, and the look in her eyes when she was exhausted from a whipping or caning, then hearing her wavering voice ask for more.... memories give me a pleasant shudder to this day.
My wife is my dorei now. Which means rope slave. I treasure the playful way she'll goad me, or the teasing we share before a night of play. I love that I can speak twelve words in her ear and know that she'll be soaked in moments. I have the image of her looking over her shoulder at me the first time I truly spanked her engraved in my memory. There's a look in the movie "THe Secretary" when the spader spanks gyllenhall the first time. It pales by comparison, because I know that, that look is for me and me alone, and I get to see it often.