This past holiday season, I was with a group at the Mayflower Hotel bar in DC - yes, the same Mayflower Hotel that Eliot Spitzer allegedly met "Kristen" at. A man who was festively singing Christmas music asked me to join in several times. I said that I would join in only if they played Jingle Bell Rock. Well, soon enough the fantastic piano player (bottom left) did just that, which got me out of my seat and joining in song and dance by the piano with the nameless festive man (pictured with me). 

This week, in your relationships, consider trying something a little new or slightly outside your comfort zone. Whether that’s a new way of communicating or a new-to-you type of stimulation (or position) is up to you. You never know - you just might have a blast. I did!

And remember: new things don’t have to be drastic. The slightest variations can make all of the difference. Instead of sitting on separate sofas while you watch television tonight, sit on the same sofa and rub your partner’s feet. Rather than sit home alone, call a friend and chat on the phone. If you’re into missionary (as are most people in the world, it seems) try slight variations by tiliting your hips upward or downward (if you’re on the bottom) or angling your body at 45 degrees or coming in close for kisses and whispered words (if you’re on top).

So many options, so little time…

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Wow. This brought tears to my eyes - both the joy in Ellen’s publicly posted letter as well as all of the congratulatory comments that people have left on her web site, expressing their own happiness related to Ellen and Portia’s marriage. Maybe this country is coming along after all.

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CNN has posted an Associated Press (AP) article about Christina Applegate’s public statements about her battle with breast cancer, her decision to have a double mastectomy (even though cancer was found in only one breast), her plans for reconstructive surgery, her love of life and her humor.

Some key quotes:

On the choice to have a double mastectomy: 
"I just wanted to kind of be rid of it… so this was the choice I made, and it was a tough one."

On her forthcoming breast reconstruction:
"I’m going to have cute boobs till I’m 90, so there’s that," she joked in the interview, "I’ll have the best boobs in the nursing home. I’ll be the envy of all the ladies around the bridge table."

And on the ups and downs on her experience:
"Sometimes, you know, I cry, and sometimes I scream, and I get really angry, and I get really like, you know, into wallowing in self-pity sometimes," she said. "And I think that’s — it’s all part of healing, and anyone who’s going through it out there, it’s OK to cry. It’s OK to fall on the ground and just scream if you want to."

and

"I’ve laughed so much in the last three weeks," she said. "I love living, and I really love my life, and I knew that from this moment on it was only going to be good that was going to be coming. Yeah, I’ll face challenges, but you can’t get any darker than where I’ve been. So knowing that in my soul gave me the strength to just say, ‘I have to get out there and make this a positive.’ "

Read the full article here.

[Image via this site.]

You can learn more about breast cancer from the National Cancer Institute, here on their web site.

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Image via this site.

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I know it’s been a while, but loyal MSP readers know how much I enjoy my old worn copy of "Love is…" What a great image of Woodstock sticking it out, even when all signs point to an end. It makes me think of the depths that good friends go to for each other, and family members being there through thick and thin, and hanging in there with a partner even when he or she breaks one’s heart (and, as they say, every relationship has its betrayals - at least if it survives long enough, it does).

Hmmm….

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I have mostly always been a very happy, cheerful person - except, you know, when it’s hard to be cheerful (and EVERYONE has those days!). Not too long ago when  was in San Fran, this framed print was in my hotel room. Awesome, I thought. I’m totally a poster child for this idea! I firmly believe that blue skies and big puffy clouds are around us all. I also believe that optimism can be cultivated and that it can enhance one’s personal relationships with friends, family members and romantic partners. Try - if you’re interested - in focusing on what you are grateful for in regard to the people around you. What has gone right today? Who really came through for you, even though maybe it was hard for them? Who noticed you or paid attention in a lovely way today?

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As I posted yesterday, a lot of people are curious about 23 year old Michael Phelps’ penis. Maybe it’s because of the media attention around how Speedo apparently seems to have airbrushed his penis out of promo photos. Or maybe it is because NBC has described - in much detail - Michael Phelps’ large shoe size (size 14!) and hand size (like paddles!) making people wonder whether the rest of his body is as large. It’s unclear how he feels about this kind of attention - on one hand it must be quite flattering, and he certainly takes opportunities to pose for various magazine covers, etc. On the other hand, I’d guess it must feel a bit awkward or demeaning. The guy is a stellar athlete, has shown enormous commitment and perserverance to train, and yet people want to know about his genitals.

Hmmm…. so shall we shift the focus for a moment to a science-y look?

As in, what can we learn from this cultural obsession with Phelps’ gentials? Well, scientific research suggestst hat penis size is not well predicted by the size of one’s feet, hands or nose, as some myths suggest. You can’t even tell the size of a man’s erect penis just by looking at the size of his flaccid penis, as some men are "showers" (they gain little length when they become erect) and others are "growers" (gaining more length when they become erect). So while people may be curious about Phelps’ penis because his body looks attractive to them, the size of the rest of him isn’t much of an indicator about his genitals. And anyway, size is only one aspect of penile size - technique matters quite a lot to sexual satisfaction, as does relationship quality (well, at least in cases where there is a relationship to speak of).

But back to Phelps.

Though there are actually a ton more key word searches that brought people to MSP in the lasy day or two, there are only so many that I can re-type, so here are some highlights from the past day:

-154 searched "michael phelps penis"
- 44 "phelps penis"
- 29 "michael phelps penis size"
- 17 "michael phelps sexuality"
- 11 "michael phelps sex"
- 10 "michael phelps" and "penis"
- 10 "michael phelps’ penis"
- 7 "phelps penis size"
- 6 "michael phelps dick size"
- 5 "michael phelps cock size"
- 3 "phelps penis"
- 3 "mike phelps penis size"
- 2 "michael phelps + penis"
- 2 michael phelps, penis size
- 2 phelps’ penis
- 1 "a picture of michael phelps penis" (really????)
- 1 "michael phelps body dick"
- 1 michael phelps cock outline
- 1 "michael phelps pennis" (it’s penis with one n!!!)
- 1 michael phelps size 14 penis (um, it’s size 14 shoe - not penis)
- 1 michael phelps swimsuit penis
- 1 phelps cock size
- 1 phelps has a small penis
- 1 sex with michael phelps
- 1 what is michael phelps dick size

………….. and on and on.

[Above photo via this site.]

 (Above image via this site).

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Another picture that I took of a coffee shop journal entry. It reads:

I had learned through life experiences to be wary of love. Love hurts. Breaks your soul. But I have discovered that life experiences sometimes are only to make you see the beauty in things to come. Love does not always hurt. Love can invigorate you - dredge you up from the depths of hell. Now, through God’s grace, I understand. I was only being prepared for this, the rarest of all things, the true pure love that I feel for you. Unlike everything I’ve ever known. And I am grateful every day to wake up in the morning and just watch you breathing, laying next to me. I am grateful for every loving gaze into my eyes, every time your arms are wrapped around me. And I am grateful, most of all, that I never completely gave up on love. Thanks to God, and to you, for the joy and wonder that is my life. I love you. Today, tomorrow, forever.

Come on, now. Thoughts, anyone? Were you as moved as I was? Okay, so there is one tiny cynical side of me that thinks, um, was this written by a high school senior or college sophomore (or similar young, inexperienced person) who had one bad high school heartbreak, then fell in love again and now thinks that they have found nirvana? And then there is a bigger part of me that is like, right on! I know! I have been there - all of the "theres", by the way. The sadness. The despair. The heartbreak. Getting to the point where you think "okay, I’m pretty sure I’ll fall in love again one day, but right now I can’t imagine ever being able to fall in love". And then I also know the euphoria, and the calm, and the gratitude of having hung in there and fallen in love again and then going "ah, so THIS is what I was missing before."

Thoughts"?

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Yesterday I wrote about the issue of an outline of Michael Phelps’ penis showing through his Speedo suit and how it appears that his penis was airbrushed out of promo ads of him in his suit. Remember?

Well, it turns out that we here at MSP are not the only ones interested in Phelps’ penis. Yesterday evening alone, people visited MySexProfessor.com purely as a result of searching for various Phelps/penis related terms and then hitting upon MSP. Specifically, last night alone:

- 21 people found MySexProfessor.com as a result of searching for "michael phelps penis"
- 9 got here thanks to a search for "michael phelps penis size"
- 8 for "naked olympians"
- 7 for "michael phelps sexuality"
- 7 by way of searching "phelps penis"
- 5 arrived at MSP after searching "michael phelps cock size"
- 3 found us after searching "michael phelps sex"
- 3 via "phelps penis size"
- 2 via "michael phelps" and "penis"
- 2 arrived at MSP a la "mike phelps penis size"
- 1 "michael phelps" and "penis size"
- 1 "michael phelps" and "oral sex" (I am NOT making this up!!!)
- 1 "michael phelps dick size"
- 1 "michael phelps dick size?" (gotta love the question mark they put at the end)
- 1 "michael phelps std" (seriously??? do they really think the internet is going to list whether someone has an std/sti???)
- 1 "michael phelps’ penis"
- 1 "michael phelps, sex"
- 1 "michael phelps: sexuality"
- 1 "phelps cock size"
- 1 "sex michael phelps"

NOTE: This does not include all the people who searched terms like "michael phelps chest size" or "michael phelps body" or "michael phelps anatomy".

[Image via this site.]

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