by Karen | Mar 9, 2008 | General
A stigma exists around the subject of intimate relationships. At the SXSW Interactive conference, I attended an interesting conversation hosted by Elizabeth Wood, founder of the website SexinthePublicSquare.com and an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Nassau Community College, and Lux Alptraum, founder of the website Boinkology.com. Their sites are educational in nature, yet their sites are blocked by Internet content filters such as those found in public libraries and in most American airports. Sponsors hesitate to back such sites. Elizabeth said, “The people who have skills and ability to evaluate all the sexual content on the Web are being barred from helping those who can’t evaluate.”
While the Internet has increased access to sexually explicit material, many websites, including theirs, get tagged as, “NSFW” (not safe for work). The acronym is designed to protect users from following a link to sites that might get them into trouble with their bosses. But why is a site with sex ed info on it any less appropriate to look at while on the job than is, say, a shopping site or a gossip blog?
“Sex is the most basic part of our live, yet we fear that if we talk about it or demonstrate any interest in the topic, it will affect our employability,” said Elizabeth.
Usually, to get people to share their stories with me for my column in The Good Life magazine, I must offer to represent them with pseudonyms.
What personal beliefs prevent you from discussing subjects of love, sex and romance? Please share your thoughts.
by Karen | Feb 18, 2008 | Events, General, Intimacies Discussion Group
Join Good Life columnist Karen Kreps and special guest, Michael Johnson, PhD, for a conversation about how to avoid mistaking sexual intensity for intimacy. Michael counsels individuals and couples on relationship issues and leads workshops on sexual addition.
Meet Wednesday, March 19, 2007, 7 pm-8:30 pm on the third floor of Book People, 603 N. Lamar. Audience members will be encouraged to share their personal experiences. No charge, just bring your sense of humor and an open mind.
To join the email announcement list of this group, send email to p2paustin-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
This event is co-sponsored by The Good Life magazine and Book People.
by Karen | Feb 16, 2008 | Events, General, Intimacies Discussion Group
Ever sense there is an unseen entity interfering with your current love life? Sometimes the memory (conscious or not so) of a past flame interferes with our being fully present and engaged in new romance. Shadow sex can take many disguises. Perhaps you were madly in love in your younger days and your current partner dims in the after glow of a long-ago relationship. Perhaps you had a negative experience (physical or verbal abuse from a past lover or even a parent) that damaged your self esteem in ways from which you never fully recovered. Or are you holding out for the perfect someone you envision yourself with and so you never fully open to the foible-filled mate who is just waiting for you to love ’em “as is”? Every minute you spend focusing (with longing or loathing) on your ex is a minute that’s holding you back from a better future. Just because someone in your past let you down doesn’t mean that history is bound to repeat itself–unless your expectation for repeated failure is so strong that you set yourself up for it. Don’t blame the man or woman in your life today for what someone else failed to do or say. Be here now, as Ram Das taught. It’s easier said than done, but it IS do-able.
On February 20, Robin Shepperd, Doctor of Chiropractic, will be my special guest at the Intimacies Discussion Group, which meets at BookPeople. We’ll be talking about clearing such entities from our hearts and minds and being more open to a current or future love.
Robin says she helps people to clear “stuckness” around whatever is not working in one’s life. For instance, you really want a romantic relationship, but it is not happening. Together with you, she locates and removes what is preventing your having that knock-your-socks-off relationship, such as past life commitments to another and fear of being hurt again.
Please join us at BookPeople, 603 N. Lamar in Austin, TX, 7 pm – 8:30 pm. If you can’t make the date, please post your comments and questions here. You’ll get answers.
by Karen | Jan 29, 2008 | About the Book, General
Omar Gallagher, reporter for the Austin American-Statesman, today interviewed Karen Kreps about her experiences self-publishing a book. The article will appear in the Austin daily paper on Sunday, March 23.
