Home from Dark Odyssey Summer Camp
Sep 19th, 2007 by Viviane
awe·some /ˈɔsəm/ Pronunciation Key – Show Spelled Pronunciation[aw-suhm] Pronunciation Key – Show IPA Pronunciation
–adjective
1. inspiring awe: an awesome sight.
2. showing or characterized by awe.
3. Slang. very impressive: That new white convertible is totally awesome.
[Origin: 1590–1600; awe + -some1]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006
It’s Wednesday, and I am almost unpacked. I still have bad camp crash. You’d be too, if you’d organized a cabin, spent 15 hours a day in camp, talking, attending workshops, playing, etc. It was great to see old friends from last year’s camp, LJ friends, NY friends, and make new friends.
This year I went on Thursday, so I could travel with Lolita. It’s great to have the extra day to ease into it. I highly recommend it. It meant a lot to meet first timers who told me how helpful it was to read the DO roundups and Jefferson’s blog from last year’s camp, so they would know what they might expect at camp. I’m only recently a newbie, so I know how much that can help. Hunter (who traveled from Hawaii) said reading the blogs helped him decide to come. I just love that.
It was my first time putting a cabin together. And it was like doing the seating at a wedding. Maybe worse. But once we were all there, it just came together. There was much drinking, fuckery, cuddling together for warmth(at night, it got really cold). I really enjoyed watching everyone find their element. Before we’d even left camp, we were already figuring out how to do this next year.
DO is about creating a really safe space (I hear SwitchMe’s emphasis when I write this). People who read our posts think this is all about being slutty, and having boatloads of sex. I have to emphatically disagree. This experience is what you make of it. I know lots of people (myself included) who have little or no sex at these events. It is more about is bringing together all these different communities who might not otherwise talk or play together. I’ve been corresponding with the DC Reverend, who said, “I certainly went in with a set of expectations about what would intrigue me, challenge me, push me and left with my head in an entirely different place!” It starts at camp, but you really end up expanding your social and intimate communities, in ways you hadn’t imagined.
This camp was for me about energy. Creating, channeling and releasing it. I met up again with the tall, super cute, silver-haired Rascal, who we’d met when he asked thoughtful questions at Jefferson’s and Marcus’ bisexuality panel at Spring Fire. We ended up doing several of the Tantra workshops together…practicing our energy exchanges. ;-D
Highlights I want to remember (I totally stole this from Avah):
- Traveling with Lolita.
- SwitchMe, and his hostess gift of a fine Bordeaux.
- Walking into the dungeon on Thursday, and seeing Marcus act as horse for a scene.
- A tea party, served and eaten off a lovely camper.
- The cabin welcome party, which turned into an orgy.
- The very tall and very beautiful Hunter, being laced into Molly’s corset, looking something like this.
- Hunter (still in corset), with Molly lying flat on top of him. Marcus and Rascal binding them together in plastic wrap. Still fucking.
- Jefferson demonstrating what he’d learned in the punching workshop on Match, and getting headbutted. While I Twittered it.
- Drive-by hugging.
- Barbara Carrellas‘ erotic wakening massage workshop for pussies. Watching Molly’s 10 minute, full-body orgasm, with Rascal vibrating in time next to me.
- Doing yab yum with Rascal in Dossie Easton’s Radical Ecstasy workshop. With clothespins.
- Waking up each morning, making coffee, and going out on the porch.
- Supporting Wendy in the energy pull.
- Playing agogo bells as part of the energy pull; the musical dialogue between all the percussionists.
- Talking to Anita Wagner about her blog, while the Jefferson MC’ed the Blowjob Throwdown.
- Being suspended 6 feet in the air by Steve B, and asking to be swung back and forth
- Getting suspended by Lolita during Jefferson’s G spot class – 2 birds with one stone!
- Spotting Lolita and Jefferson, barefoot in his daisy dukes, and catcalling from the porch.
- Driving the camp taxi, and meeting campers.
- Men in kilts.
- Watching some incredibly difficult scenes in the dungeon. You know who you are.
- Uncorking some of the Ravenswood Zin Hunter brought to camp, and bringing it to dinner.
- Winning the “Best New Cabin” award.
- Members of the cabin won 4 in total – “Best New Cabin”, “Best New Harbinger of Bisexuality”, Marcus tied for “Most Likely to Get Laid.” I can’t remember the 4th one…
- Trying to have a sleepover with Rascal the last night, while in the middle of the cabin, a very hot scene was taking place.
- Saying hellos, and saying good-byes.
My thanks to the producers: Tristan, Colten, Greg & Karri; the stellar instructors; the camp staff; and especially the other campers, who are the soul of Dark Odyssey. Special thanks to Colten, who educated me on cabin logistics. Since I’ve been home, we’ve been burning up the wires talking about what happened, and thinking about Spring Fire, and next years camp.
Listening to: Relax, Take it Easy (Mika)
Tags: Dark Odyssey, fleshbot, MySpace, sex, tes, Twitter




























Best New Cabin Award! I also think we may have won the most ribbons of any one cabin, 4 in total!
We so rocked that camp. I can’t wait to go back!
And thank you thank you thank you for being there for me during the energy pull. I couldn’t have had a better support person for such a beautiful experience.
Ahem! Match, Oink won 5 ribbons…
Viviane, sorry I kept you up the last night… And there should be a rule about twittering at camp!
All the little stuff slipped my mind……do’h!
Congratulations on the Cabin Award!
You deserve it. Can’t wait till next year.
Eh, it’s not about the award(s), although it was nice that the cabin got recognized. When did we realize what a nice group we had become? When we all woke up together on Saturday?
Wendy, that energy pull was amazing.
Lolita, I’m glad you had that scene. Now will you please write it up?!
Brian, that’s why being able to read all the camp reports is so helpful. You can’t be everywhere. I may have organized the cabin, but we all made it happen together. And that’s a good thing. ;-D
*sigh* I miss camp so much.
Viviane,
I really appreciate your remarks on safe space and the nature of the experience. This year was really one of personal transformation, and the confluence of camp and what is happening to me was amazing. IT *isn’t* about 24/7 boinking, but about the ways in which each of us drinks in the experiences we have, shared, alone or anything in between.
Thanks also for pulling the cabin together. It was a fun group.
Viviane blogged:
“DO is about creating a really safe space (I hear SwitchMe’s emphasis when I write this). People who read our posts think this is all about being slutty, and having boatloads of sex. I have to emphatically disagree. This experience is what you make of it. I know lots of people (myself included) who have little or no sex at these events. It is more about is bringing together all these different communities who might not otherwise talk or play together.”
it’s great to be reminded of details I’d forgotten. I also love the idea of “Highlights” that you and Becca both have done. It was an extraordinary cabin. We did it, and we’ve got the ribbon to prove it!
xoxo
Selina
PS: The Ravenswood Zinfandel was fantastic.
Selina Fire’s last blog post..“Chemistry” and Day One of Dark Odyssey