Why Primary Means Just That

We recently had a chance to chat with Justin & Betty. They are a lot of fun and I look forward to doing it again soon. One of the first things I was asked was how are things with "Mr. West Coast". It took me a second to realize to whom they were referring.. and as things have changed significantly.. he wasn't on the top of my thought pile.

I really don't want to get into all the details here.. for obvious reasons. Instead, I'm going to take the opportunity to just ramble about relationships instead. I'll try to make it good.. don't go just yet. =)

Traditionally, monogamous marriages provide a decent amount of security for the participants. You play the field.. figure out what you want.. and those of us lucky enough to find it get married. The uncertainty of the future fades away, replaced by idealized visions of what the happy family, complete with 2.3 kids, a dog and a house with a white picket fence might be like should we ever be able to attain it.

Time goes by, the individuals are typically exposed to varying experiences and personal growth curves, and inevitably, quite a large percentage of those unions end in divorce. The people they were when they thought things were so great are no longer as they have slowly morphed into different people. Those different people can't always see eye to eye and the fighting breaks out. Only 63% of American children grow up with both biological parents in the household. Since divorce is particularly devastating to the children, any method that could be conjured to prevent that separation, one might think, would be a good thing.

If the married couple with children can find a way to coexist for the benefit of the children (and perhaps for the benefit of themselves- all redeeming qualities of a spouse haven't likely ceased to exist entirely) then the family structure can be maintained on some level. The children might actually get to interact with each parent every day and will likely continue to feel the same security they would if the parents were truly still in love. I certainly remember classmates whose parents slept in different bedrooms. I recall various explanations; one of them snored loudly, one liked to read in bed and the light kept the other awake, among others. I wonder now if those marriages were some of those being held together for the benefit of the children.

But can we be happy in such an arrangement? Is it technically a "separation" if you're still residing in the same house? If terms and conditions can be worked out to allow an amicable coexistence, one NOT fraught with constant fighting, then in theory the children would be better off in the long run. It would take very mature individuals to be able to pull that off. Set aside the differences.. forget about the things that annoy the hell out of us.. just be friends to one another and be there for the family. Despite the possibility that the parents might not still be in love with each other, there is bound to be lingering love for each other. Love.. caring and concern for the others' well being.. one would think would still be there for the parent of our child(ren), if even not at the same level than was there historically.

If we can open up our minds and hearts sufficiently to allow this type of arrangement for the benefit of the children, then certainly we can be open to the idea of communal living with others we love. I picture large Italian villas filled with three generations of family members. Sure the fighting happens.. but the underlying caring is always there. In the end, it would take the parents, those who are separated but holding the family together for the sake of the children, to make decisions about what each of them wants or needs to feel complete again.

For some people there is nothing outside of themselves necessary to complete them. Yet many of us seek out companionship, friendship, and connections that deepen as the relationship evolves. It's a fundamental part of the human experience. We are not, by nature, solitude beings. How wonderful it would be to have complete faith and trust that the children are safe and well cared for by one of their parents, rather than a potentially sketchy baby sitter, when the time comes to spend time with persons other than the separated spouse. Balance and fairness certainly would come into play.. each party needs to feel they're getting their fair share of time to explore other options. But that's easy.. a simple agreement sets up the frequency and duration of such time.

So here we have a set up in which the children feel secure, there's no fighting about who gets the children on various birthdays and holidays, and the separated spouses can still draw upon each others' strengths. We've eliminated entirely the wasted funds required to maintain two separate households, not to mention the gasoline wasted driving back and forth from Mom's house to Dad's, and back again. It seems a very "green" solution. Inevitably, one or both of the parents are going to find new love. That new person is going to have some unconventionality to work through if they want to be a part of that parent's life.

In a way this is all a kind of prelude to what I had running through my mind when I found new love. It's not that Poseidon and I have grown so far apart that divorce would be the only option, but we do have our differences. It was my understanding that our relationship allowed for love outside of our primary relationship, but it would seem that is based entirely on balance and inclusion, rather than only ONE of us finding that deeper connection outside of the marriage. Poseidon felt excluded, shunned, and replaced by my relationship with "Mr. West Coast". Whereas I believed that he would be happy for me that I had found a connection with an amazing person, he was resentful and hurt that I would even consider such a thing.

We've discussed the implications at such great length that it became tiresome. Yet, through this process, I have a much better understanding of him and what drives him. I'm certain I have a better understanding of myself and what drives me. To be the recipient of another person's affections is wondrous, to be sure. To be made to feel like you're important to someone else is exhilarating. And when you hold each other, or kiss, and the connection feels unbreakable, like some bond that was meant to be, it's easy to let the partner by marriage slip a notch or two.

For most married people in a monogamous relationship, that occurrence in itself is the beginning of the end. Choices have to be made, arguments are generated in a bizarre psychological dance that is designed to distance ourselves from the old partner. Perhaps it's just nature saying "move on.. time for new genetic diversity in the species". Perhaps it's just inevitable as we grow, sometimes apart, that new and different connections are what keep us going.

Throughout all of this I never really questioned that Poseidon still loved me, and I knew that I still loved him. That primary bond, one that has existed essentially for my entire adult life, feels unbreakable. The secondary connections never quite seem to hold up to the same degree. Affections fade, attention and concern wanes, other priorities in that person's life squeeze you out. It's easy to feel confused, hurt and misguided. Why was it necessary for what was once okay to evaporate? Or maybe it never was okay and we were just deluding ourselves.. wishing to be something we were not. Maybe we're too concerned about hurting other more important people in our lives to risk it. Maybe it wasn't meant to be in the first place. Infatuation fades, pain sets in, the aching begins and we are left alone to find a way to heal.

Yet, thankfully, in this amazing marriage with Poseidon, I have never felt left alone. Through the pain we have each felt we have found new strength in ourselves along with new understanding. Was the pain worth it? Maybe. Probably. I don't think I'm jaded sufficiently that I would deny such a relationship should one wander my way in the future. I would, however, be a little more cautious next time.　

On sex..

I've been lurking over on Justin & Betty's blog.. go check it out. They're at an interesting point in their journey and I've been thinking about what it all means to me. I think the best way to say it is thusly:

I love sex. I have since my hormones first started raging at the tender age of 13. Well.. no.. to be fair.. I was probably too freaked out by it all at 13 to really embrace it.. but by 14.. well that's another story. In those days we didn't know about AIDS and the big concern was pregnancy. It didn't take much to overcome that issue though so what was left was this amazing thing that was just awesome! Maybe I was just addicted to the oxytocin, but I loved sex and sought it out with guys who would not threaten my social position in 8th grade, as much of one as there was. They tended to be older, more experienced, more than happy to help educate a hot little blond slut of my tender years. I loved every minute of it. And, not to sound like I'm blowing my own horn here (he he) I loved that they had a pretty good time too.

I never saw sex for what a lot of the other girls I knew seemed to. They would use it as power, control, a few even entrapped men into marriage after they seemingly got pregnant intentionally. I lost a lot of respect for women in those days. Ha. They likely had no respect for me because I was the school slut, or so they may have guessed. I suppose the whole idea of just enjoying sex for sex's sake was a foreign concept to them. I didn't want or need any of that other baggage.. I just wanted to get off. And knowing that what I did was good at helping my partner get off was icing on the cake.

As I've grown and lived and life has evolved into more responsibility I still love sex. I still see it for what it is. It's just plain old sweaty fun. I watch my kids play in the sandbox, or swing on the swings, and I see them having their playtime the way they like it. Not that I don't love digging my toes down into the warm sand, and swinging is right up there on my list, but nothing.. NOTHING.. beats a 5 minute long orgasm. Now that's playtime the way I like it!

I feel sad for those women who can't embrace sex.. who have to use it for some other gain. I feel sad for their partners. They're both missing out on this amazing part of life that, I feel, should just be enjoyed just for the sake of enjoying it, for themselves and for their partner. I don't really understand it all, and I don't really need to. Thankfully, I'm not really in a position in life where I have to think about them all that often. Hm.. maybe that's why Poseidon and I can still fuck like bunnies if there's something brewing between us. We both see sex as a release.. I won't hold it from him because he didn't take out the garbage. I want it just as much as he does. We both derive benefit from the experience of sex. All that other nattering crap doesn't matter when he's pounding his cock deep in me, driving me to the brink of orgasm. Who gives a shit about the garbage at a time like that? Mmm.. just thinking about it is making me wet.

Ahem. The other component of this whole thing that I wanted to touch on is this. When I was young and having a great time exploring my sexuality I found I enjoyed very much the variety I was privy to. I never really seemed to latch on to one particular guy (or girl) choosing instead to remain free to pursue anybody I wanted. In a way, it may be that shared quality with many men that tended to make the male of the species a better friend to me. I never had an easy time making friends with women. Later introspection gave more explanations for that, but at the time I just felt more comfortable with guys. They didn't seem to play the same kinds of head games that the girls did. They seemed instead to be more interested in life for the experience, a perspective that I shared.

I was beginning to get concerned at sometime around 16 when I started to see other girls talking about long term relationships and commitment. Here these girls hadn't even yet gone off to college and actually seemed to be desirous of an exclusive relationship, with ONE guy, for the rest of their lives. I panicked. I wasn't sure what I wanted at that point, but I knew it wasn't that. I wanted to be able to have the variety I'd become accustomed to and enjoyed. But then I wanted kids, family, stability, security as well. I had begun to believe I would have to make a choice.

Then I met Poseidon who changed all of that. My naive little self hadn't considered that there was a third option. I learned it would be possible to have my cake and eat it too. We both loved sex for the sake of sex and we both enjoyed the other enjoying sex with others. We had a very interesting and unconventional relationship that broke the rules. Rules written by the society we are part of and, for the most part, are forced to conform to. Had we been raised in a society that said that every other Thursday you were allowed, nay expected, to go enjoy sex with someone other than your spouse, then none of us would have any hangups about doing it. We, as humans, only know what is taught to us when it comes to what's "normal". Despite what our society has taught us, I don't really see anything wrong with sex. It's interesting to think back on all the various reasons why sex became the closely guarded thing that it did but that's fodder for another post.

In the meantime, I think of the variety of sex with others than my life partner a bit like the variety I enjoy when I eat a meal. Sometimes I'm just in the mood for something different. It isn't so much that I wouldn't eat filet mignon at every dinner for the rest of my life, and enjoy it immensely, but sometimes I just feel like caviar, or pizza, or penne with truffle sauce, or a BBQ bacon cheeseburger, or whatever. Imagine a society in which it was expected that, once you hit some certain marker in your maturation, you are doomed to eat the same thing, day in and day out. I guess dogs do it.. and we could too.. but doing so would certainly not have the excitement and level of enjoyment that the variation provides for. And I enjoy that excitement. I enjoy the newness, the heart pounding exploration that goes with playing sexually with another person with whom I am not completely familiar. Interestingly enough, I love to cook. Sharing the meals I make with people who can appreciate them is gratifying to me. I enjoy them enjoying what I have created. Hm.. interesting.

I also happen to enjoy it when my husband gets to experience those same things. I know how amazing it is for me, and because we've talked about it, I know that it is just as amazing for Poseidon. I love that for him. I love for him to be able to experience the same excitement. It's a major concern.. if you're just doing it to make the other partner happy then you'll always feel resentment and these things will never work out. But, if you're doing it because you love it, and you love that your partner loves it too, and you derive enjoyment from their happiness, then I can't think of any reason why we wouldn't share ourselves by exploring and playing with others.

More complicated issues like balance come into the picture, of course, and the issues that keep us treating each other fairly are of the utmost concern. There's the whole issue of societal acceptance. I really am not all that concerned about what my neighbors think about me.. but still.. we do find ourselves quite concerned about appearances. Perhaps too much so. Having children amplifies that. We are not blind to the stigma, the unfair taunting they would have to endure if this sort of thing got out, and so we are careful. But in a mature, responsible group of people where there is no danger of divulgence or disease, I vote for wild sticky frolicking every other Thursday. At least.

Catching Up...

Lots going on around here.. and posting about it all before now seemed.. well.. possibly detrimental. We had, up until recently, still been working through some remaining issues that were hindering understanding in a few areas. Thankfully, we seem to have worked through what remaining bits of reservations we may have had lingering and are in a much better place with our relationship. I will try to add a little bit to what Penelope wrote.

One thing I should say that I think might be useful to some is that Poseidon and I were very private people before this transition in our lives. We focused pretty exclusively on ourselves and our kids and didn't really have close friends with whom we could share more intimate elements of ourselves. It had been a few years since any poly adventures and meeting O & P, with whom we had so much in common, plus the potential benefits of hot and sweaty fun, was amazing.

It was so easy to fall in love.. this relationship was so much more than the purely physical adventures we'd experienced before. We connected on so many levels.. it just felt right. But in the excitement we didn't recognize a few key differences that have caused some confusion. One of those was that Poseidon and I have the poly philosophy ingrained in us to our cores. Although we recognized that might not the case for O & P, and that they were new to these adventures, I don't think either of us really considered the possibility that it could be just an experimental phase.. that it might be possible to shut that part of our relationship off and go on as if nothing had ever happened in our collective sweaty nakedness. And when that turn came we were indeed confused and left wondering what had happened. Our communication at that point had not yet matured completely to where we could discuss it openly.. and on some levels I'm pretty sure we all just needed some time to breathe and figure out what it was that was going on. Of course the pregnancy was a big part of that and we tried to always respect their needs for time and space to process what was going on. But there were definitely times when we wondered if the pull back may have been caused by us.. or something we had done.. or said.. or whatever. Insecurities have a way of rearing their ugly heads in situations like that.

Another difference we discovered is that (and perhaps this is a universal human trait.. would have to do more research on this) we tend to look at the actions of others and assign our own motivations to them had we performed the same actions. It took some time to figure out that each of us has different perceptions of events based on what our lives have taught us.. and no matter how similar we may be in some areas.. we are different in others. Recognizing that difference in perspective.. the difference in our lenses.. has cleared the way for much better understanding. It's hard enough sometimes for a husband and wife to learn those differences in each other.. but then throw in a second husband and wife.. so now you have four people learning those differences in each other.. and you're bound to run into misinterpretations. It's taken a lot of patience and a strong core friendship to get us through those.

We are learning a lot about what drives us, how we respond to various situations, what the bases for our reactions are. We are all very analytical and love to explore these points so it's been ultimately beneficial to go through this (I think). We're exceptionally lucky in that we are all supportive of each other and can open up completely without feeling like we'll be judged or shunned. I think that strong base friendship has been the key to this whole thing.. it has been the glue that binds us together.

It's a party!

Happy International Swingers Day all!

It boggles the mind to think of all the cum flying today. Have a great time!