NEEHU 5 had about 150 people, which means I have no doubt that it was the biggest gathering of hypnokinksters in history, anywhere in the world. If Deepmind Darkwood was the valley of the hypnokinksters, this was the home planet. Deepmind Darkwood really did do its job though, of giving the attendees a bond in a short period of time, just like we had been to summer camp together. So I felt a sense of real joy at being reunited with MrDream, ZanyM, Lee Allure, GleefulAbandon, Chewtoy, mephki, Lady Ru'etha and the rest. Then there was the chance to get to know awesome people who I only really knew, and admired, from their blogs: Spiral_Turquoise, HS, AmHypnotic, and Ms_Mesmer. Along with my Boston buddies and more great new people, it meant that for the first time I had that warm con togetherness feeling that I have heard friends report who have a regular science fiction convention or ren fair they go back to every year.
I want to paint a picture of the physical environment. This was my first time in a dungeon (something that is not allowed to exist in Massachussetts), and it was really not so far off from my imagination - it was nice touch that many walls were painted in faux-stone! It had obviously been a crummy office space in a warehouse district, where many of the walls had been taken out, the windows covered, and many wonderful devices and comforts brought in. With the lights on, the effect was a little like the afterschool teen clubhouse I remember from my youth, what with the couches and linoleum. But with many more wooden contraptions with straps coming out of them. It was a constant source of pleasurable vertigo to sit in a class looking idly up at the drop panel ceiling with the fluorescent lights and small water stains, to look down at the giant St Andrew's cross the presenter was standing next to, and remind myself he or she is talking about erotic hypnosis.
Those pleasant dissonances abounded, like the awarding of lovely printed certificates of appreciation with names like DrHeadcrash and DirtyOldMan65 on them, or the well-lit bag room with riding crops all in a row, or the christian rock band rehearsal coming through the ceiling at a couple of points. I'm really in a sex dungeon! I would tell myself. And it is comfortable and fun! There were plenty of rooms with quiet corners to trance in (often filled with people trancing!), a giant chain spider web, and a coffin (love that!). But even more of what made it comfortable was due to the organizers' terrific efforts, with snacks always around and a little blanket fort area for chilling out.
Nearly every class slot I would experience physical pain about not being able to be in two places at once, and I still grieve many of the classes I gave up to the gods of multi-track programming. But the real con was in the hangout and the people: the hypnotist who came all the way from Ireland and talked about blending traditional storytelling with hypnosis; the 21 year old pro hypnodomme who excitedly showed us the art for her new "epic fantasy" recordings; the equally painfully young dapper gent in a villainous goatee and grin who told me the most nightmarish ideas for hypnotic suggestions I've ever heard (which delight his masochist partners); another hypnodomme who had started it as an additional stream of income after retirement (but 21 years of recreational hypnosis), and was just now joining the kink scene; the West Virginian couple figuring out how to work with the wife's love of getting powerful hypnotic orgasms from people over the internet; the gentle, nerdy fellow in a long term loving relationship who's singlehandedly written most of the evil, hot, top quality mc porn that's out there. There's a theme that kept emerging, of love and affection, as much as sex.
Not that it wasn't sexy. Hot people in various states of undress, hot trances, plenty of visions of people writhing and moaning in a hypnotist's arms as he or she whispered in their ear... and then there were truly wild sights like the trance based on Doctor Who's Weeping Angels, which has already received a great writeup. (So many Doctor Who references that weekend...)
That's a start, anyway, on three days that changed my life. Now that I've been turned on to Hypbook, and have so many more hypnokinkster friends on FL keeping my feed active, the end of it was not such a sudden shock. But I'm sad thinking about how I'll be leaving soon, with my return to NEEHU uncertain, and so I have to make this charge last.
No comments:
Post a Comment