TresSugar

Hello, Memorial Day: Vacation Sex Is the Best Sex, Says America

YourTango — Mon, 28 May 2012 04:00:17 PDT

We're happy to present this excerpt from one of our favorite sites, YourTango. Today, we have some thoughts on vacation sex.

Memorial Day Weekend is upon us, ladies and gentlemen - 'tis the season to wear white jeans, indulge in a back yard barbeque and, of course, go on vacation.

Speaking of vacation, traveling can be quite the romantic experience. Sure, there is likely plenty of nagging, awkward sunburns and uncomfortable TSA frisking associated with getaways, but there's lots of sex involved, too, say the survey aficionados at Zoosk. They picked the brains of 1,500 Americans for their thoughts on travel, romance and - of course - sex.

Zoosk found that 69 percent of men and 72 percent of women think having sex while on vacation is better than doing it at home. Is sun and sand the reason we're so turned on while at the beach? Or, perhaps, the musty smell of a muggy hotel room in the Caribbean? Sadly, those questions aren't answered, but there's plenty to learn about the best - and worst - of couples vacations.

Getting there. As relaxing as lying on a beach with a cocktail in hand sounds, the preparation for vacation can cause copious amounts of stress, especially for couples. One-third of Americans worry that they'll be selected for an additional pat down (or worse) by the TSA before takeoff.

Where to go. The beach was the most popular destination for a romantic getaway, with 22 percent of the vote. A romantic city (Paris comes to mind) came in second with 19 percent, with cruises and "exotic, far-flung locales" tied at third with 15 percent each. Other romantic destinations included bed and breakfasts and camping, but we're having trouble associating the "best sex ever" with mosquito bites getting in the way.

For the rest of the article, head to YourTango: Hello, Memorial Day: Vacation Sex Is The Best Sex, Says America

Written by Lydia Belton for YourTango.

Hysteria Director Tanya Wexler Talks Vibrators, Faking It, and Duck Sex

Tara Block — Fri, 25 May 2012 04:00:15 PDT

Don't be shy . . . It's time to talk sex toys! And Hysteria director Tanya Wexler is writing us a prescription for pleasure. Tanya's film - what she calls "the vibrator movie you can bring your mom to" - is in limited release and stars Hugh Dancy, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Rupert Everett. When working on a romantic comedy that centers around the invention of the vibrator, you end up with some entertaining and embarrassing situations along the way, and lucky for us, Tanya spilled all the hilariously dirty details. From teaming up with the film's partner Jimmyjane for a drive-by vibrator drop-off to a certain female Oscar-winner to trying unsuccessfully to get ducks to shag on command, Tanya was bursting with great stories from working on this very unconventional film. And while Tanya isn't ashamed to discuss the sexy subject matter of her latest film with us, the mother of four and her partner of 21 years did have a tricky challenge telling her preteen kids what her movie was about. (She eventually gave them the script and let them figure it out themselves!) Check out our interview with the fun-loving director now, and we dare you not to have a girl crush on her by the end!

TrèsSugar: What were some of the challenges to getting a movie made about vibrators?
Tanya Wexler: Getting the script right was tricky because if you just make a movie about the invention of the vibrator, it's actually a really short movie: you go "bzz" and it's done. And we had a kind of light romantic comedy. I say I made the vibrator movie you can bring your mom to. But some people wanted it to be raunchy or some people wanted it to be more serious and about feminism. People project a lot onto this movie of what they want, because there isn't a lot out there about vibrators and women's pleasure, and we still don't really deal with that topic very well, or we're overly antsy around it. And as a result, people have a lot of ideas of what the movie could and should be, and you can't please everyone. [laughs]

TS: Ha, good one.
TW: It's nonstop!

TS: Do you find sex toys inherently funny or something to be seriously celebrated?
TW: Yes!

TS: Both?
TW: Yes! Yes. I think they make me laugh, and I think that the inner kind of Beavis and Butt-head in all of us goes "[laugh]." You know, that inner 13-year-old, like, "Hahaha vibrator . . . " and yet they're awesome and fun.

TS: What shocked you the most when researching the movie?
TW: That ducks are the rapists of the bird world, and you'll see when you see the movie, because there's a little bit of questionable duck behavior - or awesome duck behavior - in the movie. It's totally a sidebar, but you cannot make ducks shag on command. I'm just saying.

TS: What about the whole history of hysteria being a medical condition?
TW: When I first heard the idea, I was like, "What do you mean it was invented in Victorian times?" I knew about hysteria, but the idea that the treatment was manual [British accent] massage deparaxism - which is what they called it - and, of course, the denial. The most shocking thing is the denial, that they didn't think it was sexual.

TS: Do you think they were really in denial?
TW: No, I don't think that some people were. My college roommate was with her high school boyfriend for two years and she had never had an orgasm. I think there's all kinds of denial, especially with women's sexuality. So the fact that there are young women today who haven't had an orgasm, whether self-induced - which is insane - or with a partner, then why wouldn't we think back then that women wouldn't know what orgasms were?

They would get a massage, and the doctor's saying, "Without a penis, this isn't sex, because sex is about procreation," so what is this? The best physical therapy you've ever had. So once you don't think of it as something other than what the doctor's supposed to do to cure your uncontrollable crying or uncontrollable laughter or whatever, then it's just an awesome muscle spasm. If you don't think women have their own inherent sexuality, then you're not thinking about it like that.

Keep reading for Tanya's thoughts on Fifty Shades and more!

Jennifer Love Hewitt "Feels Like a Real Hooker" on Her Show

Tara Block — Thu, 24 May 2012 09:45:27 PDT

Craig Ferguson was in a flirty mood last night when Jennifer Love Hewitt stopped by to talk about her show The Client List. He admitted that he couldn't keep his eyes off her cleavage, and then moved on to talk about the steamy subject matter of her show. Jennifer didn't seem to mind the advances, but when Craig asked her if she ever gets embarrassed playing a prostitute, she admitted that there are days when she "feels like a real hooker." "Some days I'll have six massages in a day," she revealed. Watch Jennifer talk about her demanding new acting gig now.

Kristen Stewart and More Stars Get Intimate About Shooting Sex Scenes

Tara Block — Wed, 23 May 2012 10:59:07 PDT

After all the anticipation leading up to Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson's big Breaking Dawn Part 1 sex scene (which was so hot it had to be taken down a notch for its PG-13 rating), Kristen is jumping headfirst into more steamy roles. In her latest flick, On the Road, which just debuted today at Cannes, she really pushes the sexual boundaries. In the movie, Kristen goes topless, has a threesome, engages in "road head," and manually stimulates her male costars. On the sex scenes, she said, "I love pushing and I love scaring myself. To watch a genuine [sexual] experience on-screen is so much more interesting than when you see the tape holding up the pasties . . . As long as you're being really honest, there's nothing ever to be ashamed of."

Kristen joins the sexy celebs who have been practicing their acting skills between the sheets. And while many actors and actresses - like Lena Dunham - say that onscreen sex isn't quite as enjoyable as the real deal, some stars get really into it. Amanda Seyfried told W magazine she's a big fan of sex scenes. Amanda rolls around in the hay with Justin Timberlake in In Time, but she dishes that her sexiest love-making scene was actually with a lady. She said, "Jennifer's Body is my favorite movie that I've done . . . They had an extreme close-up of [Megan Fox and my] tongues, and I'm telling you, the thing about the scene is that it's actually really sexy. For a young girl to say that about her own sex scene - it must be because it's special. I think Megan and I kissed really well together. We have similar kissing styles and it worked."

From spanking to slobber to ripped pillows, get the first-hand experiences of shooting a sex scene from some of Hollywood's sexiest stars.

Sex and Hare Krishna: Mad Men's Mother Lakshmi Didn't Follow the Rules

Annie Scudder — Mon, 21 May 2012 12:03:03 PDT

This week on Mad Men, we get a visit from Paul Kinsey, who has gone from progressive, pipe-smoking copy editor to confused Hare Krishna devotee. The Hare Krishna movement was founded in NYC in 1966, the year that's coming to a close on this season, and attracted beatniks like Allen Ginsberg and Beatle George Harrison, one of its most famous followers. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness, or the Hare Krishna Movement, as it is officially known, is based on Hindu traditions and got the attention of the city's hippies when it started. Ironically, it did not back free love.

On the episode, Paul Kinsey's Hare Krishna love interest, Mother Lakshmi, decides to seduce Paul's friend and former co-worker, Harry Crane. Showing up at the office, she lets Harry believe that sleeping together is not against the rules of the religion. You can't blame Harry for believing her, since the Hare Krishna meeting he attended had a strong counter-culture vibe. But in fact, "no illicit sex" is one of the four regulative principles of Hare Krishna consciousness.

Sexual contact is only OK between married couples for the purpose of reproduction, and sex is considered the most powerful connection to the material world, a bond Hare Krishnas want to break. The other three rules include: no eating meat, fish, or eggs, no gambling, and no use of intoxicants. Devoted Hare Krishnas would have disapproved of Roger Sterling's acid drop. But, of course, not everyone followed the rules in the '60s and high-profile members like Allen Ginsberg disagreed with the prohibitions.

Vegetarianism and yoga were part of what made Hare Krishna exotic back in the 1960s, while its negative attitudes toward premarital sex were conventional then. Today, things have switched around. Its rule against sex for pleasure seems extreme, thanks to the sexual revolution, while vegetarianism and yoga have gone mainstream.

A Handy Guide to the Hysterical History of Vibrators

Tara Block — Fri, 18 May 2012 13:12:12 PDT

Hysteria, out today in limited release, takes a peek under the big hoop skirts of Victorian-era women and their now defunct "medical condition" of hysteria - cured only by a doctor-administered "paroxysm," otherwise known as an orgasm. The business of pleasuring the ladyfolk has a long and interesting history, so let's look at how we got from "the Manipulator" to "the Rabbit."

Censored: Books Banned For Sexual Content

TresSugar — Thu, 10 May 2012 16:24:47 PDT

E.L. James may have kicked off her Fifty Shades of Grey book tour in Miami, but don't expect to see the erotic book in every Florida library. Librarians in Florida, as well as Georgia and Wisconsin, took the series off the shelves for being semi-pornographic and not so well received by critics.

While book banning may sound like a throwback to Victorian times, censoring books continues to flourish in 21st-century schools and libraries. What's most surprising is a book can be removed from a curriculum, reading list, or school library with the complaint of just one parent. Violence, racial themes, and the occult are commonly cited reasons, but an even more popular one is sexual content. Check out these 11 books that have been removed from schools and libraries in the last two years, and tell us if you think there's ever a good reason to ban a book.

Source: Flickr User wheelo50411

3 Awkward Scenarios and a Relatable Breakup Speech From This Week's Girls

Tara Block — Mon, 07 May 2012 11:35:00 PDT

From penis pics to sexual harassment to a deflowering disaster, there's a lot to talk about from last night's Girls episode "Hannah's Diary." The show mainly focuses on Marnie's boyfriend, Charlie, and his buddy reading Hannah's diary and finding out from it that Marnie isn't happy in the relationship. This results in a very-hurt Charlie and his friend singing excerpts from the diary at an open mic night, causing Marnie to be angry at Hannah - instead of the guys who violated their privacy - for writing her brutally honest thoughts on the couple. We'll have to wait 'till next week to find out the fate of Marnie and Charlie (and if Marnie hooks up with sexy artist Booth Jonathon). But what really got us talking today were the super awkward sex-related moments from the episode. Here are the three scenarios that had us cringing, including one that involves a breakup speech we can relate to:

The penis pic: The episode begins with Hannah's pseudo-boyfriend Adam sending her a photo of his penis, then following it up with a text that said, "SRY. That wasn't meant for you." Despite Marnie telling Hannah that she shouldn't respond when he basically is telling her he sends dick pics to other girls, Hannah sends him a photo of her boobs back. Eventually though, Hannah realizes she wants more from the arrangement than he does, and she gives him a great breakup speech that actually came from a real breakup email Lena Dunham wrote. She tells him, "I don't even want a boyfriend . . . I just want someone who wants to hang out all the time, and thinks I'm the best person in the world, and wants to have sex with only me." The breakup backfires, but we liked seeing Hannah sort-of stick up for herself for once.
A touchy boss: Hannah starts a new nameless job, and right off the bat her old, overweight boss turns an unwelcome back massage into a boob massage. After that incident and a butt pat, Hannah finds out from her fellow female co-workers that he does it to everyone. And they basically tell her to just let him sexually harass her since he's a good boss and a nice guy. Um, gross! From the way they "fixed" her eyebrows (see above picture), Hannah should know better than to take advice from her new office mates.
Deflowering gone awry: As the only virgin in the group, Shoshanna is feeling left out from the sexually active bunch, and she's desperate to remedy her situation. She has high hopes in the episode when she bumps into a cute guy from her past who asks her to dinner, but things go from awkward to disastrous during the date. First he tells her she can touch his penis, and she responds with "not until we've kissed." Then after he starts taking off her clothes in the bedroom she asks him if they can have sex. But before they do she tells him she's a virgin, and he tells her he doesn't do virgins because they bleed and get too attached. She counters with, "I so don't get attached when I bleed. You know, it's like amazing. I'm like totally not an attached bleeder." Poor Shoshanna - better luck next time!

What did you think of the episode?

Photo courtesy of HBO

SNL: This Mother's Day, All Mom Really Wants Is Fifty Shades of Grey

Tara Block — Mon, 07 May 2012 10:05:10 PDT

This weekend, Saturday Night Live poked fun at the Fifty Shades of Grey phenomenon with a parody of an Amazon.com Mother's Day ad. The ad shows all the great gifts dad and the kids can get mom from the online store. Just make sure that when you surprise her, she's not busy reading Fifty Shades of Grey. In the hilarious (and inappropriate) skit, dad and the kids interrupt mom while she's, ahem, intimately enjoying the popular erotica series. The point is clear: this Mother's Day, moms just really want to fantasize about Christian Grey. Watch the clip now!

What We Know About Fifty Shades Author E.L. James

Annie Scudder — Tue, 01 May 2012 10:30:26 PDT

E.L. James, author of the erotic Fifty Shades of Grey series atop the New York Times best-seller list, isn't embarrassed about her material. The British mother of two kicked off a book tour in Miami last weekend, greeting more than 500 blushing and flushing fans at an early morning signing on Sunday. Later in the day, she spoke to a sold-out crowd. E.L. James has bagged a seven-figure movie deal, and The Vampire Diaries' Ian Somerhalder already threw out his name as a possible Christian Grey. If you're deep into the S&M fiction, or just curious about the pop culture phenomenon, here are a few things to know about the woman who started it all.

Her real name is Erika Leonard.
Before she landed on E.L. James, she went by the pen name "Snowqueens Icedragon." And her work was originally titled Master of the Universe.
The story began as Twilight fan fiction, and E.L. James says Stephenie Meyers inspired her to try writing a novel.
She wrote the story during what she calls a "midlife crisis" and says it contains all her fantasies in one place.
She's been married for 20 years, and has two teenage sons who have not read the books. Of that prospect, she says: "Good God. I would be mortified."
E.L. James was raised in London, studied history, and previously worked as a TV producer.
She was named one of Time's most influential people of 2012.

Click through for some photos from the book tour.