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Tempting Tuesday - Flavour

I'm watching a cooking show and the chef is talking about the value of flavour over the look of the food on the plate. So, for this Tempting Tuesday, the word is flavour.

What does flavour make you think of first? How does flavour work with relations between Dom and sub? Does the flavour matter more than the look of things?

I think the flavour is the depth of the encounter or play versus what people think the play between a Dom and submissive should be. There are a lot of stories, mostly based on fictional encounters. These give a flavour of BDSM which is not the reality.

In your writing, does your play have a real flavour, something based on reality versus something that just looks good on the surface?

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Women are Running Computers with Ubuntu Linux and Loving It

The Big Difference the Average Internet User Will Notice with Ubuntu... You will find your screen layout is a bit different on the desktop - when you are closing programs and opening or closing the computer. Ubuntu has some options on the other side of the screen. Nothing drastic. Some things are just over there -> instead of over there <-

When you install and run Ubuntu Linux you will see no big difference in your online user experience. I run Ubuntu and continue to use social media sites, publish my blogs, chat online, post to forums, play games, etc.

When you change your computer to Ubuntu you can still use:

Facebook Twitter Blogger/ Blogspot WordPress Movable Type StumbleUpon Flickr and any other site you have ever been on or will be on in the future. As a general Internet user you will see almost no difference. You can run Firefox the same as any other day on Windows.

However, you can laugh when you see ads promoting software to prevent virus attacks because Linux is all but immune to such things. Those are created for Windows and computers running Windows.

An older computer will run faster and smoother than it can with new Windows. Ubuntu Linux is a bigger load than other versions of Linux but it is still smaller and lighter than Windows.

Don't Be Afraid or Intimidated by Ubuntu Linux Some people think you have to know a lot of technical stuff to run any Linux type of operating system.

You don't!

I ran Ubuntu Linux for a year without even once dipping my toes into the code or anything more technical than choosing what software I wanted to download next.

This year I am feeling bolder. I'm feeling more interested and curious and confident. I've begun looking at what I can do from the terminal.

But, Ubuntu is user friendly and (in my experience as a non-technical wizard) you can use Ubuntu for everything you need and avoid ever messing around with the technical guts of it.

Windows/ Ubuntu Boot Installer WUBI - Windows/ Ubuntu Boot Installer

You can install Ubuntu on your Windows hard drive and run it from Windows. It is not a standalone OS in this case but more like you are running it like any other Windows program. If you want to try Ubuntu but can\t overcome the fear of being without Windows WUBI gives you another safe option. WUBI is also free.

Ubuntu Women

Go Local - Find Linux User Groups Near You

Ubuntu Links

Ubuntu Uses Different Software

If you download software you will find Ubuntu a little different.

Instead of going to download sites which focus on Windows you will start looking for the software you want on your own computer. In the Ubuntu sidebar is the link to software available for Ubuntu. You get each one listed with a review and instructions about using and running it.

Free Software for Ubuntu.

Ubuntu Linux is Safe for Windows Users - My Ubuntu Experience

I started using Ubuntu Linux in 2011. My Windows computer was in trouble, Acer tech support refused to help me (my Acer computer was more than 2 years old) and I knew something was going to fail me soon. With a little research, some luck and intuition, I can often fix or figure out most problems with my hardware and software.

I decided to give up on Windows. It kept telling me it was having problems so I let it retire.

I had tried Ubuntu once, a live installation, for a few days, but I didn't stick with it at that time. So I had the CD to install an older version (Ubuntu gets an update twice a year, on schedule).

Ubuntu was easy to install. VERY easy. If you can burn the software to a DVD you can handle the whole installation. I installed Ubuntu on my Mother's computer too. It was a slow PC and did get a perk running Ubuntu rather than Windows.

Based on my experience, I suggest going cold turkey and eliminating Windows rather than giving yourself the fall back of a dual boot with Windows and Linux.Take away the temptation to go back to Windows and not really get started with Ubuntu. Give yourself the time to get to know Ubuntu. Also, you won't be asked to sign in to one OS or the other each time. A small thing, but sometimes those little nitpicky things get under your skin.

Running Ubuntu I find there are options for everything I wanted to use once I changed over. I didn't have to miss a thing. From my image software to the games I wanted to play, it was all there to find a new option or rework a bit and continue using my same old software on the new OS (OS is operating system, in case you don't know).

Wine - Wine Is Not an Emulator

Wine is a program you can get which will let you run your Windows games and a lot of the software you've become used to having at your fingertips. Read the Wine FAQ for more information.

"Wine lets you run Windows software on other operating systems. With Wine, you can install and run these applications just like you would in Windows.

Wine is still under active development. Not every program works yet, however there are already several million people using Wine to run their software."

How to Make Ubuntu Pretty

Linux Mint - Seems to be the upcoming Linux distribution

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Tempting Tuesday - Shiver

The Tempting Tuesday prompt this week is shiver.

A shiver can be a feeling of excitement, a good thing. Or, a shiver can be a very creepy and unpleasant feeling too.

What kind of shiver do you feel as you think about rope and bondage? If you like being bound and securely tied up - you will feel anticipation in a good way. If you dislike bondage the shiver you get will be different, less than eagerness to begin.

At times it works to use tactics which you know the submissive or bottom does not like. However, there should be a line drawn. A shiver of dislike is a reminder of who is really in charge. But, to go beyond that, to the point where the submissive is truly upset, is taking it too far.

What kind of play makes you shiver in a good way and what gives you creepy shivers?

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Sometimes I Miss the Tiger I Once Knew

Once upon a time, there was a young woman who was just dipping her toes into the social scene on the Internet. IRC (Internet Relay Chat) to be specific because these were the days before blogs and social media became something everyone knew. This young woman was pretty much one of the stereotypical nice girls. She hardly even dated because she was kind of a quiet, serious person and didn't really talk to men. However, getting online and talking to all kinds of people from the comfort of her own home was fun, exciting even. She became an IRC diva. This quiet, serious woman found herself made part of a group on an IRC channel. She had the feeling of belonging and having friends and she liked it. She began to flirt and play just as the others did. Back then IRC was new and talking online was a whole different game for people to learn to play. Many people were using the chat to 'hook up'. Actually, many women were looking for romance and love and many men were looking for a good screw, with something they hoped was female.

So, this quiet, serious young woman met a lot of men online. A group of women in the IRC channel became known for trolling and taunting the men online, those who came into the channel looking for easy women. This young woman was one of the three in the group. The others were Lis and Vix, for short. They had a lot of fun baiting and switching and laughing at the horny trolls.

Then there were the other people in the group, the other regulars. Most evenings they got together and played Truth or Dare in the public channel. The serious, quiet woman had no sexual experience to play the game telling Truth about. So she took the dares, almost every time. She became smart at finding loop holes, or just storytelling her way out of it. A good time was had by all, regardless of whatever Truth or Dares were told.

There were other women in the group, but there were men in the group too. Some became friends, fairly close friends, with the quiet woman (who by this time wasn't really all that quiet during the chat but was still fairly serious). One man in particular became a regular in the group and the serious woman liked him too. They talked, not just in the public chat.

He was married and wanted to divorce his wife. Things were not going well, she wanted out - or seemed to... You know how that story goes. In this case, the serious woman - though she really did like the man - pushed the man to stick with his marriage. She wasn't 100% on her decision, she was kind of lonely and still single and not someone who was out there dating outside of her Internet chat 'dates'. But, being the serious type she was, she did not think she could tell someone to end their marriage, even if she did consider it.

The man offered to come and visit the serious woman. It was a sincere offer, very unlike most offers which she heard from the horny trolls. But, she had her serious way and could not take that step into breaking up a marriage. So, time went on, they still talked and even traded home addresses to send real Christmas cards in the mail. After awhile, a year or so, the chat group broke up, as these transient sort of things will do. Someone had an issue with whoever was in control of the group and people were made to choose sides. Inside this side choosing the group dissolved.

The serious woman lost track of the man after awhile. She lost track of all her friends from the group within a couple of months to a year. She was sad about it but she had met other people and was fine.

A couple of years later she somehow found the man again. He was divorced (or separated) from his wife and living with one of the other women from the group. Not one of the two who had been her game playing friends but one of the women she had talked to in a more human to human way and had actually gotten to know a bit. Sadly, the serious woman was not one of those who saved every online conversation so the details were lost in the vast space of her mind.

The man and the woman both talked to the serious woman, and kept in touch for a short time. Then she lost track of them again as she so often does.

People will sometimes ask if you have regrets. I say no, not really. You can't go back and change things anyway, so what is the point of thinking of anything you regret. However, when I think about it, I do regret not being a little bolder, thinking more about myself than the other woman and what was right and proper in a by-the-book way.

So the moral of the story... don't try to live by rigid standards which you didn't set for yourself.

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How to Make Friends as a Loner

Just because you prefer life as a loner doesn't mean you can't have some friends and enjoy being with other people, on your own terms and at your own pace. You might even find you like being social once you break the ice and find people you have interests in common with.

There are people who feel being a loner (someone who likes being alone) is awful, like having a plague. Being a loner does not mean there is anything wrong with you, it doesn't mean you are stuck up or snobby just because you're quiet and don't join in with everything.

One way to deal with stress or a lack of energy for socializing is to have a portable distraction. Keep keys in your pocket which you can take out and play with here and there to get your mind off the shyness, unease or impatience you are feeling in the moment. With a little distraction to get your focus off yourself and your feelings you can last longer and have your mind on the conversation.

Chances are you will find something interesting to talk about and that is the best way to keep yourself involved in being social and enjoying it too.

A great way to meet people and get yourself out there in a good way is to develop some hobbies and interests then find others who share the same interests or are involved in the same hobbies. Introverted people tend to enjoy hobbies which are quiet and leave them alone to work or create most of the time.

So, a hobby like photography will work well for you when you are alone - but you can find others who share the interest and will have some social get together You might even find yourself getting more out of it than you expected. People who share your interest will have ideas, resources and opinions which could give you a new outlook and inspiration.

Don't be Quiet About Being a Loner

Don't pretend you're something you aren't. When you meet people and feel a connection or want to keep a connection, let them know you tend to be an introvert rather than the social butterfly type. This way they won't expect you to be at the middle of every social situation, always chatty.

The days or times you do get quiet they will know you aren't being snobby and you have not lost interest in the conversation - you just happen to be the quiet type.

Keep Communication Lines Open

Use all the sources of communication to keep in touch with people: email, phones, getting together in person too. Make sure you give friends all your contact information so they can choose which is the best way to keep in touch with you.

If you are the sort who does not like answering the phone, let people know this is an option but not the best option. Don't leave people expecting they can phone you if you ignore the phone when it rings. Chances are email or social networking online would be a better option for both yourself and the friends you make.

Schedule your Time for Being Social

Decide on the best time for you to be social. Maybe you're a morning person and could get together with friends for a Saturday morning breakfast. If you work all day chances are after work will be your time to unwind and recharge your batteries so that isn't your best time for socializing. Pick a day when you don't have so much public time or work hours. Those days you will have more energy and feel fresher for being with other people.