***** The following article submission is explicit in nature and not intended for audiences under 18 years of age. ***** I know you were not expecting me home today. I wasn't expecting the stars and planets to align as they did to make it possible for me to be standing in front of you with miles, walls, fences, and bars no longer between us. I have waited so long for this moment, and now it has arrived, time seems to stand still. Taking you into my arms has been my only wis

Forget about chromosomes, middle school sex education, even the junk in your own jeans because these days there’s more to gender than just what meets the eye. So let’s rip the band-aid off: Sex and gender are different things. No matter what biology tells us, there will always be people who don’t feel like they fit into the mold of “Boy” vs “Girl,” also known as the Gender Binary. This concept goes hand-in-hand with the idea that gender can be a spectrum on which a person can

Friends, I have had a really diverse life. Now on the other side of middle age, I reflect on what the phrase “let’s talk about sex” means. In the ’90s, I worked in a difficult, but rewarding, position as a SANE, a sexual assault nurse examiner. My job was to examine someone on the worst day of their lives in the most intimate way. I showed up at the ER after the police to isolate a victim for the next four or so hours. It became my job to not only do exams, but also to provi

Understanding sexual energy is the key for improved health. It is the doorway to the divine and can expand consciousness, with proper understanding and passion. It shouldn’t be feared, nor abused. We need to be aware of our sexual energy and accepting of others, but also be prepared to look past all the sexual energy that is surrounding us. All of us hold and release a different sexual energy. It is when we can understand and accept this, then we will feel and see the purest

I will start by saying that it is not easy to forgo sex; indeed, it is a difficult thing, as sex is itself the height of ecstasy (assuming some modicum of related competency and modest endowment). One may then wonder what purpose or rationale lies behind the decision to abstain from sex? The old celibacy operated primarily within social structures, working as a signaling mechanism to members of the community. This is, however, unjust. The decision to be celibate should not be

Lora Bernard recounted what it took for her to get a copy of Madonna’s book, “Sex,” in her article, “Madonna’s ‘Sex’ isn’t pretty, but pretty honest,” which was published in The Galveston Daily News on Nov. 8, 1992. On Oct. 21, 1992, Lora Bernard made a phone call to her 64-year-old mother in Fort Worth, Texas, to buy her a copy of Madonna’s book, “Sex.”While what may seem as taking extreme measures, Bernard wanted to be sure she could get a copy of “Sex,” since only 1 milli

I’m not perfect, nor was I meant to be. When it started was when you first saw me. My body talked. She told you things you wanted to understand more deeply, readily. She talked, laughed, looked at you like she was made for you, perhaps, just you. Your eyes figured her into oblivion. The form of creation was right there in front of you. She overtook your thoughts like a cannon plowing your hull. You could’ve sunk, but for her. She saved you, her buoyant hips became yo

Who are you? The longer time passes between what we think and what we feel, the more opportunity there is for silence. Almost one year ago, our community of like-minded(ish) weirdos all got together at the 91st Street fishing pier to celebrate La Izquierda, a cosmically aligned festival of surf and music. The vibes were through the roof. Anyone there that day will tell you something special went down on May 12, 2018. Whether it was the music, the surf, the yoga, or the beer,

Do we have a sex trafficking problem in Galveston? Yeah, probably. Um, wait, do we? That’s like mail-order brides, right? Ask any Galvestonian that same question and these are the types of answers you’ll get. We think we might have sex trafficking here. We hear about it sometimes in the media. But that’s just a life choice, right? Most people can get out of those situations if they really try. I mean, she has a cell phone, so she can call for help whenever she wants to. Those

When I first moved to Galveston with my husband, we were immediately surprised with how accepting people were of us as a couple. We are not one of those couples who regularly kiss or hold hands in public. Yet when we frequent Home Depot, grocery stores, and restaurants together, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out we are in a relationship. While the world has definitely become more accepting of LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) persons as a whole

You may remember Christine Wamble from her days managing the MOD Coffeehouse by day, while she studying by night. Known for her contagious smile and stone-cold killer humor, Christine broke our hearts by leaving the island to mend hearts in Philadelphia and pursue a career in relationship and sex therapy. Christine is currently attending Jefferson University there, working on her master’s degree in family therapy with an emphasis on sex therapy. She also works as an intern t