#12: Demo at Aparaphilia
This
shop in Portland, Oregon (means “a fetish for
everything”) is a special place in a challenging locale. Away from the
hipster neighborhoods of downtown,
this curated gear store is one of the finest I’ve seen and full of
unique,
well-crafted goodies. The photo is with
owner Bruce Campbell, one of the original Sisters of Perpetual
Indulgence, and
then-employee Pixie Fyre, a well-known Dominatrix and puppy lover in the
City of Roses. Pixie was one of my trainers that night and
my first female Domme! I didn’t even know
how to address her (it’s “Mistress”, I learned). She put me into full
suspension bondage,
tormented me, wore awesome boots, and made me fall in love with her. We
are now co-producing the Oregon Puppy Contest, coming in February. Our
favorite moment together: me in the
bathroom, changing, demanding that I was an international celebrity as
my tail
fell into the toilet. Facepaw.
#11 Car Sign
One of the challenges of being a puppy is the gear. I’m not referring to right-fitting kneepads
or the best-quality mitts, both of which are important. No, here I refer to becoming a gear
addict! While puppy play comes from the
leather world, pups today express a variety of different looks - and I want ALL
of them! The worst thing is that once
you’re fully dressed and accessorized, you still can buy more gear! I had this sign made for my then Master Kevin
to put in his SUV when I came to visit.
It was custom made; however, fear not, gearpigs! I will be selling them
on my new website, to be launched in the near future.
#10 Coverpup!
Metro
Weekly is Washington, D.C.’s gay magazine. The publication is not
exactly pup friendly. They do not publish shots on all fours or
with a tail inserted in the name of being a “family” magazine.”
Arooo?
So, I set out to build a bridge and provide IPC some visibility by
applying to be the magazine’s first “Coverpup.”
I joined the slew of mostly twinks and singles looking for attention on
the cover of the “Nightlife” section (remember: “family magazine”). To
their credit, Metro Weekly is increasingly
reaching out to gay sub-communities. Mr.
DC Eagle, Nigel, was featured in January.
Photographer Julian Vankim did a great job with this novice puppy, but,
alas, had to keep me on two paws. We did
some puppy shots afterwards for our personal use that are incredible.
You’ll see them on the new website, tail and
all!
#9 Gadget
Seattle’s Pup Gadget is one of the most highly regarded in
our community, one of my 2013 IPC pack brothers, and the first puppy to reach
out to me personally after winning the title.
This pic is from an impromptu puppy invasion Gadget instigated when he
found out I was in town. It was my first
event as IPC 2013 and the pups from SEA PAH (which Gadget founded with his
partner, Baus Yukon) made it a great event to learn at. Remarkably, Gadget cracked my top twelve
twice. One day, he will probably crack
my ass.
#8 A “Family Portrait”
It’s
appropriate that this photo, taken at CLAW, came
into popularity at about the same time the famous leather festival noted
an increased interest in pups. This year’s CLAW will feature more
puppy
classes and a first-of-its-kind puppy pool party. And…look at this
year’s T-Shirt, designed by
Piglet, an adopted, filthy friend of our community. It's important to
capture group photos for posterity and visibility. Organizers take
note: your pup event is part
of our history and a resource to anyone who can see what went on; get a
photographer!
#7 "Naughty Santa"
Here is the second pic with Gadget at my first puppy invasion. He bought me this photo, taken with “Naughty
Santa" (Sir Hugh B Russell). I’ve been pursuing that Santa
for some time now. Maybe this year’s
MAL. SLURP
#6 "Big Bro"
It’s ironic that Pup Tripp, one of my mentors and a judge at
IPC 2013, would succeed me as IPC 2014, with me as a judge! Nonetheless, it couldn’t have happened to a
finer puppy. This leather and kink
veteran is handling his title year in his own way, as a platform to build
bridges between puppy, leather, and kink communities. The photo was taken in July at Capital Pride
in Washington, D.C.. We accompanied the
DC Eagle float amidst a huge, enthusiastic crowd. I pupped-out on the float while Tripp walked
on two paws as “Underdog” (a nod to the year’s super hero theme). Best of all, “Big Bro” (as I call him), is
now supervised by IPC’s new Titleholder Liason…me!
#5 Amp-Play
Another Seattlite, Pup Amp, is 23 fucking years old. When I was 23 I was clueless and virtually
celebate (no comment, Amp). This
handsome pup, runner-up at both NW Puppy and IPC 2014, has a lot going for
him. He’s smart, funny, crafty, and
savvy. You may have seen his new line, “Pupout
Gear,” and specifically, his custom made armbands, increasingly present on pups
everywhere. I’m still waiting for mine,
ahem. Amp is a testament to how far we’ve
come in a short time - our increased visibility, and our organization. SEA PAH is one of the most successful pup
groups in the country and Amp is one of our most talented, emerging leaders.
Organization matters!
#4 Headpaw.
IPC 2014 was overwhelming for me. 2013 was a year of dynamic changes in my
life, both good and bad. The one place I
found almost non-stop joy was with pups.
I saw the beginnings of a legacy as NW Puppy Figaro was chosen as IPC’s first
regional titleholder, the beginnings of new groups such as PDX PAH and the
North Star Kennel Club. I myself was the
beginning of a new pack brotherhood of international titleholders. My new friend, and “Dom-in-training” Mikey
(as I call him), put this pawprint on my head in his salon the night before I flew
to Tampa. The light green flags
humiliation, which is both my roots and my perennial “cocker-upper.” I became emotional not because I was stepping
down, but because I saw the possibility of something greater going on amidst
the revelry. I saw a place where
individuals could embrace each other in diversity, honor each other as family,
and connect with each other deeply through kink and fetish. The paw represents my devotion to pups, but
also the healing and purpose that BDSM has brought into my life.
#3 Buried Treasure
In the beginning I didn’t have many publicity pics, but I
soon learned that a well-hewn image is golden in our media-driven world. This is the pic that taught me that
lesson. It was taken the previous summer
in my backyard as a cover leaf to a mix CD (imagine…a CD!) I made for my then
Master Kevin of our favorite “mood music.”
I took it alone using the camera timer, running back and forth, trying
to crouch so that the neighbors wouldn’t
see. In my mouth is a stuffed moose toy
with a giant boner, a nod to Kevin’s home in Vancouver, Canada. I am also very fond of this picture because
it is sexual without depicting sex acts, an important dimension of kink and
fetish. Discuss.
#2 Ho, Ho, Whore!
This recent shot was taken at the Arizona Power Exchange, a
pansexual playspace in Phoenix. It got
popular fast, perhaps because it is both clearly puppy and Christmassy, not always
an easy combination to capture. It’s a
detail from an impromptu session with the “Dirty Santa” on duty that night, who
turned out to be an interesting and witty guy with a penchant for fire-flogging
(who knew). I was there with Steve Loki
to announce the new SW Puppy contest, a first-of-its-kind converging of IPC and
ITPC titles, given over one weekend. I
hope Steve’s vision is a model of things to come. If you can’t unify at the top, unify from the
ground up! And thanks for the bootlick,
Santa!
#1 Ce mois
The
year's most popular picture accompanied my Facebook "step-down" posting
after IPC 2014 and seems that it was taken at the Hilton Hotel in Tampa
where I went to decompress on Sunday night after the competition. In
reality it was taken a week earlier by Mikey (yes the pawprint Mikey) at
a Motel 6 in Williamsburg! Seedy? Tacky? Smelly? Yes. But did we
have mind-boggling sex? Let's just say, we made it to the feather
duster (just trust me, that's a feat in and of itself). It's also the
only nude pic I posted this year. The expression is unique, vulnerable,
and still absolutely my puppy in all his sexuality and playfulness. I
could not have taken this photo a year ago. As my friend Pup Nuzz said
to me, "You really are just a goofball." After a Ph.D and years of hard
work achieving professional success, Axel reminded me of what it is to
achieve personal success: to live in the moment, to love your community,
and most importantly, to find joy in simply being yourself.
Happy New Year (or 7 dog years)!
WOOF
~Axel
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