BY SUEY CHOW

If you have a question, write to me at:
Suey Chow
Willamette Week
822 SW 10th Ave.
Portland, OR 97205
e-mail:sueychow@pobox.com


Read previous Dinner Palace of Love columns.


Dear Suey,
This is a very general question, but is it really possible for someone who doesn't enjoy sex to learn to enjoy sex? I don't have trouble finding dates, and I can become quite passionate during the heavy-petting stage. But once sex begins, I lose interest very quickly, both in the physical contact and in my partner. I have orgasms, so that's not the problem--it really is the sex. I often wonder, only semi-jokingly, if anyone really enjoys sex or if they only say they do?

--Sexless in the City

Dear Sexless,
Yes, yes and yes.

To answer your question more specifically, I think you do enjoy sex. You enjoy newness, the process of discovery, moments of anticipation and half-dress. As you experiment and encounter new stages in life, you will begin to appreciate new aspects of sex as well. You might find greater satisfaction in comfort than in passion, you might become excited by more aggressive play. This is really up to you.

Many of us start our sexual lives as romantics, but that's not the end of the story. Give yourself a chance to experiment, trust your reactions, follow your intuition. If sex doesn't feel right to you, then slow down or stop; if a partner doesn't hold your interest, then keep an eye out for someone who does. Intercourse is only one part of the picture. If you feel yourself getting stuck in a rut, try a new approach.
--Suey

Dear Suey,
Help! I know it wasn't my business in the first place, and I wish I had never gotten involved, but now I am the bad guy in a bad relationship, and the relationship isn't even mine!

A year ago, I played matchmaker for a couple friends in our circle, and now they're breaking up. C'est la vie, right? Except that somehow, because I set them up, I became confidante to both sides. Now they're at each other's throats and coming to me to back up all the nasty things they say about each other. I tell them I don't want to take sides, but they always assume it means I'm taking the other guy's side and I get drawn into a discussion anyway. Without getting into details--and I love them both, but--most of what they say about each other is true, you know what I mean?

Last night, they had another one of their crazy fights, and I got dragged into it by name, and now they're both convinced I'm a traitor. Yes, I know, I should never have opened my big mouth, but is there any way my friendships can be saved? My other friends tell me to just keep quiet for a while, but I'm afraid if I do, the resentment will only build. What to do?

--Good Cop, Bad Cop

Dear GCBC,
When you're having an argument, and you suddenly realize you're completely right, apologize immediately. This advice was originally given for settling marital disputes, but I think it's universally applicable.

I recommend that you go separately to each of your friends and beg forgiveness. Tell them what you admire most in each. If someone insists on discussing the specifics of what you did and did not say, explain that you think that some bad things happened in the context of one relationship, but those incidents aren't who they really are. Do not defend yourself in any way, do not devolve into specific details. Allow your friends to interpret your words in the way they want to hear them (i.e., as abject contrition); if asked, admit your inability to offer any sensible advice on their relationship with lots of "I don't knows." They'll eventually get bored enough to ask someone else's opinion; at that point, you'll have your friendships back.
--Suey

 

 

 

 


Previous Columns:

5/5/99

  -Crushed out on movie stars
5/12/99  

-My 22-year-old daughter is threatening to marry her 23-year-old boyfriend
-I met someone over the Internet - but I'm afraid she's a stalker!

5/19/99   -How to buy a dildo
5/26/99   -Do you think it's OK to break up with a guy over sex?
-My boyfriend is homophobic and my best friend is a gay man.
6/2/99   -Should I choose a relationship or the single life?
-How can I tell if I really love my girlfriend, or just her money?
6/9/99   -My boyfriend feels like a pervert
-Should I jeopardize my relationship for sex with my ex?
6/16/99   -dildos can reaffirm your humanity
-where are all the straight men?
6/23/99  

-My wife wants an open marriage
-I can't stand my in-laws' cooking

6/30/99   -black man seeks advice for courting an Asian lady
-tip from a queer customer
  -My lover is a slob
-Breaking up is hard to do
7/14/99   -Buying porn
7/21/99  

-After two years, my boyfriend and I don't have sex enough
-I'm still in love with my ex, and she's getting married

7/28/99

-My girlfriend is obsessed with telephone psychics.
- I'd rather be with my cat than my girlfriend

8/4/99  

-I started seeing a guy who's an 'emotional dud'
-I'm 50-plus and want to get back into dating, love and sex.

8/11/99   -I'm 19, but I only like older women
-When should I meet my online pal?
8/18/99  

-I haven't been attracted to anyone lately
-My girlfriend changed her mind when I was gone for two weeks.

8/25/99  

-My boyfriend believes it was love at first sight, and I don't.
-My boyfriend claims I don't take care of my appearance any more.

9/1/99  

-Do I really want my first time to be as "Girlfriend No. 71"?
-Is this your real name?

9/8/99  

-My girlfriend likes to wear thong underwear, and wants me to as well.
-Is it that bad to be romantically dormant all my life?

9/15/99

-Cold sores ruined my relationship
-Suey's relationship track record.

9/22/99   -My boyfriend doesn't like my artwork.
-My girlfriend drives like a maniac.
9/29/99 -I can't reach orgasm with my girlfriend.
-Break-up avoidance strategies.
10/6/99   -How to date with the teenage children living at home.
-My best friend ran off with my crush.
10/13/99 -I've never had an orgasm. Do you have any suggestions for me?
-What should I do with my argumentative boyfriend?
10/20/99   -How should I discuss my spanking fantsies with my wife?
-Are Portland women 'cold'?
10/27/99   -My wife wants to have sex with another man
-Impotence. That's the problem.
11/03/99   -Why does every woman of quality have a boyfriend?
-I am in love with three men.
11/10/99   -A friend of mine has eyes for a guy she's working with
-I have tons of male friends, but no boyfriends
11/17/99   -I'm a frustrated 16-year-old male
-My boyfriend of two years is terribly jealous of an ex-boyfriend.
11/24/99   -Does penis size matter?
-My marriage is falling apart
12/01/99   -I'm in love with my best friend
-How do women in porn films get their crotches so hairless?
12/08/99   -My long-distance partner wants to be non-monogamous
-My partner is a workaholic
12/15/99   -I love my partner, but want to have sex with other women
-I'm in a good relationship, but my girlfriend's not interested in sex
-I've been dating someone new, but I'm not sure if he's millenium-worthy
12/22/99   -What's your opinion on dating coworkers?
-I love my girlfriend, but she won't marry me
12/28/99   -Should I get back together with my child's father?
- On the cheating scale, how bad are online sex chats?
1/5/00   -My phone chat line 'friend' turns out to be my co-worker's fiancée
1/12/00   -I think I'm addicted to sex
-My boyfriend is a cross-dresser
1/19/00  

-Is it true that men like girls?
-My job and my man are not compatible

1/26/00   -Is web sex cheating?
-Dealing with self-consciousness
2/2/00   -It's Desperate Hunky Man Week!
2/9/00   -Is making out with a drunk friend a bad idea?
2/16/00  

-Is my boyfriend still fantasizing about a threesome?
-Tips for a virgin on what makes a woman quiver.

2/23/00  

-What do I say to people who ask why I've never been married?
-What's the proper etiquette for dating through the personals?

3/01/00   -My boyfriend believes that men are not required to reciprocate sexually.
-How can I make up for missing Valentine's Day?
3/08/00   -What should I do with my once-cheating boyfriend?.
-Exclusively online romances have their advantages?
3/15/00   -I love performing oral sex, but hate eating the hair.
-My girlfriend doesn't enjoy sex, she's just a cuddler.
3/22/00   -My girlfriend is dating a married man.
-I just got out of a long-term relationship, do I want another right now?
4/12/00   -I would like to try stripping, but I've some things to overcome
-I met a booth stripper, during her show and now I'm in love.
4/19/00   -My ex-girlfriend still entertains ideas of us reconciling. I'm ignoble.
-How can I prolong my happy time?
4/26/00   -My guy's so sexually pedestrian
-Our daughter is bitter at us for breaking off her affair with an older man
5/03/00   -I'm an ex-porn performer and I know nothing of lovemaking, only fucking
-I'm tired of being the guy friend.
5/10/00   -Suey hears from the virgins
5/17/00   -What do you think about Ross Jeffries' Speed Seduction seminar and other programs that promise to teach a guy how to get women in bed?
5/24/00   -I've recently started paling around (and more) with a married guy; now it's getting weird.
5/31/00   -Without a ring how is a guy to know if a woman's available?
-I love my husband but recently we fight about everything. I want to try marriage counselling but we're both skeptical.
6/7/00   -"I want to know what love is"
-I'm attracted to unavailable men. Married, uncommunicative, religious, sports-oriented or work-obsessed men seem to be my specialty.
6/14/00   -My best friend, who's a straight male, initiated a sexual encounter. Now our friendship is horribly strained, what's a guy to do?
-What's the etiquette on roommates bringing home lovers and all that?
6/21/00   - There's this girl.... and I want to talk to her.
-Why is it that all the men I meet only want to casually date or have casual sex?
6/28/00   -I'm involved in a relationship that I'm afraid might shock and alienate my family and friends, how to proceed?
7/04/00   - I met this wonderful girl...
7/12/00   -I'm a guy who doesn't like sex.
-I broke up with my boyfriend of three years, but now I deeply regret it...
7/19/00   - Suey, what's with your lame gender cliches?
7/26/00   -I think I'm Straight-Curious (if there is such a thing)
-I've been off and on with my college boyfriend for over 12 years. We're having trouble moving to the next level.
8/2/00  

- I'm 32, just divorce, and dating a guy who's 25. Is there something wrong with what I'm doing??
- I am older and therefore wiser. Your readers are naive. I'll help you set them straight.

8/9/00   -Just when I had lost all hope in men, I met the most amazing guy.
-I'm thinking about contacting a dominatrix. Any advice on how to present myself?
8/16/00  

-My boyfriend is such a sweetheart when he's with me, but when he's out with his guy friends, he turns into a total pig.

-The world's biggest ass

8/23/00   -A year ago, I cheated on my boyfriend of three years with another woman. How can I fix this? He is freaking out.
-Oh Ms. Chow, in this case you're wrong
8/30/00  

-When do you tell someone you're dating that you have hepatitis?

9/6/00   -Clueless fellow in deeply sordid situation
-I'm beginning to suspect a connection between chemical dependency and emotional dependency, or maybe between fitness and emotional independence.
-Is there any way to turn down a bridesmaid offer without offending?
9/13/00   -My wife doesn't want to have sex anymore
-I used to be in the sex service profession, should I tell the man I'm about to marry?
9/20/00   -I started playing out some of my fantasies with my lover in the last year. Things have gotten complex.
- I explained that nail polish is only for girls, to which my son insisted, "I'm a girl too!"
9/27/00   -I'm dating my close friend's ex-husband
-Even though he is gonna dump me after having sex, I still want go out with him.
10/04/00   -Three straight guys agree: Hey, what's with the ladies?
10/11/00   -Are there side-effects to jerking off?
-I'm married, he's married, we're deeply in love with each other and having an affair. And now he's asking me to marry him.
10/18/00   -I have recently gotten out of a yearlong relationship with someone I considered my best friend...now, heartbroken.
10/25/00   - I'm fascinated and infatuated with the parking valet boys at Bluehour.
- I am wondering why I am finding it so difficult to meet that special person.
11/1/00   - I am unable to make my girlfriend orgasm through intercourse or oral sex.
- The chronically ill have to realize that their life-and-death medical tragedies aren't the only problems in the world! What about the mental discomfort of the physically healthy?
11/8/00   - This asshole stripper is giving me the run around
- I love my husband, but in the last few months, every little thing about him drives me crazy.
11/14/00   -I am in love with a man who wants all the benefits of a long-term, committed relationship without the commitment.
- I'm a 30-year-old gay man who has yet to be in a significant relationship.
11/21/00   - My prom date and I encountered each other at a party after not seeing each other for 14 years, one week after I suffered a near-fatal accident.
-There aren't any men out there willing to settle down with a simple country girl. I live and breathe country.
11/28/00   - Can you explain to me why women hate shy men?
- Why do men hate women?
12/05/00   - I accidentally came across a cache of porn on her computer, mostly of nude women. Is my mother a lesbian?
-My father keeps a huge stash of porn on his computer.
12/12/00   - I am 29 years old, female, and I just cannot orgasm from penetration (intercourse).
- My impression of Portland is that it's an older crowd that's mostly married. Is my impression correct?
12/17/00  

-My husband and I have an open relationship for most of the years we've been married, when do we tell our teenage kids?
-My "straight" friend persists in flirting with me (I'm gay).

12/24/00   - I am 33 years old, overweight my whole life. Now I've shed 70 pounds and want to begin dating. Tips?
- Suey, help me develop my vaginal muscles so I can shoot ping-pong balls and smoke joints with it?
12/31/00  

- Some stupid straight guy

1/6/01   -My boyfriend doesn't like to kiss. Otherwise he's normal.
- My Jewish parents are incredible rude to my 1/2 German boyfriend. He even studies Hebrew and the Torah! (things that they never used to have any interest in, BTW)
1/13/01  

- Guy needs help getting over girl who doesn't want him

1/20/01   -Boy want to be with the boys
2/6/01  

- All men have begun to look like George W. to me!
- Marriage is a crock Suey


 

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