Deep thoughts from Doc
I'm surprised to hear that you're planning to leave the hobby, GG. I'm both disappointed and happy for you. Disappointed because you're a great contributor to the board(s) and a credit to the hobbying community, but happy for you since hobbying is not what life is all about and it has a tendency to consume and make people obsess about it.
I think everyone's been at the point you're at, including myself. Nearly 6 years ago, i was about to kiss the hobby goodbye....i had contemplated it for nearly a year. I had only met 3 girls at the time. Had a great time with my first one, awful time with my second one (which made me wonder if i was made out for this stuff), and a very good time with the third one, who rarely did this but would do it to pay the bills once or twice a month. It was even more refreshing in later years since she had achieved her career objectives and i'd see her on tv regularly. I'd think to myself: "Hey, i drank some wine and made love to that girl!" Then....i'd start questionning myself and where my life was heading. Yes, i wasn't crazy about leading a double-life. I wondered if i should feel ashamed of myself. "What has my life become?", i'd often ask myself. So...i decided to see one last sp on my next trip, which occurred 3 months later. I met a great young lady named Racquelle...saw her exclusively for a year, and the day she told me that she had no objections and actually encouraged me to see other 'girls', my life took on another path. It was at that point that Vinnie (from Canbest) turned into Doc Holliday......and that life took on a life of its own.
Our perceptions change throughout years of hobbying. In my first 2 years, i thought i knew the ropes and i basically didn't know as much as i thought i did. I was very naive and often trusted the wrong people. I falsely imagined that everyone in this business was decent and i wouldn't hesitate to trust them with 'inside' information. I also believed that some hobbyists had become friends of mine, only to later find out that they had been scheming against me and that i was often being set up. Jealousy has no bounds and the obsession over a woman can often cause friction over the best of friends.
Well, over the last 2-3 years, hobbying has become rather dull and uninteresting. At least, i can't say the same thing about the boards. Why am i still an occasional hobbyist? More than anything, it's a reason to keep in touch with the various friends i've made in this business throughout the years. My 'dates' routine has also changed considerably. Three to four years ago, i used the tv show 'Blind Date' and 'The Bachelor' as a model for my encounters, which would last 2 hrs at the minimum, and with an HDH most of the time (at first). I would get dressed up in casual attire (or purchase a brand new suit prior to my initial encounter with a top HDH), get the wine bottle ready, spice up the room, the lighting...put on a CD in my CD player....and 'become' Doc Holliday. I had some great moments and great times...but it eventually became quite an expensive hobby and i realized that at the pace i was going, it wouldn't last very long unless i made some drastic changes.
These last few years....well, let's just say that i haven't seen many different girls. I'd honestly say that there are only 1-2 girls that i'd still want to see, but it's due to friendship and chemistry more than anything else. As i explained to some people recently, i now considering hobbying a total waste of hard-earned money. Like some people are against gambling because they're against throwing away that hard-earned money of theirs, i also consider hobbying as the same.....like throwing away my hard-earned cash to a one-armed bandit in a casino. How much for the girl? $180?? Poof!! Gone in one hour with only a faint memory to show for it. How much? $450?? Ouch!! Poof!! Money all disappeared again with not much to show for it.
So what i'm saying is that there is still a slight reason (for me) to justify hobbying, and it mostly has to do with satisfying the odd sexual need. One hour only.....rarely two hours. Never over $200 thrown away. No more 1 hour+ discussions over a bottle of wine or two. Real hobbying....chit-chat for 10 minutes or so, then time to take care of the TLC. TLC over, more chit-chat, shower, then it's aurevoir and a-la-prochaine fois. Nothing complicated, nothing to regret about. A $160-180 spent that served it's purpose. It's been a while that i haven't done this (recent reviews of mine were taken from past encounters that i hadn't yet posted about), and i don't know when there will be a next time. But i'm sure there will be one....but for the right reasons.
General Gonad, it's been a pleasure, and i hope that we continue to keep in touch. You are one of the many good guys i've been in contact with over the past 6+ years of hobbying. The best of luck.........and it won't be easy, trust me.
