Deb Smouse

When I was a little girl, you could go into the 7-11 and get a Hershey for twenty-five cents. There was just something about those little squares….breaking the bars apart until there were a dozen tiny chocolates in the foil wrapper just for me.

Sometimes, I would toss them in my mouth…quickly chew…and swallow so the chocolaty goodness would find a home down in my tummy. Other times, I would place a single square on my tongue…allowing the warmth of my mouth to melt the chocolate into something gooey and soft….savoring the taste as it flowed past my tongue and down my throat.

Then I discovered other kinds of chocolate. Hershey had a bar that was a bit harder to find in the 70’s than it is today: Special Dark. It was a bittersweet bar…one that was a little harder to chew, but at times…more delicious and satisfying than the wholesome milky goodness of the classic Hershey Bar.

Chocolate came in so many forms. Chocolate ice cream and chocolate syrup (which I was squirt out on a spoon and eat straight). And let’s not forget the time I discovered a Baker’s Secret bar in the fridge….only to discover that I couldn’t quite take it unsweetened. That was certainly a shock.

I remember the little Russell Stover sampler boxes. Chocolate covered items….all looking equally yummy on the outside….but each and every piece was different….some filled with nuts, some with a fruit flavored cream, and some with incredibly rich and chewy caramel. It was an adventure to just snag one and take a bite, never knowing for sure what you would get. Unless you approached the box like my mother: with a toothpick to poke and prod each piece before determining if it was one you would like.

I can’t remember the exact age, but I can tell you that I was an older more experienced chocolate connoisseur when I discovered high-end chocolate….Godiva. Talk about bliss…one open oyster from Godiva Chocolates was surely pure heaven.

Was it love? lust? I wasn’t sure, but chocolate, at times in my life, has become an obsession. Was it a want? Or were there times in my life that chocolate fulfilled a need?

Now that I am almost 40, I see sex much the same way as I have do chocolate. Sex is certainly obtainable by anyone….it’s like those first experiences with the Hershey bar. Sometimes sex is fast…just to finish the bar. Sometimes sex is slow and to be savored….allow each tiny moment to be experienced.

You could also so that sometimes, sex can leave you feeling empty…and cheap. Who hasn’t had a one night stand that left you feeling that way, just as you did when you bought that off-brand candy bar and scarfed it down? At other times, sex is like Godiva. Rich. Indulgent. Leaving you with feelings like you were worth a million dollars.

I’ve also discovered that sex can be like that box of chocolates: an adventure. Some folks poke and prod the chocolates, looking the tastes that will keep them safe in their little cocoon. Others discover the joy of simply jumping in…tasting everything that can be offered….appreciating the surprises and learning to expand their taste buds with something unexpected.

As I’ve aged, I have learned that I am appreciating all sides of sex. Like chocolate, there is a lot to be savored out there. There is nothing wrong with a good ole Hershey Bar…and there is something special about a piece of Godiva.

A friend of mine told me that every pore of my being seems to exude sensuality at times. I find it creeping through my writing and find those who think along those lines as well.

I love All Things Girl. It has been the creative home to me since 2002. But I have more in me than I can share there. All Things Girl runs like a well oiled machine at times. And I was wanting an additional challenge. In talking with one of my closest friends (Lee) she asked me why I didn’t just start another ezine - one with tales of silk stockings and one night stands? The first person I talked to after that was Lorissa. I wouldn’t undertake any kind of new web endeavor without a top-notch designer. She agreed to hop in board as the developer and designer. I also knew that I would need a strong writer as an editor, and contacted Tamara Palmer, one of the regular contributors to ATG. She was thrilled and shared that some of her writings had taken that branch. She’s agreed to be an editor.

I’m not leaving ATG, by the way. I’m just expanding my horizons a bit…

I wanted an e-zine to feature erotic stuff. Nothing pornographic, but well written pieces that make the reader think. Romantic tales of candles and champagne. Pulp pieces with high heels, fur coats and cigarettes. Maybe edgier pieces…with blindfolds and handcuffs. Coming up with a name is harder that it seems. Poor Lee, Lor and Tami have been bombarded with emails and phone calls with my many bouncings.

I liked Love and Lust, but that’s not an available domain name. And then for some reason the word Chocolate Cake hit me. Love, Lust and Chocolate Cake. Food is decadent…and fulfills as times a want and a need - just like sex. Lee reminded me that she prefers pie over cake, so how about just…chocolate? Tami had sent me a very pulp fiction feeling piece, and I thought of Oranges (with or without pulp!) and Soda Pop. We tossed around amazing food names. Passion Fruit. Strawberries. Cherries. Oranges. Strawberry Pop. I could see a visual tie-in to each and every one of those titles, important when it comes to an e-zine.

My mind keeps coming back to chocolate. One really decadent recipe to feature, that anyone could make if they allow the time. Surrounded by tales of lust…and poems of love. Throw in a pair of silk stockings and some red nail polish, and I am THERE baby.

Love. Lust. and Chocolate.

I think we’ve found what we were looking for.