Tristan Taormino – Page 20

Montreal triad featured in The United Church Observer

A happy triad family from Montreal was profiled in the May 2012 issue of the United Church Observer, a magazine serving Canada's largest Protestant denomination, the United Church. The triad includes John Bashinski, a spokesperson for the Canadian Polyamory Advocacy Association (CPAA), and his partners "Blue" Joyce and Warren Baird. They are raising a daughter named Kaia.

Bashinski was in a monogamous marriage for 20 years before moving from the U.S. to Montreal, where he met Blue and Warren -- and entered into a much happier partnership with both of them.

Egalitarian, secular and non-institutional, the family’s relationship is founded on the personal freedom of each of the three partners, he says. All three adults see other lovers outside their primary unit. Weekly, the partners also rotate on date nights, a two-adult romantic evening, while the third does childcare. It’s just your average three-parent “open” relationship, in other words. Bashinski reports they’re very public about it yet never harassed in their progressive, family-oriented neighbourhood.

The article also discusses the British Columbia Supreme Court decision last year that upheld Canada's anti-polygamy law. As part of the CPAA, Bashinski was one of the people who testified in favor of egalitarian multi-partner relationships.

Read the rest at the United Church Observer.

Loving More’s 26th Annual National Polyamory Retreat

Loving More's 26th annual polyamory retreat is planned for September 7-9. Although that's a couple months away, there's an early registration special that ends on July 1st -- so to get the best deal possible, you'll want to register soon.

The three day, two night retreat will be held at the Easton Mountain Retreat Center in Greenwich, New York, which is located on 175 acres and provides a calming atmosphere in which to unwind, explore, disconnect from technology, and engage with and learn from other polyamorous folks. Feel free to swim, hike, hot tub, and more -- past retreats have included live music, dance parties, snuggling parties, drum circles, and movie nights.

Additionally, there will be over a dozen workshops and playshops from experienced presenters from all around the country.

The basic retreat fee includes all meals, use of Easton Mountain facilities, camping, and workshops. A limited number of bunkhouse rooms/beds are available at an extra cost.

Early registration starts at $250 for Loving More Members. Register online today!

Want to be filmed at a swinging workshop in Los Angeles this Friday?

Sex and relationship educator Reid Mihalko (of ReidAboutSex) has put out a call for participants to be filmed this Friday night, June 15th, in downtown Los Angeles for a major TV show documenting his swinging workshop and play party. He is looking for 10-15 couples, both new to non-monogamy and experienced, who are willing to be filmed for Part2 Pictures. The film crew are also in need of one newbie couple who are interested in swinging but not yet sold on it.

The night will begin at 6:30 p.m. with Reid's two-hour "Plays Well With Others" workshop (which teaches communication and relationship skills for non-monogamous folks), followed by a quick dinner break, and finally, "My First Play Party." Part2 Pictures will document the workshop and the play party, but they won't be filming any explicit nudity. They will also interview willing attendees.

Reid's goal is to showcase ethical non-monogamy in a positive light on national television. He says:

For those of you who know me and know how passionate I am about the media covering sex-positive life in an empowering way with integrity, please know that I used to be a film producer and worked in television years ago, and that I've have several conversations with the producers of this show (you've probably seen or heard of it, btw), and the producers are letting me design the event and influence how they're going to document it. This way, I can ensure that they have footage and soundbites that will showcase The Lifestyle in a positive and informative way.

Read more, including full descriptions of the workshop and play party, at Reid's site. If you wish to RSVP, email Rachael Profiloski at Part2 Pictures at rachael [at] part2pictures [dot] com or call her at 718-797-0581.

Philly psychiatrists educate on polyamory

Recently, a panel of experts convened at a meeting of the American Psychiatric Association in Philadelphia and held a session on polyamory. The session was called "Polyamory (responsible non-monogamy), an emerging relationship orientation/presenting issue: Research and clinical information to improve care," and it was quite possibly the first formal discussion about polyamory at a psychiatry convention.

An article for the Philadelphia Inquirer recounts the session. The experts leading the panel were psychiatrist William Slaughter, sociologist Eli Sheff, and psychologist Richard Sprott. Aside from educating the audience on the meanings of words such as "primary," "secondary," "swinging," and "compersion," the experts also explained that the number of poly folks is increasing and discussed why the poly relationship model is not only acceptable, but successful.

A panel of experts at the American Psychiatric Association meeting in Philadelphia last week said that open relationships between more than two people can work, but it requires a lot of talk about rules, boundaries, and time spent with various lovers.

William Slaughter, a psychiatrist in Cambridge, Mass., who has been treating polyamorous patients for about five years, said they need to have very good communication skills and be especially good at "mentalizing" or understanding others' emotional reactions.

. . . The important point for therapists, she said, is that polyamorous families are "not definitionally pathological." While they don't follow conventional morals, they do establish clear ethical codes that emphasize honesty and treating others well.

Read the rest at the Philadelphia Inquirer.