Bokomaru

Indeed, Global Entry. Facial recognition wasn’t in use when I applied. They took my picture and fingerprints. I would not have considered a simple photo a method of biometric tracking at the time. Years later with no warning or notification, facial recognition was was implemented. Facial recognition is quite different from any other method since it means you can be easily spotted and identified from afar. It’s creepy. And of course ripe for abuse, as well as depressingly common.

Facial recognition is being used by the government in many ways. I don’t even present a passport when entering the US, only facial recognition is used. I never officially gave the government my facial biometrics. They took it without asking, unlike fingerprints, where you know what’s going on. Although many of the well informed forum members here will know this, I’d like to point out that if you are flagged at the border when entering the US, due to possible “sex trafficking,” potentially working while on a tourist visa, or for any other reason: If you are not a US citizen you have basically no rights. Your phone can be confiscated and you have no legal right to privacy. If you are a citizen you unfortunately also have no right to privacy. Your phone can be confiscated and searched. HOWEVER, if your phone has a passcode, you cannot be forced to provide that passcode. It is tantamount to self incrimination. Authorities can however use your phone’s facial recognition or fingerprint recognition to unlock the phone and search it. Bottom line, turn off your phone’s auto unlock feature when entering the country. Normal privacy standards for searching a phone do not exist when entering the US.

I think Trev looks very masculine, yet there’s a charming boyishness to his face. The thing I can’t remember being mentioned by anyone is THE VOICE. Holy hell. Deep, rich. I’d say on par with Derek Kage. Wow.

Other states are passing similar laws. Utah and Mississippi so far, and others are working on it. Pornhub is blocked in MS apparently. Meanwhile in The Netherlands (!) XHamster has had to pull 100% of amateur content. And of course there was the fear mongering NY Times Pornhub hit piece a while back which made sex work less safe, less above board, decimating the incomes of sex workers engaging in perfectly legal work (due to Visa/MCard blocking payments in reaction). I’m normally not a Chicken Little type. But… they are coming for your porn. Enjoy it while you can. I’ve started downloading my favorites.

A nurse is saving lives. A teacher is giving of himself to lift up others. While an escort is choosing (if they have a choice, and we know some don’t), to use their body, usually reserved for intimate situations, to make money, to pay the rent. It’s only logical that they might want to be careful about how and with whom the act is performed. This isn’t a public accommodation situation.

60K?! What an absurd number for a “critical” job. Only masochists need apply.

It’s only on Hulu right now. You can use the “Just Watch” app to look up any movie or TV show and it will tell you where it’s available for free, as well as where it can be rented or bought.

UAE is a nonissue in my experience. Being a huge tourist destination, it’s simply not in their best interest to harass tourists. I have had zero problems there with a male partner in my one-bed room. But I will note that the last time I went (which was precovid) they had security upon entry, ie the bags I carried on my person were scanned. Also, NB, any type of mind altering drug, like ambien or xanax, are illegal there and although they are not looking to give you trouble, it’s still a risk because drug laws are very strict, basically zero tolerance. It matters not to them whether the drug is legally prescribed in your home country.

For $3.50 you can see his recently created content on OF so you’ll know exactly what he looks like now. And if he looks good to you, DM him there or on Twitter? Worth a shot. But of course if he’s making real money on OF (big IF), then your offer will have to be very generous to be considered, I’m sure.

I agree, short term treasuries are a good option. Personally I don’t want the hassle of moving money between my brokerage and TreasuryDirect accounts. A lot of my cash is temporary and the liquidity of MMF’s is a plus. Not insured? Misleading. MMFs are comprised of treasuries in most cases, so are just as safe as what you recommend. Tax advantaged MMFs exist for people like me (I live in a high tax state). Lose value? Agree, possible, if you mean that they go down to 99.9 cents to the dollar for a day. The purpose of my post wasn’t to say MMFs are the best investment. No investment is the best. Rather I wanted to educate casual investors, who are considering ibonds, the topic of this thread, because MMFs are a good option in case liquidity is an issue. I suspect many people don’t know MMFs exist because they confuse MM funds (safe, liquid, **has earnings**, super convenient) with MM accounts (which earn almost nothing). I agree that buying treasuries directly is a fine option. But I wonder how many people use E*trade and similar, with cash sitting in that account, ready to invest. Maybe they dollar-cost-average, or try to time their stock purchases. Meanwhile that money is earning nothing when it could be in a MMF comprised of treasuries. Correction to my earlier post: MMFs are not “completely liquid.” Like any fund, the transaction occurs at the end of the day, rather than instantaneously. Happy investing!

So many money market funds are paying between 4.5% - 5% now. And they are completely liquid. So if locking your money up in an ibond or CD is an issue, MMFs are a great option, practically risk free. A fee is involved, true but only about 0.2% usually. (Note I’m taking about money market *funds* not accounts.)

In one of Ed White’s books (Farewell Symphony?) there’s a great scene where Ed’s roommate/bf, a struggling stage actor who is escorting because he needs the money, encounters Tennessee Williams as a client. He is tempted to gush about how much joy and inspiration Mr Williams has provided to him, but instead he tells the client to get down on his knees and start groveling. Very amusing, if not all that surprising.

Only an inch?

I doubt there will be a site specifically for SM dom providers. For instance, Whosnext (Sir Kirk) in NYC markets as a pro dom yet has only the usual listings on his linktree: RM, A4A, JFF, Twitter. It’s so disappointing how few providers specialize in this. The frequency of seeing in RM profiles variations of “I can be very dominant or very loving” is frustrating. I know that they are trying to appeal to a wide audience but part of me screams, “Pick a lane!”

My partner’s is Miss Ann Thrope. And we’ve dubbed his best friend Aunty Social.

If by “real” you mean amyl, then no, that’s still illegal except for medical use. Although there’s a certain fetish store that was making its own brew a couple of years back. Worth asking them what’s in it. Maybe they’ve procured the real thing. DM for details.

I was in a club recently that does enforce a collared shirt policy and even worse, has a zero tolerance policy for mobile phones in public areas. Very old school. Exclusive? Well, it’s all relative I suppose. Very exclusive? No. More like traditional old money, boys’ club. But anyway they have rooms that are dirt cheap considering that they overlook Central Park from the south. If that’s the place we are talking about, I’d fully understand the desire not to go to a regular hotel.

I’d suspect that the problem isn’t that he can’t afford a collared shirt. That’s an incredibly basic request. Maybe he has plans before or after the suggested time, so it would be very inconvenient for him to change. Is it during Pride weekend?

Yes you can. Previously, before US cards had chips it was problematic once in a while. Now, pretty much everyone in EU knows that American cards are “chip and sign.” Sometimes they take the signature seriously (ask to see ID) but that’s not very common.

For international travel I use Revolut only now. The exchange rates are far superior to credit cards. No 2% rewards but who cares when you save so much on the better exchange? My experience is that banks either charge a % fee for non-USD transactions or they use an exchange rate that has that fee baked into it. Plus, Revolut is chip and PIN. True, you have to fund the card ahead of time, but it’s easy to transfer money directly from my checking via the app. There are other cards similar to Revolut like Wise and N26. Not sure which ones are available for US customers.

The metro card fee is just $1. But I hear you. It’s annoying to need a metro card for airtrain only, since the rest of the system lets you tap to pay. And if you don’t already have a metrocard you end up standing in line with the tourists to get one at train itself. Ugh.

I highly recommend the documentary “The Opera House” which tells the story of the building of Lincoln Center, with particular focus on the Met. It features an interview with Lyontyne Price and wow, she’s amazing. This documentary is currently available on Apple TV for rental. Worth seeking out.

If he knows he has to perform, maybe he’d be more careful about booking other clients near the same time. Or perhaps he’d want to make sure his sexual energy wasn’t otherwise spent?

I’m more angry than saddened by this situation. If the deal goes through I will never watch golf again. Sounds like a dramatic reaction, but my gut says walk away.