

Life on the Swingset - The Swinging & Polyamory Podcast
Swingset.FM
Life on the Swingset is a podcast and website about swinging, polyamory, and open relationships from the trenches. Through debates, interviews, and sexy discussions, The Swingset Crew tackles sex, relationships, and their accompanying accoutrements, and what it means to be open sexually in a world that's often closed.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 14, 2016 • 1h 17min
SS 270: Gang Bang The Mail Bag XXX
Welcome to Gang Bang The Mailbag TRIPLE X! That's right, this is our thirtieth listener mailbag episode, and we're recording tonight with a live (and muted) studio audience! As always, questions have been edited for content and clarity. If you have a question for a future listener mailbag, please give us a call at 573-557-9464 and leave us a message. Tonight, Dr. Liz Powell, Mike Joseph, Cooper and Dylan gang bang the mailbag! As you listen, don't forget to tweet at #sspodcast! We're sponsored by Castle Megastore, a one stop shop with everything you could want, from wand vibrators, to harnesses, to lube and condoms, to a complete suite of BDSM equipment including sex furniture. If you use the promo code SWINGSET at check out you can save 20% on your order. Tonight we answer a voicemail question on how to maintain long distance play relationships, and the following written questions: I'm a big fan of the podcast,of you as people and of all you're doing for people in the lifestyle. First of all I would like to say as a black man I appreciated the episode on Polyamorous as a Person of Colour, granted my experiences are a different as I am from a majority black country(Jamaica) so I swing with mostly black people. Is being in fuck with someone a thing? Meaning you're not in love with them but you and them have a unique sexual chemistry. Is this a thing, can you be in love, just with having sex with someone? I'm married to a great guy in a monogamous relationship. My fantasy has always been to have an MFM threesome. I finally found the courage to mention this to him a couple years ago, and he was cautious but excited about exploring; he could tell it really turned me on. The question has been who - we both want it to be someone we know well enough that we trust them, and I'm pretty picky. So we haven't really pursued it. Well, we finally have someone in mind. Here's the thing: he's married. He and I originally met at burning man, and since then the four of us have all gotten to know each other. His wife is great. She jokes about his "girlfriends" and he implies they have some flexibility, but I'm not sure exactly what that means. When I asked him if they are poly, he said no, he doesn't like that term. So I don't really know if she'd be cool with it. What is the protocol for trying to move things forward? I'd feel pretty comfortable asking the third if he'd be into it. I'd feel less comfortable asking his wife's "permission." Whatever happens, I don't want to foul up our friendship. (FWIW we don't have an interest in swinging at the moment.) What would you do? Oh, and assuming the third is into it, any tips for keeping things sexy and comfortable for us? My husband is a little nervous how he'll feel seeing his wife with another man! Leave us a review and a five star rating on iTunes! Leave us a review and a five star rating on Stitcher! Subscribe to us on Youtube! Android Users: Download and review our Android App! Leave us a comment on this post or at contact@lifeontheswingset.com or leave us a voicemail at 573-55-SWING (573-557-9464). Find Cooper on Twitter @CooperSBeckett, Dylan on Twitter @DylanTheThomas, and Ginger on twitter @GingerNTheProf. You can Cooper's novel about swinging, A Life Less Monogamous, at alifelessmonogamous.com or his memoir My Life on the Swingset: Adventures in Swinging & Polyamory at mylifeontheswingset.com as an ebook, paperback, or audiobook and if you buy them from his sites, use promo code SWINGSET to save 10%! Outtakes Music: Tokyo Machine - Pixel Intro Music: Soupandreas & inverness - Tumbling Down Reading Reviews Music: Haywyre - Sculpted Outro Music: Hush - Ruimtevaart Cooper S Beckett Dylan Thomas Dr. Liz Powell Mike Joseph

Dec 8, 2016 • 1h 21min
SS 269: Dating on the Outskirts of Sexuality - LGBTQ Matchmaking with Claire Ah
Dating in the heteronormative world is difficult. It's also bizarre enough that hundreds of comedies and dramas are made about dating every year. When you zoom down to that subsection of the culture, the minorities of the LGBTQ community who are seeking others in that same minority, it gets more complicated. Tonight we're joined by Claire to talk about dating on the outskirts of sexuality, and LGBTQ matchmaking with Dirty Lola, Dr. Liz Powell, Dylan, and Cooper. As you listen, don't forget to tweet at #sspodcast! We're sponsored by Castle Megastore, a one stop shop with everything you could want, from wand vibrators, to harnesses, to lube and condoms, to a complete suite of BDSM equipment including sex furniture. If you use the promo code SWINGSET at check out you can save 20% on your order. You can find Claire Ah, matchmaker, at friendofafriendmatchmaking.com! Leave us a review and a five star rating on iTunes! Leave us a review and a five star rating on Stitcher! Subscribe to us on Youtube! Android Users: Download and review our Android App! Leave us a comment on this post or at contact@lifeontheswingset.com or leave us a voicemail at 573-55-SWING (573-557-9464). Find Cooper on Twitter @CooperSBeckett, Dylan on Twitter @DylanTheThomas, and Ginger on twitter @GingerNTheProf. You can Cooper's novel about swinging, A Life Less Monogamous, at alifelessmonogamous.com or his memoir My Life on the Swingset: Adventures in Swinging & Polyamory at mylifeontheswingset.com as an ebook, paperback, or audiobook and if you buy them from his sites, use promo code SWINGSET to save 10%! Intro Music: Rogue - Through the Dark, off the Earth EP Politics Music (near the end): Pegboard Nerds - BADBOI VIP Outtakes Music: Tokyo Machine - Pixel Outro Music: Muzzy - Get Crazy (AgNO3 Remix) Cooper S Beckett Dylan Thomas Dr. Liz Powell Dirty Lola

Dec 3, 2016 • 1h 16min
SS 268: Being Sex Positive from Inside the Non-Monogamy Closet
A large percentage of us dwell pretty securely within the non-monogamy closet. Friends and family may know something is different about us, but they rarely know fully what is up. That said, we live in a world where being sex-positive and progressive can make a big difference, as can standing with those who are bravely out, so tonight, Dirty Lola, Dr. Liz Powell, Cooper and Dylan talk about how to navigate being sex-positive from inside the non-monogamy closet . As you listen, don't forget to tweet at #sspodcast! We're sponsored by Castle Megastore, a one stop shop with everything you could want, from wand vibrators, to harnesses, to lube and condoms, to a complete suite of BDSM equipment including sex furniture. If you use the promo code SWINGSET at check out you can save 20% on your order. Leave us a review and a five star rating on iTunes! Leave us a review and a five star rating on Stitcher! Subscribe to us on Youtube! Android Users: Download and review our Android App! Leave us a comment on this post or at contact@lifeontheswingset.com or leave us a voicemail at 573-55-SWING (573-557-9464). Find Cooper on Twitter @CooperSBeckett, Dylan on Twitter @DylanTheThomas, and Ginger on twitter @GingerNTheProf. You can Cooper's novel about swinging, A Life Less Monogamous, at alifelessmonogamous.com or his memoir My Life on the Swingset: Adventures in Swinging & Polyamory at mylifeontheswingset.com as an ebook, paperback, or audiobook and if you buy them from his sites, use promo code SWINGSET to save 10%! Today's podcast featured music by: Intro Music: Puppet - Listen to the Storm, off the new Fear is Fleeting EP Politics Music (in the beginning): Pegboard Nerds - BADBOI VIP Outtakes Music: Tokyo Machine - Pixel Outro Music: Hush - Eenhoorn, off the upcoming Ruimtevaart EP Cooper S Beckett Dylan Thomas Dr. Liz Powell Dirty Lola

Nov 25, 2016 • 1h 37min
SS 267: Swingset Takes Over Desire
Life on the Swingset hosts its fifth annual trip to Desire Resort & Spa in Cancún, right in the heart of the Riviera Maya. Cooper, Dylan, Dr. Liz, Lyndzi, and Mr. Pent sit under the thatched roof and next to the bar of the rooftop hot tub and talk Fridays, resort staff, about the cosmic joke that is being "stuck" in Mexico while Election 2016 concluded, and about the new normal that involves orgies under the stars and so much more. Thank you to our trip sponsors! Lube Sponsor: überlube Condom Sponsor: Lucky Bloke Prize Sponsor: Shevibe Leave us a review and a five star rating on iTunes! Leave us a review and a five star rating on Stitcher! Subscribe to us on Youtube! Android Users: Download and review our Android App! Leave us a comment on this post or at contact@lifeontheswingset.com or leave us a voicemail at 573-55-SWING (573-557-9464). Find Cooper on Twitter @CooperSBeckett, Dylan on Twitter @DylanTheThomas, and Ginger on twitter @GingerNTheProf. You can Cooper's novel about swinging, A Life Less Monogamous, at alifelessmonogamous.com or his memoir My Life on the Swingset: Adventures in Swinging & Polyamory at mylifeontheswingset.com as an ebook, paperback, or audiobook and if you buy them from his sites, use promo code SWINGSET to save 10%! Today's podcast featured music by: Intro Music: Puppet & Murtagh - Killing Giants (feat. Richard Caddock) Cooper S Beckett Dylan Thomas Dr. Liz Powell Chris Pent Lyndzi Miller

Nov 19, 2016 • 1h 19min
SS 266: Asking For What You Want Leads to Better Sex
Communication. It doesn't need to be said, yet as it's the answer to so many questions we get asked, it really can't be overstated. One of the most important parts of communication when it comes to sexy time, is learning to ask for what you want, so we discuss that in today's episode of Life on the Swingset, along with Dr. Liz Powell, Mike Joseph, Cooper, and Dylan. Today's episode of Life on the Swingset is sponsored by Better Than the Hand, a website that aims to deconstruct stigma and toxicity surrounding male sexuality and masturbation through articles, blogs, toy reviews, and an online store. We're also sponsored by Castle Megastore, a one stop shop with everything you could want, from wand vibrators, to harnesses, to lube and condoms, to a complete suite of BDSM equipment including sex furniture. If you use the promo code SWINGSET at check out you can save 20% on your order. Dr. Liz starts out stating that there's an assumption of wanting to respect what we think someone else wants, and that we make the assumption that "asking for what I want may negatively affect their experience". Cooper asks if Dylan has this problem because he's trying not to be selfish, Dylan suspects that's the case. Mike Joseph mentions that homosexual sex (especially the top vs. bottom negotiation) by default has more communication than heterosexual sex. Dr. Liz comments that women that have sex with women also have a ton more conversations, and that people who consider themselves sex geeks or sex educators really bump up the level of conversation and negotiation that goes into sex. "If you don't ask for what you want, you're not going to have that next level sex you've been dreaming of." "Just like you need to be gracious in saying yes, you should try to be gracious in your no's as well." - Dylan "I think a lot of those shitty no's are coming from people shame as well. The reason you give a really shitty no and react with disgust is this kind of, performative goodness. If what they want is bad, then the best way to separate yourself from it is to perform how offended you are by it." - Dr. Liz "HOW DARE YOU." "Everything changed when I started asking for what I wanted, It as just as likely to be a result of you not asking for what you want than the party not giving you what you want." - Cooper While Dylan explains how sometimes, when about to play with someone who has a large tool kit / is well skilled at communication, he likes to get an initial yes to exploration and chart the path forward in the moment, listening to non-language verbal cues, and body response. Mike Joseph mentions that it sounds like a recipe for uncertainty and anxiety, so Dylan talks his way through a play session with someone that's willing an open. Mike discovers that being inside someone often elicits all sorts of non-verbal responses. *grin* Cooper mentions that sometimes, in the run up to a party or play session, it's easy to fire away a thought via instant messenger and walk away, it makes it easy to ask for something without necessarily needing feedback right away. Dr. Liz mentions the mildest and wildest activity that many people use at the beginning of play parties and Dylan mentions that even though he uses it, tt never quite "feels" right. "The way I've always seen that exercise (mildest and wildest) is that it tells you where the buffet starts and ends. It doesn't guarantee that you'll be able to get any specific dish on the buffet." - Dr. Liz Dr. Liz also mentions that the mildest and wildest activity helps her check-in with herself, and that it's a way of conveying a range of options, not necessarily a set destination, describing it as the beginning and the end of a buffet. The conversation moves to being awkward about starting conversation. Dr. Liz mentions she has a formula. "What I tell people is one of the most effective ways to start a conversation, is by sharing something you're feeling about having that conversation. You're leading with your softness instead of leading with your hardness." - Dr. Liz You can also find the John Oliver "This Week Tonight" video about Third Parties here: Leave us a review and a five star rating on iTunes! Leave us a review and a five star rating on Stitcher! Subscribe to us on Youtube! Android Users: Download and review our Android App! Leave us a comment on this post or at contact@lifeontheswingset.com or leave us a voicemail at 573-55-SWING (573-557-9464). Find Cooper on Twitter @CooperSBeckett, Dylan on Twitter @DylanTheThomas, and Ginger on twitter @GingerNTheProf. You can Cooper's novel about swinging, A Life Less Monogamous, at alifelessmonogamous.com or his memoir My Life on the Swingset: Adventures in Swinging & Polyamory at mylifeontheswingset.com as an ebook, paperback, or audiobook and if you buy them from his sites, use promo code SWINGSET to save 10%! Today's podcast featured music by: Intro Music: Grant - Wake Up (feat. Jessi Mason) Outtakes Music: Slips & Slurs x Mikha! - WiFi Tears Outro Music: Koven - Telling Me End of Episode Outtakes: Koven - Breathing Me Politics Music (At the very end): Muzzy & Droptek - Warhead Cooper S Beckett Dylan Thomas Dr. Liz Powell Mike Joseph

Nov 9, 2016 • 3min
SS 265.1 - #SSDESIRE Rain Delay Two, "The Quickening"
So, we apparently decided it was a good idea to podcast the night after election day. In Mexico. We were wrong. We've posted a three minute rain delay episode as it is actually raining outside (instead of last year). We'll be back next week. Thanks folks, and if you need someone who needs this... please pass it along. Suicide Hotline: 800-273-8255 Crisis Text Line: 741741 Trans Hotline: 877-565-8860 LGBTQ+ Hotline: 866-488-7386

Oct 30, 2016 • 1h 9min
SS 265: Bi Invisibility & The Closet
It's no secret that in the pantheon of the LGBT spectrum, bisexual people are looked down upon, told they don't really exist, avoided in dating life. Bisexuals also often feel less pressure to come out, as they can so easily pass as one side or the other. Paradoxically, this leads to bi invisibility and erasure, so we discuss, and make an attempt to deconstruct this in today's episode of Life on the Swingset, along with Dr. Liz Powell, Mike Joseph, Cooper, and Dylan. Today's episode of Life on the Swingset is sponsored by Better Than the Hand, a website that aims to deconstruct stigma and toxicity surrounding male sexuality and masturbation through articles, blogs, toy reviews, and an online store. We're also sponsored by Castle Megastore, a one stop shop with everything you could want, from wand vibrators, to harnesses, to lube and condoms, to a complete suite of BDSM equipment including sex furniture. If you use the promo code SWINGSET at check out you can save 20% on your order. National Coming Out Day was a pretty big deal for Cooper this year. He discussed his reasons as coming out, specifically to his conservative family, as someone who has struggled with his sexuality and is still working through it, and why he chose not to identify to them as queer, even though he specifically identifies with queer. The conversation moves to reasons why not to come out, whether because livelyhood may be jeopardized (as in Dr. Liz's relaying of her experience of being in the army before Don't Ask Don't Tell was fully repealed), or child custody may be revoked, or any other reason to stay in the closet. Mike posits that many people aren't all open to themselves (as with straight identified men who still seek men), and mentions that even being the out partner in a gay couple has stress that comes with it. The panel talks specifically about ways that people specifically disappear bisexuality, telling men who identify as bi that they are gay and they haven't admitted it yet (bi now, gay later), or that bisexual people, because so much effort has been exerted to create the separate gay identity that having a bridge between those identities, muddy the waters. To Dr. Liz, the conflict presents differently as women, that there's a "penis phobia" that can exist so that bi women who have sex with men are tagged as higher risk because there is less transmission risk between women who only have sex with women. Dr. Liz also takes time to lament the fact that before she got her "super stereotypical queer haircut" everyone assumed she was straight, but now that she has it, everyone assumes she's gay! Mike brings up that at many events he attends, almost every woman identifies as bisexual even though most men identify as straight, even if they later identify as curious or fluid, and that it may be a holdover from the aids crisis in that if you identified as bi or gay you were automatically more likely to get infected. Dr. Liz adds that there's a challenge to masculinity involved, and that men who identify as straight but still fuck men create a safe space to sexually express themselves without the stigma of challenging that masculinity, and that any question as to why that man may marry a woman even if he fucks men doesn't get asked. Dylan brings up that many bi woman in monogamous relationships get the same challenge, and they get questions as to why they "even bother" identifying as bisexual if they're marrying a man, because they'll never get to do anything about their attraction to women. Dr. Liz mentions that bisexuals get misidentified sexually based on the genitals they're interacting with as opposed to their actual preferences. Dylan asks about the pansexual label, and whether people identifying as pansexual get to skip some of the bisexual stigma or confusion... but gets that thought dismissed as most people outside of the queer community would just not understand what it is. He follows up with a questions about whether bisexual men are seen as, as dangerous as bisexual women are to "the husbands" of straight women in monogamous relationships and... yes. Mike, as a queer man, has had his male friends told by their female partners not to hang out with them or has had his male friends' sexuality questions because of their desire to be friends with him. Cooper mentions that whenever you present an alternative to traditional heteronormative nonmonogamy to people who actively try not to look into and not think about it, that anyone with predispositions to something other than traditional heteronormative may show interest and that's dangerous. Dylan compares it to Doctor Who weeping angels and... pretty much stuns everyone into silence, and into a little bit of weeping. After a break, Dr. Liz discusses ideas to help with bi erasure, whether thinking about the bi celebrities you know (and with say, Anna Paquin being bi but being identified as straight because she's married to a man), and that when you meet someone you really only have one datapoint, and to stay open. We talk about attraction, and how you don't necessarily need to identify the way your attraction takes you, because it's ok to explore fantasy, explore the juiciness of, and even still decide to act it out without identifying as your attraction. Fantasy doesn't have to be the same as reality. And your fantasies do not define your sexuality in practice https://t.co/y1WvtgZtx1 — Liz Powell, Psy.D (@sexpospsych) October 26, 2016 " src= "" alt="" width="20" height="20" data-wp-preserve= "%3Cscript%20async%20src%3D%22%2F%2Fplatform.twitter.com%2Fwidgets.js%22%20charset%3D%22utf-8%22%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E" data-mce-placeholder="1" /> Leave us a review and a five star rating on iTunes! Leave us a review and a five star rating on Stitcher! Subscribe to us on Youtube! Android Users: Download and review our Android App! Leave us a comment on this post or at contact@lifeontheswingset.com or leave us a voicemail at 573-55-SWING (573-557-9464). Find Cooper on Twitter @CooperSBeckett, Dylan on Twitter @DylanTheThomas, and Ginger on twitter @GingerNTheProf. You can Cooper's novel about swinging, A Life Less Monogamous, at alifelessmonogamous.com or his memoir My Life on the Swingset: Adventures in Swinging & Polyamory at mylifeontheswingset.com as an ebook, paperback, or audiobook and if you buy them from his sites, use promo code SWINGSET to save 10%! Today's podcast featured music by: Intro Music: Tokyo Machine - FIGHT Politics Music: Muzzy & Droptek - Warhead Outro Music: Nervo - Anywhere You Go (feat. Timmy Trumpet) Outtakes Music: Slips & Slurs x Mikha! - WiFi Tears Cooper S Beckett Dylan Thomas Dr. Liz Powell

Oct 27, 2016 • 1h 8min
#ssclassic: SS 030: Love Thyself - Masturbation and Non-Monogamy
Hello Listeners. Today, we present you one of the most horrifying things we can think of... a vintage episode of Life on the Swingset, remastered, for our modern age. In Episode 30 aka: Season 2 of Life on the Swingset, Ginger, Cooper, Shira, and Dylan talk about masturbation, which Woody Allen called "sex with someone I love," and talk about why, in swinging and non-monogamy, we have all the opportunity in the world for sex and we still continue to jack off and jill off (is that a thing?) We discuss discovering masturbation, techniques, toys, and why we love ourselves. Oh, and we also discussed Christine O'Donnell and poltiics. Be. Very. Afraid. Leave us a review and a five star rating on iTunes! Leave us a review and a five star rating on Stitcher! Subscribe to us on Youtube! Android Users: Download and review our Android App! Leave us a comment on this post or at contact@lifeontheswingset.com or leave us a voicemail at 573-55-SWING (573-557-9464). Find Cooper on Twitter @CooperSBeckett, Dylan on Twitter @DylanTheThomas, and Ginger on twitter @GingerNTheProf. You can Cooper's novel about swinging, A Life Less Monogamous, at alifelessmonogamous.com or his memoir My Life on the Swingset: Adventures in Swinging & Polyamory at mylifeontheswingset.com as an ebook, paperback, or audiobook and if you buy them from his sites, use promo code SWINGSET to save 10%! Today's podcast featured music by: Going Quantum & Stephen Walking - Full Grizzly Tut Tut Child - Don't Push Me ...and WARNING: POLITICS AHEAD music by: Muzzy & Droptek - Warhead Cooper S Beckett Ginger Bentham Dylan Thomas Shira B. Katz

Oct 14, 2016 • 1h 22min
SS 264: Couples' Privilege & the Notion of the Third
As couples, so often we're looking for the third. The unicorn usually. They're rare, seemingly unobtainable, but when we find them it's just so magical. Except that we're often boxing that unicorn in, that single person who now has to put up with our pre-established couples dynamic and the fact that if we ghosted it'd be as a pair. Yep, tonight we're talking about couples privilege and what that means for the third so many of us are seeking.

Oct 7, 2016 • 1h 31min
SS 263: Let's Get Sexting - Dirty Talk and Naked Pics
We all send dirty comments, dirty pictures, full on sext-travaganzas with our partners, playmates, friends straddling the edge of naughty. Tonight we're joined by the Swinging MILF herself, Sally Swings to talk about sending each other dirty pictures and messages through sexting. Today's episode of Life on the Swingset is sponsored by Better Than the Hand, a website that aims to deconstruct stigma and toxicity surrounding male sexuality and masturbation through articles, blogs, toy reviews, and an online store. The Swingset crew starts by discussing the difference between different types of sexting, "the tease", and the "taking it to completion" type, and how sexting is often compatible with our every day busy lives because we're always on the go. Sexting gives us a charge, a kick, it's something that we bring back to our partners. Sally and Dylan commiserate over being in private photo groups when men complain how their photos only get a couple likes, while women's photos get tens or hundreds. Cooper poses the thought that unsolicited dick pics and the general dick pic "economy" gives pretty extreme incentives to women willing to share, and that because of a scarcity of that kind of photo, men swarm and ... create disincentives to sharing. Dylan discusses unsolicited dick pics as men seeking power, and as a full frontal assault on someone, while simultaneously causing men whose dick pics are refused to act aghast, as if their pics are a gift to the world and should be accepted unconditionally. Cooper decides it'd be funny to try and flood Dylan's inbox with topless photos so, in that spirit, listeners... email Dylan at dylan@lifeontheswingset.com and send him your topless pics! He consents on behalf of Dylan, Dylan indicates a measure of exasperated agreement with that given consent. R.I.P. his inbox. In episode business, Cooper has finally finished writing his second swinging novel! Dylan brings up the We-Vibe lawsuit and feels strongly about companies collecting more information than people have really volunteered to give. Ars Technica: Sex Toys and the Internet of Things Collide: What Could Go Wrong? The Guardian: Tech Company Accused of Collecting Details of How Customers Use Sex Toys Leave us a review and a five star rating on iTunes! Leave us a review and a five star rating on Stitcher! Subscribe to us on Youtube! Android Users: Download and review our Android App! We have TEN rooms left for our 2016 trip to Desire! Sign up now! November 5th through 12th, 2016! Leave us a comment on this post or at contact@lifeontheswingset.com or leave us a voicemail at 573-55-SWING (573-557-9464). Find Cooper on Twitter @CooperSBeckett, Dylan on Twitter @DylanTheThomas, and Ginger on twitter @GingerNTheProf. You can Cooper's novel about swinging, A Life Less Monogamous, at alifelessmonogamous.com or his memoir My Life on the Swingset: Adventures in Swinging & Polyamory at mylifeontheswingset.com as an ebook, paperback, or audiobook and if you buy them from his sites, use promo code SWINGSET to save 10%! Today's podcast featured music by: 7 Minutes Dead - Peacock 7 Minutes Dead - Peacock (Haywyre Remix) Cooper S Beckett Ginger Bentham Dylan Thomas


