The Sex O'Clock news

Anyone for Coffee?
Candy is dandy and liquor is quicker, but a humble cup of good coffee may be your best bet to entice someone in your bed. Scientists from Southwestern University, Texas have found that caffeine stimulates the areas of the brain that control arousal.
From their research with female rats, researchers have concluded that a cup of coffee beforehand could encourage women to be more eager for sex. But before you sign up for barista training, the stimulating effect is apparently much less pronounced in those who drink coffee regularly!
Sex.com sells for record price
If you want a catchy name to for adult content, you couldn’t do much better than Sex.com. The domain name is reckoned to be one of the most lucrative on the web and was sold this January for about $12 million and ranks as one of the most expensive domain name transfers ever.
Currently Sex.com is a little disappointing and makes its money selling ads to adult sites, but the new owners promise a radical overhaul. I’ll keep you posted.
Sex best stress-buster for public speaking
My boyfriend, who incidentally has to give a lot of presentations, brought home an article that suggests that having sex may be the best way to prepare for a speech.
The study, reported in the New Scientist magazine, found that penetrative sex is one of the best ways of reducing the pressure associated with stressful situations. Dr Stuart Brody who conducted the study said that sexual activity is associated with a wide range of positive effects on behaviour. But I bet you could have guessed that.
Books
Current reading in the Sexton household is Eleanor Herman’s Sex with Kings: Five Hundred Years of Adultery, Power, Rivalry and Revenge. Sex with Kings is a social history examining the sexual habits, predilections and passions of Europe’s monarchs, their wives and mistresses and it makes fascinating reading. Sex with Kings is available for €15.00 from Eason at www.buy4now.ie.
Valentine’s Day Gifts
You have been warned (see main article!) that getting the object of your affections a gift for Valentine’s Day is not enough: the quality of the gift is everything nowadays. According to Dateable.com, these are the ten worst gifts its members received:
1. Roses, with a card addressed to another woman (a dead giveaway, that)
2. A Nordic Track exercise machine.
3. A ‘how-to’ book on sex
4 A vacuum cleaner
5 A blender
6 Cleaning supplies
7 A Black & Decker screwdriver
8 A power-steering hose
9 A toaster
10 A broom
Toys
If you are looking for something a little more risqué for your lover, LoveHoney recommends the iBuzz Music Acti. The iBuzz plugs into your iPod and the music-activated vibrating bullet stimulates you in time with your favourite tunes. Nifty. Available from www.lovehoney.ie for €43.71.
This Issue's Top Sex Tip: Wet and Wild
Having a bath before jumping into bed ensures you are sweet smelling. However, that’s not the only benefit. Hot water helps reduce stress and gets you more in the mood for action.
Showering or bathing together (if your tub can accommodate two) is great foreplay and perfect for setting a romantic scene for Valentine’s Day. Light some candles, let the room get steamy and warm and take it from there.
Most people enjoy the sensual feeling of someone else washing their hair. It’s one of the reasons most of us enjoy a trip to the hairdressers.
Allow your lover to shave you, whether it’s your legs, genitals or face that needs the treatment. This can be a great bonding experience as there is an issue of trust involved. When shaving coarse hair such as pubes, the cardinal rules are to let the hair soak and get soft first, use a sharp razor, don’t shave against the grain, shave each area only once and use a cooling gel such as aloe vera afterwards.
Wash your lover slowly, spending time cleaning all the nooks and crannies of his or her body. Shower oils are great for this as they make the body slick, allowing your hands to slide all over the body.
Before you jump into the bath together, here are a couple of things to remember: Safe sex cannot be practiced in the bath, so it’s best to keep your activities there to foreplay. Remember that bath oils can degrade latex, so rinse and dry off carefully before putting a condom on.
Incidentally, some women are quite sensitive and very hot water and strongly perfumed soap can irritate the vagina, making it difficult to lubricate. If you find this a problem, keep some lube handy.
Now, get slippy!