No glove, no love, no test, no sex

Photo from www.scx.hu

With Valentine's Day approaching, you can bet that plenty of couples (or non-couples, for that matter) will probably be knocking boots a lot this month.  

Maybe it's love, maybe it's lust. Or maybe it's loneliness and self-esteem issues that get your legs to open wider than the Grand Canyon. Whatever the case, it's important to note that February happens to be National Condom Month. Kind of ironic, don't ya think?

What's even more ironic is that I recently overheard a friend tell another friend that a girl he was dating (for about a week or so) asked him to get checked out before she would agree to sleep with him. 

Now, my mom always preached to me to do the same, but I'd always laugh at her thinking, "What person my age would actually do that?" So when I heard the topic come up, of course my ears perked up naturally. 

How does someone typically respond to a request like that? After all, it's not an unreasonable request considering how promiscuous people can be these days. But what it you're in the heat of the moment and you really, really, really want to put it inside her or really, really, really want him to put it inside you already? 

Most people "know" the risks and yet do it anyway figuring it's just a "one-time exception." Only it's not, and once is one time too many if you're not in a committed relationship.

Among some of the most common sexually transmitted infections ("disease" seems to imply a slow death) are chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphillis. Of course, when someone does contract one of these sexually transmitted bacterial infections, no one really talks about it. That's because STD's are a totally taboo topic. Don't believe me? Play a game of "Ten Fingers" with a group of friends and see how much slower fingers go down when you say, "Never have I ever had an STD."

People keep that ish on the DL as well as their sexual history, probably because they've never been checked out or are afraid to get checked out. 

I was in complete awe when I discovered that some of the people I know have never taken an STD test before. Are you kidding me? Maybe it's because I'm a woman and have grown accustomed to getting tested every year along with my annual pap smear, but I think it's so incredibly important to get yourself tested frequently if you are sexually active. 

I recommend getting checked out every 3-6 months because that's about how long it takes sometimes for the infection or disease to manifest. And if you do find yourself in the unsettling scenario of having contracted an STD from one of your partners (and you care enough to inform them), know that you have the option of letting him or her know via an e-card through an Internet Notification Service created specifically to notify past partners of possible infections. 

We grow up learning that abstinence is the key to practicing safe sex. F that ish! We all know that none of us are going to start abstaining from sex any time soon. So if you really want to practice safe sex, ask your partner to get checked out and always use a condom. 

The way I see it, if a girl doesn't hear back from a guy after making such a request, you know he was only interested in an easy lay and wasn't planning on sticking around long. On the other hand, if he does agree, he might actually have plans to keep you around a little. Either that, or he hasn't been laid in a really long time.