The Snuggle House in Madison: How sad to see this close because of closed minds
I just learned about this–and it’s already closed:
It sounds like a beautiful concept by beautiful people–but the city thought it was about sex. And there are so many other haters against this concept.
What a shame that our society sees touching–even simple cuddling–as leading to sex. This business recognized that many people don’t have someone to snuggle with. And what’s wrong with cuddling with friends to watch a movie?
I have SCA friends like this, but also encounter people who think there’s something “wrong” or “inappropriate” about snuggling with people not in their family. Why make a beautiful thing dirty? Let’s abolish this mindset, open up, and lighten up!
Cuddle with your friends, not just your lover or children! There’s nothing wrong with nuzzling the top of a friend’s head during a hug!
The uptight attitude of American society to such things, is why we have “snuggle houses” to begin with. If more people were more open to this, nobody would need to pay $60 for a hug, not even someone without a family at home to snuggle with.
There is such a place in New York, and the Cuddle Party people have been around for a while. But I guess this business was ahead of its time for Wisconsin. From an AP report:
Madison’s concern seems to be deeper than in other cities where similar businesses have set up shop as cuddling has grown into a cottage industry over the past decade.
Police in Rochester, N.Y., said they’ve had no complaints about The Snuggery, which offers overnight cuddle sessions.
Be The Love You Are in Boulder, Colo., offers cuddles with “Snuggle Stars.”
Cuddle Therapy in San Francisco offers packages that “focus directly with your current needs around connection, intimacy and touch,” according to its website.
Police in San Francisco and Boulder didn’t respond to The AP’s inquires about those businesses.
The nonprofit organization Cuddle Party has trained about 100 people across five continents to run group snuggle sessions, said Len Daley, a psychologist who serves as executive director at Cuddle Party headquarters in Montgomery, Ala.
Betty Martin, a Seattle-based sex educator who facilities cuddle parties in that city, said she’s never had problems with government officials or police. Cuddle Party participants must keep their clothes on and go through a pre-session workshop on how to say “no,” she said.
“People think if there’s touch happening there must be sex happening. That’s not the case at all,” Martin said.
Hopefully, one day America will be more receptive to cuddling between friends and not just family or children. This lack of touch is probably one reason why our society is so violent.