[inmywetbikini]

I started my interest in them when my college roommate wore speedos for swimming (white ones -- I posted a story about it here) at the pool, and Jockey Elance bikinis for underwear. He looked great in them, and when I bought them I realized how comfortable they were.

How did they become fetishistic? That's a good question. Certainly there's a moral side to it. Someone who collects, say, political campaign buttons and wears them isn't considered to have a fetish any more than a guy who wears nothing but jeans and t-shirts having drawers full of jeans and t-shirts.

Those are both perfectly acceptable, and even though they display some part of the wearer's personality -- I like politics! or, I want to fit in! -- they're accepted as part of our "normal" culture.

Speedos, bikinis, and other tight-fitting swimwear are seen by most people as outside the norm. When worn by guys, that is -- women and girls who wear the tiniest triangle tops with a g-string are seen as strong, confident women. But that's another topic. When we guys wear our skimpy swimwear people wonder why we don't just fit in with the crowd, and since we don't, there must be something odd about us.

Add to that America's prudish obsession with sex and you come up with guy + speedo = deviant. (It's a double-standard, since woman + two-piece bikini = the popular girl.) So we have to enjoy our interest underground, on web sites and winking to one another at pools and on beaches.

Is that part of the fun? Not for me. I'd rather everyone wore them (well, as long as they're reasonably h/w/p). But others may take additional pleasure in speedos' borderline acceptance -- and that's totally cool. Maybe we become so connected to them because we have to band together to promote them lest they become totally impermissible.

--> On that basketball shorts note -- the "skirt" comment is spot-on. I remember seeing a similar comparison on a fashion blog, where street fashion (as opposed to runways) is the subject of the photos.

The blogger had a shot of a young black kid (late teens) on a NYC basketball court. He was posing for the camera in his long white t-shirt, shorts that were both super-long (to his calves) and billowy, and tall black athletic sox that must have gone nearly to his knees. Next to this photo was a photo of a 20-something white girl, slim, wearing a long, billowy skirt (to her calves) and black stockings. The blogger made the point that both looks were so similar that it was impossible to say anything but the male athlete's look was a direct descendant of the women's 50s-style skirt & stocking look.

It's so odd to me that these basketball athletes -- certainly at the college and pro level -- who claim to need every last advantage to perform at 110% will wear clothes so bulky and loose that they've got to be slowed down by them. If bulky clothes made your fast break faster, why don't track runners wear them? The answer: Fashion, and all its cultural baggage.