I still consider myself very much a newbie to the hobbie; I only have two years experience and a couple of dozen visits under my belt.  But I don't get the shakes like being assigned point for night patrol in southeast asia anymore when I visit a provider.  I have the many experienced hobbyists to thank for guiding me on this board (Mr. Fisher - you come to mind here), and myself for following their advice; the best being...become a VIP, do your homework, and stick with well reviewed providers.

So I thought, how can I give back? Other than writing reviews.  I thought, how about sharing just the simple tricks I have been advised of, or learned (sometimes the hard way) when it comes to hobbying.

So at the risk of really sticking my neck out (and having it hammered by a seasoned hobby vet) here begins (maybe a series of) Gentlemansteve's tips for hobbying:

GS simple Tip #1:  for a beginner, e-mail for initial contact is always easier.  Have a dedicated e-mail for hobbying.  When you make contact, cover four simple things, this assumes you know her rate and and studied her website if there is one: 1) compliment her ad and tell her where you saw it,  2) tell her you would like to visit - as in day/date/time range (morning, afternoon, evening), 3) tell her a little about yourself - mature gent, newbie, and anything else you are comfortable sharing (remember, you are a complete stranger, more info is better), and last 4) tell her you have references  you can provide and a phone number (use a tracphone from Walmart, pay cash).  If you don't have references (I didn't when I started) there are ways around that, but not part of today's tip info.  The e mail routine is not real good for same day visits (on occaission it has worked for me), but it is  great ice breaker if you plan ahead.

I didn't invent this advice; I am just passing it along because it has worked very well for me.

There is much more I could talk about, but I need to see how this is received.