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Midlife Starter Pack's avatar

I read it over my breakfast of Grape Nuts and blueberries. I don't know why I did that. Half way through, I was like, this isn't smart, I shouldn't be eating, but I finished it. I finished both, I guess, breakfast and the piece.

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Amy Beeman's avatar

You’re a trooper!

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Rock-Paper-Shadows's avatar

Such a creepy story! "Thanks"? for the reminder...

j/k. Your essay is very well-written and I appreciate it.

I read a book called CANNIBAL about Meiwes 20 years ago and the story has stuck with me ever since.

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Laura L. Walsh, Psy.D.'s avatar

Your writing is excellent for this deeply disturbing story. I hope you were able to flush it out afterwards! Such an interesting and philosophical puzzle. Humans come in all sorts of weird configurations. Thanks for writing.

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Amy Beeman's avatar

Thanks! There was definitely a balance with wanting to convey the actualization of this heinous event without making it even more gross and disturbing by including too many descriptions. It’s almost too heavy even for me, but once I got it in my head, I was compelled to write it. With your profession you may have insight of this kind of psychology. I just think Brandes’ story is so sad.

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Laura L. Walsh, Psy.D.'s avatar

Glad you were able to take care of yourself. It is sad and heavy.

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Jodi Sh. Doff's avatar

This was great. I get so excited when I see a new Dirtnap in my inbox! I think goes well beyond your average masochist. I remember the BDSM Hellfire club in NYC had bathtubs, but those were only used for people who wanted to be urinated (or shit) on. Lightweights 😉. But seriously when you find something this extreme I always wonder about nature vs nurture. Are they made this way, or created. Probably some combination, I imagine.

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Amy Beeman's avatar

I wonder too. Plenty of people have had their moms die young and have cold fathers and most aren’t so far gone into wanting self harm to that level. Most stories I could find are about the cannibal, but Brandes is the one I find more shocking and hard to fathom.

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Jodi Sh. Doff's avatar

That was the more interesting part. Most of the time I can get under the skin (no pun intended) of a fetishist and at least understand the erotic desire, and I can understand wanting pain, or to be bitten, I even understand the pseudo vampires and their pseudo willing victims. Not m bag, but I can see the eroticism there, but the desire to be fully consummed, to be murdered, slowly as a willing participant, that is beyond me. I’d love to read more.

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Devo/Murphy Carpenter's avatar

Wow who knew

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Amy Beeman's avatar

Thanks for braving that one 😅

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Vince Roman's avatar

Loved this one!

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Amy Beeman's avatar

Thanks!

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Valkyrie's avatar

OMG

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Rea de Miranda's avatar

Brilliantly written Amy! I'm a big fan!

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Amy Beeman's avatar

Thank you so much! I appreciate you saying that. Wasn’t sure about putting this one out there because it’s so awful but I enjoyed the challenge of telling story while trying to show the men as people and how it was in that situation and focus less on the gore.

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