An ongoing feature: each issue will showcase a different model captured by our cameras.
Paul S. appears as our cover image for the Spring 2007 issue. Additional pictures displaying his form are available for viewing.

Paul S.

PAUL S.

"(Describing your own personality) is a scary request. I have always believed that the best way to become aware of one’s personality is to ask others for the hard truth of what they see in you. This is usually very painful, but the quickest way to learn about myself—especially whenever I am looking to grow and change within.

In short, I am a conflicted individual. Okay. It’s not all bad, nor do I see it as “bad”. You might ask, what makes me conflicted? Well, since you insist, I might say that I have two polarities within me. One is the public persona that likes to be a perfectionist and a self-made individual. I look independent. I seem independent to others. I am driven to achieve; and to my friends, I appear fairly successful in my career. I tend to be self-sufficient and dominant in my circles of career, friends, and personal life.

On the other hand—this is the conflicted part, I desire dearly to be looked after, cared for, and dependent on someone—at least for intimacy. When it comes to the wolf-energy in me, I am howling at the moon with desires that would take this conversation beyond its limits. "

Some Physical Statistics
Height: 5'10"     Color of Eyes: Blue

You have stated how you identify with the archetype of the wolf. How long have you felt this affiliation and why?
I identified with the wolf-energy as I grew up in a rural area as a young boy in Pennsylvania. I remember exploring the forests, rivers, and streams and wanting to our in nature. My boyhood friends and I would go hiking and canoeing—we basically explored our world, often imitating natives. Sadly now, most young men live in concrete and blacktop jungles and don’t have a sense of respect for nature, let alone the earth’s environment.

Wolves are mythical animals that taught ancient men about the deep instinctual senses that we all possess, but few of us use anymore. Wolves taught early hunters about the “power of the collective” during the hunt—so humans could survive and thrive. Their lessons also taught the value of cooperative groups and communities, which I believe helped the evolution of human beings—as we learned how to survive in the wild.

I studied wolf packs in order to gain a better insight into male aggression and competitiveness in the world. Most men have forgotten this deeper archetype of manhood—trading the instincts of the wolf for modern sports or the corporate business suit. Men have lost that powerful connection to the sacred earth, which has directly diminished the positive male energy that once thrived to make the community a place of refuge, inclusion, and health for all their members. Now, men are now trapped in cubicles and concrete vaults called offices. They have been disempowered to accomplish good; and have been made into corporate androids to follow mechanistic lives that take them away from the healthy expressions of creativity and discover. No wonder drugs and alcohol are so often used to quench the wild male energies that we feel.

Although this may sound corny, I think that the movie Dances with Wolves was one of several movies that may have put wolves back in the collective psyche for a while at least. The Hollywood drama gave us a hint of how wolves once played a central role in the psyche of human beings—indigenous North Americans, long before Europeans came to this continent and spoiled the natural and sacred earth cycles. Wolves may have taught ancient men how to hunt, how to live in a tribe, and how to survive in the wild. Wolves have been depicted in art, song, stories, and dance throughout the evolution and development of human civilization. The wolf is something that men need to return to, especially, if we’re going to save the planet from over industrialization and social desolation. Men, in general, need to get back to reverence and awe of nature.

Restoring naturalistic rituals back into the psyche of modern men would help to heal humanity’s assault on the natural beauty and resources of our planet. I am positively convinced that this would help today’s young men to emotionally mature, eliminating the highly destructive energies we see in our culture today. I have seen first hand the toxic male energies used to destroy self and others—all because men have departed from the ancient rituals and rites that made helped to turn boys into men.

 

Do you feel that the alpha-male concept is actually a part of human nature in general?
The concept of the alpha-male has come from a number of places, but the wolf pack seems to get the most recognition for this concept. Of course, it needs to be said that there are alpha-females in wolf packs as well, but most of the public understands that when one talks about the alpha-male concept, it usually refers back to wolves. There are also beta-males that serve as seconds in command, and omega-males in wolf packs that are at the bottom of the social structure. The neat thing about wolves is that their hierarchical social structures.

Strangely, there is a false assumption that only gays are into being either dominant or submissive, particularly as partners. This is far from reality. All men psychologically play these different roles at some point in their lives. I once did a study on wolves and compared it to male group behaviors and found many similarities. Anybody who works in corporate America, plays a sport, runs the streets, serves in the military, or deals with other men in different arenas, whether gay or straight, are ultimately guided by unconscious rules of male dominance and submission. And, one interesting observation that I have made is that real successful men aren’t usually all-dominant or all-submissive. They tend to be men who are skilled at knowing when to be dominant and when to be submissive in order to move up the pyramid—or the pack.

Male dominance and submission gets played out in so many daily settings. If your boss is a man, you’re already expected to anticipate his expectations and perform accordingly. I have worked in places where men acted like they were “top dogs,” and the male employees that remained submissively loyal remained employed, while anyone that raised his head to assert himself was quite quickly put in his place or chased out of the pack (let go). Anytime there is a male that has to defend his top position in the group, there is this alpha-male dynamic taking place.

 
-- and I guess you are not a vegetarian?  
Give me a steak, and make sure it’s rare! Hurry, before I bite someone.
 

What type of breed of dog do you own?
I was raised with dogs. No, I don’t mean that I didn’t have a family. It was just that my father loved dogs, and we had all sorts from West Highland Terriers to Japanese Akitas. My favorite was our German shepherd dog. The dog was named Rex, a very unoriginal name. I was about 4 or 5 years old when I had my fondest memories of Rex. During the winter months, Rex would grab me and my siblings by the hoods attached to our little snow suites and pulled us around on top of the snow. We had lots of fun with Rex. I even remember a time when my brother, sister, and I were being punished for something we had done wrong. My father wanted to spank us, but as soon as he tried, Rex attacked him! Needless to say, whenever we thought we were in trouble, we made sure Rex was nearby.

I now own a small rescue dog named Snickers. She looks like a big Snickers bar to me, because she is dark black with flecks of brown tints that only show up in the reflection of bright light—she’s also sweet and gets boots of energy whenever she wants to play. Most of the time, Snickers is very quiet—and just watches me with her wandering and “all-seeing” eyes that follow me around the room without ever moving her head. Snickers is a mix breed between a terrier and a dachshund, so she isn’t more than 6 pounds, but she thinks she is a big dog whenever I go walking her through the neighborhood. I was driving home one Sunday last October when I received a very strong message from the Universe or the Nature Gods to stop and go by the local pet store, which sponsors pet rescues and adoptions every Sunday. When I approached the pack of dogs that were together in the gated area, she was there with her little sad face looking as though she had been so hurt, rejected, and abandoned. The other bigger dogs were very happy and cheerful, but Snickers looked as though she needed “puppy Prozac”. I knew that she was meant for me, and so, I brought her home that day. Now, she is a very happy dog—without the Prozac; and she loves to wrestle with the 12-pound cat. I really think the cat allows Snickers to win most of the time, because the cat is much stronger and more agile, but usually rolls over and lets Snickers win the match. Although, there have been a couple times that Snickers got patted with the cat claws and her head thumbed a few times with the cat’s back paw, a sign of kitty dominance, Snickers doesn’t seem to care, she always comes back for the next round. She’s a big dog.

 

Describe your ideal tattoo, if it exists. Where would you place it on your body?
There is a sense of wild energy that appeals to my base animal senses whenever I see someone with a tattoo. Immediately, my mind sees the tattoo as an invitation to “look” at canvass that bears it. I can imagine that if I were a wolf, I could get a real scent of who the person is from the symbols and region of the body-canvass that bears the art. Tattoos for me, are very sensual and arouse animalistic instincts in my own body.

Recently, I asked my friend to design a personalized tattoo for me. He is a graphic artist, and I’ve seen his great artistic work on others. What is interesting is that he only does the design work, and another tattoo artist does the final tattooing, but their combined artistry is beautiful.
I think of him as being like a shaman priest whenever he instructs me about the highly personal and spiritual journey for selecting the right symbols and pictures. He has taught me a lot about the art and culture of tattoos.

It takes him a minimum of two years before the finished piece of art is completed and ready to be tattooed to its new owner. He does a hundred drawings before the new owner of the tattoo is finally ready to accept the art as part of their body and soul. His understanding of what a tattoo means is based on it being a spiritual experience that marks a change or a milestone in that person’s life-long journey, because once the tattoo is wedded to the body, its bearer takes on a persona that includes the new symbols. I feel that my tattoo symbols will come to me.

 

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