One of Those Times You May Feel Like Kicking Yourself

Ever had a sudden insight, and then found yourself wondering why it took you so long? This morning something made me recall a local magazine that was around briefly about eleven years ago. I saw it at bdsm events, and it was focused on the bdsm scene.

What puzzled me was its title: ObZine. What did the letters OB have to do with bdsm? It was a mystery.

When I recalled it today I immediately  realized that it was a pun on "obscene." In retrospect this seems obvious. So why hadn't I thought of that before?

I have an idea why. Because it was a kink publication found in kink settings, I thought of it exclusively in that connection. This was probably accentuated by its being the first bdsm magazine I'd seen, whereas vanilla erotic publications were already familiar. So, when I wondered about its title, I was focused exclusively on its bdsm character, and didn't think to "pull back" and view it more broadly as a publication that was erotic and therefore, in some people's lights, "obscene." It's a good illustration of the power of a "mental set."