IF YOU think that only men know how to play, you are wrong, dead wrong. Women play, too, and it's not Barbie I'm talking about.

I thought it was all about the lingerie, from the famed pearl stringed thong worn by Samantha in one of the episodes of Sex and the City, or the whip of Dita Von Teese and the plush boa feathers that she used. Yes, it was that and more, so much more.

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It was the surprise of a lifetime when Tita Marie Ann Topacio handed me a murano glass-like rendition of a phallus.

"And you can heat that in a microwave or immerse it in hot water, whatever temperature pleases you," she told me. "Or you can have it ice cold."

And there were so many more toys to choose from.

There were rigged and studded condoms, self-heating oils, aromatherapy oils, fruit flavored lubricants, and tons of lingerie.

It was almost a surreal experience with all these toys and gadgets all around and people talking about them like they were vegetable or condiment used in everyone’s kitchens.

And then the realization: It’s not only men who have sexual urges that need to be satisfied, women are human beings too and they have the same urges that need satisfaction.

Of course, not every student in high school knows that. No one talks about these kinds of things anyway.

"We do not have sexual education, no women's health," Tita Marie Ann said. "And everyone suffers in silence."

The store may seem to have a ubiquitous location, not being in one of the city's premier malls. When prodded to answer, Tita Marie Ann had it short and concise.

"It is not meant for public consumption as these things are meant to be between you and your God."

Now, go, head on out to the store, and get some toys. You deserve it. "Woman, be free!" as the store slogan would say.

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(December 1, 2008 issue)
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