Go Ahead--Lick Those Boots

January 15 is International Fetish Day, a day for you to embrace your inner quirks and eccentricities. So what if you’re into licking boots, sniffing feet, or wearing liquid latex; if you’re not hurting anyone, why not embrace your predilections?

Okay, you probably don’t want to announce it to your boss or coworkers that you play Dominatrix with your partner after work; that’s private anyway, right? But that doesn’t mean that you should be ashamed of it. Everyone has fantasies, some darker than others, and nobody has the right to make you feel ashamed of what you’re into. As long as you and your partner are consenting, of age, and not abusing one another, you have the perfect right to indulge in your fantasies.

Did you know that more people are probably into sexual fetishism than you think? Most people probably don’t even know that they are. Psychologist and inventor of the IQ test Alfred Binet said that there are two kinds of fetishes—spiritual love and plastic love. Plastic love is the kind we all hear about—the fascination and attraction to material objects, such as shoes, different textures like leather or feathers, or even body parts. And while some of us might think it’s weird to get off on feet, is it really that weirder than being intensely attracted to your lover’s eyes, legs, breasts, or shoulders?

The spiritual love fetish is something that many of us have probably felt as well. This includes an attraction or devotion to mental phenomena, like someone’s social class, occupation, or attitude. I, for one, have been attracted to certain political muckrakers based solely on their ideas and activism—and I have a thing for superheroes. Anyone else have a superhero fetish? Or perhaps a thing for rich men, “motherly” women, “bad” boys, or any other classic role? If you do, perhaps you, too, have a fetish!

So before you go out condemning people who dress up like Catwoman or the guy who licked Benson’s shoes last night on Law and Order: SVU, remember that you, too, probably have a fetish—if not now, then perhaps earlier in your life—and some say that it’s even an inherited trait that can’t be helped. Today’s psychologists maintain that sexual fetishism is a normal part of human sexuality, and as long as it’s not interfering with other areas of your life or harming you or others, it’s perfectly natural and healthy to indulge in.