Confessional Friday

This morning,I am going to admit something to the Internet that I have no business admitting. Ready?

I don’t wear underpants. As a matter of fact, I hate them. I haven’t worn underpants since I was 19 years old. That’s 12 years of not wearing the underpants. I have saved a lot of underpant trees over the years.

66 Comments

  1. Wow. This brings up many questions in my head, girl, but if you are happy not wearing underpants for 12 years, then ok!
    My daughter hates wearing underpants as well…she only rarely wears them.

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  2. “Going Commando” will now be officially changed to “Going Mihow.”

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  3. sarah, yes, many folks have had questions after I tell them this. Girl folks, of course. Feel free to ask. I am a graphic designer, after all. Emphasis on “graphic”.

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  4. I started not wearing underpants when I was 16. My mom used to question me about why there were no dirty underwear in the laundry…so I started throwing clean ones in so she’d leave me alone. It’s really a liberating feeling.

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  5. Ok, Graphic Mihow—let’s talk ‘discharge’.

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  6. I don’t buy that at all.

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  7. Sarah, well, I don’t have a HUGE amount of that so it is a bit easier for me. I do know girls personally who were like, “There ain’t no way I could that.” I’m not sure if that’s a good thing (for me) or a bad thing. Either way, no need for underpants most of the time. (And during “that” time of the month, I use tampons.)

    Jon, take your cynicism someplace else. Why would I lie about that?

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  8. network chic, that’s hilarious. Smart gal. :]

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  9. I’m most comfortable in just panties, so the concept is pretty foreign. With skirts too?

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  10. I’m happier to hear you say you were no underpants, than here you say you wear a thong.

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  11. I only wear underpants.

    I am wearing a shirt made out of them right now.

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  12. I can’t fathom wearing a thong. I tried once. It was so unpleasant. I sat on one cheek all day and tried to move one cheek as far away from the other as possible. There are certain things I just will not do for a man. Wearing a thong is one of them.

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  13. Any man who thinks those awkward things are sexy has a serious problem with dependening on the whims of advertising. Twenty years ago, dudes would do what I do: laugh at someone who so wants to “go mihow” but is too afraid of their junk to do so.

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  14. its not cynicism… it kinda ties into the ‘discharge’ post by sarah…

    i often think of underwear as less of a garment and more of a protection for you, and your clothes. guys sweat down there, and while girls sweat less, they do have stuff that drips out at times. then add in all the issues with rough fabrics – seams on jeans, zippers, etc etc – all rubbing right on your naughty bits unless you have a bit of cotton right there to buffer and pad

    so yes, i do find not wearing underthings a bit odd

    probably more so than crotchless panties

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  15. Well, no offense, but other people aren’t always going to fall under the assumptions made through personal experience.

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  16. Hmmm, I’ll have to try this not-wearing-the-underwear thing and see how it goes. I usually don’t like wearing socks or a bra, but I never questioned the mandate to wear underpants.

    Although, I’m not sure how I would know when to do laundry if I didn’t run out of clean underpants every so often. :)

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  17. Ladies, answer me this, don’t underpants dig into your skin around your legs and make you feel all uncomfortable? The few times I have worn them in the past 12 years, at the end of the night when I take them off, I have lines digging into my skin from where they were. One night, I wore a pair out because my skirt was short and I actually took them off in the bathroom they were so annoying. Maybe I have the wrong type. I have two pairs, one is pink and lacy, the other, blue and practical. Both, dig into my legs.

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  18. I wear tampons too, but sometimes the period comes early, or catches me by surprise. I like the extra buffer of protection. I also don’t have to worry about washing clothes every time I wear them, just the underwear.
    As for uncomfortable…you obviously have just had underwear that didn’t fit!! I never have any marks from them.

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  19. I am a big fan of boy shorts, because the legs don’t have elastic. I never have a problem with the waistband digging in, as long as the elastic is covered.

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  20. It’s going to be pretty funny when you start receiving “trial underwear” in the mail. Panties (I really hate that word – my friends and I call them ‘nunders’) that other women find comfortable, that don’t ride up your ass or dig into your leg-crack… I do wear nunders and thongs – but only the thongs that are like toothfloss because they are less wedgie-like. And I love a good pair of comfy cotton nunders.

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  21. first of all, I lost a post. Damn. Second of all, Sarah, if I give you money and buy you a pair, too. Will you buy my underpants? I will promise to wear them for one week if they don’t dig in.
    My cousins swears by thongs. She says they’re actually very comfortable. Do you agree, Kater?

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  22. I have so much trouble finding pairs that don’t have a tight waistband. I finally found the best cotton ones at a Bali outlet, bought a million, and now OF COURSE, they changed the style and I no longer find the ones I like anywhere. Back to square 1.

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  23. It terms of discharge, it’s why I (as a male) switched permanately from boxers to (boxer) briefs. At times, after peeing there may be a dribble (y’know, the person who always wants to be fashionably late). I had switched to boxer briefs back around he early 90’s when I worshipped Mark Whalberg ;). Then one day, a few years later, I was running low on clean briefs, so I grabbed a pair of boxers. So, after doing the deed (peeing), I zipped up, washed up, walked out, got maybe 5 steps when the latecomer decided to make an appearance. Well, y’know, boxer briefs are snug, they keep everything tight, boxers can get real loosey goosey, especially old ones. Well, I guess my member was pointing down and to the side cause when the latecomers came out, I had two drops of urine dribble down my leg. In public. I froze. I felt like a dirty boy.

    So yeah, that was the last time I wore boxers.

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  24. also, case study on thongs: my wife hated thongs. found them complete torture. but she also hated turning in the mirror and seeing her panty lines through her pants. so she bravely forged ahead, wore thongs for awhile, and now actually prefers them over any other.

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  25. don’t just stare, `cause she’s not wearing underwear
    em-em-em-em-em-em-em-em
    oh how rude, at least she’s got you’re attention square
    em-em-em-em-em-em-em-em
    don’t you realize, It’s just her disguise
    ai-ai-ai-ai-ai-ai-ai-ai
    hey! mum look, no more panty line
    ai-ai-ai-ai-ai-ai-ai-ai

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  26. Sir Kerned John, I have wondered if folks think I am sporting a thong because I never have panty lines. Question, actually, if you saw a woman’s ass through tight pants and noticed no panty lines, do you automatically think thong or “going mihow”?

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  27. J O H N—

    It hangs out below the leg of your boxers? Either you wear very short boxers, or…

    How YOU doin’?

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  28. To echo Debra, “With skirts too?” Wouldn’t that, um, make your butt cold? I’m thinking “naked skin hitting metal barstool” cold.
    (And, do you know what you get when you cross “I dream of Jeanie” with a well-stocked lingerie store? Bra-Bra Eden.)

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  29. I am sans underpants in skirts, too. Only once in the past month have I worn underpants while wearing a skirt and that was because it was windy out and the skirt was flowy. (But, like I said, I removed them in the bathroom later).
    Here’s another confession, one time we were driving during those 150 degree NYC days in our airconditionless car and my ass was so sweaty I had to change pants before going into Cosco. I did so standing the parking lot. I put on a skirt. So, when we got back and I had to get back into the car, I sat bare-assed on the seat this time creating an ass puddle by the time we got home.

    Hot, no?

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  30. tobyjoe –
    well, hey, y’know how it is. a man doesn’t brag
    but seriously, i think the boxers were loose so they billowed out around the leg, wasn’t flush on my skin. so the dribble saw the opening and took it to the hole. that’s my best guess, i was utterly dumbfounded when it happenned: “how did my pee dribble down my leg without ever making contact with my underwear, nor my shorts? unfathomable.”

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  31. y’know mihow, that’s an interesting question. i generally never think a woman is going mihow. my thought process goes as thus: no panty lines, must be a thong, let’s look for the thong line atop…hmmm, no thong. conclusion: those pants must be made of a heavy material. i never once though that she might be not wearing any underwear at all! wow, good god! this opens up a new world for me…

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  32. Damn straight, sugar. There are a lot of us ladies out there free-lippin’

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  33. Ok…girl you need to try satin panties…they’re put out by LEI or Jockey. Honestly it feels the same as commando. I had a car accident when I was about 12 and the seatbelt rammed into my stomach, ever since then most underwear dig into my skin, but the string bikini satin ones don’t for some reason. LEI I would say is best, they run a little bit bigger by maybe 1/4 the size (example: I am a 5, they fit like a 5 1/4) and they are extremely comfortable and WAY easier to wash during that “time of the month”. You can get them at Kohl’s, thats the best place to find them. E-mail me if you have trouble. I am always happy to help where I can.

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  34. This has got to be the best Internet conversation. Ever.

    I can’t buy underwear for you, Mihow, until I meet you. But seriously, if you have been happy with ‘going mihow’ for the past 12 years, then why change now?
    I wear cotton bikini briefs by Victoria Secret. Very comfortable. I have a few thongs to wear when that pantyline is an issue. At first I hated them…’why would anyone want to walk around with a permanent wedgie?’ I thought. But again, it turned out it was only a matter of finding a pair that actually fit well. Et voila!

    john made me laugh out loud.

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  35. Gaah, now I’m gonna have “ass puddle” floating around in the back of my mind all day long. :-)
    Seriously, I’ve been wearing underpants for so long now that it feels odd without them. Men’s are so different than women’s anyway; we don’t have to worry about dumb things like panty lines, so both the material and the elastic are way more substantial. And probably more comfortable. Unless they’re too tight.

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  36. this is a hilarious confession – the best

    I don’t wear them under dresses or skirts – dresses and skirts are meant to be freeing!! (I think) and I just get wedgies if I wear undies with a dress (baby got back) – and I refuse to FORCE a voluntary wedgy upon myself (a thong).

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  37. My mental chatter is hitting an all-time high today: Voluntary Wedgie Ass Puddle Free Lippin’ Urine Dribble.

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  38. I had what John calls a “latecomer” hit me yesterday at work, making a visible wet spot on my khakis. I had to walk around holding my laptop like I was a high school kid with a boner. Also, earlier in the day, I met the CIO of a big fortune 500 company and noticed that she had no pantylines. I assumed she was wearing a thong.

    Years ago my father liked to wear bikini briefs (late 80’s). He had dozens of pairs of pastel men’s jockeys. Anyway, one time my sister was visiting him and apparently a pair of her bikini briefs got mixed up with his and he managed to squeeze himself into them and went to work. Now, my sister maybe weighed 120 lbs at the time, and my dad probably weighed around 220. So there was a pretty significant size difference there. Anyway, he was so uncomfortable that he ended up taking them off at work and going commando (he used to wear suits to work). He originally attributed his discomfort to perhaps putting them on incorrectly-leg through waist and waist through leg hole(something he had done before, apparently)-but eventually he realized that he was wearing a pair of his daughters’.

    Pippy hates wearing the underwears.

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  39. p.s. next time we meet, if my kids are in tow (as they most likely will be), I may whisper to Pippy that you’re probably not wearing underwear.

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  40. I’m tellin’ ya, you tell her about the Mihow’s Secret now, and she’ll never wear those things again.
    Charlie, I take it you weren’t wearing those khakis I’ve seen ads for where the guy gets banged by a bunch of drunk pantyless hookers and when he arrives back home his wife answers the door with a “Nice pants”.

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  41. yes, panties dig. i hate them. it’s lovely to not wear anything especially with skirts.

    but are you sure you don’t have some sort of Story of O thing going on? hmmmmmmm?

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  42. Are you referring to the book or is that a euphemism?

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  43. Mihow, have I told you lately that I love you?

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  44. This is a very engaging Friday conversation!

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  45. Damn, mia, you weren’t supposed to bring up the Story of O (aka “L’Histoire D’O”). Now you’ve done it.

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  46. michele is more Story of the Eye than Story of O.

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  47. Unfortunately, I can’t deny that. The best part is, when I read what mia wrote, I read “Story of the Eye.” He speaks the truth—egg sex and all.

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  48. Wow, that came out wrong. I did not have sex with an egg.

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  49. Good on ya Mihow! As a child my mom couldn’t keep me in clothes…PERIOD!

    I have to admit, it’s a comfort thing sometimes. On the weekend, I only put them on when leaving the house for long periods of time. Unless I’m wearing comfy trackpant type pants. Then no.

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  50. I can’t believe I forgot to mention this story. Yesterday, on my way up the subway stairs at the Union Square L, an underground, drunk subway dweller was standing along the platform, leaning against the stairs, babbling as many do to no on in particular. I overheard him say, “Ladies, if you’re gonna walk up the stairs near me, be sure to leave your underwear at home.”
    I just posted that to Overheard in New York. We’ll see if it takes.

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  51. The idea of going sans underpants totally skeeves me out. The chafing. The discharge. The smell. Ick! I suppose it mostly depends upone one’s anatomy however. I tend to be a bit more…uh…lubricated than the average gal, so underpants are a necessity.

    I love thongs and have never felt uncomfortable in them. They are my friends.

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  52. Should one be stinky, what could underpants possibly do to cover up the smell? Are they plastic? Rubber? Are they like bathing caps? Are they scented?

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  53. P.S. I wear the Body by Victoria thongs from Victoria’s Secret, and let me tell you, it’s the best fabric ever. It’s super comfy, doesn’t bind, doesn’t ride around, and it breathes (I’d never wear cotton underwear, however—because when cotton gets wet, it STAYS wet and that might lead to the yeastie beasties).

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  54. I think the underpants create a stinky-absorption barrier between the body and the outer garments.

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  55. OK so to all you moist makers out there, what up with the wet panties, then? How does one deal with that? Do they dry right away? And, if you’re pro-thong, is it big enough to cover the junk in the trunk?

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  56. Sorry, I didn’t mean the trunk, I meant the front. Does it aid in absorption? A thong?

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  57. It is because of these engaging topics that I am addicted to this site!
    Now I really can’t comment directly on that last topic but as far as undies go (I can’t stand that word panties either)
    Personally, I follow along with the Victoria’s Secret low ride cotton bikini’s. I haven’t been daring enough to do the thing thing though.
    As far as “going Mihow”, I don’t know if I am brave enough to try that as of yet. Our family was friends with another family from France when I was growing up. One time their girls spent the night and I though it was the weirdest thing that they did no wear any underwear under their jeans the next day. I just thought it was some crazy French thing!

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  58. I know I am so late on this conversation, but I just gotta say…I would so not wear underwear if I hadn’t birthed two children and hygienics deemed it necessary. That being said, my ghetto booty is way to big for normal panties, so I am a LOYAL thong wearer – the skinnier the t-back, the better – don’t even feel ‘em. I own 3 pair of regular underwear and that was for post pregnancy when you have to wear the dredded pads.

    P.S. I’m sorry you didn’t get more :(

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  59. if mihow only offered to donate $1 for every story about underwear she got, she’d totally have donated $1k by now

    but instead, she went with new orleans…

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  60. i can understand no undies with pants…but not skirts. aren’t you scared of a bug flying up, or pollution?

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  61. Andrea, how often do bugs fly up your skirt, heading for your honeypot?

    (Not being a smartass (well, not a complete smartass), just never wore a skirt, and don’t have a bug attracting honeypot.)

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  62. woah, you grabbed onto bugs? Pollution? What kind of pollution? Like other people’s farts or like car exhaust? A bug or two I can deal with, but pollution? I actually haven’t ever had a bug fly up my skirt. I have had them in my shirt a few times, got stung on the tit once walking over a hive, but never up the pants. Thank goodness I wore underpants back then, else it really would have been to the honeypot for them bees.

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  63. “OK so to all you moist makers out there, what up with the wet panties, then? How does one deal with that? Do they dry right away? And, if you’re pro-thong, is it big enough to cover the junk in the trunk?”

    Panty-liners, and the thong covers everything it needs to.

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  64. well i’d think just crossing a steam vent in NY would give you crabs if you were “exposed”…

    no, i haven’t had bugs, but i dont wear skirts without underwear. but, i’m sure it could happen. ants. ticks. mosquitoes.

    my mom used to have a friend who was sorta nasty, who didn’t wear underwear, and when she wore a skirt, she was always standing above the air conditioning vent. i always thought it was gross that she was ventilating her honeypot juice throughout the air for everyone, so i have always since then, not been a fan of underwear-less-ness, for fear of being like her.

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  65. I am going to have a good Monday – came back to see what else transpired – after laughing like this, definitely, gunna have a good Monday

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