I'm still relatively new to viewing porn, and I mostly look at amateur stuff, but I was wondering when it became "normal" for women (and to a certain degree men) to start shaving their pubic area?

I went away to college back in 1979. I lived in the dorms and the showers, while not being public, didn't offer a great deal of privacy. I never saw a woman in there that even trimmed anything other than a very conservative bikini line. I met my husband that year, and our relationship became sexual very quickly. I was shocked because he had shaved his entire pubic area, including balls and ass. I found it extremely sexy, especially when he was erect. I asked him why he did it and he told me that he had problems with jock itch (he was a runner) and shaving helped to keep him dry. Then he added that a side benefit was that his smooth skin felt much more sensitive to the touch. I found that I also liked the feel of his smooth skin on my fingers and tongue. I decided that I was going to try shaving as well. A couple days later I did it. I got very aroused while I was shaving. I couldn't wait to get back to my room to masturbate. Subsequently I got plenty of looks and whispers behind my back as the other women saw me, but I didn't care. Ever since then we have both continued to shave, with only the occasional little patch of neatly trimmed and shaped hair.

Fast forward thirty-some years and it seems like the vast majority of the pictures I see involve pussies that are shaved or trimmed, and hairy pussies have become a niche. I notice a similar, if not to the same degree, pattern for men shaving.

Of course it could be that people who are willing to display themselves on the web aren't a representative sample. I have danced around the subject with friends who to the best of my knowledge don't indulge in porn, and have deduced that they too do some sort of maintenance, whether it be trimming and/or shaving.

I'd love to get your take on this, both women and men.

Kiss, Missy