DENVER, CO — Local woman Rebecca Hale, 37, reiterated Saturday that she has absolutely no interest in being spanked while arriving twenty minutes early for the third spanking workshop she has attended this month.
“I just want to be very clear that this is not my thing,” Hale told friends as she selected a front-row seat and placed a notebook, water bottle, and small cushion beside her. “I find the whole idea ridiculous.”
Hale said she initially attended the class, titled Introduction to Impact Play, purely to support a friend. She returned the following week because she felt the instructor had made several claims that “needed closer scrutiny.”
Her appearance at Saturday’s advanced workshop was, she explained, necessary to determine whether her previous objections remained valid at higher skill levels.
“You cannot responsibly criticize something without understanding it,” Hale said. “And apparently understanding it requires a surprising amount of continuing education.”
Friends first became suspicious last month when Hale began correcting people’s spanking technique despite maintaining that she had no personal interest in the subject.
“She went from saying ‘spanking is stupid’ to saying ‘your wrist is too stiff’ in about two weeks,” said longtime friend Maya Torres, 35. “Then she bought a paddle because she said the communal ones were unhygienic.”
Hale denied that the purchase represented any change in her position.
“It is an educational paddle,” she said. “There is a distinction.”
Workshop organizers said Hale has become one of their most reliable attendees, though she continues to insist that her presence should not be interpreted as enthusiasm.
“Rebecca always registers the minute tickets go on sale,” instructor Dana Mills said. “She asks detailed questions, takes excellent notes, volunteers for demonstrations, and then spends the break telling everyone how much she dislikes spanking.”
Hale said people are reading far too much into her participation.
“Just because I know the difference between a warm-up and punishment, have opinions about paddle materials, and have blocked off next Saturday afternoon does not mean I like this,” she said.
She added that she would probably stop attending workshops once she had gathered enough information to form a final opinion.
Asked how much more information she required, Hale glanced at the six-week advanced curriculum she had already printed and highlighted.
“Probably six weeks,” she said.