This past year has been a pleasure for me as your sex columnist but I am now leaving it in someone else’s hands.

I know many of you have asked me over time what it is like being the sex columnist, so here are some of my most memorable experiences:

The run-ins

This past year has proven that everyone knows my face. I have had people yell out “Hey sex columnist” while walking downtown or sitting with friends at Madison Bear Garden and having strangers stop me to shyly ask, “Are you the sex columnist?”

There were awkward moments when people said, “I know what you do” or “How you doing?” I have had it all.

The sex stories

The crazy thing about being a sex columnist is people turn to you to tell you their whole sex lives.

Complete strangers came up to me and told me personal stories ranging from bumps and lumps to how to get their partner to try some new Kama Sutra move.

I have even had to sit through an in-depth conversation on relationship woes while trying to keep myself from laughing because it was so ridiculous.

The pick-up lines

The worst pickup lines directed at me were “Want to do physical research for your next column?” or “I am good in bed, want me to prove it?”

It goes on and on and I could literally fill a book with the number of free shots I got out of being the sex columnist and how many people just wanted to be featured in my column each week.

The partner promise

Before becoming the sex columnist, I made a promise to myself that I would contact every partner who I was still on speaking terms with and let them know that they would be featured in my sex column that week.

It was tough sometimes given the context of some of my pieces, but I kept that promise.

All of them were fine with it and I am still on great terms with them. No one else might know who they are but they would, so it was something I felt they had a right to know.

A past partner was so proud of me, he use to introduce me as the sex columnist and not as his girlfriend.

The lessons learned

I learned to be comfortable with my sexuality and to keep an open mind when it came to sex. If I didn’t know something, I would research it.

Soon after I began, I learned that most readers wanted to know the gory details of my sex life and appreciated it when I provided them.

I learned the best way for me to approach the sex column was to make it informative as well as light-hearted.

Thank you readers for letting me be your sex columnist and good luck to the next one.

Chantal Richards can be reached at [email protected] or @ChantieRichards on Twitter.