I am a firm believer in safe sex, so the vast majority of my sexual encounters have been with a condom. In one long term relationship, I had to use them for birth control purposes anyway. I would guess that well over 99% of all the many hundreds (thousands?) of times I've had sex have been with condoms. Like Zora said, putting a condom on can be sensual, even if I do it myself. The 15-20 seconds it takes creates a little more anticipation before the main event. One girl aways loved looking at my erect dick and would pay close attention while I suited up. I could see the anticipation in her eyes. ^_^
Once I found a few brands and varieties that went on easy and fit well, I stuck with them. I always had a supply in the nightstand, ready to go. I even kept some in my coat and my car in case spontaneous sex broke. I've also only had one condom break so far. I noticed it and pulled out, told her what happened, grabbed another one, put it on and went right back to screwing.
Do I enjoy those rare times that I am able to experience a nice warm pussy skin-to-skin ... of course! But the withdrawal method is not a vaild or even remotely reliable method of birth control. I hate pulling out to cum. The best part of having an orgasm is having it inside the beautiful woman with which I am making love (or fucking.)
Another plus I noticed is that I last longer while wearing condoms, since they cut down on some of the sensation. No complaints from the ladies about lasting longer! You can put a few drops of lube inside the condom before putting it on to make it slide around a little. That feels pretty good too. Make sure to use a water-based lube and put some on the outside too.
Condoms are really only optional for those who are in a 100% monogamous, committed long-term relationships, with no STDs, and who have both been tested to ensure they are disease free. Many men and women have ended up with an STD not knowing their siginificant other was cheating.
I feel more relaxed and comfortable knowing that I am significantly reducing my chances catching anything or causing an unwanted pregnancy. When there is less to worry about when having sex, the sex is much better! Many post menopausal women notice an increase in their enjoyment of sex since they are no longer concerned with getting pregnant.
Safe sex = great sex
LapDog2001