Friday, March 31, 2006

I really don't get what the problem is...


Couple in the buff should exercise caution

SunHerald.com

March 10, 2006

Dear Annie: My husband likes to do chores around our large, deserted property in the nude. Last summer, he went for three days and never once put clothes on. I like to see him naked, but I worry we could get into trouble with the law if a police officer drove down our road and saw him out there au naturel.

My husband says we are in the country minding our own business and, therefore, it's OK. I wonder if one needs to stay a certain distance from the road. We have no children, so that's not a concern. The only person who drops by is the milkman, but he always comes at the same time, so we make sure we are clothed.

There are rare occasions where I will join my husband outside in the nude. It feels great and makes life more fun, but I am a little nervous. We aren't doing anything indecent - just having fun. Should we be concerned?

- Need An Answer in Wisconsin

Dear Wisconsin: It's against the law in Wisconsin to be nude in public. Although this is your private property, if you can be seen from the road, it's considered public indecency. Whether or not the risk is worth it is entirely your choice, but you might want to limit the nudity to those sections of your property that are less visible to the local traffic, no matter how sporadic.

Source: http://www.kentucky.com/mld/sunherald/living/14063344.htm?source=rss&channel=sunherald_living

What Would Ho Chi Mihn Say?


Want to have a nude painting of yourself?

VietNamNet

March 30, 2006

VIETNAM -- Some women in cities are being “drawn” to a new phenomenon: having their own nudes painted.

According to a senior painter, there are two simple ways to have your nude painted: first, take off your clothes and model for a painter; second, bring a nude photo to a painter, or even just a portrait, which can then be put on the nude body of someone else.

As the senior painter said, the second way is very cheap and simple. The cost for each would just be a few hundred thousand VND (dozens US$).

He also said that customers prefer the latter option mostly, and prefer to have themselves connected to actors, models, singers, and some stylish women. Very few customers choose the first option, he added.

N.M.Ð, a young painter talented in copying paintings and drawing portraits, has earned a lot of money from the phenomenon. According to N.M.Ð, most of his customers are women who are “fans of art.” “These women love to be nude in paintings, since the boundary between reality and imagination in art is very fine. It is much more suitable to Vietnamese custom than nude photos,” said N.M.Ð. The painter said his customers are very comfortable showing their paintings, or even presenting them to friends.

One of N.M.Ð’s customers, T.N is being drawn. T.N is one of his regular customers. She has ordered some nude paintings to present to friends. N.M.Ð said he had already painted many nude paintings for T.N with different poses.

Another customer, M.H, is a middle-aged woman, a wife of a rich man. She is a “money provider” for the painters. She comes to galleries and painters’ workshops weekly to order paintings.

Thanks to the phenomenon, nude paintings are now selling well in galleries and shops. In fact, a painting shop owner had to refuse a customer wanting a nude drawn directly. The reason: his shop is so small and open - there is no space for the work!

Source: http://english.vietnamnet.vn/social/2006/03/555306/

Thursday, March 23, 2006

Dial N for Naked


Survey finds many Brits dial N — for naked

Updated: 1:26 p.m. ET March 23, 2006
LONDON - Up to a third of telephone users in the Britain make calls in the nude, with men more prone to do it without clothes than women, a survey revealed on Thursday.

Research commissioned by Britain’s Post Office, which offers a fledgling home phone service, revealed that 40 percent of men admitted to nattering naked compared with 27 percent of women. The results were based on a survey of 1,500 telephone users.

The research also showed that people were so busy that one in 10 people admitted to wandering off and leaving the caller talking to themselves.

More on the at home bare worker--in India


Jack n' Jill work in nude, security thrown to winds
Survey shows employees rate productivity high, security and clothing low when working from home

Friday, March 03, 2006

NEW DELHI: The growing trend towards working from home was likely to breed a more productive and liberated international workforce, according to a worldwide survey of 941 remote and mobile workers.

The survey, conducted by SonicWALL Inc., a provider of integrated network security, and Insight Express, indicated that 76 percent of the employees surveyed believed working remotely enhanced productivity.

Sixty-one percent were also convinced that their managers agreed with them.

Security came low on the list of priorities. However, 88 percent of the respondents admitted to storing passwords in easily accessible locations. Only 12 percent employed encrypted files to store and manage their login data.

Fifty-six percent of those surveyed relied on their memories to keep track of their network passwords, while others used the same passwords for all devices, stored the information on cell phones, or stuck notes with the login information onto their computer.

All respondents were relaxed about their personal habits when working remotely. While about 39 percent of respondents of both sexes wore sweats on while working from home, 12 percent of males and seven percent of females said they wore nothing at all.

In matters of cleanliness, the difference between the sexes was more pointed: Forty-four percent of women surveyed said they showered on work-at-home days, as opposed to men, who were slightly more likely to shave (33%) than wash (30%).

Eighteen percent of men regularly took break off to do household tasks, while over 38 percent of women found their attention claimed by chores.

Respondents also said they took the opportunity to eat and drink outside standard times (about 35%); listen to music (45%) or watch TV (28%); and 21% of all respondents admitted to sneaking in an afternoon nap.

A small percentage of those surveyed (9%) admitted to feelings of guilt about being away from the office. Taking a longer lunch than at the workplace was also relatively rare (12%).

This easy-going approach kept tempers on an even keel, the survey said. More than 80 percent of surveyed workers had never lost their temper with support staff trying to help them fix a problem.

Only 40 percent of the respondents experienced problems when accessing their corporate networks remotely, although fewer than 50 percent accessed any applications other than Web mail when working outside the office.

More than half of the respondents accessed the corporate network from home on a daily basis, with 86 percent logging in remotely several times a week.

Respondents said that the chief attraction of working remotely was the ability to maintain a flexible schedule. Only 22 percent of workers used cell phones or PDAs to work from home, but respondents said they expected this type of usage to grow in the coming year.

“We are experiencing a sharp rise in demand for simple, secure remote access to networks of all sizes,” said Steve Franzese, vice president of marketing at SonicWALL.

“The growing popularity of remote and mobile working means that the perimeter of the network has become indistinct, and is therefore more difficult to protect,” he added.

http://www.ciol.com/content/search/showarticle1.asp?artid=81324

Terry Bradshaw--Nudist?


Football Star Nude in New Film

Actress Kathy Bates and former Pittsburgh Steelers legend Terry Bradshaw, appearing together in the new film Failure to Launch, have more in common than one might think. Both have received honors in their respective careers and now they have something else in common--both stars have appeared naked onscreen. Bates nude screen appearance was considered a boon to middle-aged women everywhere when she appeared nude in the hot tub in the 2002 hit About Schmidt, also starring Jack Nicholson.

Failure to Launch marks Bradshaw's first film as an actor and he spends a scene entirely in the nude. Bradshaw said he wanted to do the scene because it would come as a surprise to everyone who knew him solely through his football career. He even told his preacher about the scene, who Bradshaw says did not quite know what to say because Bradshaw is a major contributor to his church.

Failure to Launch opened last weekend and is now in theaters everywhere.

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Canadian Reporter Bares All for Sake of Her Craft


My Search for a Sport that Actually Is Pretty Fun
Who needs Mr. Hustle? Including Radminton, rocker soccer and nude swim at the public pool.
By Elaine Corden
Published: March 22, 2006

TheTyee.ca
I am crap at sports.

As a professional writer, I am aware that it is something of a prerequisite to be klutzy and sedentary, but still, it irks me to no end that, even when I'm in tip-top shape, I can't shoot a slap shot, return a serve, reliably throw a baseball or, for that matter, touch my toes. I am the girl whose at-bat brings the outfield in, whose skis never go out of "snowplow" formation, whose body has borne countless bruises from failed attempts at athleticism.

Also in the Guilt-Free Hedonist series
Jonesin' for a Ride?
Scallops, Uslurping the Oyster?
In Search of Ethical Gladrags
about the Guilt-Free Hedonist series
But, like a snaggle-toothed Spice Girl, I know that I should be sporty in some way. Inertia isn't good for my shape and makes me miss out on large swaths of social activity. But let me make it clear -- I don't want to be one of those people who give up real physical activity and starts considering polluting activities, like riding ski-dos or sea-dos, to be legit. I also don't want to become the kind of woman who thought it was brilliant that Madonna "rapped" about "soya lattes" and "Pilates".

So I've been on a quest, of late, to find my inner jock.

Dodgeball madness

There had been other attempts in previous years. A snowboarding lesson with a Whistler-dwelling friend resulted in not one, but two Nelson Muntz-style "Ha-Ha's" as I lay like some sort of snow walrus on the hill. Similarly, a stab at surfing rendered me unable to listen to the Beach Boys for a whole year. I've suffered through everything from the hell of hockey to the indignity of dodgeball without ever feeling like a star on the proverbial Wheaties box. Every sport seemed to replay the playground nightmares of my childhood; a sense of inferiority, coupled with frustrating inability to play by the rules.

I heard a similar complaint from my friends. Given the choice between ultra-competitive team sports, long-distance running or the special hell that is known as a gym membership, most would rather stay home and collect fat cells. Furthermore, nearly everyone I asked had a story about some homunculus team coach screaming "HUSTLE!" at them or a spandex-wrapped fitness instructor's techno-sound tracked perkiness.

It is no accident that the army uses vigorous exercise as a means of indoctrination. On some level, organized sport equals conforming to societal norms; whether wearing whites for cricket or swathing yourself in Lululemon for yoga. In short, there is little room for letting one's freak flag fly. Maybe this is why about two-thirds of Canadians are inactive and overweight.

Maybe this is why, after once quitting sports for good, I am now dabbling in fringier fitness like…

Radminton

It was shortly after I gave up on sports that radminton was born. It started with a $20 net-and-racket set from the local store and, unsurprisingly, a case of beer. Under the original rules, it started as a cross between regular badminton and the college drinking game "I Never", which sees participants trying to get their more adventurous friends drunk by making them do a shot for every wild thing they've done. In the first draft of Radminton, players had to shout out their "I nevers" before returning a serve. It then devolved into further silliness, with players having to shout out kinds of wood, names of heavy metal bands and other nonsense before hitting the birdie. It should be noted that my suggestion of a round featuring "metaphysical poets" resulted in a racquet to the head. It was the most exercise I'd had in months.

Radminton, or far more accurately, the gist of radminton, is a growing trend. In a society that prizes individualism more and more, many are opting out of conventional and competitive sport and choosing to get active in ways that focus on fun rather than physicality. And while it the Health Canada guide may not have had radminton in mind for their recommended 60 minutes of daily activity, it counts nonetheless.

Nifty swimming

N.I.F.T.Y. (or Naked Iconoclasts Fighting the Yoke) is another example of Canadians getting active in ways that let them stay true to themselves. Every month, the group rents out a Vancouver public pool, leaving their swimsuits at home and putting the breast in breaststroke. In a decision that is either Hunter S. Thompson-esque gonzo journalism, or Paris-and-Nicole stunt work, I decided to join them for a dip recently.

First, let me be clear: my family is British. Prudishness is in my blood. I am so, so white. It is winter. But it still sounded better than step class.

Elianna Lev, a journalist with the Canadian Press and, it should be said, an extraordinarily good friend, agreed to join me. The week prior to our swim, she attended an adult gymnastics night in South Delta, and after some free-form bouncing on a super trampoline, she was game for more time in the uncharted territory of hedonist exercise.

On the night of the swim, we talk on the phone: Do you shave your legs for nudist swimming? Is it very cold out?? Do we have to go???

When she shows up at my door, I commend us both for being brave and she confesses to hoping to get hit by a bus on the way over.

We arrive at East Vancouver's Templeton Pool and the scene is very much as we expected: older hippies, kids, people who are unnervingly at ease with themselves. After paying our $5 admission (plus a $3 donation to support the nudist cause), we enter the women's change room and stop dead in our tracks when we hear a man's voice coming from inside. Oh right, it doesn't matter where you change, we're all gonna be naked out there. While we get ready, a friendly and earnest woman (it's hard not to be earnest when you're nude in public) tells us that the swimming helps her back pain and is one of the few activities she feels comfortable with. I am glad someone's comfortable.

Once we're in, it's pretty much as normal as a nudist swim can be. In fact, there is much, much less perviness that a regular swim at a public pool (I am looking at you, creepy hot tub lurkers). Elianna will not be cajoled into a leap off the diving board or a go on the slide, but everyone else is going happily about their business, doing laps and cannonballs (ha!) and, yes, getting their heart rate up.

Indie rocker soccer

Later that night at a party, I boast to amazed friends that I swam with the nude hippies. We get to talking about fun in sport. Several of the attendees are regulars at what I call "indie rocker soccer," a defiantly casual pick-up game that happens in Strathcona on Sundays. While some of the players are serious enthusiasts, equally as many are gangly musicians and artists whose talent lies outside of sport. The mood at these games is reassuringly tolerant and even the most inept player is welcome with open arms. The only hard-and-fast rule seems to be that you have to play with a drink in your hand. Similarly, another group of friends meets for casual games of softball, played so unskillfully that you can't help but join. As one player puts it, it's basically beer-drinking where a game might happen to break out.

In some ways, beer and silliness seem to be the quickest gateway drug to ease with sports. Many feel uncomfortable gathering with hardcore enthusiasts, but who wouldn't want to join the Margaret Charles Chopper Collective for their monthly ride, which features crazy modified bikes and ample appreciation for the fine art of riding while intoxicated (this can lead to some perilous bruises, wear a helmet and expect to fall). As organizer Jim Holne noted, it's an event designed to be accessible to all skill levels, slow and easy and based on fun and sociability. So casual is the MC3's attitude, that their website advertises their monthly ride thusly: "our chopper ride is the second friday of each month. meet at the world of science gazebo, ready to ride fer 18:30…but our lazy asses probably won't leave till 19:00 or so." Choosing to opt out of "sport" and into "fun" was the best health decision I ever made. I am a first-rate beer biker. I strike out regularly at softball, but round the bases anyways. I am the reigning radminton champion of the 2005 summer season.

Whether it's male-only naked yoga (Skyclad Yoga), Alice in Wonderland-themed croquet, living room dance parties, or just silly games you've made up on the spot (radminton season is just weeks away!), there's no rule that says you have to be good at things to be active and no rule that says you have to play by the rules to play.

Ever since I gave up sports, I've never felt more sporting.

Elaine Corden is a Vancouver writer. She writes the Trifective blog.

Source: http://thetyee.ca/Life/2006/03/22/FunSport/

Naked Calendars Go to the Dogs


Animal lovers bare all in calendar
9/19/2004 6:55 PM
By: Jaime Fettrow, News 14 Carolina

The Calendar Girls say they had no problem getting naked and having a little fun, but the animals were not always as comfortable.

GASTONIA, N.C. – Women are baring it all in Gaston County for the sake of animals. Several organizations have joined forces to raise money for a spay-and-neuter program. But it is their idea of how to raise money that has raised some eyebrows.
The Calendar Girls are a group of women willing to pose nude with their pets. The 18-month calendar they appear in is called "Pearls and Paws – Bare because we Care."

"Most people die laughing and say, `oh my gosh, I know someone who would love to have this calendar,'" said Ann Isenhour of the Animal League of Gaston County.

The women, along with their canines and felines, are all from Gaston County and volunteered to participate in the three-day shoot.

"My husband thought it was great because we definitely have a pet population problem and (we should do) anything we can do," said Calendar Girl Christy Ewing. "Everyone's been supportive."

More than 44,000 animals have been put to death in the past four years in Gaston County alone.

"We're hoping to get that number down and offer a spay-and-neuter program," said organizer Vikki Husband. "That's our goal; to stop the killing and take care of the animals."

The Calendar Girls say they had no problem getting naked and having a little fun, but the animals were not always as comfortable.

"The challenge was Teddy, our dog does not like the flash," said Nancy Gadd. "He's sensitive to fireworks so when we started doing the photography, it was a challenge but a great day."

"The cover was 12 women unclad in my front yard all holding dogs," said Donna Schramek. "You can imagine how it was to deal with 20 dogs sniffing, moving and escaping."

The women say the idea is tasteful – the animals cover all of the essential parts – so the calendar can still make the perfect holiday gift.

"We get naked everyday, we really do," Isenhour said. "What's the difference?"

The difference is that their nudity is raising money. The calendars can be purchased for $25 and is a tax-deductible contribution.

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

CHINA:Naked Wedding Photos All the Rage


Mon, 13 Mar 2006
Forget the Mao suits of a generation ago. Actually, forget about any clothes at all. Naked wedding photos are the hot new trend among young couples in once deeply conservative China.

Even in Anhui, a largely rural province in the east, many newly-weds are having their pictures taken in the nude, to the fury of their parents' generation, the Xin'an Evening News said.

"Some photo studios are just going too far. They allow young women to have their photos taken in bikinis or with nothing on at all," said an irate woman from the Anhui capital of Hefei. "I hope the authorities will do something."

She had just found out that her daughter had taken two sets of wedding photos, one to show the family, and another considerably more intimate one for her own private consumption.


Trend spreading

Previous reports in the state media suggested nude wedding photos were a trend that began in the south of China that was gradually spreading to the rest of the country.

"Not a few young people think that the nude pics are a welcome renewal to the stale unchanging traditions of the wedding photo," the Xin Wenhua Bao newspaper reported in November last year.

This attitude is now prevalent even in northwest China's Xi'an, a proud ancient capital and home to the — fully dressed — terracotta soldiers.

The Xi'an Evening News did a random check of five photo studios, and found that all of them would be willing to take nude photos of soon-to-be-married couples, should they so wish.

'Bold, naked photos'

"Most of the people who come here to have the bold, naked photos taken are young, trendy and unconventional," said a studio owner. "There are still lots of people who don't like it."

The China Radio International news website even carried an article on the trend showing some images of naked newlyweds.

One bride wore nothing but a veil and bouquet of flowers while another couple embraced in a provocative position, although the photos were carefully taken to avoid displaying full-frontal nudity.

Saturday, March 18, 2006

The Real Naturist Experience


Nudist resorts differ themselves from nudity-based adult entertainment
Joe Naiman
Village News Correspondent

3/17/2006 7:17:56 PM

The recent attempt to place “Jessica’s Law” on the November ballot as an initiative is among the latest steps being taken against pornography. Crackdowns against adult entertainment create the threat that nude recreation will be lumped in with nudity-based adult entertainment, and the American Association of Nude Recreation and its affiliates seek to differentiate nudity and sexuality.

“You have to separate that issue,” said Carolyn Hawkins, the public relations coordinator of AANR. “Every now and then something will happen and we have to defend ourselves.”

Nude recreation stresses a natural environment and serenity. “It’s definitely not what a lot of people think it is,” said Helen Landman, who owns the De Anza Springs Resort in Jacumba along with her husband.

“Nudity is not a problem, but the acts you can do while you’re nude could be a problem,” Landman said. “You always hear the bad things; you never hear the good things.”

De Anza Springs, which will host the 2006 AANR annual convention in August, is one of several AANR affiliates which check potential members against the Megan’s Law data base to ensure that sex offenders are not welcome to join the resort.

Children at nude recreation facilities are part of family-oriented activities, and many resorts have non-denominational religious services on Sundays while some members even note a strengthened spiritual connection in their natural state.

“We are a family-oriented nudist park or resort,” said Ole Nilson, the manager of Mystic Oaks in Lake Elsinore. “We’re not about the pornography.”

Nude recreation facilities make it clear that the focus is on the natural environment rather than on sexual stimulation, and the greatest risk to members is sunburn rather than those who frequent pornographic outlets. “They wouldn’t last long in our place,” Landman said. “If you wouldn’t do it in front of your family, you wouldn’t do it here.”

The 2006 convention at De Anza Springs will also celebrate the 75th anniversary of the AANR, which was initially called the American Sunbathing Association when it was founded in 1931. “We are the credible voice of reason,” Hawkins said.

“Our lifestyle is a nudist lifestyle. We live like that,” said Buck Bandy, the office manager of the Sequoians club in Castro Valley. “It’s not to be confused with the pornography you see in magazines.”

Weather can pose difficulties for a Northern California resort such as the Sequoians which aren’t as significant for a California facility such as Mystic Oaks or De Anza Springs or a Florida club such as Cypress Cove, where Hawkins lives.

Activities are more frequent in summer months than during the winter. However, nine families including Bandy’s live in the Sequoians park full-time. Every Saturday night, 52 or 53 times each year, the Sequoians has a potluck dinner in the clubhouse. Thanksgiving and Christmas are the Sequoians’ only two “textile” events where the members are always clothed; friends and relatives are invited to visit on those two days.

“It’s a lifestyle more than anything,” Bandy said.

Bandy is familiar to local law enforcement, but only because of his attempts to avoid problems at the Sequoians. His screening procedure includes a visit to the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department. “They know me on a first-name basis,” he said.

Anybody who has ever been banned from a nudist resort in the United States is on a list to be banned from the Sequoians. “I have a three-ring binder, about a five-inch three-ring binder, that has a listing from A to Z,” he said. “I run everybody through Megan’s List, and I require a positive ID.”

Some law enforcement officers are even members of the Sequoians, as are firefighters, teachers and businessmen. “It’s every facet of life,” Bandy said. “We’re your neighbors. We go to the same churches you do.”

The Sequoians is not only a member of the Castro Valley Chamber of Commerce but an active member. Some Chamber of Commerce mixers are held at the Sequoians, and chamber members have learned to accept the lifestyle of the resort. “When we have a chamber mixer here we actually have more people that come here than go to a bank or a restaurant,” Bandy said.

The Sequoians shares a property line with a regional park, and hikers are required to wear clothes. Other clothing-optional hiking trails exist within the boundaries of the 86-acre resort and a stream runs through the Sequoians.

The emphasis many nude resorts have on a relaxed atmosphere is also a deterrent to debauchery. “We’re a quiet, peaceful place here. This isn’t a party animal atmosphere,” Nilson said.

Perhaps the biggest nakedness joke at Mystic Oaks is the “naked eye astronomy” telescope, which is one of the amenities of the 129-acre facility. “We don’t allow any rude comments, staring, or that type of behavior,” Nilson said.

Mystic Oaks was founded in 1933 and is the third-oldest nude recreation facility in the United States. Although Mystic Oaks is on private land, it is surrounded by the Cleveland National Forest and the forest is adjacent to the resort. That topography allows for the view of the mountain range at Mystic Oaks while more active recreation facilities include swimming and wading pools, volleyball and tennis courts, shuffleboard, horseshoes, and badminton. Mystic Oaks also has a dining hall, and the facility includes an RV and tent campground. Mystic Oaks sits at an elevation of approximately 2,500 feet.

The reputation for serenity at Mystic Oaks reaches as far as AANR headquarters in Florida. “If you want peace and quiet you can hear a pin drop,” Hawkins said of Mystic Oaks. “If someone wanted to go for a weekend of peace and quiet, that is a perfect place to go.”

Nilson notes that one of the most suitable warnings to Mystic Oaks visitors is the need to rely on self-contained RVs for those who use that type of lodging during their stay. “We’re not set up for trailer hookups and all that,” he said.

Nilson would not disclose specific measures to protect Mystic Oaks members against sexual predators, but he noted that several steps are taken to ensure that the joys of nudity are not spoiled by those who associate it with eroticism. “We do whatever we can,” he said. “We’re a private club, so we can deny access.”

The American Sunbathing Association changed its name to the American Association for Nude Recreation in 1994. “We wanted to change the name to reflect what we are,” Hawkins said. “It’s about recreation.”

Hawkins has been at Cypress Cove since 1982. While Kissimmee, FL, may not have the cold temperatures of Castro Valley, CA, members of Cypress Cove also have to balance their desire for a natural state against the natural elements. The bar at Cypress Cove during winter months can illustrate that. “People were coming in with jackets and boots and that’s it because they want to enjoy the freedom of not having clothes,” Hawkins said.

Ironically, those who answer a home office phone which rings just after completion of a shower may work in the nude more frequently than AANR’s administrative staff or the administrative staff of individual nude recreation facilities. “We work in an office and we have to sort of dress to impress,” Hawkins said.

The staff of the Cypress Cove boutique is also clothed. Yes, that nudist resort does sell clothing, albeit “nudist clothing,” such as a shirt with the message “Caution: clothes may come off without warning” and an accompanying stick figure who expresses happiness after removal of a clothing item.

“Your membership card is your passport to fun,” Hawkins said.

Since “fun” is a subjective term, different nude recreation facilities offer different amenities. “They’re not all resorts,” Hawkins said. “There’s something for everyone.”

That includes “mom and pop” clubs, destination resorts, and what are known as “high-tech” resorts, which would equate to a five-star resort. One West Virginia facility sells condominiums. Other nude recreation facilities are more of the “back to nature” type without even water or electricity.

“You’ve got some that like to pitch a tent and go back to nature,” Hawkins said. “They just like to rough it.”

Since the original Olympic athletes competed in the nude, it is no surprise that various sporting facilities are offered at many AANR affiliates. De Anza Springs has approximately 500 members and offers tennis, volleyball, indoor and outdoor pools, bocce ball, horseshoes, a spa, and a clubhouse. “All of the sports activities, we have a venue for all of it,” David Landman said.

De Anza Springs opened in 1997. It sits on just over 500 acres, making it the largest nude recreation facility in the United States in terms of geographical size. Landman said that De Anza Springs trusts the judgment of its members in accepting guests, but all potential members are checked against the Megan’s Law data base. “There are very strict policies and procedures that we use,” he said.

The Sequoians was originally called Sequoians Family Nudist Park, although it is now known as the Sequoians Clothes-Free Club. “We’ve always considered ourselves as a family organization,” Bandy said. “My grandson absolutely loves it here.”

Since its inception the Sequoians has had an annual luau in August, and the July 4 celebration is also a major festivity. Bandy notes that protection against sexual predators not only distinguishes nude recreation from nudity-based pornography but also protects the health and safety of the club’s own members. “We screen everybody who comes in here because we do not want to have a problem,” Bandy said. “We scrutinize everybody who comes here because we want to protect our lifestyle.”

The Sequoians has between 120 and 150 members, and applicants must do more than just clear a sex offender list. “You have to jump through the hoops of going through the board,” Bandy said.

The check against the Megan’s Law data base covers visitors as well as potential members. “Everybody who comes through our gate, I check. Anybody who comes through our park, I check them out,” Bandy said.

Bandy may not have access to foreign lists, but the Sequoians hasn’t had a problem with international guests. “We get a lot of European visitors,” he said. “In Europe it’s not frowned on at all. It’s an accepted lifestyle.”

Membership for minors in the Sequoians is allowed contingent upon parental consent. One minor who recently visited the Sequoians working on a story for his school newspaper received consent from both parents after being informed of the conditions of entry.

Bandy noted that news stories, which once tended to be biased against nudist resorts, are now more balanced. He noted that semantics were part of the educational effort. “’Nudist colony’ was actually a slang term that was given to the lifestyle by the textile community,” he said.

“Nudists themselves have never referred to themselves as colonists,” Bandy said. “We have always called ourselves a nudist club or a nudist park.”

The 2006 AANR convention at De Anza Springs will include business meetings during the weeklong gathering, although three days of activities will comprise the later part of the convention. An AANR convention on the West Coast typically draws approximately 1,000 visitors, although the AANR and De Anza Springs are planning on increased attendance for the 75th anniversary celebration.

The timing of the convention could coincide with political campaigns against pornography, and David Landman notes the need for education to differentiate nudity from eroticism. “We are not even close,” he said.

“They lump us in,” he said. “That’s what we need to educate the public about.”

Hawkins hopes that the educational effort will not only differentiate nudity from sexuality but will also inform the clothed about why nudists prefer their lifestyle. “It’s something that you’re going to find very enjoyable, very stress-free. Take a towel and a lot of sunscreen,” she said.

http://www.thevillagenews.com/story.asp?story_ID=13656

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Generator Sets Man On Fire At Fla. Nudist Park


Associated Press

March 14, 2006

FORT PIERCE, Fla. -- A man at a Fort Pierce nudist park was injured when he was sprayed by generator fluid and set on fire.

Paul Kuschel was wearing only nylon shorts when the generator of his motorhome sprayed him with the fluid and set him on fire at Sunnier Palms Nudist Park over the weekend.

Kuschel said he would've been better off wearing nothing at all because the fire "melded" the shorts to his backside.

He suffered second and third-degree burns to his body, but the injuries were non-life threatening.

Kuschel was released from the hospital and was back at work Monday with burns on his arms.

The man said he and his wife have lived in a tent at the camp since moving to the area from Dayton, Ohio, in February and planned to move into the motorhome.

Source: http://www.local6.com/news/7990821/detail.html


OK: Here's the obvious question: why on earth was he wearing those stupid nylon shorts?

Monday, March 13, 2006

90FT NUDE WOMAN LOOMS OVER DUNDEE


Monster maid our Angel of the North

By Richard Elias – The Daily Record

March 13, 2006

SCOTLAND -- A 90-foot tall naked steel woman is set to tower over Dundee.

Called the Bio-Colossus, she'll be the centrepiece of a £200million redevelopment of the university campus.

The monster maiden is already being called Scotland's answer to the Angel of the North, the iconic statue near Gateshead.

If planners give the six-figure project the OK, the statue could be in place by next year.

Bio-Colossus is the brainchild of Fife-based artist David Mach.

He has already left his mark with the "Big Heids" sculptures seen from the M8 near Mossend.

Mach will this week unveil a scaled-down version of his steel woman at an arts exhibition in the city.

He's already seen a similar plan kicked into touch when worthies in Belfast buckled to pressure from church leaders and ruled the Bio-Colossus was "inappropriate" because of the nudity.

And the Dundee move could still spark controversy. West End community council chairwoman Wendy Wrieden said: "I have yet to be convinced that this will enhance the environment.

"I feel that the money could be better spent."

However, others feel the project would attract extra visitors and raise Dundee's status among art lovers.

Geoff Ward, deputy principal of Dundee Uni, said: "The statue is fabulous, mind-blowing and absolutely the sort of work we should be supporting.

"She is not pornographic, but she is curvaceous and very much a real woman."

Carol Pope, the university's director of communications said: "There is this great concept of it becoming an Angel of the North."

Meanwhile, Shona Main, a one-time member of the Dundee Contemporary Arts Centre, said the idea was "incredibly brave".

Shona said: "It is just really quite special that this great colossus is going to be a woman and a voluptuous woman at that."

Source: http://tinyurl.com/f7gzx or click here.

Saturday, March 11, 2006

Kansas Gov. Sebelius signs breast feeding bill into law




Kansas City Star

March 6, 2006

TOPEKA — Kansas now has a law supporting a woman’s right to breast-feed any place she has a right to be.

Gov. Kathleen Sebelius signed the bill into law this morning.

The law creates a public policy statement that a mother’s choice to breast-feed should be supported and says that a mother may breast-feed any place she has a right to be. It also exempts nursing mothers from jury duty.

The act takes effect upon its publication in the Kansas register.

Source: http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/14031484.htm

Fresno Residents Recall Departed "Nudist Colony"


'Calyptus Grove' of the 1950s to 1960s

Bill McEwen – The Fresno Bee
March 11, 2006

I've learned something new about column writing this week: if you want response, include the words "nudist colony" in the piece.

For those who don't know, my Tuesday column was about the joys of bike riding in the Sierra foothills. I included a memory of my youth -- rumors of a nudist colony in the eucalyptus grove on Auberry Road, a couple miles from Copper Avenue.

Dozens of e-mailers and phone callers have confirmed there was a nudist camp there in the 1950s until the mid-1960s, and it is the subject of many memories.
________________________________

This is from Jake Marshall, a former firefighter with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection:

"Yes Bill, there really was a nudist colony there. It was on the west side of Auberry Road. In July 1961 there was a fire that started near Willow Avenue and burned in an easterly direction through the eucalyptus grove, jumped Auberry Road and we got it stopped at the Friant-Kern Canal. . . . My crew out of Hurley Fire Station was the first unit in from the east side."
________________________________

This is from an e-mailer who says she and her family attended the camp:

"Just thought I would drop a line and let you know that the nudist colony in the eucalyptus grove was named 'Calyptus Grove' and while you were giggling at Cooper Jr. High School I was a member of said nudist camp.

"Grew up with that and the concept that nudity is natural. Brought back some very old memories for me. I never would have gotten to go to summer camp if not for nudists throughout the state.

"It was a family camp, mom, dad, and the kids. Not as interesting as a grove full of naked nymphs and nymphets, but an alternative to the accepted 'norm' nonetheless.

"If you want a real visual to think about, volleyball was the favorite pastime aside from swimming."
________________________________

Writes a former school principal:

"Enoyed your piece on the Millerton ride. . . . Yes, there was a nudist camp in the eucalyptus grove. Several of the children went to Friant School. They were fine students, but the third-grader caused me to doubt her when she told me. 'My monkey ate my homework.' She did indeed, have a monkey and brought it to school one fine day!

"During one spring, the family invited the whole school to come to their compound to take P.E. in their pool. After much [consultation], we boarded the bus and went to their pool. I read the rules to the children. They started laughing, saying, 'How about rule No. 5?' It stated that there were no clothes to be worn in the POOL!

Of, course, we disregarded No. 5 and had a wonderful time."
________________________________

And, finally, this, from Warren Rosenbaum, president of the Fresno Joggers club:

"As a cyclist myself, I'm very familiar with the route. You probably received several replies to your question about the nudist colony.

Yes, it was there. As a Dun & Bradstreet credit reporter in the Spring of 1964, I was assigned to update its credit rating via a phone call interview. . . . I came in to work on Saturday to catch up on some work and called them about mid-morning and talked to a lady who was co-owner of the business. During a 10-minute or so telephone call to update the credit information I also received an invitation to 'come out and join us some time' which I courteously declined. The lady also managed to tell me she was totally nude while she was talking to me. . . . During my nine months with D & B, that's the only telephone call I remember."
________________________________

Comments:

Thank you for publishing your memories and reader comments regarding the nudist "colony" once nestled in the Sierra foothills. As you mentioned, the piece certainly generated reader response. I had, however, expected to see one response in particular, but didn't: although still widely used in the media, the term "nudist colony" is quite archaic, pejorative and poorly representative of the nudist mindset or way of life. So are the colorful verbs "prancing", "parading", and "cavorting" when describing nudist activities, which are tantamount to fingernails on a chalkboard to a true nudist (or naturist, as many prefer to be called)...but it was refreshing to see a glaring absence of those words in this piece!

Nudism or naturism - the terms are often used interchangeably, although there are some distinctions - isn't the cultish pursuit many might think; on the contrary, it's about as natural as you can get! I like to direct folks to the website of The Naturist Society for a good look at what naturism is all about.

Thanks again for the brief but enjoyable trip back in time. Although I'm in Oregon now, much of my youth was spent in the Sierra foothills on my bike (a pastime for which I usually kept my clothes on; saddle sores are bad enough with with padding!)

Thursday, March 09, 2006

No Standing Ovation?



February 26, 2006

Theater buffs
Stage actors are sometimes told to picture the audience in their unmentionables as a way to quell nerves.

One look at yesterday's bevy of bare-bottomed Provincetown Theater-goers would likely have the opposite effect.

Awkwardness was as scarce as clothing for 15 Lower Cape residents who posed for a tastefully nude calendar to raise money for The New Provincetown Players, a local group of community thespians.

Talk about some serious theater buffs.

''Looking at it in the context of everyone else doing it, especially in a theater, kind of made it seem like we were acting in a play ourselves,'' said 57-year-old Brian O'Malley, a virgin of disrobing in public. ''There was a sort of detachment to it that made it comfortable and fun.''

There was nothing X-rated about this unique endeavor, believed by organizers to be the first nude community photo shoot ever in P'town. In a town known for pushing the envelope, a handful of businessmen and retirees donning their birthday suits was no big deal.

''Why should I be? It's all natural,'' said Howard Irwin of Truro, when asked whether he was at all bashful about unveiling his total self in front of strangers.

Everyone is born in the same clothing, the bold and the naked said.

Actually, Irwin, 79 and his wife Anne, 81, have shown their flesh before in front of local artists. ''I guess I like the exposure,'' quipped Anne.

But this calendar, dubbed ''Behind the Scenes: A bare-bones look at Provincetown Theater,'' isn't the kind you'll find concealed behind a brown paper bag at a convenience store.

''We wanted to create dynamic and exciting themes and scenes involving every aspect of a theatrical production,'' said Ed Christie, co-creative director of the calendar project.

Eleven months of the calendar have already been shot over the past year, with participants posing as dancers, makeup crew and costume designers. An 89-year-old local artist volunteered to become an usher.

''We did her up like a showgirl in a sexy, Marilyn Monroe kind of way,'' Christie said. ''She loved it.''

Yesterday's shoot was the final puzzle piece of the calendar, with the obvious theme being ''The Audience.''

Under the keen eye of Brad Fowler of Song of Myself Photography, the audience members used props to cover up where the sun doesn't shine for an artistic effect.

Johannes Husson-Cote of Provincetown held a vine-ripened tomato over his no-no zone. Anne Irwin carefully draped a pair of binoculars across her bosom. Provincetown dog-groomer River Colt, 29 - the youngest of the participants - didn't mind the tub of popcorn resting in his lap.

The calendar will raise money to help support the theatrical company

''This was pretty cool,'' said Colt, a veteran nude poser. ''I like the fact that a range of age groups were represented because it was easier to relax.''

Each of the audience members said they came for one reason: to help raise money for the New Provincetown Players. The group has undertaken a large fundraising effort.

The revamped Provincetown Theater on Bradford Street opened in 2004, but a roughly $700,000 mortgage still needs to be paid off, said Chuck Griffeth, who's on the theater's fundraising committee.

He hopes the 2007 calendar can raise $20,000 or more that will go toward general operating expenses. The calendar will also be featured at a $50-a-head benefit party at the theater on July 1.

To add some levity to the hour-long shoot, Christie acted like a rodeo clown in the background while the audience made faces of jubilation and shock at Fowler's command.

''How about we pose for an encore, with a standing ovation!'' blurted O'Malley, to a resounding moan of ''Nooooo!''

''This is marvelous, it's just great,'' Fowler said, peeking at the final picture that went off without a hitch.

Fifty-five-year-old Linda Nichols, on vacation for the weekend, said she had a wonderful time meeting new people - albeit more intimately than normal - and supporting the arts.

She just hopes her high school students never see the calendar.

''They'd laugh, but I hope they don't get a hold of it,'' chuckled Nichols, a principal in a Pennsylvania town outside of Pittsburgh. ''It doesn't matter, I'm retiring soon anyway.''

From school, that is. Nichols said she had such a great experience, she'd shake her clothes off again for the right cause.

(Published: February 26, 2006)

Well, at least there's some promising attitudes here!

A New Place to Get Bare in the Grand Canyon State


NEW ARIZONA VENTURE FOR 3 RESORT OWNERS

The owners of De Anza Springs, Laguna del Sol and Paradise Lakes & Valley have joined forces on a new venture near Tucson, Arizona. Dave & Helen Landman, Wayne & Suzanne Schell and Joe & Becky Lettelleir are equal partners in this exciting new clothing-optional resort.

Mira Vista Resort is located on 30 acres in Marana, immediately Northwest of Tucson. The property has a fascinating history, dating back to the 1850s. It has gone through several name and ownership changes, but has been in continuous operation. It was known most recently as Coyote Moon Resort & Spa. The pool area was already clothing-optional under the prior management, so nude use will not pose any problems.

Current facilities include 14 guest suites - mostly 2 rooms each, restaurant and lounge, deluxe fitness center, swimming pool and spa, huge covered and furnished pool-adjacent outdoor ramada, spa treatment center, tennis court, old West “town” and beautiful saguaro cactus-filled grounds and desert vistas. It is truly in turnkey condition, requiring almost no modifications to open for guests. This doesn’t mean that plans aren’t being made for additional facilities though. Condominiums have already been approved for the location, but were never built under the prior ownership. The partners would also like to develop RV sites in the future. Mira Vista Resort is located just 3 miles off of I-10 and 22 miles from Tucson International Airport. It is also just 90 minutes from Phoenix.

The partnership of three AANR club owners from different parts of the country is unprecedented in AANR history. Wayne and Suzanne Schell go back the furthest with their nudist beginnings at Glen Eden in the 1960s. They bought Laguna del Sol, outside of Sacramento, CA (then named Rawhide Ranch) in 1984 as a medium-sized club with 450 members on 70 acres and spent the next 21 plus years gradually transforming it into a 1700 member deluxe resort, now occupying 250 acres. It is still a work-in-progress, with new improvements and additions every year.

Dave and Helen Landman joined Laguna del Sol in 1991, and were members there until their purchase of De Anza Springs, E of San Diego, in 1997. At the time, the Jacumba 500 acre property was a non-operating RV Park in disrepair. The beautiful location adjacent to Anza Borrego State Park has become a very popular club and has over 500 members and is still steadily growing. Many improvements and additions have been completed with more to come. De Anza will host its 2nd AANR convention in its short history this August.

Joe and Becky Lettelleir (along with 2 partners) bought Paradise Lakes, N of Tampa, FL in 1999 and Paradise Valley, N of Atlanta, GA (formerly named Hidden Valley) in 2004. Paradise Lakes has continued the pace of expansion and improvement that has been underway since 1980, when it was created by original owner Fred Bischoff. It now has over 5000 members, by far the largest in the country and probably the world. Paradise Valley has undergone a dramatic transformation under the Lettelleirs’ ownership, while retaining beautiful, woodsy surroundings.

Dave and Helen Landman saw an article in a Yuma, AZ newspaper about the demise of the Coyote Moon Resort and David visited the property the last week of December. It was not even listed for sale. He immediately realized its potential as a nudist club and destination resort. Joe Lettelleir and Wayne Schell, along with Helen, visited 2 weeks later after Dave asked if they might be interested in a partnership. The Landmans had been looking at properties in Arizona for the past couple of years and the Lettelleirs had also looked at several properties in the southwest over the same period. The Schells were not planning on becoming involved in a new business, but the opportunity and potential proved impossible to resist! There has been demand for more high-end nudist resorts, particularly in places with warm winter climates. With the 2005 closure of the rustic Jardin del Sol, coincidentally, also in Marana, Shangri-La Ranch north of Phoenix was the only remaining AANR landed club in Arizona. The Tucson area not only has a year-round population of over one million people to support a local membership base, it is a major winter snowbird destination and home to some of the best golf and spa resorts in the country. Marana itself is the fastest growing city in Arizona. The fabled Canyon Ranch originated there and began the concept of the “spa vacation”. Mira Vista Resort might well become just as famous as a clothing-optional destination resort.

The new partners are excited to be working together at Mira Vista Resort. They spent 2 days there in mid-February, brainstorming on such things as the new name. They will be applying for an AANR charter as a 100% club. Individual, couple and family memberships will be available. In addition, full members of Paradise Lakes, Paradise Valley, De Anza Springs, Laguna del Sol and Coyote Moon will be able to upgrade to an “Ultimate” membership, entitling them to up to 45 days each per year at any or all of the other resorts. Many AANR members have been asking for joint memberships or discount cards along this line for years. While the 2 Paradise clubs have just recently offered dual memberships, this will be the first link between some of the top nudist destinations in the country under different ownerships. This new option will make it more affordable for current members as well as everyone else who is planning on spending time at a variety of resorts across the country.

Watch here as our Mira Vista Resort site develops or call (520) 744-2355 for more information and reservations. The opening day is projected to be around mid-April.


Source: http://www.miravistaresort.com/press060301.htm

Wednesday, March 08, 2006

Calender Girls Stike Again!


Women over 50 challenge beauty stereotype posing for nude calendar

Unlike the usual glossy calendars and professional models, these pictures show no silicone or plastic surgery. It will go on sale in 2007.

Basque News and Information Channel

March 7, 2006

A group of daring women - all over fifty - stripped naked on Monday to pose for a nude calendar in a bid to challenge conventional ideas about beauty.

The ten women, from France and Colombia, included actresses, an anthropologist, a human rights activist, a cook and a photographer.

Unlike the usual glossy calendars and professional models, these pictures show no silicone or plastic surgery.

The models said that the calendar, called "Sin fecha de vencimiento" which means women without expiry date, was an attempt to widen the concept of beauty.

Florence Thomas, a French feminist who has lived in Colombia for several years, said the project was all about "rebelliousness" and breaking the "stereotypes of beauty".

Colombian actress Carmenza Gomez said that posing for the calendar was a natural thing to do after all her theatre and television performances.

"I have undressed my soul, my emotions and my feelings and now I think it's very valid to undress my body, because right now my body is the total of the other parts," she said.

The calendar will go on sale in 2007.



Source: http://tinyurl.com/n3t5c or click here.

Some Common Sense from a Texas Christian Student


Clothing restrictive society should accept nonsensual nudity

Stephanie Weaver – Texas Christian University

March 8, 2006

It is no accident that in the biblical creation story man was naked. After all, Adam and Eve represented nature.

It is also no accident that when they sinned they took up clothing to hide their shame - in some ways, wearing clothing was their punishment for sin.

But Adam and Eve had it wrong. Before they felt that nudity was shameful, they thought nothing of it. It was natural. And God certainly had no problem with it. They were not obligated to clothe themselves.

Clothing is very functional, especially in cold weather. My wool coat and boots may not be very useful in Texas, but they sure come in handy in Kansas City.

In the heat of a Texas summer, is clothing really necessary?

Clothing performs a lot of necessary functions. It shelters people from the elements. It can protect the body from harm. It can be a form of self-_expression or disguise. It can keep prying eyes at bay.

But clothing is also very restricting. At times, it restricts freedom of movement, or is even painful - any girl who has worn an underwire bra for 18 straight hours knows this. It can even be dangerous - try running in high heels. It can give people the wrong impressions, and the wrong clothes can distort a body.

Additionally, clothing is expensive. Everyone has to own the latest and greatest fashions and have clothing for every occasion. It has long since ceased to be merely functional and is even worn in instances where it is clearly not necessary, like at the beach.

Worse, clothing has become a form of societal pressure. Every woman wants to fit into that teeny swimsuit. Or lose a dress size. Some women will even go pretty far to fit the clothing norm. A new procedure, toe shortening, is available for women who want their feet to fit more easily into pointy shoes. They would literally disfigure themselves and put their bodies at risk for fashion.

But The Naturist Society doesn't think this is necessary.

As TNS' Web site reads: "We take the issue of body acceptance seriously. We view the nude human form for what it is: a gift of nature, dignified and worthy of respect, regardless of shape, size, age or hue."

TNS is an organization that provides information and resources for "naturists," another term for "nudists." The term "naturist" emphasizes nudity as a natural state of being and seeks to avoid sexual connotations associated with the term "nudist."

I recently spoke to a naturist who participates in nude events like swimming, camping and nude bowling. He said that rather than cover a body and smooth out imperfections, clothing actually distorts the body and makes it appear uglier than it really is.

The human body is natural and beautiful, he said. And when people become used to seeing each other naked, they lose their self-consciousness.

Being a nudist is not about sex or sensuality; it is our culture that teaches us this concept is the purpose of nudity. Nude pictures in our society almost always emphasize sensuality, rather than show people in natural or comfortable situations.

When people become used to nudity, and when it becomes natural rather than nude, nudity is no longer a state of continual arousal. Instead, it is a comfortable state of being.

I am not arguing that our society needs to become nudist, but that society and individuals need to become more comfortable with the concept of nonsensual nudity. Instead of portraying naked people as sexual commodities, accept them as beautiful and comfortable expressions of humanity.

My challenge for you is to try being nude more often, if just once or twice a month. After a shower, don't immediately cover yourself. Leave off your towel and lounge on your bed (if you share a room, you should probably ask your roommate's permission or wait until he or she is not around). Next time you go to Florida or Europe, seek out a clothing-optional beach. See how much more comfortable it is to swim without clothing. For women, in some areas, it is legal to be topless in any place men are allowed to be. Take advantage of this rule. But don't pose for Girls Gone Wild. This isn't the type of nudity I'm talking about.

I'm not suggesting a complete lifestyle change, unless you want to make one. Just learn to be comfortable in your own skin and with the skin of others. After all, my friend tells me, you'll save a lot of money on clothing and you won't have to do nearly as much laundry.

Opinion editor Stephanie Weaver is a senior English, philosophy and French major from Westwood, Kan. She is not a nudist herself, but she supports nudist ideals.



Source: http://tinyurl.com/q4gga or click here.

Monday, March 06, 2006

It's Fair to Say, This Writer Just Doesn't "Get" Naturism



Dear Bubbe,

Regarding a recent response by you concerning Haulover Beach's designated clothing-optional naturist family beach, it is obvious that you don't get the naturist frame of mind.

I was one of the founders of the beach, which has over 1.3 million visitors a year. So, I invite you on an escorted tour and to do some interviews.

You will learn it is not about body competition, and that women in a naturist environment have a completely different view of their body parts than the females hanging out at the condo poolside. You really need this conversation.

Thanks for writing ''most of the time'' a definitely sensible column that is categorically informative on issues other than nude beaches.

RICHARD MASON
PRESIDENT, SOUTH
FLORIDA FREE BEACHES

Dear Mr. President,

OK, I'll take you up on your invitation. If you're bare I won't care. I swear I won't stare. Since the beach is clothing-optional, my mind will be open but my zipper stays closed. I may be clueless; I won't be topless.

Source: http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/local/states/florida/counties/miami-dade/cities_neighborhoods/coral_gables/14006355.htm

Sunday, March 05, 2006

"On the fourth day of telecommuting, I realized that clothes are totally unnecessary."


Some telecommuters work in the nude

MarketWatch

March 05, 2006

SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 5 (UPI) -- Some 10 percent of worldwide telecommuters wear nothing at all while working at home, finds a survey by the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based SonicWALL.

About 39 percent of respondents of both sexes said they wear sweats while working from home, but 12 percent of males and 7 percent of females wear nothing at all, according to a survey of 941 remote and mobile workers worldwide conducted by Insight Express and SonicWALL, a provider of integrated network security and productivity solutions.

Forty-four percent of women surveyed said they showered on work-at-home days, as opposed to 30 percent of men.

Seventy-six percent of the employees surveyed believe that working remotely from home is an aid to productivity and 61 percent are convinced that their managers agree with them.

More than half of the survey's respondents accessed the corporate network from home on a daily basis, with 86 percent logging in remotely several times a week.

Source: http://www.menafn.com/qn_news_story.asp?StoryId=CraPWueidDxmTBNvKzxDVCMTLCNm

Saturday, March 04, 2006

And They Entered in Two By Two


EXPOSURE FOR CLUB THAT BARES TO BE DIFFERENT
22/02/2006
By ANDREW MILFORD

LIFE is all about the bare necessities – just ask David Williams, chairman of Noah’s Ark naturist club, writes Andrew Milford.

The Walton group has been included in Bare Britain, a book that highlights tranquil locations on the coast and inland for people to relax in the altogether.
“I am pleased our club is in there,” said Mr Williams.

“As far as I know, the book is a reputable naturist manual so I have got absolutely no qualms that they have included us.”

Noah’s Ark has used Walton pool for weekend swimming sessions for 20 years and enjoyed the sauna at Elmbridge Leisure Centre until its closure.

During the summer, club members travel to other associations across the country to use their sunbathing facilities.

Explaining the decision to name the club Noah’s Ark, Mr Williams said: “The animals went in two by two and this is designed as a couples’ club, but we do have single people there, both ladies and gentleman.”

Mr Williams, who lives in Leatherhead, first became interested in naturism more than 20 years ago, while on a family holiday in North Cornwall.

“We used to enjoy surfing there with friends and they had gone to Cornwall ahead of us on one holiday,” he said.

“The surf on our normal beach wasn’t up to much and so they went exploring up the coast.”

He received a phone call saying his friends had found another beach where the surf was good.

“They said they had overcome the problem of sand in the swimming costume and I asked them how they did it,” he said.

“They said ‘we don’t wear one’. I thought I would have a go at that.”

Mr Williams has encouraged a number of people to “have a go” at naturism during his time at Noah’s Ark, including Vee, who joined up eight years ago.

“I knew I liked sunbathing and swimming and David mentioned the group to me and I had a little giggle,” she said. He urged me to come along to a meeting and the people there were really nice and friendly.

“I was definitely the victim of self-consciousness the first time but no-one gave me a second glance.

“People don’t make as many judgements about you when you don’t have any clothes on, which is quite interesting.”

She admitted that news of what she does to relax at the weekend can come as quite a shock to those who find out.

“Most people don’t understand it,” she said. “They always say ‘you don’t, do you?’ but then they think about it and start asking more questions. I have a couple of friends who have tried it now and they said that they found it OK.

“I think it does give you an enormous sense of freedom.

“It is quite exhilarating, really.”

Mr Williams agreed. “You can be a banker or a policeman or a teacher, but when you get your kit off, you are just a human being.”

He is hoping exposure of Noah’s Ark in Bare Britain will open the group to a whole swathe of potential naturists.

Anyone interested in joining Noah’s Ark should call David Williams on 01372 811 655

Source: http://www.hershamonline.co.uk/news/article/article_id=7258.html

Friday, March 03, 2006

"Loxie and Zoot" Get Company



The popular "Loxie and Zoot" comics (www.loxieandzoot.comicgenesis.com) now have company--"The Bare Pit", but the same artist, Steven Crowley. Both are set in the same (fictional!) naturist resort in Australia. Check it often!

Sounds Cold to Me



Alaska is one of the most popular cruise destinations in the world. One of America’s last frontiers; Alaska’s inside passage, with it’s remote mountain ranges, glaciers and abundant wildlife is what beckoned me in May, 2005.

I fell in love with Alaska’s wild, natural beauty, quaint rustic mining towns and areas so rich in history and lore, my only regret was not visiting sooner! It was very clear that I wanted to come back to Alaska – and even more certain that I wanted to share the experience with you. For who better than nudists to appreciate Alaska in all of her majesty and natural beauty!

In the harbor in Juneau I saw the ship we would charter for this adventure. A ship so beautiful, so perfectly suiting our needs with two heated freshwater swimming pools, a glass retractable roof spanning the entire sun deck, floor to ceiling windows and five-star cruising luxury that only comes to mind when you hear the name Holland America.

In 15 years we have learned to trust our instincts and they have served us well. We have also come to trust the name Holland America, knowing that we can rely on the quality cruising experience they produce. We have also learned from you what you want in a quality clothes-free vacation, where in the world you wish to go and with whom you like to travel. So come fall in love with Alaska, au naturel. Commemorate our 40th cruise charter on Holland America’s five-star Amsterdam. We will call it our Fire and Ice charter; it will be wild, wonderful and 100% natural.

Nude in Alaska? Visit this Alaskan Naturist's website to find out more about Nudity in the Final Frontier.

Source: http://www.bare-necessities.com/alaska.html

Kids Celebrate their Birthday Suits



By ELIZABETH KENNEDY -- Associated Press

NEW YORK -- Kids are refreshingly uninhibited. They pick their noses if they need to and don't worry about who sees them. They sing loudly whether or not they can carry a tune. And they announce their need to use the bathroom without regard to manners.

But sometimes kids can be a little too free, especially when it comes to their clothes, or, more specifically, to taking off their clothes. Children around ages 3 and 4 often enjoy being undressed, according to Dr. Paula Elbirt, who says it's normal behavior. It feels good! says Elbirt, who is the Manhattan pediatrician behind the advice Web site drpaula.com. But there is no clear rule on whether parents should allow their children to parade naked at home. (However, there is a consensus that it is inappropriate for kids to be naked in public once they are out of diapers.)

Dr. Kyle Pruett, a medical doctor and a clinical professor of psychology at Yale Child Study Center, calls nudity at home a hugely sensitive cultural issue that varies by state, country, climate and ethnic background. Elbirt notes that Americans generally are more shy about showing body parts than Europeans, and people who live in warmer climates will allow kids to go nude for the sake of convenience. The decision also varies by family. Some parents feel that their child's nudity is natural and cute, while others find it completely inappropriate. Lorri Milane, the assistant manager at Sears Portrait Studio in the Staten Island Mall in New York, says about 30 percent of parents ask for naked-baby pictures, but employees are not allowed to take photographs of children who aren't wearing at least a diaper regardless of age.

Still, kids who like to play in their birthday suits in the comfort of their own homes can worry some parents: Why do they do it? Should it be allowed? What ages are appropriate?

Elbirt says that by the age of 4, kids become more aware of their naked bodies, so they should learn at that time that a body is private. One way to do this is for the parents to keep their own bodies private. For the child to be exposed to the adult version of nudity is probably too stimulating, she says. There is no hard-and-fast rule about when a parent should cover up, but Elbirt says parents should trust their instincts. When your child looks at you differently, and you'll know when that is, it's time.

Elbirt acknowledges that privacy of body is a difficult lesson to teach. If you make a big issue out of their nudity you're bound to transmit negative feelings, she says. And making strict rules about keeping clothed can exacerbate the problem. If you're rigid about the nudity issue, it's like forbidden fruit. But Elbirt says it's OK to curb the behavior. You can say to the child, it feels wonderful to feel the wind on your body. But you have to set limits. We teach children to follow societal rules and to make other people comfortable, she says. Moreover, she says allowing a child to be unclothed after a certain age can be mentally unhealthy. Children above the age of 4 or 5 are living in a much more cognitive place. There's room for too many questions in their own minds. It's no longer a personal sensual experience, she explains.

That's what has Theresa Duva of Nutley, N.J., worried. Her 6- and 7-year-old sons have a habit of playing in the nude with their underwear on their heads. They think it's funny, she says, sounding a little perplexed. I think it's inappropriate. Duva fears that shepis got little nudists on her hands. But Yalepis Pruett is not alarmed by the behavior. When you are in cahoots with a sibling, then you are taking pleasure in tempting a social norm, he explains. But it's unlikely they'd do it with their peers. Duva says they only do it at home. Thank God!

This article first appeared on March 28, 2001.

If You Can Do it Naked, It Really Isn't Work


So what's the dress code?
Victoria Coren - The Observer (U.K.)

February 26, 2006

I am thinking of becoming a nudist. In fact, we should all become nudists. This 'clothing' idea just hasn't worked out. As London Fashion Week recedes mercifully over the horizon, let us admit defeat when it comes to getting dressed. Naturism was an idea ahead of its time: now, at last, it is ready to take centre stage.

My plan began to hatch when Alan Sugar complained about women wearing low-cut tops to the office. This, said Sir Alan, equates to using 'feminine wiles' and is therefore 'not fair game'.

I don't think our collective boredom threshold can withstand this dull old debate again. We have been arguing for 30 years about whether a woman who goes to work in a skirt is using her sex appeal to get ahead. Unfortunately, a thick tweed trouser suit doesn't suit everyone.

Most women now get dressed in the morning without much thought to 'the signals' they are sending out. There isn't really time. If something is clean, it'll do. And yet there are clearly still men who believe that if a woman is wearing something vaguely feminine, and a smile, she is 'flirting'.

This misunderstanding can get us into awkward situations, particularly in stationery cupboards.

In the entertainment industry, women have been given more scope for skimpy outfits and welcoming faces: this is considered performing rather than flirting. Last week, however, Anita Roddick damned these performers for coming across like 'whores'. (One newspaper illustrated Roddick's comments with a picture of Beyoncé Knowles in hot pants. I'd like to see her turning up to Alan Sugar's office dressed like that.)

Just as I was sticking pins in my knee with the boredom of women's clothing choices being debated again, Melanie Roberts and Stephen Gough completed their 874-mile nude walk to Land's End. Gazing at Melanie's innocently naked bottom, I thought: now there is a woman who couldn't be accused of having a flirtatious dress sense.

Nobody can say Melanie's neckline is too low. And in her complete nakedness, she looks businesslike and straightforward. If the rest of us still can't get dressed for work (even song-and-dance work) without the risk of accidentally sending 'whorish' messages, perhaps the solution is not to wear any clothes at all. The naturists were right all along: nudity is the only straightforward, wholesome way.

Besides, think of the fringe benefits. No more miserable hours in the till queue at Top Shop. No more ethical worries about fur and leather. No danger of outfit-doubling at parties - the only risk would be someone else turning up with the exact same pair of breasts. And how much more interesting Newsnight would become, if everyone on it were nude.

Naturism, I discovered after an eager search, is still alive and well as a political movement. It may sound like a Seventies throwback, which existed mainly to provide amusing plot twists for Jim Dale and Robin Asquith, but the 21st century sees it thriving.

'The younger generation is very supportive of free speech and free will,' says Andrew Welch of British Naturism. 'There is a much reduced perception of us as "strange".

Naturism isn't about going off to live in a colony any more, but about the healthiness of fresh air on skin, respect among like-minded people, a lack of discrimination between different types of human body, and the environmental benefit of not having so many bathing suits to wash.

'But our principle remains the same: we were born naked, and there is nothing shameful about the body. Why spend hundreds of pounds at Calvin Klein to cover it up? 'These sound like excellent modern values to me. Eco-responsibility, mutual respect, additive-free health: you'd think the movement had been invented yesterday. Andrew Welch is the 21st-century man, while Alan Sugar is the old dinosaur still nudging and winking about Miss Jones's mini-skirt. Miss Jones should ditch the skirt, turn up naked, and end the argument once and for all.

I asked Andrew Welch what he made of the argument that skimpy clothes are unprofessional in the workplace.

He said: 'I suspect this says more about Alan Sugar than it does about the women concerned. Unease about somebody's clothing is all in the mind of the person looking. Anyway, if you ask me, things don't become erotic until you start to conceal them.'

"Then you agree!', I shouted triumphantly at Andrew Welch. 'We must all go to work starkers, and the problem will be solved!"

'Unfortunately not', he said, sadly. 'In February, it simply isn't warm enough.'



Source: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/7days/story/0,,1718096,00.html

The Highest Form of Art


The naked truth about art

Joan Altabe – Bradenton Herald

February 26, 2006


SARASOTA, FL -- Too bad Ginger White, a Bradenton figure artist and director of the Anna Maria Island Art League, found it necessary to go to Sarasota to exhibit her work.

White experienced censorship at the Manatee County Public Library in Holmes Beach last year and had to relocate her work to the Digital 3 Gallery in Sarasota. Chalk drawings, which included bared breasts, were taken from view at the library because they were said to be too near the children's section.



As if children haven't seen breasts since birth. As if children think of nudity in the same way adults do.

Not that there isn't such a thing as indecent art. I don't know why more visitors to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., aren't appalled by the display of Benvenuto Cellini's "Virtue Overcoming Vice," which shows a nude man being whipped by a nude woman.

Then there's the bevy of bared breasts in the Ringling Museum collection, some decidedly sexually loaded. I'm thinking of "Bathsheba at her Bath" by Domenico Gargiulo and "Eros Revealing a Sleeping Venus to a Bashful Satyr" by Guissepe Bartolomeo Chiari.

Skittishness about nudity is not new, of course. Before the 20th century, women who wanted to study art were kept from drawing unclad models for fear it wasn't ladylike. Even as late as the 19th century, students in the women's modeling class at the Pennsylvania Academy of Art modeled from cows.

Yet, the nude has been a main subject of art since pre-history. Through the ages, the human figure rendered in the altogether has stood for many states of mind, including patriotism. Eugene Delacroix's celebrated painting "Liberty Leading the People," which ended up on a French postage stamp, depicts a bare-breasted female raising the tricolor of the French flag in battle. The uncovered breast was intended as a reminder that Liberty is the mother of France.

Nudes have also been used in religious works, like Michelangelo's painted Christ surrounded by nude saints above the Sistine Chapel altar wall. You can see a clear feeding of the infant Jesus in Jusepe de Ribera's "Madonna and Child" at the Ringling Museum.

Nude females in art are part of the collective mind. Who doesn't know the Venus de Milo? Even having lost arms to time, the Greek goddess of love and beauty is considered the ideal woman.

All of which makes the concern about White's figure art silly.

If unclothed figures are OK for a great church, a European government and publicly funded museums, why isn't it OK for a public library?

The answer may lie in the warring of two old ideals that continue to hold us: The Renaissance ideal, which says bodies stand for truth and beauty, and the Medieval ideal, which says bodies stand for shame.

By craving the security of the medieval tradition and ignoring that of the Renaissance, we keep alive a belief system best illustrated in a 1473 painting. "The Martydom of Saint Agatha" pictures men mutilating the breasts of a female in the belief that the female is a sexual temptation and must be crushed.

Apparently the crushing goes on.

Joan Altabe, a local writer and arts and architecture expert, appears Sundays in the Herald. She is also the author of the book, "Art Behind the Scenes: One Hundred Masters In and Out of Their Studios" ($14.95, Windstorm Creative, 2005). She can be reached at joaltabe@aim.com




Source: http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/bradenton/entertainment/13955954.htm?source=rss&channel=bradenton_entertainment

Raw Deal? Very Funny


Nudists protest raw deal

RAE WILSON – Sunshine Coast Daily

February 28, 2006

AUSTRALIA -- Sunshine Coast beach nudists were yesterday claiming
police harassment as they turned out in numbers to support a 75-year-
old nude swimmer contesting Queensland’s “repressive” laws in court.

But they believe they already have one over the police who were
ordered to pay $750 costs to Maleny retiree Kenneth Ernest Wenzel
after incorrectly charging him with being a public nuisance.

Mr Wenzel is still contesting the new wilful exposure charge for
swimming nude at Coolum’s Third Bay because he claims “it has been a
nudist beach for 30-odd years”.

He argues that the Coolum crackdown is unfair because police turn a
blind eye to the well-known, unofficial nude beach at Alexandria Bay.

Outside court yesterday with his posse of supporters, Mr Wenzel said
he was disappointed the hearing was adjourned to May when no
magistrate was available.

“They seem to relax the law in some places and other places they
police; it’s not even across the board.

“We should have legal beaches; Queensland’s the only state in
Australia that doesn’t have legal beaches.”

Free Beaches Australia vice-president Anita Grigg, from Coolum, said
she was continually trying to legalise nude beaches in Queensland.

“I feel they’re just trying to harass nudists for something that is a
very minor offence and is not hurting anybody.

Surely there are other crimes more worthy of police attention,” she
said.

Source:

http://tinyurl.com/z8dj6

Naked Quakerism?


Taken from a writing on George Fox, the founder of Quakerism:

Going Naked

The early Quakers went to what many consider extremes when they practiced "going naked for a sign," a practice that had George Fox’s approval, even though he does not seem to have indulged in it himself. This is more shocking to modern readers than it would have been in the seventeenth century, and still more than in medieval culture.

Already in the ancient times of Greece and Rome public nudity had more than one meaning. The Romans may have seen it as a sign of being, like slaves, less than fully human; but they also used the nude artistically, as in the villas of Pompei, to decorate their homes. Greek art, like Greek sports, celebrated the esthetics of the nude human body. In Sparta nudity had even been a mark of equality between males and females. Among the ancients and through most of the Middle Ages being barefoot was believed to have special efficacy in prayer.

It is hardly surprising that, theologically, Christian thought has been caught between contradictory interpre-tations of the symbolic meaning of nudity: Must it be a sign of the shame of Adam and Eve, as in Genesis 3:10-12? Can it not be lived as a testimony to the pre-lapsarian innocence that humankind hopes to recover, as a return in the grace of God to Paradise before the awareness of shame, as in Genesis 2:25?

In the early Church the nudity of baptism signified the recovery of innocence by the baptized, as Cyril of Jerusalem explained it in his Mystagogical Catecheses. Something of this may have been in the mind of the Priscillians, if it is true that, like some Manicheans, they practiced liturgical nakedness.36 In the fourteenth century, however, Jean Gerson (1363- 1429) had denounced the nudism that seems to have been a common practice among a group of béghards that he called the Turlupins.37 In England itself the Adamites were said to do everything naked."38 The recovery of baptismal innocence seems to have been one reason for nakedness.

Another reason was prophetic. Among the Anabap-tists "going naked for a sign" had been done in Amster-dam, and even, strikingly enough, in the month of February!39 In fact there had been somewhat similar incidents in the life of Francis of Assisi. In the month of August 1207, as he repudiated the mercantile way of life of his family, Francis shed all his clothes and stood naked in front of many witnesses, including the bishop. Later Francis ordered Brother Rufino "to go to the Cathedral of Assisi wearing only his breeches, and preach in this manner;"40 and then "he stripped himself of his own habit" and followed Rufino to the cathedral.

That the telling of this episode is extant in several early versions that do not entirely tally may suggest that the story-tellers tried in diverse ways to conceal the fact that Rufino and Francis were without clothes. In these and similar cases chosen nudity or near-nudity had a prophetic intent. As in the title of a pamphlet by John Toldervy, it signified "the Naked Truth laid open,"41 as well as total self-abandonment in the hands of God.

A third possible reason does not seem to have motivated such movements. This is the radical poverty of those Jain monks who do not wear clothes because they have renounced the appropriation of any thing whatsoever.

Whatever the more or less equivocal antecedents of "going naked for a sign," it requires nakedness of self to be covered by the mantle of faith, nudity of spirit to receive all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, total self-abandonment to life in the Father’s all-embracing love. Only the eyes of a pure mind can look at the woman in heaven of Revelation 12:l: she was "clothed with the sun," that is, she was nude.



For what it's worth.


--
William R. Martin, Chairman
Continuing Care, Inc.,
a 501-c-3 Not for Profit Religious Corporation

From the Poor Taste Department


How does this make naturists look?

If you are going to be in the northern part of the state, you might consider checking out the Giant Lady's Leg Sundial.

Located in Lake Village, Ind., the sundial is shaped exactly as the name suggests: as a giant lady's leg. It is 63 feet long and properly positioned to tell time. It is part of a nudist resort, but one doesn't have to go into the resort to see the sundial. The resort and sundial is located just off I-65, exit 230. Go west on U.S. Highway 10 for approximately three miles and the attraction will be on the left.


http://www.indianastatesman.com/vnews/display.v/ART/44051acde076c

Do You Come from a Land Down Under?


Fully dressed ... Noel Alfred Sneddon after court / AAP
A YACHTSMAN has been placed on a good behaviour bond for sailing naked on his vessel in the Brisbane River in full view of a passenger ferry.

An "ashamed" Noel Alfred Sneddon, 52, pleaded guilty in Brisbane Magistrates Court to one count of wilful exposure and has vowed to be more careful in future.
The court was told at around 7.30pm on February 12, Sneddon was sailing his 15m yacht while naked on the Brisbane River at inner-city Kangaroo Point, when a cross-river ferry passed him.

The court was told the ferry sailed close to Sneddon's vessel and shone a spotlight on him while someone shouted at him to cover up.

The matter was reported to police.

Magistrate Christine Roney today placed Sneddon, who has previously served 21 years in the defence force, on a good-behaviour bond for six months but ordered that no conviction be recorded.

"I think there are worse things in life than seeing a naked man on a boat," she said.

"It's a bit like being naked in the kitchen.

"I am worried what the effect of a conviction would be to his standing within the community."

She also made Sneddon sign an undertaking that he not move or anchor within 300m of a Brisbane City Council ferry.

The court was also told this was the third time Sneddon had been stung for sailing in his birthday suit.

However Sneddon's barrister Peter Kearney submitted there was nothing sinister about Sneddon's nude sailing.

"I understand when he's at sea it's not unusual for him and other yachtsmen to be naked," said Mr Kearney.

"He's quite ashamed to be here and has resolved to be more careful in the future."

The Truth is Out There (in the Back Yard)


X-Files Actor May Have to Give up Nude Swims

Actor David Duchovny, best known for his role on the popular television series The X-Files may have to give up skinny-dipping. The star and his wife, actress Tea Leoni, lost their appeal to block a new multi-million-dollar home from being built above their Malibu home.

Publicly, Leoni cited concerns that Duchovny loves to swim and shower naked in their backyard. She was concerned that Duchovny, a triathlete who swims laps in their pool, would be visible to their new neighbors.