ON LOCATION

I have no idea what prompted this shoot, but I'm glad someone had the sense to step back and make a quick snapshot. Who wouldn't love to be able to have been "on location" with this lovely crew.

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WORD OF THE DAY: NACKTREITEN

Nacktreiten is a German term for riding nude in the countryside. It originally applied to horseback riding, but can also refer to naked cycle riding.

Why America do we not have such a word, or such a cool tradition?

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FOOL'S RULES

I first picked this image because I thought it was cute.

If you read the rules, they all seem pretty standard: no life guard, parents watch your kids, take a shower before entering, etc, etc. Then you get to the line: "Only Fool's Don't Obey Rules." Does anyone else find this hilarious? Maybe they had to grow up in the 80s with the A-Team and Mr. T, "I pity the fool!"

At first glance, I loved the fact that the swimming rules mandated nude swimming, rather than enforcing clothed swimming only. It's a nice turn on all the signs at swimming locations enforcing a strict dress code and forbidding any nudity.

I wish "clothing optional" defaulted to nudity. That is, when people hike to a sandy beach or a mountain hot spring, they just assume they'll strip down to the buff and that anyone else who hikes to that location will do the same. Instead, in our anti-body culture, we assume that anyone who actually gets naked ANYWHERE besides their own private showers at home is completely abnormal and somehow perverted and morally questionable.

It seems odd to me our insistence on swimsuits. I mean, they are not that comfortable and are always cold and clamy coming out of the water. Why would anyone who loves being in nature and all that it stands for--sun and water and being comfortable in our skin, naked as a jay-bird, as any other animal--not want to be nude? Furthermore, I can't understand why we, as American culture, are so embarrassed, offended, and controlling of our bodies.

That's why, I realized, I can't support the rules on this sign, either. Forcing people to be naked is equally as offensive to me as forcing them to stay clothed. Why to we have to make the body a battleground, people?

Maybe I'll start a new campaign: Keep Clothing Optional.

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DON'T MESS WITH SPARTAN WOMEN

The women of ancient Sparta (Lacedaemon) were a special breed among ancient Greek women. Unlike other female Greeks, they were athletic and educated.

In pursuit of physical perfection and self-dependence, Spartan women had the advantage over other Greek women. Spartan women had wide legal rights; they could own land and slaves as well as lend money. Spartan girls were given the same food rations as the boys and were allowed to drink undiluted wine.

Ancient Sparta is remembered as society with rigorous codes of training and physical exercise. In Ancient Greece, athletes competed nude. In fact, the Olympic games were conducted nude until 393 A.D. when a Christian emperor banned them because he thought they were Pagan.

The word gymnos, meaning nude, is where we get the terms gymnasium and, of course gym class. Adolescent girls were subject to strict training regime that made them every bit as fit as the guys. Classical sources list as part of a girl’s education racing, wrestling, throwing the discus and javelin and trials of strength. Both genders competed and trained in sight of the opposite gender; boys were naked, girls practiced sports either naked, too, or in light tunics which didn't cover too much. (Talk about making gym class more fun.)













The 1862 painting by Degas, “Spartan Girls Challenging Boys” depicts a group of four Spartan girls confronting five boys. One girl thrusts forward her arm, while a boy lifts his arms forming a circular opening, as if the suggesting a reversal of penetration and power. Another boy is one his knees, certainly suggestive of a submissive posture.

Spartan women wore briefer clothing than other Greek women, and word has it that they sometimes dispensed with these garments and went nude in the town if they wished, treated with the same respect as clothed people.

The most known Spartan of ancient times is legendary Helen, who was allegedly abducted by Paris and taken to Troy. Helen was such a beauty, it is said, that her husband king Menelaus of Sparta could not let her go without a fight. Thus were launched “a 1,000 ships” and the 10-year Trojan War.

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NUDE V. NUDIST

I've been reading about the history of nudism and come to the conclusion that I am not a nudist. The history is fascinating, actually. It is a largely untold history of a social movement. Nude is a state of nakedness; nudism is a lifestyle. Since the 1930s, Nudists have been gathering at private resorts, where they have shed their clothes to enjoy not only nude recreation, but a naturalist way of life. Often these locations or their memberships had specific rules as to who could belong and who couldn't, and what they could, and couldn't do.

I have all due respect for such folks, and uphold their freedom to join whatever group they so choose, whether it be the local Elks, the VFW, or the AANR (the American Association for Nude Recreation). I guess, though, that I echo the line from Groucho Marx, "I'd never join a club that would have me as a member."

Today there are nude cruises, nude resorts, nude conventions. That's fine. But actually organizing nudity takes some of the fun out of it. To be always nude is as impractical as being always clothed. There is a time, place, and purpose for both. No one wears clothes in the shower and I'm pretty sure there are few nudist bee-keepers. I love nudity. I love the human body. Do I really want my bus driver to be buck ass naked? Not so sure.

However, just as it would be ridiculous to walk into your morning shower in pajamas, it seems absurd that every beach, river, creek, stream, lake and pond on this planet is not "clothing optional."

Part of the inherent joy of being out in nature is getting away from the constructs of urban life. If I hike 15 miles to a remote lake and find another swimmer, I sure hope they are naked: male, female, young or old...it doesn't matter because we are both out in nature, no longer who we are in the city. We are simple outdoors, in the sun, beside water, and will logically strip down. Maybe we hike a little farther apart for the privacy of noise, or just to relax alone. I hope it is never in shame of our bodies, natural as the trees and shrubs, rocks and dirt.

I am not a nudist, I have decided. I do not seek a naked lifestyle. But I do want the god-given freedom to be naked in nature. Frankly, keeping shopping areas and public city places restricted makes flashing all the more daring, fun, and erotic. But forcing someone to wear a swimsuit in a hot spring or mountain creek or sandy shoreline is just unacceptable. Even if I spend my day in the city, here beside my laptop, I want to know that far out somewhere, in a river or lake, someone has stripped down, just as humans have forever, and stepping into the water to enjoy a refreshing swim and then the felling of sun warming the drops of water on bare skin as it dries.

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BUONA FORTUNA

When I went to Italy for the first time, I was awestruck by the women. The streets are like stepping in a fashion magazine. As much of a stereotype as it seems, its absolutely true. In Napoli, the Italian women all seemed to have slender long legs, expensive Italian shoes, and short dresses with tops that pressed their breasts so tightly that they seemed as if they could spill out at any moment. I'd gaze at them in fascination and longing, in cafes where they seemed to linger and sip espressos. Straddling the back of a moped as it sped past, or simply sitting in a courtyard.

At the museum of national archeology, they had a large open courtyard in the center of the building. Like everything in Italy, the building itself seemed to have been built thousands of years ago, and was overgrown and crumbling. As I walked down the side of the courtyard along the columns, I snapped photos of the fragmented torsos of Roman and Greek sculptures. About 30 feet away from me, sat a gorgeous woman, just relaxing in the sun. I zoomed my small camera all the way before lifting it, and pretending to snap a photo of the statue in front of me. Really, I had shifted just past the statue to the woman. She moved her head just as the shutter snapped, and I thought I had lost my perfect shot.

I knew I couldn't risk pointing the camera at her again without notice, so I moved on, as naturally as possible. I doubt she noticed at all. I felt so embarrassed at my shyness for not being able to simply approach a stranger in a foreign land and ask to take their picture, ashamed that I tried to sneak a photo, and worst of all--furious at myself for missing the moment.

I berated myself the remainder of the afternoon. I even made a second loop around the courtyard a little while later when it seemed less obvious. But she had gone. My perfect moment of an Italian woman basking in the sun of an ancient courtyard was nothing more than a blurry snapshot. Until I got back to the hotel and downloaded my images of the day. Blown up to full size, my eyes spotted something I hadn't noticed in the museum. No wonder she was so enjoying the sun and the warmth radiating from the stones. I had captured, in fact, my most perfect Italian moment.

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OSEN

The Japanese word for hot springs is osen. The islands of Japan are active volcanoes, with thousands of onsen scattered across its countryside. The Japanese often talk of the virtues of "naked communion," hadaka no tsukiai for breaking down barriers and getting to know people in the relaxed, natural atmosphere. Traditionally, men and women bathed nude together at the onsen, but single-sex and swimsuit bathing has become the norm since the opening of Japan to the West during the Meiji period.

Once again, thanks to America for imposing its views of sexuality on other cultures and making nudity socially awkward for everyone.

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LADY GODIVA

According to legend, Lady Godiva took pity on the people of Coventry, who were suffering grievously under her husband's oppressive taxation. Lady Godiva appealed again and again to her husband, who obstinately refused to remit the tolls.

At last, weary of her entreaties, he said he would grant her request if she would ride naked through the streets of the town.

Lady Godiva took him at his word.

After issuing a proclamation that all persons should keep within doors and shut their windows, she rode through the town. The town tailor disobeyed her order and peeked thorugh his shutters as Lady Godiva rode pass his window. According to legend, he was struck blind. He was forever afterwards known as “Peeping Tom,” perhaps one of histories most famous voyeurs.

In the end, Godiva's husband keeps his word and abolishes the onerous taxes. And that, dear reader, is how naked protesting began.

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NUDE BEACH NAMES

Before the Victorian Era and the invention of the bathing suit, all beaches were nude beaches. As the swimsuit became more common, beaches became segregated between the nude beaches and the non-nude areas. In the nude beaches, people would be nude, in the non-nude, they'd be in swim attire. Then the pressure not to be nude began to infiltrate the clothes-free beaches with the more politically correct "clothing optional."

In Europe, it has been a long tradition for women to be topless on beaches. The idea is a basic equal rights between sexes: if men can take off their shirts, so can women. If men cover their groin, so do women. So "topless beaches" in Europe are nothing new.

This woman takes a funny stand on the nude beach distinctions. Is she at a "bottomless" beach--that sounds funny. A "bottomfree" beach? Also a funny term. A "bare buns" beach?

Or has she just taken the suggestion of "clothing optional" to just just opt for her bikini top and bare the rest?


Whatever you call it, I call it sexy.

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SUMMER PICNICS, RECESSION-PROOF FUN

As Spring's first flowers begin to show, here's looking forward to summer. As we worry about the recession, let's not forget an earlier time, when vacations didn't mean breaking the bank account. Rather, summer vacations were celebrated with picnics in state parks, complete with the heavy wooden tables, the checkered table clothes, and the classic picnic basket. Beers and Cokes in the cooler. Burgers and dogs on the grill. A frisbee to toss. Simple summer fun.

Even better au natural!

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RIDE NAKED!

The very first two-wheel, “petal-pushed” bicycle made its world debut in 1817, but the basic bicycle as we know it hit its stride in the 1890s “Golden Age of Bicycles.” The first chain-driven bicycle was developed around 1885 and a few years later air-filled tires and coaster brakes were added. Bicycling became both a popular pastime, as well as a practical form of commuting. Just as skinny dipping was a common form of swimming in rural lakes and streams at the turn of the century, no doubt some adventurous folks hopped on their bikes in the buff. Surprisingly, there is no real record of organized naked biking until a century later.

Organized naked bike rides seem to have taken off in 2001. In Spain, a naked bike ride was celebrated in Zaragoza, and naked riders joined the Fremont Summer Solstice Parade in Seattle. Naked riders have joined up with Critical Mass across the US, and other annual rides in Europe.

Although there’s an “official” World Naked Bike Ride (WNBR) website, the overall trend of naked bike rides seems to be a grassroots movement. Commonalities between naked bikers are colorful body paint, creative costumes, and sometimes decorated bikes. Underlying the public nudity is not so much a united protest against gasoline vehicles, or against the often hypocritical and sexist indecency laws; in the color and show, seems to be a statement against as a celebration pro-bike traffic, pro-green energy, pro-healthy living, and the simple right to be in the buff. Otherwise, it seems to truly be a free-for-all, with only one guiding motto: "Bare As You Dare.”




For the past several years, my hometown has held an annual naked bike ride. I have never gone, because it seemed naked bikers were, actually, rather unsexy. Now, looking at images around the world and learning more about public nudity laws and just how conservative we’ve become as a culture, I am pro nude bikers. They make our streets a little more colorful, a little more fun, and—most importantly of all—a little more free. What a true democracy that we live in when protest can be non-violent, and naked.

Here’s to a second “Golden Age of Bicycles.”

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VAMOS A LA PLAYA!

America calls itself the "land of the free and the home of the brave" but if we were really free and really brave, why are we so restrictive about public nudity? Most Americans are too scared to bare, even on a sunny beach. Worse, we make it damn near impossible for anyone else to be comfortable in their own skin.


Our European counterparts, however, don't seem to have such a cultural hang-up. It's prefectly common, socially acceptable--and legal--for both men and women to shed whatever clothes they want on beaches of Spain, France, Italy, and Greece.

Here's a tribute to our European friends, who set a good example. Although Americans have not seemed to pick up on it. Our loss, America. Clearly, the Europeans seem to be enjoying the sun and surf to their full advantage.

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SWIM SUITS AND BIRTHDAY SUITS

In the Victorian era, bathing suits covered as much of the body as possible--included stockings, hats and sleeves, and were made from wool that became heavy when wet. In 1907, Annette Kellerman, an Australian swimmer and water ballerina, wore a suit that exposed her arms, legs and neck to the United States. She was arrested for indecent exposure but helped pave the way for the swimsuit in the 20th Century.

In 1913, Carl Jantzen invented a two-piece women's woolen swimsuit. The close-fit design allowed women to swim more easily and competitively. About 1925, an elastic, two-way stretch textile made from Latex was introduced, called "Lastex." By the 1930s, the one-piece swimsuit gave way to the belted suit with or without top for men, (although many still wore the two-piece suits). For women, the lastex invention offered a more form fitted suit and the leg lines started to rise. The first completely synthetic fabric was invented by DuPont in 1938, called "nylon." In 1946, Louis Réard and Jacques Heim reinvented the "bikini," named after Bikini Atoll in the South Pacific. and the exposure of the midriff. Ursula Andress increased the bikini's fame in 1962, when she wore a white one in the James Bond film "Dr. No."

By the 1960s, the DuPont company had invented spandex, often sold under the brand name "Lycra." It remains a popular material for bathing suits. The 70's introduced the "thong" and the 80's brought along the "french cut" (leg openings high cut on the hips).

As the decades have evolved, swimwear has seemed to have gotten smaller along with the ability and desire to show more skin. Perhaps in time, we'll realize the the most flexible, the fastest drying, and the most affordable swim suit is your birthday suit.

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BEYOND THIS POINT

As far as I can tell, swim suits were invented in the late 1900s. That means before the swim suit, all beaches were nude beaches. When Captain Cook first anchored off of Hawaii, he was greeted by naked natives. Eventually, though, the missionaries who followed were able to enforce a ban on nudity. How sad that the original nude beaches, like pristine wilderness, have been in rapid decline since the 19th Century.

Today, it is no longer natural to strip off one's clothes in the sun and leap in the surf. Now, it is illegal--considered "indecent." How has the mere sight of another human's body has become so taboo that teh very last of the nude beaches are strictly segregated, with signs to caution visitors. They are not even called "nude" beaches anymore, but rather "clothing optional," as if the option of wearing clothes should never be forgotten.

Here's to the last of the endangered nude beaches, and the right to feel sun on skin, sand and water. Here's to the beauty of being natural in nature. Here's to those who "dare to bare." You are brave, and you make me proud.


I, myself, am not a nudist. I do not frequent nude beaches. But I am glad there are still a few in America. If our natural and wild areas are the legacy we inherited and will pass down to the next generation, then it is a great shame to see a sign that says: Public Nudity Prohibited. That is an embarrassing sign of our narrow mindedness and fear toward the body. To me, such signs are "indecent" and "obscene."

To anyone who has stood up to these silly regulations and restrictions, I thank you. You set a good example for others to follow with the simple message that it's ok to be comfortable and not ashamed in our own skin.

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THE WOMEN'S SAUNA

I knew a girl named Laska--like "Alaska," without the "a." She was from Alaska, but not named for the state. Actually, she told me, Laska is a Russian word, and it means beautiful. Her family was Russian decedents, belonging to a sect of Russian Orthodoxy called the Old Believers. They'd escaped Russia in Czarist times, scattered across the world, including small villages in the former Russian territories of Alaska.

Laska told me of her childhood in the village. The men fished and drank vodka, she said. The women grew tubers and canned what vegetables they could grow in the short summers. They kept goats for milk, cream, butter. They sewed the men's work clothes and dresses for church. At nights, they would sauna. It's a tradition shared by nearly all cold-climate cultures. It was a time to relax from the day's chores. The men and women had separate saunas. That time, said Laska, was her fondest memory of the village, and growing up. The sauna was a safe place. No drunk fathers, no abusive uncles. No chores and no scoldings from mothers and aunts and grandmothers. Some of the women had already had babies, and some were not yet married. Some women looked more Scandinavian, other's were part-Inuit. Whatever their body shape, size, or age, in the sauna they were all the same.

"American culture," said Laska, "doesn't have this. It's sad."

"It's sad," I agreed.

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NUDE IN THE 80s

When I was growing up in the late 70s, and 80s, my mom loved to go to women's retreats. They'd be out in the country somewhere, in a camp with plywood cabins and a cook hall that I'm sure was used by Boy Scouts and Church camps part of the year. If they only knew that when they were not using the camp, the generation of moms, like mine, would get together, hang out, and take a break from the pressures of being the "new woman," balancing family and career. What we didn't realize then, as their kids, but understand now, is just how young they were. In my mom's circle of friends, they had all graduated high school, got married, some started college, got married. And by 30, they'd had several years of working, and being mom. No wonder they took to the woods and took off their clothes, swam, and had at least a week to regain some of what they missed in their 20s.

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IN EDEN, BEFORE APPLES

In college, I hated living in the dorms and having to eat in the cafeteria. That was a couple decades ago--I'm sure both dormitories and their food services have gotten much better. But back then, it was really like living in little concrete block cels and eating rehydrated mashed potatoes every day.



So, when I heard of a co-housing option, with a room opening up for the "Earth House," I applied. I didn't have long hair or smoke pot, but was pretty mellow and they seemed to like me. So, they let me have the room in the basement. Most of the members were girls, and they wanted a guy living in the basement in case of intruders. Just fine with me to live with chicks.



In spring, they planted a garden, and went it got hot, they peeled off their clothes. At the time, I accepted it as just another part of the average college experience. Now, years later, I realize people are much more conservative about nudity. Maybe it's age, or the times, but nude gardening seems so natural. Didn't Adam and Eve, after all, live in a garden?

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