Naktivism – Zjuzdme.org

How people react…

…when seeing a nude person.

As I wrote in a previous post, I’ve been exploring routes where I can walk naked. At least partially. Getting there requires being dressed, but the more nude walking time I can get, the better.

Over the last week I ran into a few people. Three, to be precise, and it struck me how different they can react. Don’t get me wrong; none of them made a fuss or had negative comments, but still, their reactions were quite different.

One morning, on a Sunday, I walked along the river. A great spot where I can go nude for 2km.

On the way back, I met a lady who was walking her dog. She simply kept walking towards me, said ‘good morning’, and walked on. Seriously, that was the best one of the three.

The second meeting was on a Tuesday morning, quite early, in a spot closer to home. (The river is about 1.6 km / 1 mile walking before I get there.) The trail is something like this:

Yes, it’s a great spot to walk, lots of trees and narrow tracks to follow, it’s never boring. Near the spot where I had to get dressed again, some 400 metres away, there was a lady walking two dogs. One of the dogs came yapping at me, I yapped back at it and it seemed to like that. The lady yelled at that dog (the other was on a leash) and she stepped to the side, turning her back at me while I passed her. I wished her a good morning, she didn’t reply. Again, no big fuss, but such a difference…

The third encounter was also of the dog kind.

I was getting closer to the last patch of ‘forest’ when a lady with, again, a dog, emerged from the spot where I had to go for the trail back home. She saw me, made a wide circle around me, keeping her dog close. She wished me a good morning as I said that to her, but she kept a large distance.

Perhaps she was scared that the dog would do something? I don’t know.

Three encounters in one week. All not ‘upset’ (okay, perhaps the second lady was a bit). I think that’s good.

Great walking opportunities

And that close to home.

This might not look like much, but it’s a trail I found that I can walk naked at least half. The altered line (not red, I don’t know what it’s called as I am colour blind) is the nude stretch. It’s a fabulous little stretch, all among the trees, and there are a few small side trails I can do as well.

This is another trail I found that’s perfect. The non-red part can be done naked easily.

On both occasions I ran into a non-nude person, just once, because these are not the routes people prefer, so far away from ‘civilisation’. Well, I’ll take them; they’re perfect. Each trail gives me at least 1 km of nude walking, and each time it ‘surprises’ me how free that is.

Putting the clothes back on is always a bit of a downer, but I know there will be more naked walks. Perhaps the choice of routes looks a bit limited, but I’m convinced that many people don’t even have 1 or 2 of such routes to take, so I count myself lucky.

Do you have nude routes near where you live? (I.e. without having to get into the car and driving there?)

Nude on Earth.

Some of you may remember this book.

Nude in Space. A story that tells about a world that’s heating up and becoming unbearable to live in, unless you go naked or when you live in a sealed, cooled dome that adds to the heating of that same world.

A few days ago I read that soon the world’s population will hit or pass 8 billion people.

8,000,000,000 humans. Imagine that.

Many, many people with clothes on. — Not 8 billion, but lots of folks.

When is this going to stop? How is this earth going to be able to handle so many people, with needs for housing, food, water and other basic life necessities?

It’s a crazy place that we’re in and it’s about to get worse. And almost all of these people are wearing clothes. While the planet warms up. Which means more people want air conditioners. Which means more need for energy and more heat exhaust. I guess I don’t need to paint the entire picture.

I hadn’t thought that the world from “Nude in Space” would come closer this quickly, but at the rate we’re continuing to breed, that’s going to happen. Many places of the planet are already becoming uninhabitable due to the heat. Because of that, more people will crowd onto the places that are still fine, pushing more heat out, and so creating even more hot spots that, I guess, will just accelerate the speed of bad things to come.

Why don’t people come to their senses and accept that going nude is at least some help to face the problem? Sure, it won’t solve everything, but no clothes means less need for air conditioners, and less production and waste of clothes.

Humanity is at a crossroad, and it has been there for a while, slowly moving towards the point of no sustainable return.

I see this happen. And many do so with me. There has to be a way to make ‘the world’ see that nude people aren’t as harmful as all those air conditioners and (heat) pollution producing factories.

If someone knows, or has an idea, I’d love to know.

Be well. Be nude. Be happy.

And be vigilant.

Kids Kamp 2022 – Naturally science

There is a great initiative going to get kids to camp. And not just any camp, but a nudist camp.

Kids Kamp 2022, Cedar Trails Nudist Retreat

I heard about this initiative while listening to the New Nudist Podcast.

(You can listen to that episode here.)

First off, and don’t hold this against me, I have nothing with “children”. I never wanted them of my own and I have succeeded in that very well. That being said, I know the value of children, and what they can mean for ‘us’, being humanity.

The podcast is one long interview with Rick Sloan, the person who started Kids Kamp over a decade ago. Don’t be alarmed, it’s a very interesting and informative interview. The things that are talked about all touched me.

Nudism / naturism.
The health aspect of our lifestyle.
The mentioning of a therapist who suggested a family to visit a nudist resort!
The opportunity for children to learn and experience something first hand.

Hello, what’s not to like in this line-up? (Yes, of course, there are always things that someone won’t like, but really…)

At the moment of writing, the donations reach $6,785 dollars:

If you listen to the podcast, you will hear that this kind of camp does cost a lot of money. Something that I think is awesome: naturists can sponsor children to have this week of camp. Children from parents who can’t afford this. Doing something like this is paying it forward. It’s putting kids in a safe and healthy environment, smack in the middle of naturists, and they learn some great things too!

What’s not to like? AANR Mid-West is helping out. AANR is helping out. Children who were sponsored to enjoy this week are helping out by volunteering. If you have 1, 5 or 10 dollars to spare, help Rick and Susan with this cause, please.

If you want to make a donation, or visit the GoFundme-page yourself to check it out, you can go here.

Yes. I donated.

Thank you.

Paul

The power they want to hold over you

I’ve been thinking. (Perhaps that’s the reason there was no post last week. No, I’m kidding, I just had no time to come up with something and write about it.)

Why are so many people screaming that nudity is a sin, that nudity is sex and nudity is all things forbidden?

It’s just one thing.

Power.

Power is the name of the game. As long as someone holds power over you, they can make you sit, run and jump, and even play dead.

Christians, for instance, shouldn’t fear to be nude if they want to. The famous couple, Adam and Eve, were nude to begin with. Only when Eve found those fun mushrooms, had some, “and then a snake started talking”, things went sour. They apparently were charged with “sin”, which is quite a power-stunt, and thrown out of their garden.

Of course not everyone is in that fix. Not everyone lives in a garden with ‘shrooms and “talking snakes”. Trees with wisdom fruit are hard to come by as well, but power is all around us.

Look at the people who can’t come out as a naturist / nudist because of work. “If the boss hears, I’m toast.” Or the people who can’t come out because of “the family”. There are plenty of reasons that our lifestyle is so conflicting, and I think it all comes down to the power. The power of ‘the community’ is another one. What if the neighbours see/report me? What if the police come and pick me up?

Paul in the woods — Lucky me, with a HUGE forest garden to roam free in.

Stuff like that is bad enough that people often can’t even be nude in their own garden. That’s the scourge of ‘power’ that hangs over everyone of us. Even the most naked person who reads this will find something in his or her life that connects to that.

May we all find a way to get rid of those power-mongers, so we can live our lives as free and freely as we want.

(Donations and suggestions for a naturist tropical island are always welcome!)

Micky’s Summer Resort

I can already hear you wonder: “What is this?”

“This” is a new naturist film, which comes out on Troma on June 1st (as you may have spotted in the image.

THE FILM
“Micky’s Summer Resort” is a motion picture for young adults curious about living free of society’s obsession with clothing. Set in the fictional “Willow Valley Naturist Resort,” this film tells the story of a Catholic schoolboy, Micky Littleton, who learns a lesson in hypocrisy when he’s hired to be a screener at a nudist resort. Little do the residents know, Micky harbors a dark supernatural secret.
From the official Press Kit

This information was sent to me by Tony Young, who produces the film and made everything happen (with the help of a dedicated team, of course).

From what I saw in the press kit, this is going to be a very entertaining film. It’s mostly aimed at a younger audience, but if you feel young at heart, don’t step away from it.

I, for one, am going to take advantage of the free month on Troma to watch this film (provided they let oversea’s watchers in).

These images are taken from the press kit.

Why make a movie about nudists?

Tony Young: As a storyteller, I feel it’s my obligation to write about my life and the people in it.

Nudism has been a part of my life for over twenty years, and having experienced all the misconceptions and for lack of a better term, “noise” brought about through recurring scandals involving nudism and children, I’d noticed that the actual issues affecting teenagers (including myself when I was that age) is loneliness—feeling shut out by their elders. This is a universal problem for all youths, but in a nudist environment, the metaphor of being truly naked is blatantly obvious.

I hope this post is in any way of interest to everyone who has a warm heart for the arts. There aren’t enough films about naturism and nudism, so please share this information all over the place!

Memento Mori

You’ve probably heard or read that one before. Memento Mori. I was surprised to find something unexpected when I looked for an image for this.

Almost always this is depicted with a skull. Perhaps a common thing in the US, but not in the Netherlands, where I reside. Ah well, learnt something new today.

A few days ago I heard a podcast about Memento Mori. A good one, explaining that this is not a warning but a reminder. A reminder that we will all die someday, and therefore we shouldn’t postpone things until later – because later may never come.

The podcast speaker (presenter?) also said that Memento Mori is the opposibe of the oh-so-beloved bucket list, the list with things people want to do later.

Why wait? Why not do it now, because now you’re alive and able to do it – and remember doing it. And perhaps up to doing it again.

If there’s a nude beach you want to visit and you have the option now, do it. If there’s a nude resort you plan on visiting, do it now. (I can recommend the Mighty Oaks, the staff there is great! 😉 )

Listening to this podcast I realised that there are 2 lives. 1 that keeps you alive (as in gets the food, the rent paid, and stuff like that) and 1 that you need to fulfill as much as you can when you can. The life that you want to live now. The body painting, the nude events, the naked bike rides, the nude swims.

Putting them off to a time that may never come is a sad thing. And trust me (or not, up to you), once you’ve done all those things, you won’t end up with nothing left to do, because each event, each happening will open a new door, new options to do and try too.

I think this is part of the magic we can create for ourselves and each other. Create options and events, and invite others. Together the magic is even bigger. And don’t put them on the bucket list. Put them on the list of things done, the list you can look at with pride.

Change what you can

We all want the entire world to become naturist. Or at least, that the entire world accepts naturists as sane and full members of society. We don’t want to be seen as weirdos, or – even worse – perverts and child molesters.

By now we all know that it’s easy to reach the entire world, because we have this crazy little thing called Internet. At the same time, we should realise that it’s not possible to change the entire world. Some folks will want to listen. Others are stuck in their ways and ruts so deeply that no mammoth tanker or Kenworth truck can pull them out of it.

It’s important to know where our boundaries are. Not in the way of self-limiting where we want to and can be nude in nature, but in the way of recognising who we can (try to) change (as in perspective about nudity) and who’s beyond help / hope.

Some people will keep running into the same wall forever, hoping to bring it down. Kudos for determination, but minus several hundred points for smart, because it is a waste of energy and time. Energy and time that can better be used to be nude with others, to enjoy the time we have. It’s also possible that such determination will have an adverse effect on that wall (those people who don’t want to see our ways). The people who keep trying will be seen as annoying, pests and other bad things, which is not helping the reputation of naturists anywhere. “The wall” has access to this crazy little Internet as well, and they can spread anti-propaganda towards naturism.

So let’s be smart about this whole ‘conversion’ thing. Don’t go out of your way trying to change everything and everyone.

Go where it’s convenient, where you have a proper chance for change. Let that do its work, because the more people are in a specific mindset, the more overall consciousness will shift. That shift will be slow, and we may not see the definitive change, but it will happen if we do this the smart way.

Catch a Sunrise

The Pythagoreans bid us in the morning look to the heavens that we may be reminded of those bodies that continually do the same things and in the same manner perform their work, and also be reminded of their purity and nudity. For there is no veil over a star.
(Marcus Aurelius – Meditations XI.27)

Marcus Aurelius was a stoic. (I have touched on stoicism before on this blog.)

Lately, I’ve been delving into stoicism a bit more. There is a lot of information out there, like the Daily Stoic Podcast, which has shorter and longer episodes. I love the short ones, up to ten minutes, that show a lot of cleverness in little time.

So what does stoicism have to do with naturism? On first glance: nothing at all. And yet, I’ve been thinking about this over the past few days, and there are points that work, that fit and touch.

One of the stoic ideas is not to worry or get anxious over things in advance. Suppose you want to take a nude hike in a place where there’s not a big risk of “getting caught”. Do you worry about getting caught before going there? It’s not worth the energy to worry about it, even though us humans have been taught / conditioned to do that. Because everyone else does it.

This is what stops many people from doing things. The “What if” monster, that looms over our thoughts and actions.
Yes, you want to go on that hike. Yes, there might be people who see you. Yes, there are people who get ‘upset’ or who are ‘offended’ by nudity. Be ready for a comment, have an answer ready. Or, if you’re scared that you’ll be photographed in the nude while you don’t want that, don’t go and feel good about that. And then, just let it go. Don’t beat yourself up about the fact that maybe nothing might have happened, because then you roll back into the “What if” trap again. Decide, accept and move on.

Another stoic idea, from Seneca this time, is to look at clothes for their real purpose. (I mentioned this in the first post that I already referenced.)

This doesn’t mean Seneca was going around naked all the time, but it shows that there is more to the idea than ‘we naturists’ attribute to it. Wearing clothes for their real purpose is the smart way.

For instance when it’s cold. Or when it’s dangerous to be naked (e.g. risking splinters, burns or other dangerous situations), clothes, as in ‘coverings’, make sense.

Stoicism, for me, points out a lot of idiocy in the real world. Many people think that stoics never have any fun, that they lack emotion. They accept that things come to an end and (try to) live accordingly.

Maybe this quote from Seneca says it all in the best way:

As is a tale, so is life: not how long it is, but how good it is, is what matters.
Seneca

Jerome Naturel

Last week I listened to the newest Naturist Living show podcast.

It’s an interview with a Belgian man who got to be known as Jerome Naturel.

Jérôme Naturel

I enjoyed this episode so much that I’m pointing it out here, and I hope you will take the time to have a listen. Jerome goes quite in-depth about his path to being where he is now, and I think it holds lots of interesting ideas and steps for many of us to copy.

So please, listen and perhaps pick up some good things from it!