But it can sometimes be useful to review these terms to understand what their extended meaning is in our culture. Don Coldsmith does a good job with this in his article, "Naked, nekkid and nude." Give it a read to get current on the terms.
But, there are a couple of things that need a bit of correction. He makes the frequent media mistake of mentioning the notion of a nudist colony. The other is at the start of his article where he cites what he believes to be a common dream:
You suddenly find yourself on the street, in a classroom, at a party, or at work, with no clothes on. You wake in terror, and for a minute or two, halfway between the dream world and the real world, there’s a shadow of doubt. DID IT REALLY HAPPEN?
Wake in terror? Really? Sounds like a average day to me.
Kim Cattrall cooks while nude
May 9, 2008 10:29 am
Um, ok. So do I, but you don't see stories about me in the paper.... Probably cause I'm not an actress and frankly it's a boring story -- hey, even talking about the weather has a far higher interest level.
So what caused this latest headline, besides some editor trying to fill white space on paper? It seems she made a remark on The Oprah Winfrey Show about it. I will say that the advice Kim was given in the grocery store was probably good -- wear an apron.
Visiting the nudist parents, and raising a nudist family
May 9, 2008 10:16 am
So this woman meets a man who is Dutch -- and the Dutch are known to be rather comfortable in their own skin. She soon joins him in being nude around the house, but now has been invited on a trip to go and meet his parents, who, will likely be nude at various times. This is the premise behind a "Dear Annie" letter by a writer from Chevy Chase, MD. She asks two questions, should I join in while on the trip, and if we get married should we raise our kids as nudists. My advice, yes on both counts.
Now, I understand how someone who has not really been in socially nude situations may be reluctant to give it a try. It's a very common feeling, and it helps to have supportive people around. I'm sure the writer will be fine and join in while on her trip. And the "Dear Annie" advice is to take the "when in Rome" approach. Good advice there.
Then to the question of kids. I was raised in a family that frequented nudist clubs and beaches. I have fond memories of Cypress Cove and the original Sunny Palms. And nudity around the house was rather common. For me, it was a great gift to grow up that way -- a gift my wife and I are giving to our own kids. So from personal experience raising kids as nudists can be a good thing.
As an aside, I also know that there are people in the world that would abuse that notion, but then, many ways of life are subject to the same abuse. I wouldn't abandon my way of life because someone else does something evil in the name of nudism. To me that person was never a nudist in the first place. It's the same argument many Catholics say about the church, just because a few priests engage in, err, uh, "Catholic" behavior with kids doesn't sway them from the church.
So, back to our letter. The advice given to the writer was rather odd. "When it comes to raising children, it generally is best to be able to cover up when necessary..." I'm not entirely sure what that means. "When necessary?" I guess it's rather subjective such as, "when the kids have friends over." Well, I'd be dressed in that event, but I would have preferred that the authors of that advice do a little homework and let our friend in Chevy Chase, MD know about some of the positives of the lifestyle. But then while she is over visiting the family, I'm sure that message will come through loud and clear all on it's own.
Got a call this morning from the town, they said our permit for the hot tub was approved. I've been happy since. I was really worried about this part of getting the tub. Too many horror stories about people trying to get a permit for this or that and getting denied. It didn't help my nervousness that we already put a deposit down on the tub before getting permission from the town (hey, with 4-6 weeks for delivery I couldn't wait...).
Still, I was determined to get through it. So I called the town, talked to several different inspectors to find out exactly what it was they would be looking for. I had to submit plans that showed where the tub was going to be placed, where the electric would go, and what I was going to do about my non bounded (ie. not grounded) concrete slab.
With the help of my electrician and the hot tub vendor, I got everything together and submitted the paperwork to the town this past Tuesday. Yesterday the zoning enforcement officer showed up at the house. Her approval was the first step in the process. She was very friendly, and had no problem with our desired location. She said right there that she approved and that it would next be reviewed by the building department. From there the electric - which all happened in less than 24 hours. I'm honestly impressed.
Now I need to order the decking tiles that are going to be placed around the tub. These are non-conductive and designed for just this type of use. We have to surround the tub with this for at least 3 feet in each direction. Since the tub will up against the house that's only three sides we have to worry about. But still, we are going to get more to cover a larger area since they look really nice.
After that, we just wait for everything to show up, get the electrician to do his thing and wire the tub up, lay the tiles, and get the town to do their inspections and pass us. Only after we pass can we add water. With any luck, that will happen about the middle of May. I can't wait!
We are just about to buy a hot tub, something we've been wanting for a long time. Though not cheap the company we are getting ours from has a really sweet financing deal. When presented with the idea that we could do a "wet" test it threw us for something of a loop. To do this we'd done don swimsuits - shudder the thought. And then I saw an article by Valli Herman in The Gazette (reprinted from the LA Times ) which appears to cite a trend toward wearing suits in a spa. While I find the notion shocking, the story comes across more like a press release from swimsuit makers trolling for a new market. And honestly, if you belong to a health club that begins to impose a swimsuit rule for the spa, find a new health club. Or better yet, use this or this to find a far better place to take care of your body. Suits in a spa indeed.
Normally when you say "Nude Beach," I say, "ROAD TRIP!" Only this time we don't have to pack any beer since our destination this time is a brewery. Specifically Stevens Point Brewery. Now who in their right mind would put a nude beach by a brewery. Um, well, actually, that's a really smart idea. I mean, this would give new meaning to the phrase, "Beer Run."
For those with their towels in the car and the swimsuit nowhere to be found (like I own one in the first place..), don't go streaking to the car just yet. See, there's a small bit of deception on the part of the brewery. If you take the drive looking for the beach you won't find any sand upon which to catch some rays while tossing back a cold one. What Stevens Point Brewery is offering is a new brew with the deceptive name, "Nude Beach." It may well be that we are their target audience, and, far be it from me to deny any beer that appeals to our very nature. But I may suggest to the makers of said beer that they either put up an appropriate sign to warn nude beach hunters that it's a beer, not a beach. Or better yet, make a real nude beach on which to serve "Nude Beach." Now that would be sweet.
Area 51 Found To Be Nudist Camp
Mar 27, 2008 11:18 am
The truth finally comes out. And quite honestly nudist camps do have a strong tendency to do their best to remain hidden so this one really makes some sense. And Area 51 of all places. I mean, what self respecting Alien wears clothes? ET in a dress? Doesn't work. And that seething, drooling nemesis of Sigourney Weaver in trousers? Nope, not going to happen -- although dude does host a mean Texas barbecue. Watch out for his secret sauce, it's to die from.
"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."
This quote has been one of my favorites for most of my adult life. In pretty much every job I've done the people I work for seem to see what I do as magic. To me such work never seemed to so advanced, or so challenging as to be mystical, but fun. And admittedly I often did enjoy the idea that I knew something that others didn't, that I was able to do things that others can't. In some respects that idea is also a curse as it is often seemingly true that nobody else can do what I do, which results in much stress. Still, that quote has been the mantra for my life.
To me, Arthur C Clarke was a magician. His abilities to write and understand not only current technology, but where it could realistically go and then create a brilliant story around it, was astounding.
Is an Experienced President a Good President?
Mar 11, 2008 8:22 am
"Suppose you had to choose between two Presidential candidates, one of whom had spent 20 years in Congress plus had considerable other relevant experience and the other of whom had about half a dozen years in the Illinois state legislature and 2 years in Congress. Which one do you think would make a better President?"
Think about your answer carefully before clicking here.
Not in my house, and honestly nobody bats an eye about it. Here it's as normal as seeing a baseball player wearing a uniform during a baseball game. Still, there are things to consider and it comes down to common sense. What is normal in one house may be very different in another, and it's important to let the kids know this. Otherwise little Timmy may find out the wrong way that taking his clothes off the moment he enters his friend's house isn't appropriate.
Emily Mendell's article helps to expose us to the issues of family nudity from her perspective as a parent who is ok with being nude around her son. It's a good article, and I like how she sums up the issue:
I would never judge another parent who is uncomfortable with nudity. I would ask her to do the same with me. With all the horrible things we hear happening to children, it is no wonder we have become a society of overly paranoid parents. It is one thing not to trust others with your children. It is another thing not to trust yourself. The fact that my son doesn't bat an eye at my unclad body suggests that I am raising an uninhibited child who has the highest level of comfort with his mother. And, in my opinion, there isn't anything creepy about that.
We had been looking forward to the lunar eclipse the moment we heard about it. We so rarely get to see cool events like this, so we planned to let the kids stay up late - make hot chocolate and let them watch a movie. So About 7pm tonight I went to class and the sky was cloudy. It wasn't a good sign. But when I got home about 9:30 tonight, it had all but cleared up. So I got out my camera, set up the tripod on the deck and tuned the settings on it as good as I could and took a whole bunch of shots over the course of the hour. I even used the Automatic Exposure Bracketing feature so that I could quickly get different exposures. I think this one is the best of the bunch.
Facts can be so inconvenient, let's call them myths!
Feb 17, 2008 10:36 am
In the wake of the FISA fight from last week there the Dems, for once, didn't cave to GWB fear mongering, the White House has released their talking points and hilarity ensues.
Hillary's Unsportsman like conduct
Feb 13, 2008 12:26 am
Just the other day I compared my son's desire to change the rules mid-game to Hillary Clinton's attempt to do the same thing as not being very sportsman like. And today comes news of another example where I can compare my son's behavior to that of Hillary Clinton.
I give my son a lot of credit, as his behavior has improved. But he still tends to get very upset when he looses a game, and will refuse to congratulate or even acknowledge the person who won. In just about every sport I've ever seen you always, as a matter of etiquette, congratulate the winner. It is considered unsportsmanlike to either ignore the winner or worse to throw a temper tantrum.
In the case of Hillary Clinton she has so far ignored the losses she has suffered in the most recent primaries on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. It's all kind of sad.
Cheating to win the nomination (D)
Feb 11, 2008 11:09 am
My son is 11 years old and my wife and I try very hard to teach him about sportsmanship, honesty, and loosing well. If we play a game, say a board game, and it doesn't look like it is going his way, he will start to claim the rules are somewhat different in certain cases so as to sway the game in his favor. As parents we can see what he is doing, and try to both correct him and help him deal with the loss. It's one thing to honestly make a mistake about the rules, it's another to try to change them mid-game.
Now, my son is 11, Hillary Clinton is both an adult and one that is running for President. A position in public life that you would expect to require a person of high moral character (yeah yeah I know, our recent past seems to disprove that notion, but still we dream). So now that the game seems to not entirely be in her favor she wants to change the rules. Rules she agreed to in writing no less. Not very sportsman like. I realize that to be strong politicians need to be creative in finding ways to get things to go in their favor. But breaking the rules shouldn't be an option. We are strong because we use the tools we have (ie. rule of law), not by breaking those rules while claiming to be following them - or that your actions somehow are so important as to supreceed the rules (ie. George W. Bush).
When I first saw Sally Mann's book, "Immediate Family," I was impressed by the openness and honesty of the work. And in some ways I was jealous. I both wanted to have been one of her kids living that kind of life, and as a parent raise my kids in a similar way. Having grown up in a family that has a similar attitude about family nudity, I really appreciated Mann's work. Her photos express a childhood innocence that seems to be sorely missing in our society. One thing I never saw was any controversy about her work, or any problems with it. Apparently it seems, there was a controversy. Some people saw it as exploitation and raised concerns over harm that she was doing to her children. Today her kids are grown and seem to be healthy and normal showing those concerns to be unfounded.
Well now a play has been produced that examines the controversy, and draws strongly from things said in the public record. Sally Mann was also consulted to help bring more of her own opinions to the story. The article from The Boston Globe (linkage below) gives a great explanation of the controversy, as well as the goal of the play. But one comment from Mann's daughter Jessie (now in her late 20's) captures perfectly what I saw in those photos:
Each of those photographs was her way of capturing, somehow - if not in a hug or a kiss or a comment - how much she cared about us. Each one of those photographs is an affirmation of love.
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
dspeers's journal
Um, ok. So do I, but you don't see stories about me in the paper.... Probably cause I'm not an actress and frankly it's a boring story -- hey, even talking about the weather has a far higher interest level.
!["Colorado" style Brazilian Walnut Tile](https://www.handydeck.com/shop/images/Colorado350px.jpg ""Colorado" style Brazilian Walnut Tile")
The truth finally comes out. And quite honestly nudist camps do have a strong tendency to do their best to remain hidden so this one really makes some sense. And Area 51 of all places. I mean, what self respecting Alien wears clothes? 
![[Bizarro.gif]](http://bp0.blogger.com/_X9D9p7lkmDc/R950yiWapBI/AAAAAAAAAMc/Y4UkElP_ti4/s1600/Bizarro.gif)
