Sick as a Dog

I'm still struggling to get over a devastating cold/flu that has dogged me for nearly two weeks. Now I know why people actually die from the flu, and why people get their shot every year. This thing has gone from my throat, to my lungs, to my ear, back to my throat, etc. Anyway, last night was the first full uninterrupted sleep in a while, so I am definitely feeling much better. Just following doctor's orders to stay horizontal and drink lots of fluids, and hopefully I won't relapse again so I can get back to a regular blogging schedule. Again, thanks to all who stop by every day, I appreciate your interest and support.

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

The Politics of Appearance

How many times have you heard or read that most nudists are people who should not be seen naked? The fact is that the vast majority of people simply don't look like Tom Cruise or Scarlett Johansson - they more closely resemble John Goodman or Kathy Bates. Truly, one of the most wonderful things about nudism is the way that people accept each other, no matter what they look like.

As a society, we are getting to a point where our obsession on looks is beginning to obscure anything else that is truly important about a person. Today, the truly despicable Rush Limbaugh took politics to the most extreme, actually wondering out loud if Hillary Clinton simply looks to old to be President of the United States.

Everybody's trying to make themselves look different -- and in that situation, in that case, they think they're making themselves look better. It's just the way our culture has evolved. It's the way the country is. It's like almost an addiction that some people have to what I call the perfection that Hollywood presents of successful, beautiful, fun-loving people. So the question is this: Will this country want to actually watch a woman get older before their eyes on a daily basis?

The photo of Hillary in the upper left corner of this post was run on The Drudge Report today with the caption "The toll of a campaign". Have we really sunk this low as a society? In 2004 the neocons managed to turn an American war hero, John Kerry, into a bungling, lying, flip-flopper, and now they are trying to plant the seed that this accomplished woman, a United States Senator, a former First Lady of the United States, a woman who was named one of the 100 most influential lawyers in America, is somehow unqualified simply because of her appearance.

At some point it would seem that the American people will begin rejecting the politics of appearance. I truly hope that as a society we are above this sort of personal attack, but perhaps that is a false hope, that perhaps we really have become a sexualized superficial society, where cruelty knows no bounds. If we let the Rush Limbaughs, Matt Drudges, Michell Malkins and Michael Savages dictate the terms of what is acceptable in society, then we are lost, because these hate merchants only seek to provoke and divide us against ourselves. Shame on them all.

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

Missing in Action

I just want to apologize to all my readers for a drought of postings over the past couple of weeks. I have an online business that has been keeping me working 16 hour days due to the holiday season, plus I have had a nasty flu/cold on top of all the work, leaving me with virtually no spare time, or energy. Hopefully I will be back up to speed this week, and thanks to all of you who keep checking in every day.

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

The Sunday Newds 12/9/07

• The Brevard County Sheriff's Office is cracking down on nude sunbathers at Florida's traditionally clothing-optional Playalinda beach. [wesh.com]
• A painting of a nude woman was removed from a New Zealand cafe after its "graphic nature" offended some customers. The artist, who is a naturist, said, "It's a bit of a laugh, really. This is just a well put-together painting of a beautiful lady." [nzherald.co.nz]
• Sarasota County has hired an "anti-nudity expert" as it prepares to go to war over a pending federal lawsuit by combining two ordinances into one. [venicegondolier.com]
• The identities of the nude children on the cover of Led Zeppelin's "Houses of the Holy" have been revealed. Stefan Gates said. "Although it's just my naked behind you can see, perhaps being a part of something like that at a young age made me seek out more ambitious and adventurous experiences." [dailymail.co.uk]
• Sienna Miller has won her invasion of privacy case for nude photos taken on the set of her new movie "Hippie Hippie Shake", even though millions of people will see her nude on the big screen when the film is released. [entertainmentwise.com] In a related story, Tiger Woods' wife Erin has won a lawsuit against an Irish magazine that printed fake nude photos of the golfer's wife. [nydailynews.com]
• Newfoundland comedian Mary Walsh is looking for 500 people to pose nude for a film project, but "concerned residents" have been calling the local police voicing their objections. [canada.com]
• Eva Mendes is the latest celebrity to pose nude for PETA's anti-fur campaign. [huffingtonpost.com]
• A Grand Rapids anti-nudity ordinance is scheduled to go before a federal appeals court in January to determine its constitutionality. [wzzm13.com]
• Senator Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) is urging the Senate to approve a bill giving the FCC ultimate power in censoring television programming because the "American public should be able to expect that they will not be barraged with unexpected indecent material, whether it is through an image or a word.” [broadcastingcable.com]
• Keira Knightley has admitted that she is on her way to becoming a nudist. [azcentral.com]
• Carrie Underwood will stay covered up because "nobody wants to see that...you can be intelligent, sexy and not have boobs everywhere." [accesshollywood.com]
• A Muslim woman has filed a federal lawsuit because she felt "naked and exposed" when her headscarf was removed for security reasons when she was arrested for riding on a commuter train without a ticket. [pe.com]
• A 53 year-old New Jersey artist will remove all of his clothes during a painting demonstration to celebrate his eight years in the arts district. [thedailyjournal.com]
• 13 female athletes in their 40s and 50s have posed nude for a calendar to raise money for breast cancer charities.

  At first, equestrian Colleen Fisher said no way. But when her friend Lund rode the Seattle-to-Portland bike race while undergoing chemo, she changed her mind.
  
  "If she could do that, then I could pose naked," said Fisher, 51, who rides bareback as October's calendar girl. [seattlepi.nwsource.com]

• Does the Texas "titty tax" violate the First Amendment and state tax codes? [austinchronicle.com]
• A Utah company that edits nude scenes out of films is going out of business because of copyright violations.

  "I've never rented from anywhere else," said Devin Sims of Lindon, who came with three of his five children to get the Pirates present. "There are plenty of movie stores from our house to here. But it's worth driving down here. You know you can take (a movie) home and have a good, wholesome family film." [deseretnews.com]

• About 100 University of Vermont students ran naked in Burlington while a thousand more cheered them on in the 20 degree weather.

  "It's especially funny when you see someone you know and then you see them in the final next week," (senior Brandon) Watts said. "It's like, hey, whoever you are, I've seen you naked." [wcax.com]

• And while it's still legal for the students in Burlington to run naked, they won't be able to do it in Brattleboro, which finally passed its anti-nudity ordinance after a year of hand-wringing. [reformer.com]
• A former art teacher is protesting a painting at the Raymondsville Historical Center which depicts naked shipwreck survivors, calling it "pornography". [valleymorningstar.com]
• A Pittsfield woman has filed a petition to designate an area on Onota Lake for topfree sunbathing, and she has the support of at least 50 other residents. [berkshireeagle.com]
• Dear Abby: My landlord is a nudist. [dailyfreeman.com]
• About one-third of young Australians list "body image" as their biggest concern, ahead of family problems, suicide, and study issues. [news.com.au]

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked

The Sunday Newds 12/2/07

• Jessica Alba is a sexy prude. [earthtimes.org]
• A group of Southampton students are the latest in a long line of Brits getting naked for charity calendars. [thisishampshire.net]
• Two best friends are preparing to row across the Atlantic Ocean - naked. [showbizspy.com]
• Two celebrities recently seen celebrating topfreedom are Kate Moss and Lily Allen.
• A Bahraini mother has lost an appeal against a 6 month jail sentence for appearing in a "topless video" found on a cell phone. [gulf-daily-news.com]
• A columnist wonders why we show outrage at the treatment of women in Saudi Arabia when our own American society still treats women as sex objects. [daily-journal.com]
• Zoning codes in Albuquerque may mean censorship for an erotic film festival. [abqtrib.com]
• Is there a nude double-standard in Hollywood? [latimes.com]
• Victoria Beckham's nude image will appear on t-shirts to raise money for skin cancer awareness. [azcentral.com]
• Nude art is undergoing a renaissance in Australia. [thedaily.com.au]
• The Victoria's Secret Fashion show is the sexiest night on television "within the realm of standards". [thestar.com]
• A woman received an "eyeful of porn" by accident on her cell phone. As it came across, she blurted, "Oh my gosh!" That piqued the interest of her boss, who was walking by. Still shocked, Lisa showed the photo to the boss, who echoed, "Oh my gosh!" [pjstar.com]
• The current modestly movements are missing the point that abuse is not an act of passion, but one of power and aggression. [buffalonews.com]
• What compels an artist to paint images of hockey players in the nude? [boston.com]
• A group of South African women are painting plates with their breasts to raise money for charity. [int.iol.co.za]
• 64 year-old Sharon Gless is looking forward to baring her breasts on an upcoming episode of "Nip & Tuck". [pr-inside.com]
• A blogger concludes that naturism is for ugly people. [beatiquorum.blogspot.com]
• Christina Aguilera is pregnant, naked and proud in the January 2008 issue of Marie Claire. [huffingtonpost.com]
• People reveal their phobias regarding nakedness in gym locker rooms. [drownedinsound.com]
• A TV station runs a profile on Tucson's only nude resort. [fox11az.com]
• Truck mechanic by day; nude model by night. [sj-r.com]
• Our body obsessed culture has now spawned the belly button makeover. [cbs4.com]
• A radio DJ will skydive in the nude to raise money for a children's charity. [eveningtimes.co.uk]
• Kim Kardashian claims that she posed nude in Playboy to "help girls". [inhome.rediff.com]
• "Futurama" is back with a show about nudist aliens. [kansascity.com]
• Mr. Skin has named the top 20 nude scenes in 2007 movies. [biz.yahoo.com]

Tags: nudism, naturism, nudist, nudists, naturist, naturists, nudity, nudes, bare, au naturel, nude, naked