Through a Naturist Lens

Saturday afternoon and all work has ground to a halt on the deck. I am at the stage where I am placing the joists on top of the new beams. The last beam was set in place this morning after our usual six kilometre walk in the countryside. Yesterday, I had finalised all of the deck supports and installed the first two beams.

I had made another trip to the lumberyard yesterday as well, to pick up a few extra boards and to buy “hangers” for the 2×6 joists. No hangers were to be had, although there will be new hangers arriving on Tuesday morning. I just had enough hangers to be able to get the frame up, and place the joists according to where they need to be. Once that was done, it was time for tea “au naturel” on the cement patio at ground level.

With tea done, I cut the last four joists and then placed the three-step riser in place for the deck. These few jobs were done skyclad as it was quite warm, though windy. I had thought I might then go for some free-hiking, but the wind and scattered clouds dissuaded me. I was then persuaded to simply clean up all the tools and relax in the sunshine.

I will remain clothing free for the rest of the day, unless a neighbour decides he needs a free beer. He is always embarrassed by my nudity unlike his wife, so I go easy on him. It is about respect. I have no desire to lose the friendship of neighbours in our small prairie town. One needs to have good, dependable neighbours. We look out for each other regardless of differences.

I have no work in the yard for tomorrow, so hopefully the weather will allow me to go for a naturist walk in the country hills, a trail that I often use in late spring, summer, and early fall. As well, I am quite certain that I will take advantage later today, and for the next few days, to get some writing done on one of my novels.

The deck has been completely deconstructed. The deck flooring has been saved and that is about it save for a few pieces of 2x6s that will find a use in the new deck.  This whole process of deconstruction is vital when one is engaged in the change process. As a former mental-health counsellor with a background in Jungian psychology, I learned that in order to move forward, one needs to let go of the past. Of course, it’s easy to say, but not so easy to do. We all have a host of hooks that are  connected to our pasts, hooks that are very reluctant to let us go forward.

Think of the work to change one’s self, as the magnum opus of one’s life. Ordinarily, one enters this work with the goal of getting past an issue that has seemed to almost disable one’s life. Perhaps it is a divorce, or the loss of a child, or some inexplicable anger or anxiety that just doesn’t want to let go of us.

Engaging with a specialist who has skills is one necessary path that deals with the psyche; perhaps taking the medical route is also necessary where medications are critical because of a physical issue such as cancer or other condition; and for some, setting out on a life-changing journey is called for. I mention these so that you, my reader, don’t get the idea that there is one answer that is best for everyone. Likely, for most people, it will be a combination of any and all that will allow one to let go of “what is/was” and make the transformation to the desired state – feeling alive and invested.

Naturism is one of those journeys that take a person from a darker place to one that is filled with light. Ask almost any naturist and you will hear much the same thing – being fully present to sunlight in a nature setting is the ultimate in personal freedom. It really isn’t about other people, by that I mean one doesn’t need the presence of others to experience this transcendent state. Rather, the presence of others often gets in the way of that transcendence. Given the right circumstances of setting, a person gets to be fully present to herself or himself. The personal shadows are banished by light, at least for the duration of the moment of transcendence. It is at this time that one experiences a “preferred” version of self, a version that becomes a new hook for the psyche to grasp and hold while leaving the darker version of self.

Repetition of the experience creates a trail through the doubts and fears that have helped keep one hostage to depression and to the old beliefs of self. Taking off the clothes, literally, is matched by taking off the hooks that hold one hostage. The feelings of transcendence allow feelings of fear, anger, confusion, and a host of other disabling conditions to lose their stranglehold of power. Bit by bit, the old foundation is removed, one issue, one problem at a time. What is rotten in the old foundation is discarded. What is valued, and there is much about one that is worth saving, is kept. Using naturism as a catalyst, the self is put back together leaving the diseased parts out.

It is a personal journey, not a social journey. Naturism does have a social element that can be supportive of one’s transformation to a more authentic self. However, there is a danger in substituting “others” over the “self.” One can’t really be a whole and healthy person when the valuation of a new collective becomes a new hook a new distraction from the hard work of becoming the person one is meant to become.

Oh, Lordy, I have blathered on and likely have bored too many of my readers. Time for me to make a cup of tea and relax with another distracting Netflix offering on this cloudy, cold, and windy day.

I have been reading a number of posts from naturist bloggers whom I respect, that are talking about the use of images on Naturist Blog sites. The consensus appears to be that “borrowing” images from the world of cyberspace, with the exception of images that are in the public domain of Creative Commons, is a no-no. I have been of the same opinion for many years though I do admit that every now and then, one sneaks into a post without my first having done due diligence as to whether or not the image is actually in the public domain.

As a result, I am making an effort to verify all the images that haven’t been taken by me, or by someone who has given me express permission to use a given image. Even with these “with permission” photos, there is a legal requirement for having a photo release document for each of these photos if there are questions in the future. However, with the exception of such photos that I have used in my published poetry books, I doubt that I will worry about it. I did have the poetry book photos covered with release forms. So, if a photo disappears from an archived post, likely it is because the image was not proven to be in the public domain.

I am continuing to use photos, almost solely taken by myself, for this blog site. This is a naturist’s blog site and my photos will reflect that fact. That said, I am not “genital-centric” when it comes to these photographs. For example, in today’s photo taken moments before I began to write this post, it is obvious that I am not wearing clothing and that I am outdoors.

Equally as obvious is the fact that I am a male and wouldn’t qualify as a specimen showing a classical, muscular model.  You don’t need to see a penis for the photo to do its task of telling a story. In this case, the photo was taken for my diary/journal in which I record my projects such as the current one where I am deconstructing a deck in order to rebuild a safer version of the deck. Some of the work is done while nude, while most of it is done while wearing clothing – it’s mostly about weather at this time of year.

Do I need to have photos? For me, the answer is quite easy. This is my site, one open to the world and more importantly, one that is about the reality of who I am. I choose what to say, I choose what images to use, and I choose over time, which posts will survive in the archives. Not everything I write needs to be saved for posterity. My journal is a different story. Just like writing and then editing a novel, or even a non-fiction book, not everything written gets to make the cut for the final product.

There are “purists” out there who would and do judge based on some sort of fundamentalist belief that a) genitals must be presented in a naturist photo, overtly or casually, b) that nude photos must be included, and c) that whatever has been written MUST be left in the archives. These fundamentalists don’t have blog sites for the most part though they are quick to let others know what constitutes a “real naturist.” It’s all about control. They want to have the naturist world conform to some vague, amorphous ideal that is circulating in their heads with the problem being that these ideals are set in stone, slightly differently, for each of the purist fundamentalists.

Okay, I got off track there, apologies [I am a Canadian and apologising is part of our cultural psyche – yes, this is humour] are extended.

I have been deleting posts from the archives. In my opinion, what is eventually left is worth reading. Some of them will likely be revisited and expanded upon as I perhaps gain a bit more wisdom or see an opportunity to add to the topic of a particular blog post from the past. Editing. All writers do it to some extent.

There, I have given my opinions, now it is time for you to agree, disagree, or offer amendments to these ideas. I am, if anything, open to ideas, suggestions, and even criticism. After all, in the end, you are my audience.

The garden shed is done. Shelves are up and a place to hang garden tools and hoses is up within the shed as well. Behind the shed, the garden has been tilled. Tomorrow, weather permitting, a second tilling in the opposite direction will occur so that the ground will be prepared for planting which is scheduled for about two or three weeks from now, weather dependent of course. I have to admit that the shed now pleases me. It confirms within me that I have a few skills that are not academic in nature, more down to earth type of skills.

While I was tilling, my wife went to the post office and found a parcel for me, my new microphone has arrived. Of course, I had to give it a try while lunch was being prepared. The sound was good and I will look forward to beginning to transcribe my books into audio format. I will be searching for the appropriate software which will give me best results for creating an audio book. Naturally, I will hunt out free software that can be used with either Linux or Windows.

It is early evening as I write today’s post. It has turned quite cool outside and I am more than willing to be indoors. I have spent most of the day outside. There weren’t many moments for me to enjoy being clothing free while outdoors with just a few exceptions. Tea time is usually enjoyed au naturel, and today was no exception. As well, I did manage some garden time while nude. And no, there were no surprised people who saw me with their sudden appearance while I was without clothing. Yesterday’s surprised cyclist again whizzed by the yard. There was nothing shocking to see, nor was there any attempt to check out the situation on the cyclist’s part.

As most of you know, the back deck is next on the agenda, and that begins tomorrow. Also making its way onto the list of things to do outdoors, is to raise the level of the fence. Because of the gardens, the bottom of the fence is going underground. Raising the fence will solve that problem which will extend the life of the fence. In addition, I will be able to provide more privacy for our back yard because of it. Raising the level of the fence and closing the gaps between the fence boards will make for better experiences for everyone concerned.

That idea of lessening the tension is vital if one is to normalise naturism. People know that I am frequently without clothing in my yard, and somehow that is okay. After all, I am in my yard. However, if I am too visible, too often, then the level of acceptance becomes at risk. The last thing local parents want to have happen is to have their children “see” a naked old man. Parents have their needs of what they feel is safety for their children. These needs have little to do with prudery, and more to do with the wider world where there are too many adults who prey on children. It’s not that there would be an automatic assumption that a nude male is more dangerous that one who is clothed. Rather, it is the assumption that older males who are strangers are typically the problem.

My task in this small prairie town, is to be my authentic self. Just being me both when clothed and clothing free is how I best normalise being a human who is often nude. Being nude outdoors, doing normal things without the suggestion of being an exhibitionist, is what makes a difference.

A walk into the countryside in sunshine began a good day. Sunshine and warmth are always good things for a naturist at heart. Though the walk was done wearing clothes, it was worth every moment as I walked beside the woman who claimed my heart 50 years ago. We kept up a good, quick pace and soon found the walk had somehow come to an end. We both had energy to burn as we turned to yard work. Before we knew it, it was time for lunch. And then, I was left at home, alone as my wife went to work at the senior nursing home.

Of course, when this happens, I find myself out of my clothing outside almost all of the time. I guess if truth be told, I am nude outdoors much of the time when she is home as well. A few touch up chores were soon done and I began to till the garden. I didn’t till the garden last autumn and the going was hard. It will take me a few more hours this evening and a few more hours tomorrow morning to finish.

I had a handle to make for the shed door. I decided to use leftovers from the siding and make the handle rather than buy one from the hardware store.  I had to use a jig saw as well as a power saw to form the pieces. Then using a hasp and a wood file, I was able to make a presentable handle. The test will be when my wife comes home and checks out the efforts.

There was only one glitch in the day. While I was working as seen in this second photo, a cyclist went by in the back lane. There was no question that I was seen. Only time will tell if there will be any fallout from this. I have never been seen nude by this person before. Though there was real worry and angst, there was also a realisation that perhaps I had stretched the normalising of naturism.

Well, it seems that my last post was a “dud” as far as my readers are concerned. Perhaps, it was because it was too serious, too psychological. Though it has garnered no likes or comments, I will leave it there while I return to posting less serious material. I have a feeling that the corona virus pandemic has affected us all with its seriousness, leaving us to want to hear more “normal” stories of daily life, a naturist normal. With that said, I will return to my actual life on the prairies in the present, a life with limited outdoor nudity because it still isn’t warm enough to spend too many hours outdoors without clothing.

The shed is done and the old deck is now gone. For the next while, I will be getting the structural frame for a new deck built. For an academic type such as myself, this is easier said than done. I end up spending a lot of time “thinking” before doing, just so that I don’t have to tear it all done because either a, b, or c hadn’t been considered. One of the pre-construction tasks has been to build up the dirt around the house so that water doesn’t flow toward the house, a real problem for older houses.

I know a farmer not too far from town, who has a large hill of dirt next to a large dugout he has had prepared to bury old concrete and such. I got permission from him for a small truckload of dirt to be used against the house. Though it was cold and windy, I did manage a few moments of nudity while shovelling, just to say that I am tough. Of course, I wasn’t that tough as I soon reverted to my work jeans and a checkered shirt, along with my work gloves. I filled the truck the old fashioned way, by hand, and yes, I had permission to take the dirt. That task done, I returned home with the intention of emptying it at some later point during the day. Two hours later the dirt was where it belonged.

Then it was time to plan out my first beam that would span twenty feet [east-west].  I placed four cement pads at regular intervals to hold the doubled 2×8 beams. Then I placed an adjustable deck support on top of each of the pads. Taking a length of wood, I then found that I was able to have the beam supports just as I wanted them. That was yesterday.

Today, we went for a six kilometre walk as a change of pace to begin the day. Once back, I got to work making sure that all was ready for the next stage. Now, in the middle of the afternoon, all turned out just as I had hoped for which now allows me to prepare for the second of three beams that will support the deck surface. Life is good and it’s time for some tea, or nude tea time in the back yard.

It’s World Naked Gardening day and I have to admit that I spent more than my fair share of the day without wearing clothing. I did wear clothing when we went for our morning countryside walk, and when I was actually “working” [it’s just the way it is around our place]. However, all relaxing both indoors and outside are done while clothing free. I don’t have to worry about tan lines as I get as much sun exposure as I need.

I did do some more work on the garden shed. I built the second door and I secured all the siding. Then, the process of cutting out the corner boards using the leftover siding began. By the time I called it quits for today, I had a garden shed that is basically ready to use. There still are some finishing touches, most of which will likely get finished tomorrow, weather permitting. A gardening day doesn’t just mean the tending of plants, it can include anything and everything that pertains to a garden, including the garden of the natural world outside of human habitations.

Like most naturists, I am often outdoors in the garden area, working or simply enjoying the area while clothing free. And also, like most other naturists, I find being clothing free in the wild nature out-of-doors is my preferred “garden” activity.

On Monday, I am off with my truck to get some sheep manure for the garden. This will be a task that I will do while wearing clothing as we are getting the manure from a local farming couple about ten kilometres distant from our home. A few days after putting it on the garden, I will till it so that it is well mixed. With the shed being completed, it will be time for me to begin a major deconstruction and reconstruction of our back deck. It has issues.

It appears as though I will have all sorts of opportunities for being physically active in our backyards this spring and summer. Even though it appears that our provincial government will begin opening up activities, businesses, etc., beginning tomorrow, my wife and I will not be rushing out to test the limits of safety for quite some time. The day will come when we will get to be face-to-face with our children and grandchildren. Until then, it is all about staying mentally and physically fit during this Covid19 pandemic.

I received a comment from Alexis about my last post which I am bringing here:

“I am a bit curious though. You appear to have a fence around your yard, but you’re still able to see your neighbours’ houses and windows. Do they know you’re a nudist, and do they really mind you being outside working in the buff? I worry a lot about offending or causing strife with mine.”

Do my neighbours know that I am a nudist? Yes, an emphatic yes, they know that I am a naturist. Many of them have seen me nude while I am in the yard, a few have seen me nude in my home or other places. As well, a few have bought my “Naked Poetry” books which have nude photos in them, and not just nude photos of myself. Even more have bought and read my naturist fiction novels. And many more have bought and read my three part autobiography which explains how and why I have adopted naturism into my life.

Do they mind? I know that a few don’t mind at all. Others? It’s hard to know as in all communities, one doesn’t engage with most of one’s surrounding neighbours. They are there, they are friendly and wave whenever we see each other. They have their lives and I have mine.

When I am in the buff outside, I am very aware of others in the vicinity. I don’t make a point of being obvious when others are nearby. I am not an exhibitionist and have no intention of getting in someone’s face, especially when children can be heard approaching. I respect others and that has made it easier for others to not make an issue should they see me while driving or walking down the back lane while I am working or enjoying some sunshine.

When one thinks about it, this is likely a very vital way to normalise the practice of naturism. No secrets, no exhibitionism, keep it normal, and continue being one’s natural self, that self which is the same either clothed or clothing free.

Building one’s own shed from scratch without buying a prepackaged set of cut lumber, and without a step-by-step plan is a daunting project. Add the fact that I am seventy years old and have spent my lifetime engaged as an educator and mental-health counsellor, one could well understand how this project gets to proceed as slowly as it does.

Of course, I planned, and planned, and planned a third time, drawing diagrams freehand to try and envision the final product. My drawings had lines for 2x4s, which I found vital when it came to ordering the lumber needed. My neighbour and good friend who lives two doors down from me is a long-time handyman who owns every tool a carpenter could ever dream of owning, and sometimes several brands of the same tools. He now is a seasonal worker for our local lumber yard. He was very skeptical of my lumber order. Now that I have built the frame, I know why. I have about twenty 2x4s extra.

Of course, none of this explains why I am building the shed so slowly compared to real carpenters. I must confess that no tool gets touched until somewhere between nine and ten in the morning, unless it is a morning when my wife and I decide to take a country walk, wherein the carpentry work begins after eleven in the morning. When the work begins, I carefully measure each board in place, before taking it to my new power saw. This Ryobi radial arm saw is the first radial arm saw I have ever owned. It’s an early seventy-first birthday present.

Today, I got to cut angles because of the sloped roof. I measured the long 2x4s in place and found out that I needed to cut the lumber at a 5 degree angle. Five cuts later, I had the vertical pieces needed. With a similar five degree angle cut for the top piece of wood, it was time to put the pieces together using three inch screws. Just in case you wanted to know, there are no nails used in the construction so far, and none are planned. Time out for a naturist tea time in the sunshine.  Then, it was back to work. I replicated that wall for the opposite side of the shed. Then, with my wife’s help, we placed the short walls and I immediately secured them to the floor and the front and back walls.

Time out for lunch, then a return to begin measuring and cutting the roof rafters with each rafter needing a five and a half degree cut at both ends. As soon as they were secured to the frame, it was time for a naturist  cold drink on the deck.

That break took a bit longer than anticipated as the sunshine was incredible. Sunbathing on the deck with a cold drink at hand. Anyway, there was more work to do for the roof. I needed to place five 1x4s on the rafters. Then, when all was secured, I needed to place some plastic pieces, which will hold fibreglass panels, the wavy panels that allow light to pass through, on top of the 1x4s. With those screwed into place, it was time to call it a day. It was time for another tea break followed by time spent by the BBQ.

Nothing in this post was philosophical or psychological. It was all about being normal, well sort of normal, a normal that includes healthy doses of naturism.

Well, it’s Sunday afternoon and some filtered sunshine is making it through a thin cloud cover. Every once in a while a break in the cloud cover teases as the sun pours in through the large picture windows of my home. We went out earlier for a six kilometre walk even though the wind blowing between 30 and 40 kilometres per hour. We live on the prairies and wind is an almost perpetual condition of existence. You either go crazy or you get tougher. As usual, our walk meant that we were socially distant from the rest of the world. We didn’t even meet one passing half ton truck during our walk. The closest person outdoors was literally kilometres away.

Back home, I returned to an old writing project that I had begun two and a half years ago. It is historical fiction and it required a lot of research to write the first draft, and even more research since then. The last bit of research was done in northwestern Europe last autumn. Having allowed all of this to sit below the surface, something inside began to stir within me. A new beginning has been started with a thousand words already appearing. These words tell me that many more are yet to be written before I get to blend the old words with these words. If anything, what will emerge will be better for it, be a story that could well be a true story.

As a writer, I know that much that we define as fiction, is anything but. The moods, the emotions, the actions, the personalities, the conflicts, the joys and sorrows are all spoken from what is experienced, not imagined. Characters appear that are modelled on people in the author’s life, both consciously crafted and unconsciously mirroring these know others, and the known self. The better the author’s skill, the more likely a reader will see these characters as representative of real people rather than as caricatures. The more realistic and reality-based the characters are, the easier it is for a reader to identify with the characters or ascribe them to people in the reader’s life.

I am writing a fictional historical novel, that is a fact. I can’t point to a certifiable paper trail for each or any character that would enable the story to be classified as non-fiction. Doing the research is critical to creating a realistic context and setting for realistic characters.  Is there nudity? There is always nudity where there are humans. Again, context and culture will be important. The one thing I can’t do, is to ignore the reality of the historical world.

It’s time for a cup of tea before I return to the book-in-progress. Have an enjoyable Sunday.