OOps! I Forgot to put Clothes on!

Oops! I Forgot To Put Clothes On!
Have you ever been so comfortable, that you go outside and suddenly realize you went out without first putting any clothes on?
OOPS!
I am sure almost everyone has stepped outside wearing something they normally would not wish to be seen in publicly. You know how it is. You are comfortable inside your home, and decide to take the trash out. Only after you have ventured far-enough from the shelter and privacy of your home, do you suddenly realize you are highly visible, and forgot to put on clothing you wish to be seen in! This realization comes right about the time another neighbor is in full-view. You know all too well, that if you can see them, they can fully see you!
You are at the point of no return. What do you do?
Do you act embarrassed and attempt to cover-up? Do you go about finishing your mission, offering apologies… and do so extremely hurriedly? Do you continue as if nothing is missing, and act like nobody can see you? Do you suddenly do an about-face and high-tail it inside for cover… and decide you will avoid that neighbor until they hopefully have forgotten what they saw? (And also hoping that neighbor never mentions it to another living soul?) Oh, the mortification, humiliation, embarrassment.
Perhaps you have never experienced this. It happened to me once. Surprisingly, it has happened Only once to me.
Yes, I really Forgot… and went outside naked. Yes, I know most people who Now know me are used to me being naked, and think it is hilarious that there was a time when I made sure nobody ever saw me nekkid. That time lasted from when I was twelve (1980) until I was almost 36 (2004)In November 2005, It happened, though. Why is this relevant right now?

The door across the landing from mine.

That little red card on the right is the note

from the Sheriff.

(But to the right is wide-open

to the entire courtyard)

Well, last week, it almost happened again. Where I live now, I do not go outside my front door nekkid. Since moving to this apartment in April, I will be nekkid on my balcony, but never publicly in the view of the complex. But last week, after my morning shower, when I opened the door for fresh air, I saw a notice on the door of the abandoned apartment across the landing from mine. It was from the Sherrif… and since this apartment had been vacant for almost six-months, I was really curious. As I almost stepped-out to read it, I realized I was nekkid, and turned back. Then also, last week, the mail lady came to my door with a package for me. The door was open, and she had already read the sign on my door before she even knocked. Since nobody lives across from me, I can leave my door open.

The sign on My front door :)

Nobody has come up the steps in six months. As she knocked, she called-out “I have an open-mind.” This made me laugh, so I just came around the corner fully nekkid. (Well, I Was wearing a warm hat, and socks!) She smiled, handed me the package, and said “I like your sign, and you need to get more packages delivered.” She looked like I had just taken away all the stress of her job. Much like the day in 2005… This was the first time I met my mail lady. Both of these times made me laugh, and reminded me of the only time I went out accidentally nekkid….


I got my new apartment in Virginia in October of 2005. When this happened, it was only three-weeks later… But it was November, and Freezing cold outside!

(Every bit of color you see in the following photos was painted by me. This place was dumpy, grey, and dirty-white without any hint of love, care, or color for decades before. Whenever any paint was added previously, it was only whatever shade of white-ish paint they happened to have available. Many of these photos are throughout the two years I lived there, and were not necessarily in that first month. Unfortunately, I no longer have any of the photos from when I first moved-in... But you can see how I made it colorful, fun, and inviting!)

My door in Virginia. (this is after I painted it.)

To the left, you can see where the stairwell

and mailboxes are.

(I painted that area, too!)

This is the only photo I have showing

any of the bleak-ness of the building.

I had a normal day-off, and was happily making my new place into something I could call home. I was focusing on creative things to make what was before a rather bleak apartment into what was quickly becoming a comfortable place to live. I had spent the entire day focusing on creative painting, lighting, and artsy-stuff. The day was extremely positive, and comfortable!

Inside my tiny apartment.

Yup! This is the Whole Living Room!

...Looking right from just inside the front door

Winter had already settled-in, and it was well-below freezing outside. The heat was included in the rent, and with boiler-pipes at 150 degrees running around the perimeter of the apartment, even with the windows and door open, it was not uncommon to still be 80-degreees inside. I Loved it! It was a concrete building, partially underground. My unit was the only one at ground-level… almost half-underground. The upstairs units each had their own heaters, but mine came off the boiler in the utility-room next door. Turns out my unit was also the only one with radiant heat… perfect for me!

And this is the view inside looking left from just

inside the front door. Those are built-in shelves,

and the bed is left of where the cat is...

...up high.

The apartment building was three-stories high, housing 9-units total. It was mostly abandoned, and had only one other unit occupied. It was fairly run-down, and had actually been slated to be torn-down. But zoning made it so they could not. Now the new owners were having to work to get people back-in. I happily took the apartment because it was affordable, and I could make it work for me. The ground-floor was built narrow, with the upstairs jutting-out in front and back, to provide covered parking. The parking was both front and back of my unit. My unit took up half of the ground-level (and was only 200 square-feet total). Next to my unit was the stairwell, then a breezeway thru to the back, and next to the breezeway was the boiler/ utility room. My front door faced the stairwell door, and front parking area. I had large windows in front, and small windows in back. Overall it was a cozy little place, but did not feel like a dungeon.

Looking out my front door.

You can see how close the parking was...

...and how totally visible my entire

apartment was... and why everyone

noticed all the changes I did.

Everyone who went upstairs literally came

across my front door.

This was a university town, and my home was smack in the middle of campus. On one side was a Frat-house. One the other side was a Sorority-house. In the back were several apartment, and dorm-buildings, and assorted other housing. The area in back was a shared parking, driveway, dumpster and general common space by all the buildings on the block. It was fairly secluded from street-view, but totally visible by every building, window, parking space, and balcony on the entire block.In the three weeks I had lived there, I had already gotten a comfortable feel about the neighbors, and neighborhood.

In the living room, looking into the

kitchen. Yup! That is The Whole

Kitchen!, And the bathroom is

equally small... just

behind the wall.

The bed platform is up to

the right behind the shelves.

The only neighbor who lived upstairs met me the first day, and never cared that I was always nekkid. Sandy was my age. She and I became good friends, and she often came to hang-out with me, and enjoy my home. The guys next door at the Frat-house were totally unaware of anything happening beyond their beer-cups. The girls at the Sorority-house often parked in the parking spaces around my apartment. They were happy to see someone finally living there, and often stopped-in to introduce themselves, and get to know their new neighbor. It was not uncommon for one of them to bring another friend to see the progress I was making in my little apartment, and this long-neglected building. Most of them appreciated artistic, creative things. Also, they appreciated that the parking lot was now swept, and I had replaced the lightbulbs outside. Even the Sorority-house-‘moms’ would come and say hi. Never did any of them even act like nekkid was unusual. Not once did any of them even make it at all uncomfortable. I was comfortable in my home, and the neighbors were comfortable, too. I had not yet met any of the neighbors out back.

The entire Kitchen.

(I am standing clear against the far wall just to get it in the shot...

it is a tiny space)

In the three-weeks I had lived there, I still had not yet met the mail-lady. I had left her notes, and she had left me notes, clarifying who lived here now, etc. She and Sandy (the upstairs neighbor) were friends, and she had heard about me, and peeked through the windows to see the apartment. But for whatever reasons, three weeks had passed and our paths had never crossed. This day, however, I was home when she came. My door was open. I was singing along to the music, dancing, and painting. Yup, I was nekkid. She kinda half-knocked, walked on in and introduced herself. She already knew I lived naked, and hardly even noticed. She was busy looking all around and enjoying what I had done with the place. After a few minutes, I asked if nekkid bothered her. She said she wished more people would be this comfortable. She told me about how happy she was to see how clean the place was becoming. She told me how much Sandy had told her about me. We chatted a while, and knew we would always be comfortable around each other.

Later in the day, I ordered a pizza… From Dominos, of course, since that is where I worked. Because I had gotten so comfortable in my new home, I never even considered putting on any clothes when Laura came to deliver. I had met Laura before, but did not know here well. I knew about her enough, that I never worried that she would see me nekkid. Turns out, she had already heard about my lifestyle, and also had seen the improvements each time she drove by, so she was excited when I ordered. It was a slow-day at work, so she stayed a while once she delivered the pizza. By the next day, when I was at work, everyone had heard about my apartment! (But nobody said she mentioned anything about me nekkid…)

The property owner also stopped in later that day. He had heard from his maintenance guy about how many changes I had made, and knew I was off today, so he wanted to see for himself. My door was open, of course. He half-knocked, and asked if he could come in. I had already met him when I signed the lease. He had told me I could do anything to the place, because anything would improve it from where it was currently. I asked if he minded that I was nekkid. He said it was no problem… but he wanted to take pictures, and asked if I would mind. I did not mind at all! (He made it clear he did not want pictures of me, but of the improvements I was making). He asked how I could afford the paint, because I had a lot of colors! I explained that I buy them at Lowe’s… as the oops paints (only $5 a can!) He asked if it would be alright to show prospective tenants my unit, so they could see the possibilities of how they can have creative fun in their own units. I totally agreed. He was eager to get creative tenants, and add some cheer to his gloomy building. I was, too! After that day, every time he came and showed my apartment, he would leave a five-dollar Lowe’s gift card on my desk! (He managed to schedule the showings when I was always at work.)

This day was so incredibly positive, productive, creative, and comfortable! So many people had come into my home, knowing I was nekkid, and they were positive about it, too! I always made a habit of taking out the trash at the end of each day. So, as I was wrapping up my day, I gathered all the trash I managed to create… and proceeded to head out to the dumpsters.

I Totally forgot that I was Naked! As I was almost through the breezeway to the back, Several things suddenly happened that reminded me I was outside naked, in full-view of ALL my neighbors, in the freezing cold! In exactly half-a-second of time, all of the following occurred, to remind me I forgot to put anything on:
~The freezing cold wind howled through that breezeway, suddenly making my buns frozen (as well as other parts, too)!
~I heard a female voice (not too far away) talking.
~I Suddenly saw several other people walking from their homes toward me… and the dumpters.
~A group of people was sitting in the car no more than five feet in front of me.
~I had just emerged from a fairly dark corridor into a fully-lit, wide-open area.
~And a car pulled into the parking lot, fully shining the headlights on my naked, cold body!
My mind went through so many thoughts! Do I turn and run back inside? Do I stand there a moment, and see how people react? Do I attempt to ‘hide’ as I make my way to the dumpsters? Where is that female’s voice coming from? Will any of these people freak-out? Suddenly, I was out of my comfort-zone, and incredibly vulnerable! What should I do??

All those thoughts lasted no more than a fraction of a second… Then the cold really got my attention! I decided to just continue on to the dumpsters as if this was not at all unusual. (Of course scared to death the whole few second it lasted!) Haha… in case ya did not know, when bits gets cold, they tend to withdraw, and become miniscule. Also when confronted with anything that could be threatening, or cause fear, they retreat further. So, Not only was I making my naked debut here, I was also incredibly… ummm… Shriveled, and tiny!

Now was when the rest of the events unfolded:
~The girl whose voice I heard was apparently talking on the phone, and was on the balcony directly overlooking where I was. She told the other person on the phone, “hold on a second… and come outside, then you’ll believe me!” (I hoped she was not saying that because of me… But she immediately stood up and was leaning over her balcony watching me, and grinning!)
~The people in the parked car right in front of me kept talking, and hardly glanced my way at all.
~The people in the car that had pulled in and shone the headlights on me parked, and got out, glanced at me, smiled, Said "Hi"and went on to their homes as if nothing was abnormal.
~The other people walking toward me with their own trash proceeded to the dumpster. Not a single one of them stopped, or hesitated. They got there the same time as I did. One guy just gave me a nod, and said, “Hey.” One girl, looked like she was totally unaware that anybody else was even out there. Another girl smiled, and said, “Hi.” Just like any friendly neighbor would. She did glance down, and grin, but then just said, “Have a good night... and get warm!” As she walked away again, looking quite pleased with herself.
~ Other people appeared on other balconies, but not a single one of them said anything, or even acted like this was unusual… But they watched, and grinned the whole time!
~The only unusual one was the girl on the phone…and her friend she had been talking to. Her friend appeared on the balcony next-door, and she immediately exclaimed, “You weren’t kidding!” Then she ran back inside for a second. The first girl was still smiling, and leaning over the railing. She said, teasingly, ”Looks like it’s kinda cold out there tonight!” And before I could reply, her friend re-appeared and started taking pictures of me. I was kinda afraid of what she was gonna do with those pictures. Then the first girl said to me, “Don’t worry… she’s not going to get you in trouble. This is her first time seeing a naked guy in just everyday life. Until now, she did not believe me that people can go naked in a non-sexual way. You just helped prove my case!” I told them both that I was freezing, and needed to get back inside. They giggled, and asked where I lived. I told them. They said they hoped to see more of me.

I got back inside with frozen buns, (and other parts, too!) and immediately jumped into the hot shower. While I was Showering, Sandy came in. She had seen everything that happened when I took the trash out, and was dying with laughter. She said it made her night! I Liked having her around. She was fun, free, happy, and loved to find positive in life, too!

Before this night, I had Never accidentally been seen naked by anyone! I always was fully aware of who saw what, and when. I made sure it was always safe ahead of time, and I was so guarded about how, and when I allowed myself to be visible. This just helped to further my already-in-progress road to freedom. I already knew I was never doing anything wrong by enjoying nakedness. I knew the laws, and was not at all doing anything illegal. (Simply naked is not at all illegal. It only becomes illegal when one is Lewd, or Obscene. I am never either of those. … Sadly, most people are under the belief that simply naked is somehow both of those. Even most police officers wrongly believe this, and although they might arrest someone for being naked, the charges would be dropped if there was no lewdness, or obscene actions. This goes along with how, for some reason, most associate naked with sexual. Simply naked is not sexual. It is too bad that so many people wish to turn something so simple, and shameless into something it is not.) But in that neighborhood, I discovered people who understood the difference, and welcomed it!

As I showered, and headed to bed I realized something wonderful about humans. As long as you are not doing anything harmful, and do not act weird, they accept you for who and what you really are. The result of my accidental (unplanned) nudity just helped me to accept myself even more! That was possibly one of the Best Days as far as growth, acceptance, learning to be comfortable in who I am, and over-all feel-goods!
That Apartment turned out to be my absolute favorite, and most comfortable place to live! I had found a place where people accepted others for who and what they were. I found a place where nobody cared if the blinds were open, or closed... in fact, most people there never closed their blinds at all. That tiny apartment could have easily felt like a dungeon, and fish-bowl, because it was so incredibly visible to everyone. Everyone all around that neighborhood made it clear that I could keep my blinds and door open, making it feel even larger than it was, and not making it feel like I was at all vulnerable, or needed to hide who I was.

Even when the college kids' parents and family would come visit them, not a single one of them acted differently toward me, than they did when their family was not around. In two years of living there, Not one single person ever had a problem with anyone else for how they looked, dressed, or did not dress. Not even the police... because it was in the University, It was regularly patroled by both the University Police, And The City Police. I got to know the officers, and never once did any of them ever think twice about seeing me nekkid outside.

Oh how I wish I could find a place like that again....

There are plenty more fun stories that took place while I was living there. I will eventually write more about my favorite apartment, and the people who came to live as my neighbors.

Update: June, 2012, I have written some more about the wonderful activities in this apartment building, and my neighbors here: http://enterwithanopenmindorclosedeyes.blogspot.com/2012/06/get-naked-on-roof-for-memorial-day.html

As you head-out with the trash tonight, may you find comfort in whatever you are, or are not wearing... ~=:-)