Just a few Crappy Thoughts...

“Do You Like Fudge Tracks?”

That is the question a female coworker asked me the other day.

My reply was: “I Prefer Moose Tracks.”

Moose Tracks Ice Cream!

She and several coworkers burst out laughing, and I realized then that she was NOT Referring to Ice Cream Flavors.

(and, No... this does not in any way connect with "Camel-toe", "Moose-knuckle", or any other random term connected with what may or may not be visible of one's anatomy inside their pants) ~=:-)... although, I likely would be more willing to openly discuss those topics rather than their unclean habits of how they mess their underpants!

I am not sure how the discussion began, but by the time she included me in it, others had already been discussing the prevalence of “fudge tracks”…. Turns out they were discussing underwear, and the streaks they seemed to think everyone had (has?) in their underwear. Ugh!

Just when I thought I had begun to understand humans…

Seriously??!  Well, I guess you could say I might be a bit naïve in this area. It is not often the subject of one’s unclean habits comes up in regards to how well they wipe their butt.  I really would have been happy to continue NOT Knowing this about others. This is not the first time I am a bit disgusted in Humans and their behaviors. Yes, I have spent a life-time inquiring and learning about what humans do… But is it wrong to believe that this was the type of activity that I thought most left behind by the time they were ten? And then to discover that others do not believe me when I say I keep myself clean, never have marks, tracks, or remnants in my underwear!

Yeah, yeah… I know… Ignorance is Bliss…. Perhaps I choose to remain ignorant in some areas. I mean, really… we ALL Do, Right? We choose what we want to know, or not know about others to allow ourselves to be able to get along with them in our daily lives. But every time something like this comes-up, I find I am Quite Disgusted by Humans.

It often seems I am all alone in this area of life. The area of hygiene, cleanliness, and perhaps slightly obsessive quirk about making sure I am clean, Always. It seems the more I learn about others, the more Isolated I become, and not be able to comingle, or find anything to connect with them.

Forgive me for deciding early in life that cleanliness was not only an option, but for me, not anything I would ever allow to be unclean. Forgive me for deciding my underwear was not meant to capture anything I so lazily did not wipe, or remove. Forgive me for finding out how wonderful it felt to be clean and comfortable. But every time this topic comes up, others do not believe that I DO in fact clean myself very well. I offer to show them my underwear, but they say “Eww, gross! No!” Because they believe my underwear must look like theirs.

It seems many are of the belief that the sole purpose of underwear is to keep those remnants from getting on the pants. Sorry, No. I don’t swing that way (pun intended). I will write a separate blog about the purpose of underwear (in my view… probably won’t match what most of the world thinks, tho’!)

This belief that most have about the filth of the back-side also explains why so many seem to believe naked would get poop on everything. It is no secret that I live my life as naked as is possible. But what baffles me is how often people seem to think that just because I am naked, I have poop on everything in my home. To me, my response to them is “What Is Wrong With You??!! Why on Earth would Anybody have poop on everything just because they are naked??” Sadly, they then look at me as if I was the disgusting one, seeming to not be aware of how I must be spreading poop. But they are the ones who are not aware.

Forgive me for learning early in life how to wipe my butt.

I tend to believe it is not at all a difficult chore… But I am often shown by others that it really must be difficult for them to grasp. Either that or they really do not care how they feel. There Really is a Wonderful Feel at knowing you are always clean!

I remember as a small child (I was probably 4 at the time) that one day I was taught by a family friend how to completely wipe, and make sure there is not a speck of anything remaining. She taught me how to properly fold the TP, and how to even get it wet from the sink to finish all the clean-up. She taught me how to not just wipe across the butt, but to be sure and clean where it came from, too. I remember how clean it felt by doing it thoroughly, and wondered why my own Mom, my Dad, or Grandparents had never taught me this. She could tell I really liked the clean feel, and she even understood that most people did not care enough to do this. She explained that most people would only use the dry TP, and be satisfied, because they were in a hurry to get off the toilet, and continue with their day. From that day on, I NEVER wiped with only a dry piece of tissue ever again. I tried and tried to tell everyone how to feel so clean, but like so many other things, they looked at me like I was the freak, weirdo, or just did not belong. So I learned to stop trying to help them.

I Always have wet-wipes under my bathroom sink, and even in my pack. When I have owned vehicles, there was always a container under the seat. But there have been times that they were not available… such as when I was younger. Mostly, My family did not believe in using wet to clean, so I was all alone in this area. But I found that I could always find a way to get a tissue wet, even camping, on long road trips, hiking, or any number of places where one may not find running water. Many public restrooms do not have sinks right next to a toilet, and all they have is pathetic dry tissue available for wiping (and often, they have run-out completely!). I learned that I could get a paper-towel wet long before I would need it, and fold it, wrap it in plastic, and tuck it into the waistband of my underwear for when I needed it later. (Ever wonder why that funny-double-fabric area, with openings is there in the front of boys’ underwear? I found it was the perfect place to stash a few sheets of tissue, even the wet ones in the plastic!) Ironically, every time I have been with others and they suddenly discovered there was no TP available, I would be the one to “magically” make some appear. They never asked where I had it hidden. To me, it was not an option to leave the house without it.

It also surprises me when I hear of people who have somehow run out of TP at their home. How Is This Possible?? Likewise, I hear often of those who use a public toilet, only to discover After they have done their business that there was no TP available. I cannot grasp this. Why would they NOT Check first?? And why would they also not have any of their own with them?? I guess I really am the freak, huh? I have NEVER Been without TP in my life, Nor have I ever Run out at home, or found that I suddenly was without in a public place.

While I know I cannot change the world, Is it Asking Too Much to ask the world to clean their butt?? Ugh… Humans!

Sorry for a Sh**y Blog-post…. But this was bugging the crap outta me (Pun intended!) and I needed to get it written….

...and, yes, I can prove to anyone who does not believe me... Anytime ya wanna look at my underwear, you will NEVER find any tracks... whether Moose, Fudge, or other. I keep clean, thank you very Much! ~=:-)

The Joy of Showering Outdoors

Outdoor Showering

Writing yesterday about living in my tent brought back wonderful memories, and events in my life. Outdoor showers are one of those wonderful joys that most people seem to not enjoy… But I absolutely love them!

One of the greatest joys in nature would be the feeling of showering (or bathing) in the open-air. I learned early in life that when one is in a natural setting, naked is mostly acceptable. It seems most outdoor places where people might get dirty, and there is also some sort of facility provided for cleaning-up before leaving, people just do not worry about seeing somebody naked. It seems many places where there is also any kind of water, also provides some system of showering. This does make sense, because it seems that where water is involved, we manage to get ourselves dirtier than when water was not involved. 

No matter how primitive, or elaborate the showering facility was, they always have several similarities. Every one of them is built so they are not fully-enclosed, and have open-air. They always have an outdoor feel, even if they have walls around them. Most do not have more than a simple partition, screen, or small wall to make them seem they are not in the wide-open. Sometimes, they are placed behind a row of bushes, or trees. While most people would not consider just going throughout the day, or activity without the clothes, it is not uncommon to see those same people strip at those showers. Many times, they do so just for a moment so they can wash out their clothes that happened to be filled with silt, sand, and dirt. Then, once they have fully cleaned, they usually put back on the soggy clothes. Most showers at these places also are unisex. They are not designated as either male, or female. They are not inside sex-specific rooms, and nobody makes a big deal out of it. Sometimes you find some that are designated by sex, but they are still fully in the open. Those make me laugh. Why would it matter which nozzle you went to, if you are still showering in a public-view?

People are always funny to watch. Add the act of showering, and they are even funnier! For some reason people act really weird about showering. I have never understood this. Why is showering any different than dressing, changing clothes, or using the toilet? Many of the same people who willingly get dressed, change clothes, or even use the toilet in front of others never seem to feel they need to hide, but when it comes to showering, they freak-out over it. With the exception of locker rooms, I have never felt weird about showering where others see me. (Locker rooms have always creeped me out since I learned what happens in them, and was considered acceptable, and even normal. I was twelve. I have never found a safe men’s locker room in my life!)

Even when I was at my hiding-everything stages, for some reason, I never felt the need to hide, nor ever felt embarrassed when I was showering. I never felt embarrassed, in locker rooms, but I always felt unsafe in any men’s locker room. In any other shower setting, I always felt safe. When another person would enter the bathroom while I was showering, it was never treated like it was weird for the person who felt they needed to enter, or for myself. It never mattered if it was a shower in someone’s home, a shower at the beach, campground, or anyplace else, a shower was always safe, comfortable, and enjoyable. I think much of this comes from my childhood.

As a kid, I often would be naked as much as I could be allowed to do so. I have written much about this wonderful freedom in life. Often others would find ways to be mean to me for being naked, or even when I was changing clothes, so I was always a bit cautious about where and when I would be naked.

But the showering (or bathing), and feeling safe has deeper roots involved. As a tiny tot, those who gave me baths, or showers were always safe, comfortable, and trusted. A bath or shower was always done in a loving, caring way. Often when we were dirty outside, it was not uncommon to be hosed-off before coming inside. So, even if we were wearing clothes, it was a fun excuse to get naked. Even the ones who would never go naked, would willingly do so when it came time for cleaning. Sometimes those who would otherwise never get naked, would purposely get dirty, so they then had a valid excuse to get naked. This was always funny, but that was how they approached it. But rather than someone doing the hosing-off in a harsh way, it was often done as a fun way to get clean. If there were other kids who were also dirty, often we were already naked, and the parent who wished us to be hosed-off would have us hose each other off. This made it fun, and enjoyable, instead of it feeling like some sort of punishment.  It was amazing how much fun getting clean could be! When getting clean, it is expected, and even accepted to be fully naked. Often, it was one of the few times when it was acceptable to acknowledge, notice, discuss, and learn about the differences in each others’ bodies without shame, guilt, or being treated like you did wrong. What a wonderful learning experience! I am not sure why, but nobody was ever mean about the showering, bathing, or hosing-off. Even the meanest people would stop being mean when it involved public bathing, so it helped me to realize that possibly others were ashamed to be seen, and did not dare to bring more attention to themselves. That worked for me! I loved the chance to be naked, and loved the shower, or bath, and it made it all wonderful when I felt safe because of it!

Usually, if you were getting cleaned in an outdoor place, that meant you had been playing, hiking, swimming, or exploring someplace fun! The fun we had always meant we earned that outdoor cleaning. Usually…

…There was only one time I can recall as a kid that I did not enjoy, or have any fun with the outdoor shower. We were at a campground, and we had gotten into some nasty, smelly muck. It was well after dark, and very cold outside. The Only place with running water was the fish-cleaning sink. Mom stripped us and put us in this smelly cast-iron, cold sink. The water was cold, slimy, and smelly. We had to crouch, curl, and get into weird positions just to get the little amount of flowing water on us. Then we had to go to our campsite naked, wet, smelly, and cold. Mom carried all out nasty clothes. My guess was that it was pumped straight from the source where we had gotten into the smelly muck. The next morning, my Dad found a ranger, and asked. Yup! That water was pumped from the same muck… and the drain went right back to the same spot! Its only purpose was for people to clean their fish. Eeeewwww! No wonder I did not enjoy that one!

I know that most people complain about drafty bathrooms, or the cool, if not completely cold when showering in places that are not completely enclosed. The funniest part is that they willingly play and get wet in the same open-air, often in colder water than comes out of the faucet! And when they complain about the cold at places where they have not been in water, my guess is that they have not learned how to properly dress for warmth prior to the showering. These are often the people you see in flimsy clothes, such as most pajamas. Those same people probably do not make their bed toasty-warm, and only barley keep their body-heat up prior to exiting the bed. They do not warm the body, and so they are already cold before going to shower.

I love the feel of showering outdoors! Most of the places I have lived had windows in the shower, so it was always easy to get the fresh, open-air feel. There is nothing better than getting out of a hot shower, and standing in the fresh air to dry off! Whenever I have been someplace without open-air, I try to find a way to get into an open door so I can feel the fresh-air. Often, even places with open windows, I still wish to be fully outside, and in the open air to dry-off. This brings up a point I have never understood: Those same people who would otherwise enter the bathroom, and chat with you while you are in full-view while showering, often act really weird, and find it uncomfortable when they see you outside of the bathroom drying-off in the open doorway. In many places, the only exterior door is the front door. This creates some interesting scenarios. Ironically, some of the best friends I have had were neighbors who I had not previously met until they stumble upon me while I am nekkid after a shower!  

When camping, I absolutely love the showers! I love the feel of getting dirty while camping, but Love to go to bed clean and fresh. I have had the pleasure of camping in every kind of setting you could imagine. I have been to campgrounds that have every possible amenity, and ones that are hardly more than a clearing barely large enough to pitch a tent. I will always find a way to have a shower, or bath before bed, and often again once I have had my morning coffee. I have never seen the need to buy a portable shower. If I cannot find a place to bathe, I will create my own shower.

Creating an outdoor shower when you have no running water is not difficult. Just get a two-gallon jug, and put a small hole in the bottom. Plug the hole with some sort of stopper. In the lid put an assortment of holes. Fill the jug with hot water, screw the lid on, and hang it upside-down above where you wish to shower. The water will not flow out, until you remove the plug in the hole. You can regulate how fast the water flows depending on how big that hole is. I place a rubber-mat on the ground below my feet to keep the dirt from becoming mud, and splattering.

When I lived in my tent in 2009, I often showered in the house, just for the pure simplicity, and convenience. (See previous post titled “Happy Thanksgiving…”) When I showered inside, it was in the evening, usually just before bed. The bathroom was smack in the middle of the house, and in the evening, there was usually activity in the front rooms near the bathroom. Often, there were house guests who may not have been comfortable with my lifestyle, so I always leaned toward the cautious side when I was up at the house. While I never hid my nekkidness, I also did not ever force it on anyone. Shocking unsuspecting people was not something I would willingly choose to do. If they chose to enter the bathroom, or look down the hill to my tent area, that was completely their choice. But to deliberately make yourself be seen is a different situation. I felt it would not be right to either leave the door that faced the main portion of the house wide-open, or to exit the bathroom after showering without anything on. But similarly, the door was never locked, and often other housemates, or those visiting never found it a problem to enter, and use the bathroom when I was showering, or even after when drying off. Often, the door that faced the laundry room, and also had a door to the back yard was left open by those who lived in the house, plus by me, allowing it to feel like it was outside by letting in the fresh air. When I got out of the shower, I would either wear the towel, or just some shorts until I could get outside to dry off in the fresh air.

Because I was living as though I was actually camping, I often did shower down by my tent. In the mornings before work, I often took a quick shower outside. Talk about waking-up refreshed! The morning air was often frosty, and the sun was not yet up when I was getting up for work. I would be outside, and did not even have a fire to warm by. I had hot water, and it felt wonderful, and refreshing! Many times in the late afternoon during the summer, I would happily skip the indoor shower, and enjoy a full shower and shave in the outdoors with a wonderful, warm breeze blowing. On my days off, I Always enjoyed an outdoor shower in the mornings… But I would wait until after I had my coffee, and the sun was shining fully on my shower-spot. There is something just refreshing and wonderful to shower completely free of any walls or barriers. Yes, i was seen often by others, and nobody ever minded, or got weirded-out by this.

When I traveled across the United States in both 2005, and again in 2007, I found some wonderful places to camp! I also found some very unique and wonderful shower-facilities! Most of the places I camped had actual facilities designated for showers. There were a few that did not have any, and I was able to have fun creating my own.  Those that did have facilities were uniquely different from state to state.

In Massachusetts, I camped in an apple orchard that had been converted to a campground. It had a screen-house as a bathroom in the middle of the orchard. Other than a few trees around it, it was fully wide-open, with only screens for walls. There were short partitions on each side of the toilet, but it was open in front and back. There was one interior wall between the sink, and shower. But otherwise, it was completely open. You can read in detail about this place, and how free it was here:
http://enterwithanopenmindorclosedeyes.blogspot.com/2012/04/magic-of-naked-campfires.html

In Iowa, there was a campground along a river where the showers had no roof. The funny thing about having no roof, was there had been a new pedestrian path bridge built to cross the river, and that bridge went directly over the roofless showers. It seemed the bridge was very new, and nobody had gotten around to adding any covering for the showers. But it also did not seem to matter. There was a muddy river flowing just at the bottom of the campground. I say "muddy" because it was literally red. The red clay that washed down this river made it like a mud-bath. That was cool! many people played in the "mud" naked. Yep, kids, adults, dogs... it did not matter. Then after the mud, they would tromp naked and red, covered in mud to the showers. Most only went naked down at the muddy water, and many would cover in a towel to go up to where the showers were, but nobody cared of another saw them naked at all.

In Connecticut, the campground shower had only three walls, and no roof. There was a partition of shrubs separating the men’s from the women’s designated shower rooms. The showers were open-front, and faced out toward the shrubs. Each toilet area was closed-off and mostly private, yet the showers were generally open. And often in a camping environment, it was not uncommon for families to share a shower-area. Since this one was set-up fairly-open, this also was a shared facility, and very comfortably open, and accepting. Occasionally you would see someone attempting to hide, or would shower in a swimsuit, but mostly it was open, and unisex. It was comfortable, and open to the sea-air.

Another campground in Connecticut did not have showers in the campground, but had a row of showers on the hill just above the beach. They had a high-wall on the side facing the street and parking lot, and high walls between each shower-stall. But facing the beach, there was only a short wall. It was on a slight hill, overlooking the beach, so it would be guessed that the designer figured those below on the beach could not see over the wall. But it was in full view of all who went to shower. It seemed to be after the "beach-season" when I was there, so there were not many people along the beach, or at the showers. I enjoyed "showering literally at the beach!" Occasionally, you saw another showering. Some showered naked, some showered in swimsuits. Those walking the beach did not even seem to notice the showers were her.

In Vermont, one campground had pit-toilets, yet had a large unisex shower-building, with not roof. This shower-building  was one large open square concrete room with shower heads all around the walls. There were no partitions, and not even a full set of walls. The entrance was a large, wide opening simply facing the forest, with no partitions to block it. Just one wide-open square gang-shower for all to share at the same time. There were no benches,or even an area that was supposed to remain dry. With no roof, and not even full-walls, I expected cold water. I was surprised to find it had plenty of hot water! It was unusual in how it was built. It was still listed as a campground, yet there was not even a place to pay for a night of camping. The showers were free, too. The camp was very primitive.

At another one in Vermont, even though there were separate Men’s and Women’s restrooms, there was only one shower room. It was a unisex shower room.  When you entered, there was a wall of sinks with full mirrors along the left wall, and a row of six individual shower-stalls along the right wall. Each shower stall was divided from the one next to it by walls, and doors… sort-of. At the front, you enter the individual shower area, through a tavern-style door. These were only half-doors with slats, and only four-feet high. Between the “door” and shower was a dressing/ undressing area. These had five-foot high walls between each. Then the actual shower spaces were separated with six-foot high walls. Keep in mind the wall of mirrors.  

In New York, at an actual Nudist-Camp, They had one indoor unisex bathroom. But the funny part was the showers. On each side of the small bathroom, were two separate showers. Each had full glass sliding doors to close-off the front (the glass was clear, not frosted). The one on the left was marked “Men only”. The one on the right was marked “Women only”. Also funny about this place was that they had four outdoor showers. These showers were randomly throughout the acreage where the campsites were. They were in the wide-open, with no differences, but two were marked “Men only”, and two were marked “Women only”. My guess is that perhaps the state of New York mandates that showers are labeled for each sex. I had visited another nudist camp, but not stayed there before going to this one. I saw the same thing there. There was an outdoor shower facility. This had one wall and a roof. The wall had 6-shower heads along it. Three were marked "Men" and three were marked "Women". As the park guide gave me a tour of the place I laughed about the designations, since there were no walls, or differences at all. She did not understand why I thought this was funny. (I did not stay at that one because the lady just seemed weird to me.)

In Mississippi, I experienced my first “Closet” shower at The Yogi-Bear Campground. The shower building had six individual showers, each located within their own “closet”. Each had its own exterior door, and when you opened it, you saw a space that was exactly 3-feet wide, and 5-feet deep. The shower was 3-feet by 3-feet with a curtain across the front. The other two-feet in front of the shower was supposed to be a dressing area. The roof was barely taller than I was, and the shower-heads were at my chest-height. This is the worst shower design I had ever seen at a campground. I could not imagine anyone thinking such a tiny space was acceptable, let alone imagine shutting yourself into a closet with no windows, no fresh air, and no place to even turn around! I showered in that closet at night, but placed a shoe in front of the door to keep it open. In the morning, I rigged-up my own outdoor shower at my campsite.

In North Carolina, along The Outer Banks, The bathrooms and shower houses were built on tall stilts to be above any high tides, or stormy seas that come across the area. The shower houses had three solid walls, and one screened wall. The screened wall faced out toward the water. The showers were set against the far wall, in individual stalls, but open in the front. Because of the elevated building, and the distance to the showers on the far walls, they were fairly secluded. If people cared to look up from the dirt path along the water, they could see the shower area, but it was not highly visible. I saw some people shower naked, and others would shower in their swimsuits.

In Half-Moon Bay, California, The showers were built as four individual rooms, all in one building. Each one had its own corner, and own entrance. Each was marked unisex. The entrance was an open-framed doorway with no doors. Outside each doorway, there was a partition wall, about ten-feet across, and also as far from the opening. The concrete sidewalks that went around the buildings also went in between the partitions, and the open-doorway, so it was highly visible from any who walked past. Inside the door, was one large square room, … about 8-foot square. The showers had bars like they could have curtains hanging to partition off the shower, but there were no curtains. The interior walls between each of the four rooms only went up six-feet high, so they were open to the other three in the building. Other than the exterior partition wall across the open doorway, the showers were completely open. I had hoped to camp here, but the campground was full. I asked the ranger if I could at least stop for a shower. She said that since the showers were coin-operated, I could enter the park for free, and even showed me on the map where to park, and where the showers were. But when I saw the design, I was not so sure I was at the right building. I went back and asked her, to be sure. She smiled, and said, that was indeed the shower building. Because it was fairly crowded, and not secluded, I was not so sure naked would be accepted. She smiled, and told me "The shower buildings are new. Eventually, there will be doors, curtains, and no sight between each shower. but for now, Yes, they are intended as a real shower, and nobody would object to a naked person. You are welcome to be as comfortable as you desire." Normally, I would not hesitate to be naked, but I am careful about highly-public places. She was correct. I showered naked, and nobody cared, although many walked past. Yes, people looked. People of all ages and both genders came down this path. Sure, there were the usual grins, and even the occasional ones who walked past two or three times. Of course the funniest, and the ones I could appreciate most were the little kids who would go past, then bring their friends back to show them. I remembered how much I appreciated those who allowed me the same freedom and welcomed my own curiosities. None stopped to stare, or even make me uncomfortable, but it was funny to watch as they found such delight in being allowed to see a naked person with shame, or even feeling they were doing something wrong.

In Wyoming, I found a “Hobo-Bath” This was a natural hot springs for soaking. The place where this natural hot water came out of the ground was made into a large soaking pool. It was surrounded all around by tall cement walls, but was open-air, and had no roof. Once inside, you discovered one large, wide-open unisex changing area, which also had a row of showers on the wall all in the same room as the changing area. There were signs all over the facility stating “No Nudity Allowed”. This was funny. The changing/ showering area was not visible from the actual pool area. There was a wall separating them from view. But the entire changing/ showering area was wide open, and unisex. There were designated separate men’s and women’s bathrooms that had a toilet and a sink. It was free to enter, but there was an attendant on duty. It was required to shower before entering the pool, and also after exiting it. But No nudity was allowed in the pool area… only in the wide-open, unisex changing/ showering area. Strange. Most people changed and showered freely, yet in the actual pool, looked uncomfortable if there was another who might look their way, even though they were wearing their swimsuit in the pool.

In Washington State, along The Columbia River is a small campground built on sand dunes. It has one unisex bathroom. It is a very small wooden building. The sink, and mirror are outside, on the wall. In the center of the building, there is one open doorway with no door. Once you enter this doorway, there are two half-doors. The one on the right is the toilet. The one on the left is the shower. The half-doors are merely there to designate separate spaces. They clearly are not intended for any privacy. Between the shower, and toilet is a wall about 6-feet high. There is one single light bulb hung between the two spaces. In the back of the building, there was only a wall about five-feet high. I thought it was strange that a taller wall was separating the shower from the toilet, yet on the back there was a shorter wall. Of course, Washington has laws against public nudity, but since it was a river-beach campground, and was not a highly-populated, or crowded campground, it was not uncommon to see naked people, so the shower, and toilet also were no big deal here.

Outdoor showering is one of the joys I have always treasured. I am sure most people are absolutely mortified when they discover these places. I have seen my share of antics when people attempt to hide while simultaneously showering. It is funny how people behave. Not once, have I ever had anybody react funny when they see me casually showering, and not attempting to hide. Ironically, it is the exact opposite. Many times, this is how I have met some of the most wonderful people! When people see you comfortable in your own skin, they are more open themselves, and often very friendly. There is something magical about being outdoors that takes down so many barriers. When you are outdoors, and showering, almost every barrier is knocked down… when you do not act like you are doing anything weird. Like I mentioned before, for some reason people do not act weird when they see someone else showering. They only act weird when it comes to their own nakedness and showering in view of others.

Every single one of these has stories to go along with them, but they each could fill up their very own post. In this posting, I am trying to just focus on the aspect of outdoor, or outdoor-feel showers. These are just a few, and I have many more to share… eventually.

 I have many more wonderful experiences of outdoor showers to share. Waterfalls create a whole separate category of outdoor-showering experiences.
~NAKED ALERT!~
The following pictures show me nekkid in a waterfall. Scroll down with an open mind, or closed-eyes. (If You do not wanna see me simply naked, enjoying a waterfall, then by all means, just scroll on past it. If you are not sure if this is something you are ok with, then simply look with an open mind...or closed eyes) :)

No matter what your level of comfort is, I hope you find the Joy of showering outdoors. Whether you do it naked, or in a swimsuit, whether it is visible to others, or secluded. May you find how wonderful nature can be!

Of Course I have No Body Hair :)

A Smooth Body....
Or have I "Figured out The Secret to being a Girl?" ~GRIN!
~NAKED ALERT!~
Every one of the pictures shows me Nekkid, but they are done in a way which shows no detail. Look with an Open Mind, or Closed Eyes :)

“I figured out the secret to being a girl. It's all about hair. As long as it's on your head everything is cool...anywhere else....OMG! Us girls spend more time removing hair than it takes a man to mow the lawn. No pun intended. =)”

I about died laughing when Kathie recently posted this on Facebook. After I “liked” it, this was her comment: “I figured you would like that. I pretty much wrote it for you AND to give the kids hell.”

You gotta love a friend that accepts you, and even knows how to make you smile from 3000 miles away! Kathie is one of those who accepts, and even understands my choice to be smooth…and only she could possibly combine a post that simultaneously shows her love toward me, and torments her own children using the topic of body-hair.

Yesterday, I wrote about how I know my life is not in the right balance when I discover that I have hair on my legs, and Do Not have Purple Toenails. I decided to write a separate post about each of these, starting with the purple toenails, because I was coloring my toenails long before I would ever have to deal with body hair.

Yes, you understood that correctly… I Remove ALL Body Hair.

But when my life is not balanced properly, I tend to neglect things that would otherwise be done without any needed thought. Three of those things which are really good indicators of how balanced, or not, my life is would be: Quality Naked Time, Purple Toenails, and Not a Stitch of Body Hair. If any one of these is not right, then you can bet that all three are equally out of whack. But these are merely a visible means of measuring what is going on deep inside my mental battle. Usually once I discover I am neglecting these three, I have already long been addressing the core issues. But once I discover I am hairy, and my toenails are naked, I know I gotta focus quickly on a more positive direction, and quickly, too.

As soon as it hit me yesterday, I showered, shaved, and colored my toenails. Ahhh Much better!

I guarantee, you will not find a human on this planet we call Earth that is anything like me. I was created unlike any other, and do things differently than any you have ever met. It is impossible to put anything I do into any kind of category, or to label my choices in any sort of way. The ONLY category that anything I do can be grouped into would be the “Jon-Category”. It really is that simple… None other will fit. For some odd reason, most people try to categorize the removal of all body hair into some sort of sexuality. This baffles me. Nothing about body hair is sexual to me. I also do not see why so many people want to treat such a topic as “forbidden”. To me, the topic of body hair is no more, or less, appropriate than the topic of hair on a human’s head. Every Human has hair all over their body. Why do people get so bent out of shape over this topic? Why is it expected that women must remove (almost) every bit of it, and men should be hairy? Also, why is it considered acceptable for women to remove all of their body hair, except for the area immediately surrounding their vagina? Oh how people freak out about how much, or how little a woman has there! Shouldn’t a person be allowed to decide for themselves how they wear their own hair? Why is how a person grooms their hair such a hot topic? (I say “Hot Topic”, referring to how heated, controversial, or twisted the topic becomes… not as a topic that is often brought-up in general conversation)

All my life, I have found the subject of body-hair to be quite a fascinating topic. Or, more appropriately, I found the ways in which people addressed (or avoided) this topic fascinating. I guess you could safely say that early in life, I had already made up my mind about how I felt about body hair. I decided early on that I would not have any. I decided that the supposed acceptable way society deemed men were to be hairy, and women were not, was not acceptable to me.

Always seeing people naked was not a bad thing for me, because for someone who enjoys learning about the world and those who occupy it, what better way to learn about a human body, than to see it without the illusion of clothing? I have written often about the freedom of living life naked as a child, and being around others naked. To me, this was just natural. Seeing how each human did or did not have hair, how it grew in what areas, and at what ages the hair started to appear as a young-adult, the way it would be coarse in some areas, and really fine in other areas, or how it would be a different color than the hair on their head, or how some would curl, while other areas were straight, or when it turned grey, or even got really wild and sparse as an older person to me was a wonderful learning experience. I always loved learning about everything around me. I found that most of the people in my life were open and willing to allow such curiosities from me. Also growing up in such an open environment allowed me to observe how people groomed the hair differently on different parts of their bodies. I was always amazed when I would find someone who had never learned about all the different aspects of a human’s body hair. It baffled me to discover that some people grew up without ever having had this experience. I could not imagine going through life without learning from every single experience. I could not imagine having grown-up and never even noticed body hair on any of the humans I saw daily. For some odd reason, it seemed most people did not even pay attention to body hair, until they started to grow their own. Then suddenly, it was awkward for them. I often asked these people how it was possible that they could go every single day of their life, and not learn about body hair. How could it be possible to suddenly have the topic come up, when every single human has body hair, and it is all around them? Oddly enough, because they had chosen to not pay attention, this made me the freak.

All my life, I have been treated like I was some sort of freak, because I liked to learn, wanted to know everything about any topic that crossed my path, and had an opinion about those topics. (It is easy to have an opinion when you know about a topic.) At an early age, I had an opinion about body hair. It did not match most of society. I knew I did not want any on my body. I knew I admired the way each and every person groomed their own body hair. To me, it did not matter if they were a man or a woman, what they did with their own hair should be their own choice. I also knew that no matter what I believed, society would attempt to make me just like the others.

Fortunately, for me, I did not begin to grow any body hair until about tenth grade. I say “fortunately”, because for me, this meant I did not have to attempt to remove it, since it was not there. But unfortunately for me, most of society wants boys to be hairy from the age of twelve. Along with all the other troubles I had in life during my teen years, and attempting to hide myself from most of the world, my problems were only aggravated further by not having yet started to grow any body hair. When the mean boys in P.E. attempted to make fun of me for not having any hair yet, my reply was always the same: “Good! I Do not want any.” For whatever reason, they did not understand this, and only tried to torment me more because of it. What I could not understand was why being unique, and having an opinion about how I wanted to live my life made so many people want to be mean, harmful, and even attempt to make me behave in a horrible manner… or more appropriately, to behave just like they did. Why were they so convinced that being mean to another was a good thing? Why would they want someone to have hatred toward another? Why was a lack of hair such a big deal to them?

Also fortunate for me, was when I finally started to grow body hair, I had just moved to Medford, and was no longer surrounded by the mean people in Tigard. I had a brand-new start in Medford. In Medford, I was able to be who I am, and even though I never had huge amounts of friends, those which I did have accepted me for the unique person I was.

The summer I moved to Medford was 1984. I had just turned 16. Before that summer, I was only 5’4” and weighed 90-lbs. When I started school at the beginning of 10th grade, I was suddenly 6’2” and weighed 140-lbs. I did ALL of my growing all at once. It was summer-time, so I was in shorts, and did not have to keep getting new pant-sizes.

I lived in Tigard, officially, still, but had gone to visit my Dad in Medford in the early part of the summer. At that time, I must have started to grow some fuzz on my face, but had not realized it, yet. Later in the summer, I went to California to visit my Grandparents, and later came back to Medford again. When I returned to Medford, My Dad gave me a brand-new electric Norelco razor. That was his way of saying I needed to shave. That was when I realized I was growing hair finally. The week before school was starting, I went back home to Tigard. Once I was back in Tigard, I realized how horrible life was there, and could not even look forward to once again having to be in the same school as my brother. (I was fortunate that the two previous years, he was at the high-school, while I was at the junior high.) I had been in Medford enough that summer to know Medford was a better place for me. I arranged with my Mom and Dad that I would move to Medford, and start fresh at school down there.

As I started school in 10th grade in Medford, I was fully aware of the hair I was now sprouting. The fancy electric Norelco razor my Dad gave me burned my face, and when I tried to use it on my body, it left horrible rashes. I would shave my face only about once a week. That would minimize the burning, and still keep the hair from growing wild. Trying to shave my body was almost impossible. And an electric razor is absolutely horrible on hairy underwear regions! I did not have enough money, or even know enough about disposable razors to attempt to buy, or use any of those. I was getting a hairy body, and absolutely hated it! I found that by using the trimmer feature on the electric razor, I could keep all the hair trimmed to a very short depth. Occasionally, I would be at a female friend’s house, and would discover that they had disposable razors, and shaving cream. I would ask if I could use them. After they asked “why”, they always said “yes”. I would eagerly jump into the shower, and shave from nose to toes! Not a single one of them ever thought this was weird. After I showered, and came out again, they were more than eager to ask me questions, and learn about my desire for a smooth body. Oh How wonderful it felt! (Both the smooth body, AND the closeness of being able to discuss a supposedly forbidden topic with a trusted friend!) Then the hair would quickly return. It was itchy, and uncomfortable. I absolutely loved how clean I felt when I was shaved smooth! But I hated how uncomfortable it was when the hair was growing back. For whatever reason, My Dad was against disposable razors, and I was not about to go against his wishes in his home, so I could not maintain the completely smooth feel on a regular basis. I finally gave up trying, and just let it grow. Every now and then, I found myself in a situation where I could get a full shave again. I Cherished those.



The topic of shaving did not come up often, but with those that it did, it was always funny to find out I was smoother all over than most girls were. They often asked me for advice, and it was not unusual to help them. While for most of my teenage and adult life I was absolutely mortified to allow anyone I knew to see me naked, I found that there were always exceptions. The bathroom, showering, and changing clothes near a trusted friend was for some reason never looked at as awkward. Shaving also seemed to fall into that category. If I was comfortable enough, and they were, too, for the detail discussion about shaving, then we usually did not have any hang-ups about seeing each other in that situation. While I would go to great lengths to be sure I was not seen naked, for whatever reason, those who were around when I was shaving were always considered safe, and even comfortable. It would at first cause a bit of alarm when someone wanted to watch, and see the technique I used, but when it involves a sharp razor near sensitive regions, you quickly forget about anything else and focus on taking care of the task at hand. I was always surprised to find out how many girls would not shave near their underwear region, because they were afraid of accidentally cutting. Once they discovered how smooth I kept my regions, they would ask if I could teach them how.

Just a humorous footnote: Be careful when you ask someone to help you shave. If you are not specific about exactly what you wish to be shaved, or phrase it in a less-then clear way, you might end up with something shaved you did not expect… see the next two pictures as a good example. (No captions needed, you can fill in the blanks…)

As I grew in life, I also often bought disposable razors, and maintained a smooth shave. Unfortunately, as life’s financial struggles sometimes were a bit overwhelming, one of the first expenses I eliminated was the razors. I still had the electric, and could get by with using it on my face, but the cost of disposables kept me from buying them. I would occasionally buy the cheap ones, but they were worse than not shaving at all. My body liked the expensive ones, go figure!

Sometimes, I would just let it grow, and other times I would keep it smooth.

When I was married, my life became such a living hell, and I found myself retreating into a world of safe-shelter again. I was married for one day less than a full year. My wife did not like me to be shaved, and I stopped shaving my body to please her. Six months before I finally divorced her, I started shaving again. She never noticed. (A good indication of how messed-up the marriage was!) After the marriage, I entered a world of living my life in mostly secret again, and it would take many more years to finally rediscover who I really needed to be. After my marriage, when I shaved, it was mostly in the winter months. This way, I was always wearing long pants, and nobody would notice. I often would spend the night at friend’s houses, and would sleep in shorts. If anyone ever noticed, they did not say anything about my shaved legs.

For whatever reason, I stopped shaving my body, except the underwear region. I found this to be completely odd. I let everything else grow, and only kept the underwear region completely shaved. I tried to let that grow back, but I could not stand it! It took many years before I could grasp why that region was so important to always be shaved. I associate the hair in that region with the horrible things that happened while I was married. I know it is silly to make that connection, but since that is when I had hair there, and those events happened only while I had hair there, the connection will always remain. That was in 2000.

I would not totally rediscover complete freedom again, until 2005. That was the year I ran away, literally, from life as I knew it in Oregon. In the year prior to leaving, I had tackled quite a few of the issues, and self-imposed demons that were bogging me down. Cara was my roommate, and she always bragged about how good her Venus Divine Razor was. She also used really good shave gel. She was convincing enough, that I actually willingly spend the money to buy Venus Divine razors for myself. I was amazed at how good they were. I could not believe how many women had kept this secret! The razors created for men were simply just ok. These Venus Divine razors created for women were better than any other I had ever used! During that year, I often shaved my whole body. But I did not do it continuously. When I left Oregon, I neglected to pack the Venus Divine razors. I did not have any extra money, so buying new razors was not exactly something I could justify. After two days, I could not stand it anymore! I bought a cheap disposable razor, and attempted to shave at least the underwear region again. This turned out to be a very bad idea. I was using cold water, at a rest-area, without any kind of crème, or gel. I attempted to use some liquid handsoap, but I was allergic to it, and that made matters worse. So, now I had cuts, rashes, and extreme discomfort! I had no choice, but to NOT Shave for many days, until all was healed again. At some point while in New York, I broke down and bought One bar of Good Soap, One Good Razor, and One can of good gel. I shaved that night in a campground shower which had plenty of hot water. I made that razor and gel last as long as possible for many more days. I found that even in the coldest of streams, if you have a good razor, and good gel, it is easy to get a smooth, perfect shave. Often, I did not even have a stream, but could rig-up a make-shift shower with a hanging plastic water bottle. Even under those conditions, I could manage a good shave.

Two weeks later, when I finally stopped running, I was in Virginia. After attempting to kill myself, I finally ended up in a mental-hospital. They allowed me to shower immediately, but they had specific rules about razors. I could shower, but the rules specified that I needed to be watched 100%, not just having a nurse in the bathroom, but no curtain blocking the view. They would allow a person to ONLY shave their face, so shaving any part of my body was out of the question. The razor they provided was not real good, and they expected you to shave without any kind of gel, so I did not even bother to shave my face. The day they were planning to release me, one head nurse who had learned quite a bit about me, came in while I was showering, and asked me if I minded if she relieved the other nurse who was assigned to be in the room while I showered. I told her I did not mind. Funny thing about hospital showers: they have Very Good water pressure, and Endless Hot water! Usually, they limit you to a "fast shower", and depending on the nurse, will even remind you  to "hurry-up". As soon as the other nurse left, she asked if I wanted to Shave? Of course I did! But I hesitated in my answer ... She knew my hesitation. She said: "I have something for you." and handed me a Venus Devine Razor and Skintimate shave gel! Then said "Take as long as you need in the shower.  I do not need to watch, but I do need to remain the room while you shower." I started crying again! She closed the curtain, and went to sit on the chair, reading a book. Just like the Trooper in NY, she knew what I needed! Although it was still awkward for me to shower and shave in front of strangers, it still felt amazing!!

When they released me, they sent me to live at The Salvation Army Shelter. I started working immediately. While I had a little bit of money, still, I could not buy the good razors. And even if I could, the shower setting there was not exactly a place I felt safe. I shaved my face, just because it was easier to do there, than the entire body. So I just had to let it all continue to grow. After a little more than a month, I was offered a room with a coworker. Finally, I was feeling like I was in a safe-enough place that I could shave.

I bought the Venus Divine Razors, and the Skintimate Shave Gel again, finally! That first night, I shaved every single part of my body. It was heavenly to feel so clean from nose to toes again! While relaxing in bed that night, I realized how important the shaving was to me. Since that night in October of 2005, I have ALWAYS made sure I keep the good razors on hand.

Shaving my body is in no way a sexual thing.

To me, shaving the body is far more important than anything having to do with sex, or sexuality.


Yes, I make myself laugh. I took these pictures last year... I realised quality naked time was lacking, but it was cold, and I lived in a drafty old house. So, what to do? Put on a warm hat, warm socks, and have a nice hot cup of coffee while cooking breakfast! If ya can't read the print on the coffee cup, scroll down. :)

I chose these two pics, because they illustrate a hairless human quite well, without shoving anything anyone might not wanna see in their face. I hope you also find the humor in how I live my life! :)






It is a feeling of cleanliness. A feeling of everything is safe in my world. A feeling of knowing I am taking complete care of myself, and finding the positive, joyful place where I belong.

Yesterday morning, when I realized I had neglected the shaving, and My toes were not colored Purple, I Knew I had let myself get out of that good, safe place.




Sometimes, the simplest things can be the biggest indicator of what we are doing right, or not quite doing the way we should.

According to the Quote from Kathie at the top of this post, I guess it would seem I have figured out the secret to being a girl. ~Grin ...But I still have not yet figured out what to do with that darned penis hanging in front of me! Ha!

There are so many fun stories to tell associated with a lack of body hair, but those will have to wait for later posts.

May you find a Smooth Shave in your Near Future! May you find the joy of having a completely smooth body from nose to toes! May you tell the rest of society that what you do with your own body is not their concern.

I Hope you have a wonderful day, and realize if things are not balanced the way they should be. May you always find the time to color your nails, play naked, and have a smooth shave! ~=:-)