Saturday Fun

This Saturday there was a party out at a couple's home in Maryland. They host periodic parties in their home. In the summer the parties start earlier with lots of beautiful naked men having fun by the pool and eating barbecue. During the colder months, the parties occur in their basement where they have a bigger and more professional setup than most commercial bars. The place is perfect for these parties.

With about 80 RSVP'd people, turnout was good. There was as much fun to be had as one could hope for, but that's not why I enjoyed it so much. I love the ambiance. I love it when people are open and accepting and engaged. Perhaps places where anything can happen brings out such openness, or perhaps it only attracts that are already open. Either way, I love it.

When I meet people, I often smile and ask "can I have a hug", then give them my most sincere, big hug. Why do I do this? Because we've all learned how to protect ourselves from the outside world too well, and a hug is one of the few socially accepted ways of piercing that veil ever so slightly. For me, it is my way of non-sexually inviting others into my space with warmth and acceptance.

Yesterday's party was great, because I hugged so many. Of course I don't just mean hugged, but sat with them and talked. Commiserated about the bad and laughed at the good. Last night I probably met about 20 new people or more. But more importantly I spent quality time in which we shared a little of ourselves together without about 7 or 8 people.

• I remember the young, very thin black guy (~24 y/o). I watched him over the course of the evening go from shy and fully clothed to stark naked. I remember his beautiful lips as we kissed goodbye.


• I remember the guy who has lived in various parts of South America and Europe for extended periods of time. We talked a lot in Spanish and discussed various aspects of Latin American as well as Spanish (from Spain) culture.


• I remember talking to the two who come in from Philadelphia and Wilmington. I had seen around several times before.

This is what I love about nudism: the openness it inspires in each of us.

Barcelona

Un amigo nuevo me ha mandando esté poema de Barcelona...

Es la que sueña despierta, ama y se deja querer,
tan mujer y tan hermosa, de ahí le viene su poder!

Ella tiene poder,
Ella tiene poder,
Barcelona es poderosa, Barcelona tiene poder,

Su paseo de Gràcia, es su poder!
Los niños que lloran, es su poder!
su justa palabra, es su poder!
y la flor de la rambla, es su poder!

Tennis

Today was my second day back on the court after taking a 2 month break. I'm still not playing very well, but that'll take probably a month before I get back up to a decent level. My timings not quite right, not quite moving as I should, sucking wind and battling two blisters. I said all that to say how much pure fun playing is and how happy I am to be playing again. I'll be playing every day that the temperature ventures near 50 degrees.

Read a Book

This is one of the most negatively produced positive videos I've seen. I have no idea what to make of it.

Warning, the video has a lot of racially objectionable language.



The creators of the video defend their work here. Really not sure what I think. On thing that bothers me is the use of the word 'Nigger' (no, I won't say N-word) when it's done by either whites or blacks. It is a term whose only purpose was to denigrate. Even when used between blacks today, I think it retains a little of the "separateness" that the original term implied... and we all no that separate but equal is not equal.

Curiosity, tell me what you think of the word 'nigger' when used between black people?

Barcelona Planning (Update)

So I've ditched the apartment I was looking at Barcelonetta only because the agency that is renting it has a lot of mixed reviews on the Internet. I was really looking forward to being so close to the beach, but oh well. Oh... and thanks for the nude, Barcelonian buddy that contacted me to let me know that Barcelonetta is totally safe.

Below are some pictures from the newest place I'm looking at. It is a really smalling studio apartment being only about 240 sq ft. But it seems perfect from me. It has Internet, which is critical since I plan to work remotely part-time while there. It also has a private bath, double bed/futon, washing machine, stove top, pots, pans, linen and a TV (Catalan TV basically plans hardcore porn after 11pm).

So far I've contacted the agency renting the apartment twice and they responded quickly and really answered my questions, which is a good sign. The other place never even responded. My final step is to figure out how to increase my confidence in the company. Their website is at http://www.barcelona-home.com/ so once again, if anyone knows anything, let me know.

So here are the plans while there:

• Take morning language classes at Don Quiote from 8 to 4 each day
• Work from 1 to 5 in the afternoon each day
• Spend lots of time at Mar Bella, which is the nude beach. The last time I was in BCN was during the fall months, so I never got to experience the beaches.
• Favorite bar: Dietrich
• Favorite disco dance club: Metro although i really want to try some of the Arena discos this time (Update: Ever since I first visited, I keep calling dance clubs discos because that's how they refer to them)
• I want to spend at least one weekend down in Sitges
• I also wouldn't mind traveling by rail for another weekend somewhere. Perhaps Madrid, Vallencia or even Cap d'Agde although that's a little bit of a hike. Maybe even taking the ferry to Ibiza for a weekend would be nice.

Question: If you know of a place that you'd recommend or an event that I should do, please let me know.

Wide angle lens view of the studio apartment. You can't quite see this from here, but the table abuts a wall that sticks out. Behind this wall is the kitchen.

Kitchen contains: refrigerator, microwave, sink, stove, washing machine and cutlery.

Private bathroom contains a shower.

Shared terrace. Think I dare go nude here?

Street view. Born is a couple neighborhoods over from Las Ramblas. It's pretty convenient to the beach, the Don Quiote, Eixample (gay area) and metro.

Inappropriate Palin Joke

I felt really good about myself until I insensitively laughed at this joke when someone told it to me last night.

Thoughts on Stimulus and the Financial Crisis

Have you ever noticed how people try to spin things when they have an agenda? A common phrase touted by the Republicans as they oppose the stimulus package has been, "borrowing got us into this mess so how do we think more borrowing will get us?"

First let me say what I agree with. Yes, our debt is crippling. Yes, we as a nation and as individuals live beyond our means because it is unsustainable.

But this is not what caused the financial crisis. The crisis was caused by:

• Unregulated greed. Greed is one of the greatest inspirers of innovation. But we need rules to ensure that everyone plays on a level playing field.
• Imbalanced risk versus rewards. If the same person or entity that benefits from a good decision will also suffer the consequences of a bad decision, by an large, that entity does a better job at considering the risk. In the current crisis, we had mortgage brokers who got money for making loans, but suffered no consequence if they wrote a loan to someone they knew couldn't pay. The banks didn't care as long as they thought they could sell the load on the secondary market to Fannie and Freddie.

So what should we do about the current crisis. I believe we gotta come big. I believe the risk of doing too little far outweighs the risks of doing too little. I believe most people mistakenly believe that life will continue only because it has done so for their whole lives. I believe that major changes can and do happen. All great empires wane and at some point, so too will America at some point. This crisis has the signs of a cataclysmic event that could greatly change the world and our place in it, so the risks are too great. Is the Democratic plan the right one? Honestly I have no idea and don't believe that anyone really knows. Even the world class economists are just providing educated guesses based on classroom "schools of thought".

However, once the crisis is averted (fingers crossed), we must address the deficit. And I hate to say it, but we can't do that by just reducing pork/earmarks. Pork just makes up too little of the budget to make a dent. We must address, restructure or reduce:

• Social Security,
• Medicare, and
• Defense.

Without talking these three, talks about balancing the budget are meaningless.

Naked Coctails - RIP

Well, it's official... one of the areas most reliable, repeating gay, nude activities has come an end. The bi-monthly, Saturday afternoon, nude cocktail party at a local bar is no more. It was my first introduction to nudity after returning from Barcelona and I've talked about here, here, here, here, here and here.

I've always wondered how the bar managed to hold this even given the DC's strict liquor license rules. Although I do think this played a minor part, strangely enough I believe what doomed the long-running event was a fear that patrons could be fined and/or arrested. This made no sense to me, so I looked it up in both the DC Penal Code and Alcoholic Beverage Control Regulation.

DC Penal Code section §22-1312 talks about "lewd, indecent or obscene acts." Upon further investigation, this pertains to exposing oneself in public as well as sex acts. The naked cocktails had a doorman and access was restricted to registered members of the group.

ABRA has many statements regarding nude performers and dancers, but nothing on nude patrons. It has nothing requiring certain articles of clothing except for performers. If you're a geek like me, read it and note the following:

• Chapter 8 entitled "Enforcement, Infractions and Penalties" only applies to liquor sellers, not patrons.


• Search for key words: "nud*", "cloth*", penis, pubic, naked and other related words. All references are explicitly tied to performers or dancers


• Read Chapter 7 entitled "Standards of Operation" in full.


• Read Chapter 10 entitled "Limitations on Consumers" in full. Interesting note for future use: § 25-1009 says you can get a $300 fine for drinking and operating a horse-drawn carriage.

So the only patron-related ramifications are the in the Penal Code and are only enforceable if there is a reasonable expectation that it will be seen by the public.

Ironically, I always thought the bar was on somewhat shaky grounds, but in the end it was the fear generated by rumors of the groups members that ultimately caused the event's downfall.

The event ran at times monthly and at other times bi-monthly for 5 1/2 years. I am happy to have been a part of it for exactly one year. Rest in peace naked cocktails, we'll miss you.

Update: Upon subsequent reflection, I think my tenor might have been slightly misleading. DC still has a good amount of activities for gay nudists like myself. In fact, one member has already invited some to an alternative get-together and another has volunteered to host it in the future. My lament is that I appreciated the routine-ness of the event that I fear will likely be lost. The notion of doing something so normal as standing in a bar, but nude. The idea is that even if no one makes any specific plans, even if there's nothing going on, every other Saturday there was naked cocktails.

Male Blog

I've been asked to participate in a blog named Male. The premise is a variety of perspectives and thoughts from various bloggers on various topics related to our life journeys and what it means to be male.

Feel free to stop by and check it out.

How Stupid Are We

This is absolute insanity. It's weed! Not murder! It kills less people than either alcohol or tobacco and much less addictive than either. Give the guy a break. If this is the worst thing Michael Phelps has done in his life, then he truly should be role model.

I Love Toasters

Palinacins

This is sad, but I guess predictable. As the Republicans try to chart there course out of the wilderness, we have their new (and first black) chair of the RNC basically playing partisan ball by exhorting his members to resist everything Obama. I guess that shouldn't be too much of a surprise since the party chairmen are always hyper-partisan by nature of the position.

But this article is even worst. It suggests that the Republicans constituents still standing are those that were most ardent in the support for Bush and everything red. They are the ones that believe that they lost because they weren't hardcore enough. And they have spoken, and the name of their future is Palin. Sad, but I guess its part of the necessary stages of grief that they must go through.

Barcelona

A while ago, I decided that I would be taking another extended trip to my favorite city. I've cleared it with the BF and the job. I'll be going to BCN for 5 weeks in June and July. The BF is still trying to decide if he'll join me for the final week. I'll be continuing my language immersion classes for 4 hours a day and working my job remotely. I'm thinking to rent an apartment short-term that has Internet.

After lots of research into apartments, one of my final location picks is Barcelonetta. It is a very strange place very near to the nude, gay beach. Of course, there are no real nude beaches in Spain since nudity is technically legal everywhere as long as you don't create a scene. Hmm, I might have to think of ways to exploit this...

Barcelonetta is a little scary though. The streets are incredibly narrow and lined with 10 story buildings with the days laundry strung between them. It probably only seems scary because the building seem so close in. It's not like El Barri Gotic or El Rival, whose streets are left over from midevil times. These streets are actually in very straight grid format. Since I was in BCN in 2007 for a good while, I definitely know of some neighborhoods that I don't want to live, but am not quite sure about Barcelonetta. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE IF ANYONE KNOWS ANYTHING ABOUT SAFETY IN BARCELONETTA, LET ME KNOW. The only other place with holiday apartments in my price range was close to Placa Espanyol. Although PE is only a couple of metro stops away from the city center, it's not walking distance to anything I'm interested in... well except the clay tennis courts at Monjuic.

A friend that I haven't seen in about 7 years contact me last week and invited me to join him in Nicaragua in June where he owns beach-front property near a small town. I'm kinda tempted to go there for a week, before going to BCN, but I really haven't seen him in forever and he is a little... er... unorthodox. I'd probably feel better about it if we met up and re-established our friendship first, but he lives in Philly and I'm in the process of buying plane tickets. It would probably be fun though.

Incoherent Blatherings About Boring Stuff

Today was a great day. It just felt great. The temperature got up to an unseasonable 60 degrees and the BF and I started the day by going out to a local diner for breakfast. Later, I decided to break my 2 month tennis hiatus a little earlier than planned. I went out and hit for about an hour and a half. Of course I was pretty rusty, but what really shocked me was that I was way more winded that I thought I should've been. Wow, how fast I can get out of shape!

Later the BF and I went to Results to work out. I'm pretty even keeled emotionally, but I've noticed that strenuous, physical exercise always has a positive impact on my demeanor. I felt great. I sure hope my tennis elbow doesn't return so that I can start playing regularly again.

Last night I got a call from Kitty. Kitty is a mixed-race black guy (yes, he's a guy), and he wanted to meet up for an early dinner at CPK. The BF and I met up with him and his best friend D. D is supposedly straight and I actually believe him even if he seems more gay than most gay guys do. I think he's probably mostly straight with a little sugar added for good measure. D had changed his hair style to a mohawk and was looking way better than I had remembered.

After dinner we all went back to our place for drinks and conversation and in-between watched the Lost marathon playing on G4. I had never watched this channel and found their channel promotional spots pretty funny and slightly disturbing. The pop-up chat room was also a little weird since it always pops up just when you're really getting into the show. Later we all took out my extensive sexy underwear collection and played dress-up because Kitty told us that he had never wore a thong. D was walking around in a yellow jockstrap and a straw hat and looked hilarious. It was a fun night.

Friday night I had invited a different 20-something friend to join us a Cobalt. He pretty much acted like an ass from the moment he walked in and committed one of my cardinal sins, which is being rude to a good friend of mine. The fact that he was rude to a friend is beside the point, I just have a problem with people that don't consider others enough to treat them as a living being. I winded up kind of letting him sulk in a corner for a while, until he finally decided he would engage and pulled me upstairs. Not going into details, but as I thought about it the following day, I appreciated his behavior even much less. I actually did have a good time, mainly because I left him to sulk alone for a while. Later that night we ate and went to JRs, where I had a really good time talking with Jack. He's such a cute sweetie so I always enjoy talking with him.

I fear that the local nude scene seems to have slacked a little recently. I hope that it's just be the weather. The bi-weekly cocktail party may be in danger. Currently I think there's one scheduled for next Saturday, so I guess we'll find out then how's it going. The last party was a little dampened because the establishment were it is held have some business licensing fears and clamped down on physical contact. I understand the no sex or sex acts rules, but they pretty much stopped all contact below the nipples. One of the things that I love about all male nudity is the openness and lack of hangups, but this is severely dampened if you have to be more guarded nude than you would've been in a normal clothed gay setting. Oh well. It was hard for me to relax in that atmosphere, but after a while I did and actually enjoyed it.

Lastly back to tennis, I loved Nadal's win at the Australian open. I just can't get enough of him. I always route against Federer, but it was really kind of hard watching him cry like that. I really felt for him.

So What!

For the record, I have nothing against marijuana, but don't smoke it and except for twice in my many years, never have.

That said, I wanted to comment on an article that I came across that talks about a picture that surfaced of Michael Phelps smoking marijuana using a bong.

1. He's just a kid. I don't mean this in a bad way. I mean of course he's not perfect and bound to have done at least a few dumb things. So what?
2. Besides, our irrational attitudes toward marijuana make no sense anyway. Look at the scientific evidence. Drinking and smoking are much worse in just about every way you can imagine. Sure some may argue it's a "gateway" drug, but I'd say that alcohol is much, much more so.

Huh?

I have a personal philosophy that everything we do SHOULD promote our life aspirations. These include our careers and relationships, but also simple things like having fun and feeling fulfilled.

So in that light, I just can't understand what Blagojevich is doing. It made no sense before, but it even makes no sense to me now. Now that he's been impeached, and banned from ever holding public office in Illinois again (didn't even know they could do that one), what is he trying to achieve with his media blitz? Perhaps the answer is simple, and just a matter of ego. But whether he's guilty or not, he's not helping himself any. Maybe there's something I'm not seeing here, but I can't help but question someone's mental state when the consistently do things that clearly causes no good to anyone and pain to themselves.

When Will They Learn

Update: Chip Saltsman has officially pulled out of the race for the RNCC Chair.

The Republicans are currently picking their next party chairperson. It came out sometime around Christmas that one of their party chair candidates distributed a CD mocking minorities with songs such as "Barak the magic negro" and "the star spanglish banner." Here is an article rehashing some of the old debate.

Now, I'm sure these were intended as just jokes, but it reflects the inherent callousness and disregard that the leadership has for minorities. We've become pawns in a political game in which we are clearly deemed as on the other side. Because of this, considerations for us as humans with dignity and respect are put aside for political gain... or even just a laugh.

No, contrary to what many tell me, they are not evil. In fact, they are no more corrupt or evil than are Democrats. Unfortunately, partisanship causes all groups to often ardently back positions if for no other reason than to distinguish themselves from the "others". But we need them and we need them healthy. We need them because unchecked power ALWAYS get abused. We need them to make the Democrats better.

Blatherings

Well it's about this time of year when I start to forget what warm weather ever felt like. Gone are the days of frolicking naked in a nearby pool or sunning by the beach. I'm so looking forward to warmer times and upcoming trip to Gran Canaria.

Having only been doing the nude thing for a year now, I may not be an expert, but it seems as if DC has taken a turn for the worst. There just seems to be less festive activities and most of the groups seem to be faltering in one way or another. I think that's a shame, but maybe it's just the winter blues for the groups too.

I did go to a party hosted by the men of color, area nudist group with the BF. We also took a new 23 y/o friend that we recently met along with us who seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. About 45 very good-looking guys showed up and we had a really good time. The party started with some light food and a lot of good social mingling. Later in the night it turned decidedly friskier, but not quite like an all-out sex party.

I've put on a couple of pounds since I decided to take some time off from playing tennis 4 times per week. Some of this is good since I've been trying to gain some muscle in the gym, but I am pining for some warmer weather where I start playing again.

24 Sucks

I am trying watch tonight's episode of 24 and frankly, after being a fan for so long, I can hardly even watch it. How did they go so wrong so fast. It's soooo bad!

So what's wrong with it? Let me count the ways:

1. The whole United States is held hostage by, not even an African dictator, but an African dictator wannabe.
2. This wannabe is in the US. He comes and leaves at will.
3. All of the Americans are helping the wannabe, saying "yes sir", "nor sir", "right way we'll help you kill 10,000 Americans sir."
4. I have no idea how they can get 2 planes to collide in mid-air so easily, but boy these terrorists are good!
5. Oh yeah, for some reason the device in all commercial airliners that warn them of an impending mid-air collision doesn't seem to be working. Oh well.
6. Did you know that there's a website to cause a thermal nuclear reactor to melt down? That's the only way I can see that this CIP device can remotely gain access to all of these internal networks.
7. Er... unplug the firewall dumb-assess!

Honestly, I'm just getting started. There's so much other complete and utter bullshit, but what's the point? I can't believe that with a set full of adults someone doesn't say, "er... excuse me... director guy... this craps makes absolutely no sense."

My First Obama Criticism

So I've been very pleased with his quick actions that have immediately set a new tone in Washington. However, I have to point out that providing an exemption to his own, newly enhanced lobbyist ethics rules seems like a really bad idea.

Republicans First Steps Toward Recovery

This article about the Republican's selecting the next chair for the RNCC shows that the republicans at least realize that something is wrong. The evidence is that all the candidates are touting how they'll do the best job of attracting minorities. There are even two black candidates in the running.

Of course the problem is that it is just a knee-jerk reaction, at least for now. Thus, it becomes a shallow proxy for true inclusiveness. Nonetheless, recovery always starts with admitting that you have a problem. The coming years (or perhaps decade) will make it clearer that they must become more attractive to minorities and accepting of gays, not out of moral revelation, but rather through changing demographic realities.

Still, it's good to see a baby take its first steps.

Lull

It's been a while since I've last posted, but my brain still runs rampant. I've noticed something recently that has somehow escaped me until now. During the past few weeks I've been completely taken aback by the number of people that have spoken to me about being sad or depressed. Some were friends, others acquaintances while others complete strangers.

I wondered how I had missed such feelings in others for so long when it finally hit me. It was no accident that it all happened around the holiday season. I always feel so helpless and hurt when I see someone else hurting. It pains me when I know that I cannot fix everything and bring the smiles back. All I can do is listen because that is something that we all need now and then.

Blagojevich and Burris

Everyone's making such a stink about Blagojevich's appointment of Burris to represent Illinois in the senate, however I think that perhaps my perspective is slightly different.

1. First, I believe that Blagojevich is a disgrace. I qualify this only slightly because I (nor many others for that matter) have really seen the supposed evidence against him. Often things aren't what they seem which is why our country deems us innocent until proven guilty. That said, it sure doesn't look good at all.

2. Even if he is innocent he should have resigned. The nation as well as Illinois is in a financial meltdown. States are operating in crisis mode to balance their budgets since they are unable to raise and/or print new money like the federal government. These times call for an effective leader. Even if we give Blagojevich the benefit of the doubt, there is still no doubt that he has become completely ineffective as governor.

However...

Until he resigns or is legally removed, he does remain the democratically, elected governor of Illinois with all of the responsibilities and authorities that that implies. Illinois law (and perhaps it's constitution) states that he can make this appointment. Illinois' elected representatives wrote the law that granted the governor the ability to make this appointment and the citizens of Illinois elected its governor. So although I'm totally with the current impeachment proceedings and genuinely hope they work and work fast, it seems somehow perverse for the senate Democrats to decide not to seat someone legally selected to represent the people of their state.

I mean think of it... whatever precedent that they might set for refusing to seat Burris could also be used for not seating someone else deemed to "radical" or "unfit" in some other way. Of course the problem with these words is that they are so subjective. Too radical or unfit according to who? One could always come up with such a justification to bar the people's representatives because we don't like their politics.

I actually hope they find a true way (not a technicality) to not seat Burris, however, I hope that they don't trample on the rule of law and the concepts of Democratic representation in the process.

Postscript: References by Burris and others to race has been absolutely not just distasteful but despicable. If it's a bad idea for Blago to seat someone does it become ok if that person is Black? Hell no!

The Ugly Truth About Sex

I came across this article today about how teenagers who take a pledge not to have sex before marriage engage in sex at the same rate as those that don't take such a pledge. This is not a new study, but rather a re-interpretation of a study done within the past couple of years that I can still remember reading about. If I remember correctly, the original study did say that pledged teenagers engaged in sex only slightly less. For context, understand that my fundamentalist upbringing makes be believe that many such pledges occur within a religious context.



But there is a hidden story here. What this tells me is that teenagers desire to abstain from sex will have little impact on their actual ability to have sex. It means that evolutionary-developed drive to copulate is stronger than the will of most.

Alternate Realities

I have no idea what's going on. Either Obama has become completely unglued or Pat Robertson has come completely off the rails because something in the universe just ain't right.

Recall that I come from a fundamentalist background. I went to Jerry Falwell's school so I you'll understand that I am completely perplexed that Robertson states:

• Wants the TARP money used to help consumers/homeowners.
• Calls Bush's handling of several matters including Iraq, Katrina and the economy "terrible" and "unprofessional".
• Says Obama "has the makings of a great president" (qualified by if he continues down his current, middle of the road course).

Now I'll admit that I have been doing some mind-blowing, geeky reading on Quantum Physics and String Theory recently so it is completely possible that I've just been sucked into an alternate universe.

Salem

Recall the witch trials of Salem, Massachusetts. To me this represents a natural inclination within us to eschew that which is different. For group-think to take over. When people are not like us, they become less human. With the loss of their perceived humanity then follows our loss of empathy for them. And yet civilization continues its march. Civilization has required of us extraordinary concessions. Each concession comes as an attempt to allow one to live with the implicit compact that we will be allowed to do the same. The very nature of this compact is that civilization forces us to get to know each other more and more until ultimately the witch is accepted as our next door neighbor.

This is the lens with which I look back to the legacy of slavery and the Jim Crow era. It is by no chance that the developed world has ended slavery just as we have made huge reforms in other areas such as gender-biases, freedom of religion and place of origin.

Which brings me to my point...

The Republicans built their modern-day alignment based on a reaction to the 1960s civil rights movement. It seeked to gain from the fears of "otherness" for electoral gain. Unfortunately, whether by commission or omission, this sentiment remains deeply entrenched in party today. It is no accident that most minorities in this country are Democrats.

And yet I hate this. I hate that my only choice is to either vote Democrat or to vote against my own self-dignity. I wish there was true choice and healthy competition out there in this regard.

But there is hope. It lies in the Republican's shrinking base. As the electorate becomes more composed of the young, which are more knowledged and accepting of differences and minorities, the Republicans will be forced to change. I welcome and look forward to this day. Even now, every few days I peruse Republican Internet sites in search of signs of change. Fortunately there is some chatter on this topic, not yet enough to trigger the change that is needed and ultimately unavoidable. Eventually, we realize that they're not witches. And even if they are... so what.

Postscript: Although I've phrased this as primarily about race, it really about "otherness", which include sexual orientation and other religions. Someday, when the party is less-based upon whom they hate and/or disregard, the Republican party will serve this country better.

Money Isn't Everything

Preferred method of remittance is Paypal. Oh yeah... and say some hail Marys or something.

Asshole

There's nothing I hate more than an asshole. Not the literal kind of course. I can handle people's oddities. I can deal with weirdos. I can sit down with the down-and-out, but I just can't take assholes. For my purposes, an asshole is defined as someone that needlessly, purposely or recklessly causes harm to another. I hate people that mistreat others or talks bad about others.

I say all this because I came across this article today that gives the latest on a former, local judge that definitely deserves to be in the running of the asshole of the year award. This judge sued a local dry cleaners for $54 million because he claims that they lost his pants. The dry cleaner had his pants, but even if they weren't his as he claimed, the cleaner's offer to replace them was declined so that the judge could start a dumbest of all law suites.

Here we are 3 years later and the judge (who subsequently last his job as a judge) is appealing yet again and threatening to go to the Supreme Court. The owners cleaners have had to close 2 stores and lost most of their savings just defending themselves.

Now I'm always one to understand that there are always 2 sides to every story. So event 'til today I continue to read the story, searching for some unseen insight that motivates the asshole. I haven't found anything other than... that he's an asshole. Somewhat in his defense, I'm wouldn't be surprised if the dry cleaners mistreated him when he made his initial complaint, but do you decide that this has gone too far? When do you stop wasting my hard-earned taxes to continue this charade?

Post Script: The man pictured in the picture is poor schmo that just happened to be standing when the photo was snapped and not the referenced asshole.

Ah the Smell of Adams Morgan

I wondered what that rancid odor was that I would smell walking though Adams Morgan this fall season. Mystery now solved. It turns out the be the fruit of female Ginkgo trees. They kind of look like large chestnut/grape -shaped things that fall from the trees. They don't seem to start smelling until someone steps on them and opens them up. The smell is astounding in its power. I wish it smelled like crushed rose petals, but no such luck. It actually smells more like used baby diapers.

Despair

Last night the BF and I went out to Woof, dinner, then Omega. At Omega I met a guy who immigrated from an Islamic country. When he entered the bar he walked directly up to me and told me how "sexy" my shirt was to start conversation. Of course I told him pretty early on that I had the BF.

He's a very good-looking guy, likely to be somewhere around 30 years old. He told me how he only likes black men. He said his first gay experience was with black men and that he's only ever dated black men since. He told me how he had recently just came out ending his prior period of furtive encounters. Remember that the stigma in his part of the world is far greater than it is here. Since coming out he has lost (a) his wife to divorce, (b) his kids to his wife, (c) his house to his kids, (c) parents, (d) grandparents, (e) 58 cousins, (f) job although I didn't quite understand this one and more.

He says that he's given up everything for "one, good, black man". Of course this isn't true. He gave up everything to stop living a lie, nonetheless the desperation and longing of the conversation deeply touched me. There are people that search for their soulmate for their entire life and he's only been out for 2 months. He told me that he's not looking for a big dick, a good fuck, or a one-night stand. Rather, he repeated over and over that he just wants one, good, black man. He even talked about abandoning his religion and being cremated upon his death. I wonder how long it'll be before he gives in to his familial loss and declare himself straight once more.

The saddest thing of all is that it is really difficult to find just one, good, black guy. No... not because he's black, but rather because he's gay. I know that the impacts of culture upon us are grossly understated. It is what makes some blacks internalize inferiority as much as the most ardent racist. It's because they're both watching the same TV shows, movies and reading the same magazines. Well, the same holds true for us gays. We've all grown up in a society that tells us that we are less, inferior and possibly even worthless. Some of us have confronted this and have largely overcome this self-hatred, but many more are still mired neck-deep in it. This is what makes us generally not husband material. That most of us have been more or less damaged by the very society that should have nurtured us.

Fortunately, there are good men out there though. I only hope that my friend finds one. I hope that he is mentally and emotionally ready when he does.

Sexual Racism

I came across a link to a website speaking about sexual racism today and found it to be pretty well-done. I tend not to judge others sexual proclivities since I believe that they can be so complicated that often even we don't even understand why we like what we like. But this site moved my thinking on the issue a little. Perhaps there is something a little perverse about cutting off others even before we've even said "hi". Granted, the online sites that the article speaks tend not to be for casual chit-chat, but still.

Sex and racism aside, I've always greatly believed in the basic principle that positivity is more powerful than negativity. Unfortunately the power in negativity is immediate, so we often think of it as stronger, but positivity tends to alter our mood, our mindset, our happiness and the happiness of those around us. It makes us more likable and attractive. These are more subtle, but stronger. Being positive doesn't mean that we must be pushovers either. I firmly believe that we can ask for what we want and be firm, yet in the nicest way.

Nudism Update

It has been now approximately one year since I first stumbled upon my first nude event and nearly 10 months since my first became active in DC. Having just gotten home from Key West, I thought this would be a good time to reflect on how my views, understanding and general feelings have evolved over this past year.

As the BF and I sat on the couch and reflected on our vacation we also thought of our other getaways that we've had this year. Now I should say that we've always enjoyed our vacations even in prior years, but this year's vacations seemed to be especially enjoyable to us both.

The answer is really nothing new. It's the warmth of the people. You can stand in a regular bar and maybe the average person might talk to 2 or 3 or so people that they didn't already know. But if that same person was naked in the same bar surrounded with other naked men, he'd likely meet 20 to 30. Perhaps nudism just doesn't attract people that want to hide. Perhaps we just can't take ourselves quite too seriously as we stand there in our nakedness looking positively silly. If you can, try to recall having fun and playing when your an 8 year old kid. Remember the silliness and yet the absolute, true and simple fun that could come from almost anywhere at anytime. Somehow I believe that being naked kind of causes to regress into this state, but totally in a good way. It's just plain fun... well... and sexy, but I guess that's where the the 8 y/o analogy falls apart.

I find that most of us long for a sense of connectedness and a feeling of belonging. We want to be able to simply "be" while still being accepted and not judged. The irony of course is that the very things that we do to achieve these ends are those things that isolate us most. For example, to be accepted we try to be cool. Of course, this immediately alienates anyone that isn't as cool as we are. And even in the circles that have bought into our engineered coolness, there is the stress of maintaining appearances such that we hide behind our cool clothing/hair/lingo/etc. Nudism is not magic, but makes it easier to dispense with such things.

On occasion people have asked me if I am a nudist. I have trouble answering this not because I care what they think about it, but because the word seems to mean so much to so many. I mean, I don't have a political agenda. I don't necessarily think its practical for our society to completely dispense with clothing. And yet I do love being naked. I love being with others that are naked. Although I accept that we will forever live in a clothed society, I believe that our culture could benefit from a little more of the body-acceptance that nudism promotes. Oh yeah... and it's just simply fun.

Does that make me a nudist?

Key West

We spent the first half of the week in Ft. Lauderdale and Friday continued on to Key West. FTL was fun as always. The Social Whore didn't come since he already had another trip planned and was hosting a naked party in his apartment. I'm dying to see how it went because he has a modest-sized apartment and 113 people confirmed. I'm wondering how that worked out. I guess the more the merrier.

While in FTL we stayed at the Worthington again. What can I say? I like the place. We went to Club FTL for the first time which was pretty cool. It's funny how we'll go to a place like that while away and yet have never visited the local place in DC. We went to George's and collected yet more chips that we'll never cash in. There was the funniest guy from France named Phillipe at the guesthouse who locked himself out of his room. Being as nice as I am, I made sure that he knew that there was lots of room in my room... on top of me.

At Key West we met up with David, a guy we met at Folsom and met up with a couple of times since. He heard we were going and asked if he could crash in our room for a couple of nights. We all shared a full-sized bed, which actually worked out pretty well. We spent most of our time in the backyard of the Bourbon Street Pub, the Island house and Oasis. Of course I was naked everywhere we went. I have no idea where my clothes keep going to.

Best memories:

• Definitely the best memory was a 3-way with the BF and a latino named Fernando. I can't tell you how hot that was. So much so that the BF is still talking about it.
• Seeing the really gorgeous guys at the Island house. There was a gorgeous 6 ft 3 guy from our guesthouse that I probably spent way too much time with. I remember the latino boy with blond-dyed hair.
• There was a nude/underwear/foam party at the Bourbon St. Pub. Every time I looked over it looked so much fun that I just had to go in. So I alternated between getting all soapy followed by dips in the pool, drying off with a random towel then snuggling with the BF to keep warm. After a while, there was a lot of interesting thing happening in the back of the foam party which just made it all so much more inviting.

My Head is Exploding

This is very, very cool. That is, if you love math and hyper-theoretical concepts. Conceptually I've understood what dimensions are and how there could be more than 3 and even more than 4. But I've always considered thoughts of higher dimensions to be too unfamiliar to us bound by time and space and therefore unimaginable. I now see that I was wrong. Warning, you too may explode.

Just a Little Play

Evidently someone rents out a portion of a local bar on holiday weekends for play parties. We had never gone before, but decided to go this time. We ran into a small framed latino boy that we met just earlier this week. It turned out that he too was going to the party and this would be his first time going too.

Of course as we entered, I immediately wanted to take my clothes off. I mean, I'm not an exhibitionist, but clothes just felt so constraining and... inconvenient. You're not buying that huh? Anyway, the BF is not overly fond of my penchant for almost-anywhere nudity, but typically humors me. It's not like I streak downtown or anything. Well... at least not yet. So many of the parties that we attend are either (a) entirely social, or (b) a mix of social with some play, so this party is not exactly typical for us. We both did have fun though.

Favorite moments included:

• Getting a blow job from 2 guys at the same time while a 3rd worked the other side (see now you can see how clothes could be a problem),
• Getting fucked by a really good-looking and huge-dicked black guy, and
• Watching our latino friend get fucked senseless.

We got home at 5a and of course, saved the best for last. So how was the party? Well... hmm... I guess not bad.

Gabriel

We saw Gabriel today. Gabriel has a very slim build and always wears extremely sexy outfits. They'd never work on me, but he can pull them off. As background, he's definitely a sexy guy, but we've never engaged in anything even remotely sexual nor even hinted at nor discussed anything of the sort during the nearly three years that we've known Gabriel.

Anyway, today he said something funny/interesting/strange. In the course of a natural conversation he says that someone in a relationship should never allow a single guy to stay in their house presumably I guess because it always ends badly or something like that. The funny thing is though that his very next statement was about how much he respects the both of us and how that would make it different for us if we ever did anything together. Hmm.

All Is Not As It Appears

This week we met up with the Social Whore at JR's for some pre-holiday cocktails. He would be leaving town the next day so we decided to meet up. First we ran into Ken, whom we first met at the Eagle one night when I was in my jockstrap and have seen him several times since. It's funny because he's always trying to shock us a little. I think he wants to be a pig. The truth is that he both looks and IS very sweet that he's very endearing. I've invited to take him to a nude party one day and he seems like he really wants to go.

Later we ran into Andrew. I've written about him before calling him Timmy, but hey... unbeknownst to me, he had already picked his own pseudonym. We talked politics a little. I love talking politics to him because he's a little non-conventional in his thinking. It's unconventional in an intelligent way so it's always a little refreshing. He extended a future invitation for cocktails which we immediately accepted. What I hadn't realized at the time is that he was really inviting us over for cocks and tails. Oops, my bad. Not that that made me rescind my acceptance of course. Anyway before he left he came back to me to say bye. The BF was out smoking at this time. He got real close so that I could feel his hardon through his jeans and began talking dirty. Hmmm, not quite as vanilla as he looks huh? Yeah, it was definitely working for me as he described how he wanted to what the BF and I and what he would do to us. As he left he gave me small, gentile and not-so-innocent kiss goodbye.

The Long Dark Night

It's a shame that as the weather changes, the number of nude events decrease. Of course this is my first time going through this time of the year as a nudist, but I do recall that there were less events back in February when I first started. I also witnessed how the events took off as temperature heated up so I can only assume that the current regression is natural as well as predictable. Nonetheless, it's a little sad.

The BF and I have a couple of winter getaway planned to warmer climes to breakup the doldrums of winter. Both will be in warm, sunny, clothing-optional places by beautiful beaches. One will be taken along with 6 friends so that should be a lot of fun. On the other trip is to Ft. Lauderdale and Key West, where we are supposed to meet up with a guy we met at Folsom, whom we have already seen one time since first meeting him. I've been looking at the upcoming events in Key West and decided that we picked the perfect time to visit.

Change in Appalachia

I was talking to a friend of mine from Lynchburg this past week. Interestingly enough, we didn't meet when I lived there and attended Liberty U, but in DC many years later. Rick recently found a long-lost family member in near Chapel Hill and has since moved there part time to take care of him. His uncle is approaching 70 years old and in failing health. When Rick first met him, the doctors warned him that his uncle could go at any moment. His health has since improved somewhat, but he remains week and with very poor eye-sight. Rick's own description of his uncle is that he is stereotypically hillbilly, often voices racial slurs.

During the presidential election, his uncle would commonly talk about the "nigger" and how the country would never allow a "nigger" into the white house. About a month before the election, his uncle said, "Rick, there are things I would like to do before I die and one thing I've never done before is vote. How do you register for this?" My friend offered to find out the rules for him to register. The filled it out together, submitted out and his voter registration card came in the mail a short time later.

The uncle then said, "well I'd really like to do this, can you help me go vote?" It was obvious that this was really important to his uncle so he agreed. This was a little harder since Rick had to vote in Lynchburg, which is over 4 hours away. Rick agreed. He figured he could vote early morning and then drive to NC afterwards to help his uncle. Rick later discovered that NC has early voting so they went and waited in line to do so. This was very difficult because the uncle has trouble walking, standing (remember the long lines) and seeing.

The election workers allowed Rick into the voting booth to assist his uncle. He carefully explained the process and pointed to each circle while telling him, "this circle is for John McCain, this one for Barak..." Squinting, his uncle said "point to the circle for Obama." Rick did and his uncle darkened the circle. My friend then confirmed to make sure that he actually meant to do what he just did. They haven't even discussed it since.

I've heard several of these types of stories over the course of this election cycle. What strikes me about such recountings is that it is evidence that times and people are changing. No, not everyone. In fact if you look at the election results across Appalachia, there is no denying that this is the singular part of the country in which race played a disproportionate role in determining the next president. But even there... in the heart of where racial tensions run deepest... change has already come to thousands of people just like Rick's uncle. And this makes me happy and brings hope.

Dirty Underwear

Recently I was in a large, group, nude setting where I met Pablo of whom I have written before. He is an absolutely gorgeous, Latino boy. He has a beautiful face and a perfect body. Most of I like him because I've watched how he treats others. The times I've seen him he has enjoyed the company of the young and old, beautiful and not so beautiful, the fit and the out of shape. As if he weren't already sexy enough, his good heart just makes him more so.

Although we always talk, I've never really did anything with him. Well... that's if you don't count that one time at that party when... oh... nevermind. Where was I?

Anyway, our relationship tends to be sensual without being sexual. I've never really thought that he was even interested in me in that way. Not that it matters mind you, remember the BF. But an interesting and intimate moment happened just as I was leaving the event.

We had all donned our clothes. I had worn a jock-strap to the event, but decided not to put it on when I got dressed. It was too big to put in my pockets so I asked the BF to put it in his. Of course he and several friends thought that was the perfect moment to play and started passing it around. It only lasted about a minute though before it was (in)discreetly stowed away. As I said my goodbyes and stole one more hug from Pablo, he leaned into my ear and asked me for a favor. He asked me to give him my jockstrap which actually kinda surprised me. I couldn't however, because honestly it wasn't mine. I explained I would, but the BF bought it even if he hadn't worn it in over a year. He asked me to bring one next time for him and to make sure that they weren't clean.

Now dirty underwear is not really my thing. Although perhaps I shouldn't say that since there was the high school friend long ago that had forgotten his backpack over my house. I guess my point is that I love imperfect men. There's something really hot about a beautiful guy with a slight imperfection or vulnerability... or a great body with a little paunch... or even a Latino angel with the perfect body that wants to sniff my dirty underwear.

Palinisms

"Sitting here in these chairs that I’m going to be proposing but in working with these governors who again on the front lines are forced to and it’s our privileged obligation to find solutions to the challenges facing our own states every day being held accountable, not being just one of many just casting votes or voting present every once in a while, we don’t get away with that. We have to balance budgets and we’re dealing with multibillion dollar budgets and tens of thousands of employees in our organizations." - Palin

I'm always amazed at how poorly she speaks. I mean... is this even English? And if so, what
exactly is she saying? Sure, there are many politicians that have made a career out of saying nothing, but the difference is that at least these politicians manage to say nothing while at least sounding intelligent. Palin just sounds like someone that either is dumb as a door nail or has such a poor command of the language that they get lost in their own sentences.

Postscript: I've said in an earlier post about how much I hate to proof-read and the funny kind of mistakes I find when I do. Since this post is specifically about language, perhaps I better read this over at least once...

Center-Right

Oh so many things in our political discourse is insanity. The most recent idiotic statement that seems to be repeated in the wake of Obama's victory is that America is still a "center-right" nation. Of course this is being espoused by Republicans as a way to attempt to put limits on what Obama can do as well as try to lessen the demoralization that feel given the results.

But intellectually, this makes no sense. For one, center-right of what? There must be a reference point. There is no absolute center from which to judge who's left and who's right. For example, compared to China, even the most liberal Democrat is incredibly conservative. My point is that the very term itself is relative and not an absolute and the statement is made with respect to a vague and ambiguous marker that is likely different in everyone's head and likely moves over time. I know. This statement is made based on polls of people self-identified party affiliation. But to use these numbers to make such a statement is to confuse core beliefs with party affiliation. Certainly the two are related, but are not the same.

Another reason why it makes no sense is that neither the Democrats nor the Republicans do a very good job at staying ideologically consistent. For example, the Republicans are expanding government and at least partially nationalizing our banking system while the Democrats are proclaiming the need to expand our military in ways that would put any neo-con to shame. So even if more people self-identified as Republicans, which BTW is no longer true, this doesn't mean that those people into all of the specific policies that the person making the argument is trying to make.

This is yet another 1984-type statement that politicians are so good at which allow them to sell their snake oil while distracting us from the real topics. The Republicans are using it because today they are loosing the argument of the issues. But just wait a few years and I'm sure the tables will turn once again. Hopefully somehow, someway, we'll come together and actually do something for the country anyway.

Cherub

Last night the BF, Social Whore and I went out for our usual Friday evening Woof event and after, to dinner. Surprisingly, SW wanted to continue the night as opposed to turning into a pumpkin as he usually does at 9pm so we went to Omega.

As we were in the cab (5 blocks was too long for SW to walk, so he insisted on it), we drove past the Jury's hotel. It reminded me of a good friend from the past that used to live in Lynchburg. He drove up just about every other week for about a year and a half to see his boyfriend. We met them at Fuego over 3 years ago when Fuego was still on U street. Not realizing that it was 11 PM already, I called him. His phone went straight to voicemail so I left a message.

When we got to Omega, I was actually not really in a good mood. After standing around for about a half hour, I decided to walk around and ran into the Cherub. I call him that because that best describes his face. He is Latino and has a beautiful, slim-build body. I hadn't seen or heard from the Cherub in about 2 years. He seemed a little down and longed for his old boyfriend, but said that his boyfriend won't even return his phone calls. From talking to his boyfriend every once in a while I can tell you that he still loves Cherub to death. There relationship was very cute, but more drama than Broadway could ever produce. The honest truth is that although I love them both, they're probably not good for each other, at least not given where they were in their lives 2 years ago. Of course I would never tell them that though.

Anyway, seeing the Cherub brightened my night. When he asked what we have been up to, I related the long story of our decent (or is ascent) into nudism. He seemed to like that and wanted to join too, but I don't know. I can just see them getting back together in the future and my Lynchburg friend being upset that I had corrupted the Cherub. I guess it really doesn't matter though because he doesn't even have a phone. It's part of the tragic life that he leads, which had a lot to do with their breakup. He said he'd call me and seemed like he meant it, but honestly, he doesn't have a good track record with such things.

Still, I was really happy to see him and to spend time reminiscing and catching up on all that had happened since. It'll likely be another 2 years before we meet again, but at least we all shared one true moment.

OMG!!! It Was Worse Than We Feared!

The crazy thing is that Bill O'Reilly accepts the underlying premise and arques that having no understanding of anything isn't a disqualifier because she can be "tutored"! WTF!!!

Obama Makes History

Cool video by CNN. (sorry, dumb 15 second intro commercial)

Manassas Rally Pics

More pictures from the 100,000 person Obama rally in Manassas.

Yes We Did!

After following this for 2 years, instead of saying "yes we can", we now can say "yes we did"! I attended an election night-nite party tonight with 30 or so gay, naked men to watch the results. Honestly, I didn't expect this kind of result. I have always been proud to be an american, but tonight, I am even more proud. I am not just proud that he won, but much more so on how accurate the polls were. What did this mean? It means that for even people for whom racism is a part of there lives, it means that it is either further down in their list or priorities or that they have no problem stating it outright. For me that is amazing.

As I walked home from the party, I was greeted by cars driving up and down Adams Morgan honking their horns; by (straight) people wanting a hug; by people wanting to high-five and of course, by people screaming. Er.... perhaps I screamed a bit too.

I kept the BF up late to stay and hear Obama's speech. I confess that I didn't hear the whole speech, because I just had to call my parents. Yes... I awoke them, and yet, they didn't mind. Rather, they were elated.

Now, I'm not an emotional person and rarely cry. But today I did. I cried like a little baby. Not just because Barak won, but because of the integrity of the American people. Someone I had met today held me for a long time and just repeated over and over, "I understand." I think they did.

Woohoo!

100,000 In Virginia

Last week, Obama visited Leesburg, Virginia. I was tempted to go but my tennis addiction overcame me. In the end I was disappointeded that I didn't go. I thought that he'd likely be back in the commonwealth and decided to attend any future events prior to election night. As the week wore on, it looked like it was not to be as I had plans for an extended weekend stay in Ft. Lauderdale.

I was very pleased on Sunday to get the announcement that he'd be in Manassas on Monday. How incredible, he'd be there the only day I would be there prior to election day. It was a sign from god, if I believed in that sort of thing.

I wanted to see history in the making. Although I had donated and attended other events, I had not heard him speak in person. I had not participated in the excitement that only a live crowd can deliver. Not to trivialize it, but I figured it is similar to the difference between watching a baseball game on TV and going to a live game. I left my racquets and tennis clothes at home so there'd be no temptation this time.

An white older guy, about 65 y/o or so, befriended me and we stayed together for the whole time. In all, I left the office around 4:30p and didn't get home until about 1:00a. I had no idea that there would be so many people there. I took a full hour just get out of the fair grounds after the speech ended at around 11:30p and another 1 hour to get home.

The excitement was palpable. Other than Obama, speakers included Tim Caine (governor), Mark Warner (ex-governor and running for Senate) and several current and new candidates to the house of representatives. One of the most memorable lines was "change is a-comming" as repeatedly intoned by Gerry Connolly.

Obama was electric and delivered an impassioned speech that reminds us why we were all there. He spoke of the need for personal responsibility and how we are the change that we were waiting for. When was the last time that a democrat said such a thing?

Yes we can and yes we did!

FTL

The BF, SW and I are back in Ft. Lauderdale this weekend for another round of naked weekend of fun. We met up with quite a few people again, including the boy we met at Folsom last month, the couple that we met up last time in FTL and also saw in GNI, the other couple with which I totally and happily disgraced myself by the hot tub and others. We also ran into quite a number of people that we met for the first time last time we were here. It's amazing how many of them don't even live here, but just happen to have visited the same times we did.

On Saturday night after meeting up several people a George's, we all came back to the Worthington. I think I've met white, thin, cock-twin. We held them together and I was amazed that they seemed exactly the same size in both length and width. So I decided this was my opportunity to do things that I'm way too inflexible to do to myself. You figure it out.