Friday, March 6, 2015

The Boundary between Clothed and Naked

My wife's a good sport and last year while on vacation driving around the North West, she let me schedule a down day for us at a small rural nudist club.  Like many of the smaller family run clubs, everyone was nude there to the extent the weather allowed them to be, including the owners as they went about the business of running the place.

This year, while driving around southern California, we had an extra day and I suggested that we enjoy another down day relaxing at another resort.  This time, she wanted something more upscale, complaining that the last place was like hanging out in someone's back yard.  Wanting to make her happy, I researched the possibilities.   Though SoCal was experiencing a terrible drought, it was our luck to be there when widespread rain hit.  To minimize the impact to our trip, we headed for Palm Springs.  Bracketed by two rainy weekends, the Desert Sun Resort there was virtually empty and they dropped their price enough that I booked a night there.  The weather while we were there during the week was perfect!

While it doesn't bother me in the least to interact with clothed people when I'm nude, my wife was fascinated with the employees not only being dressed, but impeccably so, appropriate to their duties.   The receptionist was dressed as one would expect a receptionist to be.  That's not unusual, given that they're the interface to the outside world.  But the landscapers and the maintenance people were dressed like landscapers and maintenance people.  Worse yet, the housekeeper were impeccably dressed as (gasp!) housekeepers.  The place was first class.  Beautifully landscaped with top notch rooms and facilities.  But my wife couldn't get over the difference between "us" and "them" to the point that she wondered what "they" thought of "us".  She even asked a few of them what they thought (as one should expect when asked by a stranger, they said they were happy to be working there).

I've been to several "clothing optional" places where a good percent of people there are clothed.  I understand that some people find that easier to deal with at first, but people being the social animals that they are, are most comfortable when everyone's on the same level.  One of the upscale places I often go to isn't CO, but the employees at their fancy restaurant are dressed as they would be in fancy restaurants elsewhere, even if everyone being served is comfortably nude.  As odd and hypocritical as that seems to me, it doesn't bother me.  But it would bother my wife who would see those clothed as being "them", separated and different, from "us".

That blows my mind.  I think of clothed people as being naked people covered up.  Clothed people think of us as being somehow "different" than they are.  We aren't.  We're just not hung up as much as they are about having to hide ourselves from each other.

3 comments:

  1. I try to go to Cypress Cove about once a month, weather-permitting, and some of their staff is always clothed when they are on-duty. The person in the gate-house, which is on the "public" side of the gate, is always clothed when manning that post. The office staff are always clothed when they are on-duty, because they often interface with the "public". The staff at both restaurants are always clothed, which may be a health-department requirement. Maintenance staff members may be clothed, partially-clothed, or fully-nude, depending on what they are doing.

    At least at Cypress Cove, there really is no "us" versus "them", because the staff members are all nudists, and only dress appropriately when on-duty. Some, if not all, live on the premises.

    I understand the reasons for staff-members being clothed while on-duty, so it doesn't bother me. They wouldn't be there if they weren't comfortable with our nudity.

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  2. I've been to Cypress Cove many times, and yes, the employees in the restaurant and bar are probably clothed because of health-department rules. But at some clubs, local or state strip club rules are applied to nudist clubs. And it's understandable that employees that are dealing with public interfaces need to be clothed. But it seems hypocritical for some clubs to enforce "nudity expected" policies when employees that don't have to be clothed, are clothed. Labor laws probably prevent management from enforcing that on their employees, but the employees should be encouraged to "blend in".

    As I mentioned, it doesn't bother me, but I can see my wife and other people who aren't used to it.

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  3. I understand why she was uncomfortable. Having clothed superiors watching over you would be embarrassing. I would rather be on equal defenses with people I talk to.

    Though that is just me.

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