Latest / Hiking without a stitch / EP. 26 - Naturism, Life Modeling & AcroNatural Festival With Isla

Transcript

EP. 26 - Naturism, Life Modeling & AcroNatural Festival With Isla · Hiking without a stitch

• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: How's it going guys?
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome back to Hiking Without a Stitch.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: I'm your host, John, and today I'm going to be joined by Isla, also known as Nature to Isla on Instagram.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_00: I'm going to sit down with her today and discuss her journey into naturism, her work as like a nude art model in the clothing optional community, and her efforts to bring people together through movement, creativity, and connection.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: We talk about how naturism created opportunities for friendship, exploration, and really what can be improved in this community.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: We also talk about her life living at a nude community and her work with organizing acronatural and her vision for making nature's spaces more welcoming across generations.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_00: So let's get into it.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: Bye.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_02: No, you're welcome.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much for the opportunity.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: For anyone that doesn't know who you are yet or hasn't seen your Instagram, could you tell us a little bit about yourself and kind of what your life looks like today?
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_02: Sure.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that's a great question.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_02: I'm Nichorista Isla on Instagram, and I'm an art model.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_02: So I also have another page that's art model-based.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_02: But I felt like it was important to also advocate for naturism.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_02: And like I live at a nudist resort, so my day-to-day life is in the nude, unless it gets to be cold.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_02: But I'm located down in Florida.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_02: The weather for the most part is pretty perfect, uh, except for the summers.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_02: But yeah, like I garden nude, I walk the dog nude, and there's all sorts of activities as well.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and I'm sure at any kind of resort that's a nude resort, you know, it's uh very community-based.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's so I love it.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_02: Like even if I were to move out of here one day, I'm still going to live, you know, the naturist life because it's just great not having to sweat in your clothes and then you just take another shower.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: How did you discover naturism?
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: Was that part of your childhood growing up, or did you come to it kind of later on in life?
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_02: No, absolutely not.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_02: No.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_02: I uh I grew up in a very religious household.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_02: So I would say maybe in like college time, I started sleeping nude, being nude in my own bedroom at home, like at my parents' house.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_02: And I think I started doing that because it's just healthier to kind of just aerate your body, and it was comfortable, and I like the way like the sheets felt on my skin, and I would like watch movies and you know, read a book naked, and I didn't really know back then that this could be a way of life where there's other people out there and a whole community of living in the nude.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_02: I didn't know that.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_02: So I guess in a way I was just like a at-home plaza nudist.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_02: I would say the transition from that to the journey of living at a nudist resort is all thanks to art modeling.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_02: So I started out as an art model in 2023.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_02: My very first session was January 4th.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's awesome.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_02: And I remember during that time before I booked that session, I was doing a lot of firsts.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_02: I had gotten out of a long distance, not long distance, but like a long-term relationship of almost 11 years.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, you know what?
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_02: I'm trying to rediscover myself.
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_02: So I went and saw like a comedian by myself and in a concert.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_02: I went to go to Spranky Valley in the four seasons.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_02: So I always wanted to see him.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_02: So I was like, you know what?
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_02: I'll try this art modeling because I have an art degree.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_02: And I remember when I was in college, we didn't have access to art models.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_02: And I figured, well, this could be my way of like giving back and like giving people a chance to draw some interesting poses.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_02: So I reached out to an artist online on Facebook, because I did a Facebook search.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_02: And anyone who wants to get into art modeling, I highly recommend that because there's groups all over the place in the US and even overseas, there's even online life drawing groups.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, interesting.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_02: So the the artist that I was posing for a portrait, he was like, This is unpaid, this is clothed.
• 5:01
  SPEAKER_02: But if you wanted to make some money, there's life drawing, but it's the model's gotta be nude.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_02: And I said, Ooh, okay.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_02: Now, no one had ever seen me nude except for you know past partners and like the doctor.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_02: And so I was like, hmm.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_02: So I talked to a couple friends.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_02: Now these were friends who were Catholic, and they were like, no, don't do that.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_02: But then a part of me was like, I'm a little curious about the life of being an art model.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_02: And I figured, well, if I don't like it, I'll just do it once, and then I can say I did it.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_02: So I reached out to that other moderator of this different group, uh, Murray Hill Life Drawing Group.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_02: That's like my home group that's up in uh Cleveland, Ohio.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_02: And so I remember going up there and and they prepped me beforehand.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_02: They were like, bring a rope and bring slippers or flip-flops.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_02: And that's very standard.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_02: You want to make sure you bring that and your robe up as soon as the timer goes off.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_02: So, anyways, I was like, I've never done this before.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_02: And they were like, Oh, just think body twists, think dynamic, uh like superhero poses.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_02: And so I've been like doing that ever since and just running with it with like the dynamic body twist poses through art modeling.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_02: Then I was introduced to an artist down in Delray Beach, Florida.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_02: His name is Jerry Glickman, and he is like in his 90s, and he is a professor for Lynn University, and he kept telling me about Nude Night, Nude Art Show.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_02: Now, those who don't know what that is, um, it's not anything like lewd or anything, it's artwork based off the human figure, it's a celebration, uh, sculptures and interactive installations, and then character models.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_02: So I was like, all right, well, he keeps bringing it up to me, showing me the books of how fun the past years were.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, all right, I'll give this a shot.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_02: Now I was living up uh north at the time, so I applied, and uh I've been in the show for the past three years, and through there, there was a model that I met who told me about a particular nudist resort, and he was like, You should check that out.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_02: Because at the time I had already told him, I was like, My boyfriend and I, we want to move down to Florida, and he we're gonna like tiny home it in a destination trailer, and he was like, You should check out this particular resort, and so we did, and everyone was so friendly, and there were so many activities in the community, and so that is like the journey.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_02: I know it's kind of a long story, but uh the journey of how uh modeling introduced me to this whole world that I didn't know about, and it it took me a while to to feel like I fit in because I didn't know anybody, yeah, except for that one person that referred me.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_02: But then through that, now I moderate and organize a life drawing group uh at Lake Homo Family Nudis Resort, and then I'm doing the Acronatural Festival as well.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_02: That's so cool.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, thank you.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_02: And it's not just circus artists, it's wellness too.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_00: Okay.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_00: How so you you were just saying yes to a lot of things and then tried art modeling.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_00: I I imagine that there's a certain level of intimidation factor that goes into being naked in front of a group of people drawing you, or were were you semi-comfortable being naked at that point?
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_02: So I would say maybe the first couple seconds I was nervous and a little bit, you know, intimidating.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_02: But then as soon as I took off that robe and started opposing, it just felt natural and safe because I realized that no one is looking at me in the in an inappropriate or gawking manner.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_02: They're just worried about like how much time they have left on the timer to try and get the figure drawn on their paper.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_02: So short gestures usually range from a minute, sometimes three-minute poses, five-minute poses, 10, 15, and 20s.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_02: And then there's also long pose sessions as well, depending on the life drawing group and how they uh moderate it.
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_02: Sometimes it's one pose for the entire session.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_02: But you take breaks, of course, every 20 minutes.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_00: Do you have any favorite memories or experiences that you could tell me about from your life drawing courses?
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, there's a few.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_02: So Murray Hill Life Drawing Group up in Little Italy, Cleveland, Ohio, during the summers, they would have they would call it a workshop, but it's open session.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_02: Open session means non-guided.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_02: You draw what you see.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_02: And they would have it at different people's houses.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_02: They would have several workshops throughout the summer.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_02: And it really felt more like a family instead of just a bunch of artists coming together.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_02: Um, they're very close knit.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_02: And I would be hired sometimes to model at the different uh outdoor workshops, and then they would have a potluck, and then they would have, you know, people would bring instruments and play music, and it was just great.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_02: And then you'd be around a bonfire.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_02: So that's one memory.
• 10:10
  SPEAKER_02: Also, Murray Hill Life Drawing also does it's called drawn and quartered.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_02: It's basically the torture part is they invite several different life drawing groups together in one space.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_02: And they do this once a year, and they're like competing, like that you go on teams and you're competing against each other, but it's all for fun.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_02: It's you know, you you get a handmade trophy, and then the next year you bring that trophy, and then a round of that sounds so fun.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_02: And it was handmade by one of the artists.
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_02: So they have usually three models.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_02: So two models doing tandems, they're posing together, and then there's another section where it's a long pose where one person does a pose.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_02: So my boyfriend and I, we did the tandem posing, and it was so fun.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_02: Um, there was like one challenge, because remember, it's drawn quartered.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_02: So one challenge was to draw the figures from an obscure vantage point.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_02: So I was like up on a ladder.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, interesting.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_02: And another pose we did, um, I think it was like a 10 or 15 minute pose, and we did this acro yoga pose where I went into throne.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_02: So basically, or chair pose, he has throne, and the bass is on their back.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_02: And so he had his hands and legs up in the air, and then I was sitting on his hands, and then my feet were touching his feet.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_01: Oh my god.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_02: And yeah, and we didn't practice that, but he was able to do it.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_02: I was so proud of him because that was the scary first time ever bottling.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_02: And then I like kind of like had my arm out like that, uh, in like a gesture, and it was uh it was really good.
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_02: We got some good drawings, I got like pictures of them, and then there was another challenge, I think, where you draw for five minutes and then you pass the drawing to another person on your team, and so that inspired me where at some point during my life, I want to do that, I want to create kind of like a mini drawing quarter here in Florida because I have a lot of connections.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_02: I've modeled at different life drawing groups, and I would love to continue kind of like the spirit of life drawing, having fun, making it more than just going to a building and then not seeing those people again until later.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_02: So I thought that was really fun.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_02: So that's also a favorite memory.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_00: But that that's awesome.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: What uh what about those first experiences made you want to explore like naturism further once you heard about the clubs and and clothing optional living?
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_02: I guess I'll start with when I moved down here, the reason why I wanted to move down to Florida was the experience that I had with Nude Night, and I was body painted, and I was part of their silent disco uh uh installation, so I was like body painted silver, I had a little shimmery skirt and then a giant disco ball helmet, and just having the freedom to dance and uh interact with people uh naked was just so freeing, and I never experienced anything like that.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_02: That was my first time ever being body painted, and so I admit I kind of got like addicted to the feeling of like this is so liberating, and and then I wanted to do like even more body painted modeling because it was just so fun where you could morph into like a whole other character and again just have that freedom of nothing, nothing on you, nothing restricting your body.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_02: Um so that's when I knew I want to move to Florida because up north we didn't have anything like that, and I was living in a state that was very conservative, so they didn't have those opportunities for models.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_02: So from that, that's how I ended up in Florida, and then you know, living in a community here, it's it's kind of like being back in college in the sense of there's always someone here that you can hang out with.
• 14:26
  SPEAKER_02: So if you're like bored, then you can go to you know the restaurant over here.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_02: We call it the Beer Buns Cafe, or we have a a bar with a a deck, and they have the karaoke and trivia and all these different things.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's awesome.
• 14:43
  SPEAKER_02: And so yeah, like it's it's always people you'll run into, and not just people who live here, but also folks who are traveling, you know, maybe from like another country, or you know, maybe they're a snowbird and they're just checking this place out for six months.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_02: So I guess in that sense, it feels like college, minus all the tests and act academic part.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_02: But that's why I I think like if I were living on my own back in a residential place, I probably feel like a little sad, you know, of not being able to see friends and and not being able to like go outside and be naked.
• 15:23
  SPEAKER_02: So right?
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_02: No matter what, we're gonna continue that because it's just so freeing.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_00: Well, what a perfect place to get out and be naked and and garden.
• 15:35
  SPEAKER_00: You have a beautiful garden I saw on the live you did with Bear Bum Bodhi.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_00: I love I love gardening naked.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_00: We plant a bunch of like cactuses and pepper plants and just seeing just seeing your plants, I was like, oh man, I love I love being out with my plants.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: So it was cool to see that.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's my uh I guess it's just kind of like mental therapy, you know?
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_02: So if I'm ever feeling I don't know, stressed from work or you know, having a rough day, just putting on the garden gloves and being in the dirt and working with the plants, it um it's very therapeutic.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it really is.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_00: It really is.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's such a great experience.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_02: That and uh being being in nature where you can see like the butterflies and the lizards, and sometimes the monarch butterflies will lay eggs, and then I'll have like the little uh caterpillars, and I'll try to transfer them to like a bigger milkweed plant because they'll just like completely devour the whole thing.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, hey guys, like you're chewing a little fast.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_02: That's awesome.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_02: But yeah, it's it's a little ecosystem, and uh it's it's been nice to nurture.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, is there much opportunity to be naked, like around?
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_00: Is there I'm assuming there's like a walking path or along the lake, maybe.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_02: Oh yes, yeah.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_02: There is a lake here, there's nature trails.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, cool, and I don't remember how many acres there are, but it's it's a big place.
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_02: There's even a dog park that's enclosed.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_02: That's so and we get together with other uh dog owners twice twice a day, and I kind of call it puppy council for us people, yeah.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_02: Because sometimes they're gossip, and then uh for the dogs, puppy playtime, even though none of them are puppies, but they act like it's still right.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_00: They're they're your puppies.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_02: The the resort they call it yappy hour, but I was Yappy Hour.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's great.
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, because sometimes people bring drinks too, but uh yeah, it's a great time for us humans to socialize, but also the dogs too.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_02: And like when I was living up in California when I adopted my Alaskan Malamut from the big dog shelter, yeah, uh, there was not like a dog park nearby.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_02: So it's been nice to you know let her have some friends too.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_02: And for some reason, like she just knows, she knows when it's like dog park time.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_02: And sometimes we'll get into arguments.
• 18:13
  SPEAKER_02: I'll be like, no.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, I have 10 more minutes left of work, like hold on.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_02: And then she'll all will because she's an Alaska Malamute, so she howls instead of barks, but she's a sweetheart.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: That's awesome.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it it seems like it'd be so fun to live at a place like Lake Como or a clothing optional place just because the access to be naked in everyday situations, gardening, walking your dog, checking the mail, that sounds awesome to me.
• 18:40
  SPEAKER_00: What does like everyday life kind of look like there at the resort for you?
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_02: So, like when I go walking, there's people every morning that do patunk.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_02: It's kind of similar to botchy.
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, and they have this bell and they ring it twice a day.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_02: I think it's like nine or ten in the morning and then four or five p.m.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_02: in the evening.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_02: And that bell is to let people know like, hey, we're ready to start playing.
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_02: Who wants to join us?
• 19:11
  SPEAKER_02: It's that kind of bell.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm like, that's so cool to have that, and then there's uh kayaks.
• 19:18
  SPEAKER_02: So sometimes people will be kayaking or on the sailboat, you know, people walking to and from the pool, um, the restaurant.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_02: Uh people are always out and about.
• 19:30
  SPEAKER_02: One area that I like, this might sound kind of weird, but I love the concept.
• 19:35
  SPEAKER_02: It's called get rid of it lane.
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_02: It's kind of like a sheer table, it's like next to the to the trash bins, but it's a table.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_02: It's a table where if you have something that's still in great condition that you don't want to send to a landfill, you just put it on that table.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_02: And um, like the other day when I went to the uh skate night with uh single girl in a nudist world, I was wearing these like furry legging things that came from the knee down, and I was wearing my skates, and she's like, those are so cute.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, Yeah, another thing from get rid of bit link.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_02: That's awesome.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_02: They're so fun.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_02: I'll be posting some of those pictures soon.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_02: But yeah, I think it's a great way to uh you know recycle and reuse, and there's so much that goes, you know, to the landfill.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_02: And I think it was it was great that they had that table.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_00: The the neighborhood that I live in right now has has a similar free table.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_00: So it's cool that other communities are doing that.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah.
• 20:31
  SPEAKER_02: We got a gym as well here at Lake Como Family Munis Resort that uh went in, uh I would say maybe a couple couple years ago.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_02: And uh they got volleyball, and there's even like a golf course as well.
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_00: No way, that's rad.
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and there's a a pond over there, and that's that's where Fluffy lives.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_02: Fluffy, the big bull alligator.
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, no way.
• 20:57
  SPEAKER_02: Um, there's alligators here too.
• 20:59
  SPEAKER_02: But like I've lived here a little over two years, and I've seen alligators maybe two, three times.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_02: So they pretty much stick to them.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: So how long have you been involved in like the acro yoga?
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_02: Ooh, so my boyfriend Mo, he's the one that introduced me to acro yoga, and we met 2023, it was in December, December, I think, fourth.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_02: I'm kind of good with dates, but anyways, so we met at a salta club, and he stood out from everyone else because he said, Hey, is it okay if I flip you in the air?
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_02: And I said yes.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_02: But even though it still kind of surprised me, but I knew the flip was coming, and I kind of gave out a giddy squeal because it still caught me off guard.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, but it was an acro yoga movie, and so he was talking about acro yoga, and uh we he introduced me to.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_02: That realm, and we would go to uh Edwater Park in Cleveland, and every Sunday the group gets together and I really enjoyed it, and I was willing to learn something new.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_02: It was a little intimidating at first because I was like, all right, all these people are like circus folks, I don't know any of this.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_02: I am like the only beginner here.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_02: But they were very welcoming, and the thing that I love about that community for Acro Yoga, and even the salsa community is the same way, is you know, they're willing to teach you, and you get to work with like everybody.
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_00: Interesting.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_02: So that's cool.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_02: So that is how we decided to do the Acro Yoga Festival.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_02: It was an idea that we had for a while, kind of sat on the idea.
• 22:49
  SPEAKER_02: And then last year we had a marketing uh activities director that was around our age.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, you know what?
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_02: I think this might be a good time to like speak up and tell this person my ideas.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_02: And so we decided not just acro yoga, but like all of the circus arts.
• 23:10
  SPEAKER_02: So like fire safety and handling for fire blow art, silk fan dancing, aerial, poi, dragon staff.
• 23:20
  SPEAKER_02: So those are some of the classes that we have.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_02: But I also wanted to I wanted it to be inclusive too, and I didn't want it to be intimidating for people.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_02: So that's why I've told folks you don't need a partner.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_02: We'll provide a product partner for you.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_02: There's always gonna be someone that's gonna volunteer to work with you and be happy to work with you.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_02: We have classes that are for beginners as well.
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, last time we had the festival in January, most of the folks had never even heard of Acu Yoga, but were willing to try it.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_02: And they were so excited by the end of the festival, they were like, I'm gonna go look online in my area, wherever I live, to find a group.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, wow, it's so great.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_02: So people have been inspired through this too.
• 24:02
  SPEAKER_02: Um and we have other activities as well to incorporate uh everybody of morning yoga, meditation.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_02: We have a guided nature trail.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_02: What else?
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, poetry.
• 24:17
  SPEAKER_02: My friend Rochelle, she's gonna teach poetry.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_00: This sounds like a great idea.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_02: We have this yeah, it is.
• 24:24
  SPEAKER_02: It's gonna be great.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_02: And we have side parties too in the evenings, body painted glow party.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_02: We brought out the uh flow art props for that.
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_02: We've got uh the drum circle and a talent show.
• 24:37
  SPEAKER_02: There's one more thing.
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, salsa dancing, salsa dancing uh lesson with the dance social afterwards, and I'll be in the butt head.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_02: So it's gonna be great, and I'm really looking forward to it.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_02: We have people coming from all around the country.
• 24:49
  SPEAKER_02: We have uh about 10 instructors, some people coming from New York, Iowa, Atlanta, and different parts of Florida that are coming to instruct.
• 24:58
  SPEAKER_00: Wow, that is awesome.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_00: For anyone like listening that's never heard of acro yoga, could you describe it for me a little bit?
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_00: Because I can kind of picture what it is, but right, right.
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_02: So acro yoga is partner-based, it's like acrobatic.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_02: So if you've ever seen like Cirque du Soleil, obviously we're not gonna do like crazy technical things like that, but like dancing with the stars, you know, like the dance lifts, that's acro yoga.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_02: So there's gonna be some of that.
• 25:27
  SPEAKER_02: There's gonna be L-basing, where uh the base is on the ground and the flyer, the one that's up in the air, will be doing like the different tricks and whatnot.
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_02: But we'll go over all of like the technical ways of doing acro yoga.
• 25:42
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's really cool.
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_00: Beyond the activities themselves, what do you hope people take away from acronatural the experience of that?
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_02: Um, well, I would say one of the goals I had for that was to blend the generations together to let people that are older realize that young naturists, you know, we just want to have fun too, and and we can learn from each other, and vice versa.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_02: So I want people to the takeaway is feel accepted, feel heard, learn a new skill that maybe they would never have tried before, and also learn from each other and make new friends too.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_02: So those are some of the things that that I'm hoping.
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_02: And I know back in January, a lot of people, you know, made friends.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_02: Like for myself, I am hopping on a plane tonight to go to a salsa pachata congress with the fire uh handling instructor that we had from Acro Yoga in uh or Acronatural in January, and I'm meeting up with her, and then she's gonna be here in a couple weeks.
• 26:52
  SPEAKER_02: I love that.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and I had never met her until January when we had the first festival, and when I call it a festival, it's really more of a retreat.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_02: Um but yeah, and then when we had the the nude skate night, uh Trentor and Susan from Atlanta, they were our acro yoga instructors for the festival.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_02: And they came from here to skate.
• 27:15
  SPEAKER_02: So and we've become friends.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_02: So it's it's just really awesome.
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_02: And to get to know like new naturists and also people who are in the circus arts that maybe never experienced naturism.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_02: For instance, like my friend that I'm meeting up with for the uh uh salsa congress, she had never experienced being nude in public.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_02: And uh she's so excited to come back.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_02: She was like, This is such a special place.
• 27:44
  SPEAKER_02: She was like, You're so fortunate to be able to live that.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_02: I wish I could do that.
• 27:49
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah you know, and so I get that from people sometimes.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_02: And so then sometimes I'm like, well, you should move, you should move here.
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_02: We could be thankful.
• 27:58
  SPEAKER_02: That's so cool.
• 27:59
  SPEAKER_02: It's it's been really nice to uh you know share this way of life with people who may not have uh discovered it if it weren't for Acronatural.
• 28:12
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 28:13
  SPEAKER_00: When you were when you first moved to the resort, did you find it difficult to make community or find your your people when you first got into this?
• 28:24
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it it it took a while.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_02: So um that's why I didn't really speak up and and uh you know organize any events.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_02: At first I felt like an outsider because a lot of naturist communities are you know old older generation.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 28:42
  SPEAKER_02: And I have noticed that you know different resorts that I've been to um kind of struggle to try and uh bring in young natrists or or middle-aged natrists.
• 28:57
  SPEAKER_02: So I think what's missing, and what I think is great with you and like uh single girl in a nudist world and Sierra Mexico is there are people of our generation advocating and you know, letting them know that this is a safe space, this is recreation, and you know, this is a beautiful way of life to you know be in nature and get enough like vitamin D too.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_02: Um yes.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_02: So I think that's great, and I think a lot of these resorts need to, you know, use that to their advantage of you know, maybe in inviting you know young naturists who have a following to showcase their resort marketing because a lot of a lot of us are on social media and that's how we get our news.
• 29:52
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you know, have cable.
• 29:54
  SPEAKER_02: Yep.
• 29:54
  SPEAKER_02: I don't think most people don't have cable anymore, you know?
• 29:57
  SPEAKER_01: No, just have my phone.
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_02: The phone and the internet, and you don't know what you don't know.
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_02: So I think it's it's great that there are people advocating and you know, promoting different events that are around the country.
• 30:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, it really is, and I feel like this time in like the naturist spaces is probably one of the coolest times to be alive and be part of it because we are having so many new voices and faces show up and go, Well, I am a naturist and I do enjoy nude recreation, and let me show you how healthy it is and how freeing it is.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, people don't believe me when I say that you do get addicted.
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_00: You you try it and you go, Wow, that feeling, I want to replicate that.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_02: Right, right.
• 30:49
  SPEAKER_02: And then sometimes it's just so natural that um that you forget sometimes in other spaces, oh wait, I can't take my clothes off.
• 31:01
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, um exactly.
• 31:03
  SPEAKER_02: Like I admit, like, you know, like how some naturists they'll get like a waxing.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_02: So I went to a waxer and I took all my clothes off.
• 31:12
  SPEAKER_02: And then I was like, wait, what am I doing?
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_02: And I felt embarrassed, even though this is how I live.
• 31:18
  SPEAKER_02: But um, of course, be respectful in in spaces that don't allow that.
• 31:21
  SPEAKER_02: So I just I was like over apologetic, and the wax waxologist, she was like, Oh no, don't worry about it, it's fine.
• 31:29
  SPEAKER_02: She told me that she has had uh customers that have done that, but I made sure I put like a shirt back on because I didn't want to feel uh making her feel uncomfortable.
• 31:38
  SPEAKER_02: But it was just this was like early on when I first moved here, and I just got in the habit of taking everything off.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_02: And uh I just kind of forgot.
• 31:46
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, like just for uh this like weekend, you know, I'm gonna be in a space with uh other females, and I don't know if they're nudists or not, so I'm gonna be respectful and make sure I clothe up.
• 32:00
  SPEAKER_02: But I was like, oh, I miss, I'm gonna miss like sleep in nude in the bed.
• 32:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yep, it's always kind of a bummer, right?
• 32:07
  SPEAKER_02: And I and then I was like, darn, I gotta wear underwear.
• 32:10
  SPEAKER_02: I don't want to wear underwear.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, I'm going to, because I'm gonna be wearing dresses and dancing, but I'm just like, oh it's you don't realize what you're missing.
• 32:22
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know if I'm gonna say this right.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_02: You don't realize what you're missing until then it's like taken away, and then you're like, oh well.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 32:32
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 32:33
  SPEAKER_00: Well, that's that's the whole thing about naturism as well, is that I'll tell people the rights that we have and the places that we have to gather together and do activities like this, or go nude hiking, or go to hot springs, those can get taken away.
• 32:51
  SPEAKER_00: So it's like I really do need to enjoy 'em and speak up and be a good example and a good representation of what nonsexual nudity looks like because there is a huge misconception in the world that this is all just swapping and being crazy, which it's not.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's not.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_00: Um it's the farthest thing from it.
• 33:17
  unknown: Yeah.
• 33:18
  SPEAKER_02: I was gonna say, even at the resort, when you meet people, because sometimes people will say to me, you know, I don't I don't think I'll go to the resort because uh no one's ever seen me naked and I want to wait until like I lose weight, you know.
• 33:30
  SPEAKER_02: And I tell them, like, no one's focusing on that.
• 33:34
  SPEAKER_02: There's people of all shapes and sizes here.
• 33:37
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, I always say, like, when I'm talking to someone, like you forget you're naked, you forget they're naked, and it's just you know, normal and way of life.
• 33:47
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah.
• 33:49
  SPEAKER_00: Do you have you noticed a lot of younger naturists coming to like Lake Como and coming to events like Acro Natural?
• 33:59
  SPEAKER_02: So I've seen a difference in the last year, and I've like I said, I lived here for a little over two years and moved here in June of uh 2024.
• 34:10
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but I would say since last fall up to now, I've seen an increase.
• 34:18
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, that's because we had we had events where it was uh capture the flag nerf war edition.
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_02: That was super fun.
• 34:27
  SPEAKER_02: And we had people, not just young naturists, uh you had like people in their like 70s and 80s, and they were persistent, you know.
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_02: It's like uh we were in the woods, and I was like, oh man, like that guy's really good.
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_02: And and he like went all out.
• 34:44
  SPEAKER_02: He had a sweatband, like he looked like Rambo.
• 34:48
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, All right, you don't want to mess with that.
• 34:50
  SPEAKER_02: And he was like, Yes, in the 70s or 80s, having a great time.
• 34:53
  SPEAKER_02: So again, it's like activities that's not just for one age demographic.
• 35:00
  SPEAKER_02: Like we can all come together, have fun, learn from each other, and and make memories and and friendships.
• 35:07
  SPEAKER_02: So that was like one of the big events that really kicked that off.
• 35:12
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and then you know, we've had the Accronatural Festival, the life drawing group, all sorts of things.
• 35:20
  SPEAKER_02: There's a family weekend.
• 35:22
  SPEAKER_02: I wasn't here for that one.
• 35:24
  SPEAKER_02: I forget what I was doing, might have been noonight, I don't remember.
• 35:27
  SPEAKER_02: But there's all sorts of things, and it's been nice to see new faces.
• 35:32
  SPEAKER_02: So even like last weekend, I was like, where are all these people coming from?
• 35:36
  SPEAKER_01: That's so cool.
• 35:37
  SPEAKER_02: I was like, we don't have like you know, uh big event going on, but it was just people coming to visit, and I was like, that's great, like it makes me happy that there's uh you know more more people.
• 35:51
  SPEAKER_00: So oh, that's so cool.
• 35:53
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I've I've noticed the same similar trend.
• 35:56
  SPEAKER_00: My wife and I just ran a naked bare buns 5K at Shangri-La last week, and last year there was like 75 people, this year there was 120 runners, and a lot of couples and women showed up for that.
• 36:11
  SPEAKER_00: Uh so it's like a younger, younger crowd.
• 36:14
  SPEAKER_00: So uh I definitely think that you're on the right track when you're you're seeing more events uh that give mixed ages opportunity to mingle and have fun.
• 36:27
  SPEAKER_00: And just because these age groups and demographics are you know blending for these events, it doesn't mean one or the other is trying to take something away from either.
• 36:38
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 36:39
  SPEAKER_00: Both can exist.
• 36:42
  SPEAKER_02: Even with the acro yoga, there was a woman that was in her 70s, and I was so proud of her.
• 36:48
  SPEAKER_02: She had never done acro yoga before, and she learned how to be a bass and a flyer, and and she's like one of the yoga instructors here throughout the week, because we also have that as an activity here.
• 36:59
  SPEAKER_02: There's all sorts of different activities, yeah, different ones each day.
• 37:03
  SPEAKER_02: But um, but yeah, it just goes with what you were saying that just because there might be an activity that's based on you know what people might think belongs to a certain generation or or age demographic, that's not necessarily true.
• 37:21
  SPEAKER_02: It's inclusive.
• 37:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and we're as a as a movement and people that are supporting and loving the same thing, we're stronger together and joining together with stuff than we are being separated and being like, oh well, they're they're older than me, they're out of touch, or someone that's older looking at someone younger, oh they're just you know rowdy and they don't want to do you know what we've done for a long time.
• 37:49
  SPEAKER_00: And you can have you can have both.
• 37:51
  SPEAKER_00: You don't need to take away either or.
• 37:54
  SPEAKER_02: Right, yeah.
• 37:55
  SPEAKER_02: Because I feel like that kind of mindset can be very harmful because then what is the future of naturism then?
• 38:03
  SPEAKER_01: Mm-hmm.
• 38:04
  SPEAKER_02: Because if you don't have more younger people coming to those resorts and practicing that type of uh way of life, then it could eventually die out.
• 38:15
  SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
• 38:17
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, no, I absolutely looking back at like your journey from your upbringing to life modeling and naturism and to acro yoga, what has living this way taught you about yourself?
• 38:37
  SPEAKER_02: Body acceptance.
• 38:40
  SPEAKER_02: Like there are times, and I know everyone has gone through these phases where you know, maybe maybe you ate something that made you feel bloated and then insecure, you know.
• 38:54
  SPEAKER_02: Like when I first moved here and I felt like that, I would like suck in my stomach because I was like, I everyone, you know, is seeing you for who you are.
• 39:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 39:06
  SPEAKER_02: And now I'm like, you know what?
• 39:08
  SPEAKER_02: No.
• 39:10
  SPEAKER_02: You know, if I'm bloated, that's me, you know.
• 39:13
  SPEAKER_02: Um and people aren't focusing on those little things, like they're you know, too concerned about how are you doing?
• 39:23
  SPEAKER_02: I haven't seen you in a while.
• 39:24
  SPEAKER_02: Like I've I've had that where some of my friends have said, you know, are you okay?
• 39:29
  SPEAKER_02: Like, I haven't seen you at the butt hut at karaoke, you know, I haven't seen you around.
• 39:34
  SPEAKER_02: Is everything all right?
• 39:35
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm like, oh yeah, I've just been super busy with work and just life stuff and going to plant festivals.
• 39:42
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 39:43
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like, I'm fine, I'm fine, but thank you for checking in.
• 39:46
  SPEAKER_02: And so yeah, people aren't focused on how someone's body looks, and so that's one thing that it this way of life has taught me to accept myself, and sometimes I think for all of us that can be a challenge of accepting you, you know.
• 40:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, that's beautiful.
• 40:08
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 40:09
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, yeah, no worries.
• 40:12
  SPEAKER_00: Before we wrap up, I just want to make sure that I have all the details right.
• 40:17
  SPEAKER_00: The acronatural, I know you said not a festival retreat might be the better, better word, acronatural retreat, is scheduled for November 6th through the 9th.
• 40:27
  SPEAKER_00: And yeah, what can people kind of expect this year?
• 40:31
  SPEAKER_00: It's a couple weeks away.
• 40:33
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 40:34
  SPEAKER_02: So the cost for the ticket is$100, and that includes all of those dates.
• 40:41
  SPEAKER_02: A camping spot is included, but you do have to bring your own tent.
• 40:45
  SPEAKER_02: Um, because I did get that question.
• 40:46
  SPEAKER_02: I was like, oh, you gotta bring your own tent.
• 40:48
  SPEAKER_02: But uh, that's pretty awesome that it's included.
• 40:50
  SPEAKER_02: There is one more hotel room that has not been claimed yet.
• 40:56
  SPEAKER_02: That does cost in addition to, I don't know what the cost is, but if someone out there is interested, you you'll have to call the resort.
• 41:03
  SPEAKER_02: Let's say you don't want to camp and you don't want to be in a hotel, but you want to bring your own RV, you would have to call the resort.
• 41:10
  SPEAKER_02: It would cost additional.
• 41:11
  SPEAKER_02: Again, I don't know what that price is, but they could tell you what it is and help you with that with a a spot for your RV.
• 41:19
  SPEAKER_02: Um and like I said, there's many different activities this time around, in addition to what we had in January.
• 41:28
  SPEAKER_02: So that's new.
• 41:29
  SPEAKER_02: And there's gonna be a lot of new people too.
• 41:32
  SPEAKER_02: So more more friends.
• 41:34
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's awesome.
• 41:35
  SPEAKER_00: I'm jealous.
• 41:36
  SPEAKER_00: But yeah, I wish I could make it.
• 41:38
  SPEAKER_02: And then the day before, I forgot to mention this, is uh our life drawing group, and that's uh twice a month.
• 41:47
  SPEAKER_02: It's the first Thursday and the third Thursday of the month.
• 41:50
  SPEAKER_02: But since Acronatural is in the beginning of the month, life drawings on the 5th, and we're celebrating our one-year anniversary of having the group, and I really wanted to make it special.
• 42:02
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I wanted to make it special.
• 42:04
  SPEAKER_02: I didn't want it just to be like, yay, we had a one year, let's draw.
• 42:07
  SPEAKER_02: I wanted to make it special.
• 42:09
  SPEAKER_02: So 5 p.m., we're having a uh potluck.
• 42:12
  SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna make homemade chicken tika masala from scratch.
• 42:15
  SPEAKER_02: Oh my god.
• 42:15
  SPEAKER_02: Uh it's one of the best meals to bring.
• 42:17
  SPEAKER_02: And then another artist named Mun, he's making homemade pizzas.
• 42:21
  SPEAKER_02: And then people can bring whatever they want.
• 42:23
  SPEAKER_02: If they don't want to bring anything, that's totally fine as well.
• 42:25
  SPEAKER_02: Because I know sometimes that can be stressful, uh, especially since it is like a work day or school day if anyone's in college that wants to draw.
• 42:34
  SPEAKER_02: So that's A-OK.
• 42:36
  SPEAKER_02: That starts at five on the fifth, and then life drawing, where we draw the model, that's from 6 p.m.
• 42:43
  SPEAKER_02: to 9 p.m.
• 42:44
  SPEAKER_02: And then we're gonna have door prizes as well, like life drawing themed, you know, maybe some charcoal sticks, uh, graphite pencils, paper, um, maybe some other things too.
• 42:56
  SPEAKER_02: And that's not gonna cost anything in addition.
• 42:59
  SPEAKER_02: I just wanted to give back and make it a celebration.
• 43:03
  SPEAKER_02: We're gonna have Lola be the model for this time, and she is a professional art model from the Tampa and St.
• 43:10
  SPEAKER_02: Pete areas, and it's gonna be a great time.
• 43:13
  SPEAKER_02: I'm expecting like a lot of people to show up.
• 43:15
  SPEAKER_02: It's gonna be great.
• 43:16
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's so cool.
• 43:17
  SPEAKER_00: It sounds fantastic.
• 43:19
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, thank you.
• 43:20
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's gonna be a good, good time.
• 43:22
  SPEAKER_02: So we have that information on the Instagram page, uh, Lake Como Community Like Drawing, and then the Acronatural page for Instagram is Acronatural Festival, and you can find the link on the flyer, or you can just message me and I can send you the link, or maybe we can have a link on this too.
• 43:44
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I I will post all the links.
• 43:46
  SPEAKER_00: The any link you want me to post, I will post it in the show notes.
• 43:49
  SPEAKER_00: So go to the show notes.
• 43:51
  SPEAKER_00: Yep for for anyone like that's listening who's curious, but also might be intimidated about acro yoga, or maybe they're not.
• 44:00
  SPEAKER_00: Intimidated about the yoga, but they're more nervous about being naked around other people.
• 44:04
  SPEAKER_00: What would you say to them just as a word of advice coming into this experience?
• 44:10
  SPEAKER_02: So in the North Grove, we'll have a festival.
• 44:14
  SPEAKER_02: And so I've already talked to the GM and even last time when we had it in January, when it was like really cold, surprisingly for Florida, it was cold.
• 44:24
  SPEAKER_02: It was like in the like 30s at night.
• 44:27
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, that is cold.
• 44:28
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we're like trying to find yeah.
• 44:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we were trying to find like places for people to sleep, you know, uh at restaurant homes because like it was so cold.
• 44:38
  SPEAKER_02: But we're gonna have a top of the second in November.
• 44:41
  SPEAKER_02: So, anyways, definitely bring a towel because that is like one of the golden rules of I don't know if it's a golden rule, but it it is a rule, unsaid rule.
• 44:54
  SPEAKER_02: Also said, but any surface you sit on, you want to have a towel, um just for sanitary reasons and also out of respect.
• 45:02
  SPEAKER_02: And yeah, don't don't be afraid because like I said, people are are viewing you for your personality and you um I um it might not seem like it, but I am an introvert, and even when I was in college, I'd be so afraid to speak.
• 45:26
  SPEAKER_02: Like having this kind of conversation would have scared me.
• 45:30
  SPEAKER_02: So there were times when I people try to talk to me and I would like pick up my things and I'd have my lunch in a different room, and it wasn't that I was trying to be rude, it was like I was didn't know what to say.
• 45:40
  SPEAKER_02: I didn't want to be viewed in a certain way as I don't know.
• 45:46
  SPEAKER_02: But I would like script in my head.
• 45:50
  SPEAKER_02: But then as I got older, I realized people are too busy thinking about their own insecurities or what's on their mind, or I don't know, what they're gonna have for dinner, or whatever it might be.
• 46:01
  SPEAKER_02: Not that people aren't listening, but I learned over the years that uh what you think people might be judging you for, they're not judging you.
• 46:13
  SPEAKER_02: They're they're just viewing you for who you are.
• 46:18
  SPEAKER_02: And so thinking of it that way, yeah, I guess it's less stress, less anxiety because it's like, you know what, people aren't caring about that.
• 46:28
  SPEAKER_02: They just want to know how you're doing or what you're up to, or what your journey is, and they're not worrying about that you're naked because we're all naked.
• 46:38
  SPEAKER_02: Um now with outdoor yoga, I did get permission since it's partner-based, and you know, people are working with with people um for the first time, and with that, sometimes you can fall, you know, uh if you're out basing.
• 46:52
  SPEAKER_02: So you're allowed to wear bottoms.
• 46:55
  SPEAKER_02: Uh but in the resort or anywhere, no underwear, no bikinis, no um swimwear, no lingerie.
• 47:07
  SPEAKER_02: That's not allowed.
• 47:08
  SPEAKER_02: But shorts, if you want to wear shorts during uh partner acro yoga, that is fine because you know you probably don't want like people's parts, you know, in your face.
• 47:19
  SPEAKER_02: So out of respect, you know, people can wear shorts.
• 47:23
  SPEAKER_02: Uh they don't have to.
• 47:25
  SPEAKER_02: And uh probably with aerial hammocks too, maybe shorts, just because that would be hard to put a towel and then it probably would fall off.
• 47:33
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, and I could see it rolling up and kind of getting in the way.
• 47:38
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, but other than that, like I said, we'll all be naked, and uh so we're all on the same, you know, level.
• 47:46
  SPEAKER_02: No one's no one's judging anyone.
• 47:49
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 47:50
  SPEAKER_00: Well that's it, that's a great bit of advice, and I hope that encourages people to come and try the event, or if not this this this time, maybe next time they can come and enjoy that.
• 48:01
  SPEAKER_00: Is there anything that we didn't cover that you wanted to talk about, or anything that didn't get said that you'd like to bring up before we hop off?
• 48:09
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I have some questions for you.
• 48:12
  SPEAKER_02: Is that all right?
• 48:12
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, go for it.
• 48:13
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 48:14
  SPEAKER_02: All right.
• 48:15
  SPEAKER_02: So, how long have you been doing this podcast and what what inspired you to start this?
• 48:22
  SPEAKER_00: Those are great questions.
• 48:23
  SPEAKER_00: I've been doing the podcast for about a year, and I was inspired to do this similarly because when I got into this and kind of realized that there was an opportunity to be naked and live like this and go out in nature, I didn't see a ton of representation for it.
• 48:45
  SPEAKER_00: I had to really search for what what I was looking for.
• 48:49
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 48:50
  SPEAKER_00: Um and so through that process, I was like, well, I'm comfortable sharing my story and myself online.
• 48:59
  SPEAKER_00: Um why not start the podcast and interview other people and hear their stories and hear their tips of how this has changed their lives or how this has inspired them to unlearn a lot of stuff that we we grow up hearing and you know, trying something new.
• 49:17
  SPEAKER_00: So really that's that's where this all kind of stemmed from.
• 49:20
  SPEAKER_00: I wanted to share information and just show that I'm a normal mid-30s dude with kids and a wife, and I like being naked and hanging out, yeah.
• 49:32
  SPEAKER_02: No, that's great.
• 49:33
  SPEAKER_02: And I, you know, thank you for everything that you're doing.
• 49:35
  SPEAKER_02: Like I was just talking to a friend of mine the other day, and he was saying that for the longest time there was like one guy advocating, I guess, up in in uh Canada uh for naturism, and that was like the guy, and there was like no one else out there.
• 49:50
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so now yeah, I I had no idea that there was this world either of uh so many advocates on social media for naturism.
• 49:59
  SPEAKER_02: And I think that's right.
• 50:00
  SPEAKER_02: Now I'm getting connected with them, and I'm like, wow, there are so many of us.
• 50:04
  SPEAKER_02: I had no idea.
• 50:05
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, there really is.
• 50:06
  SPEAKER_00: And the social media sites make it difficult at times because you can build up your portfolio or whatever, and then it just gets blown away.
• 50:14
  SPEAKER_00: But uh, yeah, this is a a great time to be alive and and building the naturist realm.
• 50:22
  SPEAKER_00: So thank you for for you coming on and sharing your story and being vulnerable and and sharing what you're doing because it really does affect the future of naturism and all of this.
• 50:35
  SPEAKER_00: It it just kind of paves the way for the next generations to come up and the older generation to see that we do want similar things and we want to see the community keep growing.
• 50:48
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 50:49
  SPEAKER_02: No, yeah.
• 50:52
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
• 50:53
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for for joining me and coming on.
• 50:56
  SPEAKER_00: I really appreciate your time and yeah, everything that you're doing.
• 51:00
  SPEAKER_00: I I hope your events are very popular and it brings a lot of people to Naturism.
• 51:07
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you.
• 51:08
  SPEAKER_02: I appreciate it.
• 51:13
  SPEAKER_00: Alright, that's the end of the episode.
• 51:14
  SPEAKER_00: Isla, thank you so much for coming on and sharing your experiences.
• 51:18
  SPEAKER_00: I really enjoyed this conversation and hearing how Naturism has kind of opened different doors to so many different experiences in your life.
• 51:27
  SPEAKER_00: And I love how you're showing up online and just being an example for the naturist community.
• 51:33
  SPEAKER_00: One of the things that's really stood out to me in this episode is how much this all comes back to connection, whether it's art modeling, living in clothing optional community, or practicing acro yoga, or bringing people together through different events.
• 51:47
  SPEAKER_00: It's all about creating opportunities for people to try something new and meet others and feel comfortable being themselves.
• 51:54
  SPEAKER_00: And sometimes you just have to give yourself that chance to find that out.
• 51:58
  SPEAKER_00: I'll have all the links to Isla and the Acronatural Festival in the episode's description so you can check those out and kind of see what she's working on.
• 52:05
  SPEAKER_00: If you've enjoyed this conversation, share this episode with someone who might find something meaningful in it.
• 52:10
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for spending some time with us.
• 52:12
  SPEAKER_00: As always, get naked, be free, and be kind.
• 52:15
  SPEAKER_00: See ya.