QUOTES 2/13/2019

“Traditional bathhouses, or jjimjilbang, are big in today's Korean culture; offering a place for friends and couples to socialize, practice beauty and health rituals, and relax. . . stripping down in front of a bunch of strangers in a strange land was a test I wasn't entirely sure I was ready for. . . here, Korean grandmothers were unabashedly scrubbing themselves from head to toe.  Some chatted with friends, others enjoyed the solace of simply being in the room, but no one looked up.  I was naked and they did not care. . . I sat fascinated by the freedom of my own nakedness and the obliviousness of the women around me. . . The women only seemed to look up once when they noticed my tattoos - but soon even my ink failed to hold their interest.  I looked up and admired the parade of boobs, stretch marks, and sagging skin around me.  Each body was beautiful in its imperfections.  I shed more than my clothes in that bathhouse.  The naked bathhouse simply allowed us the space to appreciate our own bodies in that exact moment and not demand anything more. . . While I had traveled thousands of miles to reunite and spend time with my friends, it turned out to be a roomful of strangers who gave me the best gift of all: the permission to be comfortable in my own perfectly imperfect skin.” - Carly Lanning, https://www.thrillist.com/sex-dating/nation/korean-bathhouse-body-image-issues-personal-essay?ref=twitter-869

“Sagging Breasts Bra Claim: Researcher Says Study Shows Garment Isn't Necessary” Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=98&v=C_mt562ZhNk

“Contemporary dance and nudity are hardly strangers, but in many recent performances skin has practically taken the place of costume. . . choreographers are baring it all in a way to reveal something essential about human experience.  The nudity on view is tough and raw yet unmistakably vulnerable.” – Gia Kourlas, A Brief History of Nakedness, 2013, p. 204

“Here is how naturism found me.  I had been passing that naturism highway sign for nearly two years until I realized that the only thing stopping me from following my curiosity was a thin layer of cotton fabric on a hot summer day.  I opened by backyard door and let the rays shine in.  This day was too perfect not to be naked.  I immediately packed up sunscreen, towel and, oh yes, my five-month-old son.  I wasn’t going to brave this invigorating experience alone, and it was nothing he hadn’t seen before. . . I soon changed out of my clothes and strapped my infant son to my chest in his carrier.  I felt like we were in this together and that he was a shield from my body being completely exposed.  After only three short hours I was hooked.  The people, the atmosphere, the sensations of feeling water, sand and sun against my body—I would never look at clothes the same way. . . As time went on, what went from a check mark on my bucket list, turned into part of my life.  I spent the majority of my pregnancy with my second child naked at home and in my backyard.  And shortly after my daughter was born, we got a family membership to Bare Oaks.  I’ve come to terms that my husband will never take part in a naturist lifestyle, but by living with three naturists he will certainly live vicariously through ours.” - Andrea Alves, http://thenewfamily.com/2017/01/1000-families-project-naked-among-the-oak-trees/