John Saunders

As part of my lifestyle experimentation, I encountered some things that were unusual, at least to me, such as eastern religions, Transcendental Meditation, Rebirthing, Re-evaluation Counseling, Loving Relationship Training and evening classes in "Preparation for the single life" and "Parapsychology". One of these, the "Androgyny Center" took me to a nudist park for the first time. (Note that it's a no-no to call them colonies; we haven't had any of those here since 1776). This led to finding the Camping Bares, a club that pushes the envelope by engaging in clothing-optional group camping in public lands. It has had hardly any trouble, incidentally, proving that there is safety in numbers. I was a low-profile member until the mid-eighties, when the couple who had run the club since it was formed decided to quit. I was uneasy about this, since it seemed likely that a power vacuum would be to the benefit of a certain loud-mouthed member whom I did not approve of, due to his sexist remarks, left-wing politics, and use of marijuana. I therefore took a deep breath and took the leaders aside and proposed that they recommend me. Despite their reservations, because I was regarded as being highly conservative (for the Camping Bares, that is), they did so, and I led them for four years. The Camping Bares do not have officers, elections, by-laws, etc, but as you can guess nothing happens without organization or leadership. This was a good character-building experience for me. I got better at remembering peoples' names, diplomacy, and handling those awkward situations which are an occupational hazard for any organization that permits nudity. Fortunately, not very often. I kept the mailing list on a two-floppy-drive CPM computer, edited and printed the monthly newsletter, budgeted the finances, and mostly organized the activities. The membership increased from 80 to 220 under my stewardship, the activities went off well and the finances were healthy. When conducting meetings I made a practice of standing in front nude even if all the everybody else were clothed. All it takes is poise and presence to keep the audience's attention and respect. My biggest achievement was stamping out overt marijuana use.

I had to quit when I was exiled to New Jersey on business for three months. I made sure the computer gave me a free life membership first. I still attend some activities, but I am not too enthusiastic about camping in remote places anymore.