Monday, January 25, 2010

Being Naked Isn't Always Pretty


So I was reading this blog post today about how good being naked is for you, and I was thinking, yeah, well, maybe not in every circumstance or for every body.

I've never been someone who likes to sit around naked, do chores naked or write naked. I kind of have to say the thought of any of those things makes me feel pretty uncomfortable. And chilly.

Perhaps it's being a New Englander. Not only does the persistent cold and dampness preclude round the clock nudity, it's a mindset. I cannot imagine my old maid aunts (or, "unappropriated blessings" as my grandfather apparently called his sisters) sitting around playing canasta in the nude. Having met my great aunts, Emma and Mary on many occasions, I can pretty much bet they never got naked. Ever.

I'm sure we've all had naked friends, you know those people who are oh so free and uninhibited. There were a couple of women at the gym I used to go to who would stand there buck naked and carry on a conversation with me as they put lotion on, brushed their hair and way too slowly finally got dressed. I always wanted nothing more than to hand them a towel and cover them up.

Maybe I'm a bit of a prude. Or shy, or very easily made uncomfortable. I'd wager all three. I just don't need to see all of anyone I'm not in an intimate relationship with. And lord knows I don't want to be showing all God and a lifetime of questionable food and exercise choices, and baby making has given me to just anyone. I like to think by the time I get to that point in a relationship, that the select person invited into my nerve wracked world has already been blinded by my charms. And if that doesn't work there's always the forgiving nature of very dim candlelight, and the equally forgiving effect of a couple of glasses of wine.