As the end of the year 2000 comes near, I’ve been thinking back on all the things that have happened in my life in the last 12 months. I’ve become a lot more bold and confident in my nudism and as I think back on it, here are some of the things that I think have caused this to happen.

On the afternoon of the last day of 1999, I spent some time nude sunbathing in the place in the country out where I often run. Last winter was way milder than this one is turning out to be. I walked back in to the pasture deep into the trees (no leaves for cover) and found a spot along the creek that was low enough that there was no wind and open enough that the sun could shine through. I took everything off and just sat on my clothes feeling the sunshine and cool air all over me. The air was cool, but I wasn’t uncomfortably cold. I was thinking that this was the perfect way to end the century and the millennium (yes, I know that technically the year 2000 is the end of the millennium, but I went with the flow). I was thinking about how far I’d come in this century and millennium from birth to the age of 19 and also about how I’d discovered my nudist inclinations and had begun to act on them. I thought how appropriate it was to finish the millennium nude outdoors in the sunshine.

The next day (New Year’s Day 2000), I was again out running. This day was not nearly as nice as the day before, but as I approached the same spot in the country and remembered the previous day, I thought that it would be even more significant on this day to spend at least a few minutes nude outdoors. So over the gate and back into the trees along the creek I went again. This day was cloudy and windy and noticeably cooler. I found a ravine among the trees not too far from the previous day’s place that would give me shelter from the wind and of course cover from view if someone came along to feed the cattle or something. There was a fallen tree at an angle down into the ravine and this is where I went to get undressed. I took everything off and laid it on the fallen tree– not a quick process since I had several layers of clothes on. Finally I was completely nude and by that I mean no clothes, hat, jewelry, or anything. For this first day of the new millennium I wanted to stand in nature exactly as I had been born.

It was still pretty breezy even in the ravine. I knew I couldn’t just stand still so I took a few steps away from the fallen tree. I could feel the cold fallen leaves under my bare feet with each step. I walked up the ravine a little way and then decided to go back up to the top. The climb up wasn’t too steep and I could feel more and more wind with each step that I climbed. It wasn’t far to the top and when I got there I turned around and faced the wind and the view of the open hilly pasture before me. This cold wind now blowing through my hair and over the entire front of my body made me so acutely aware that I was nude. But oddly enough I wasn’t thinking about the cold at that moment. I was vowing to myself that as I lived the rest of my life in the new millennium I would embrace and value my nudism and that I would find ways to spend more time enjoying it. I also vowed to find others to share my nudism with. These thoughts stayed with me as I walked around the area there for a little longer just letting my senses experience all the feelings of being nude in nature on this day.

It was in February that I began reading the streaking.org forum on a regular basis. I had come across this site a couple of times before, but I just couldn’t relate to it then. The pics were of people doing very bold public streaks and although I admired their boldness and courage, I didn’t think I could ever do anything like that. And the few stories that I read seemed to be sexually charged and I didn’t relate there either. Then one day I stumbled into the forum section and found a couple of posts by another girl about my age. There was a connection. Like me, she had discovered her nudist inclinations and was beginning to find ways to act on them. I admired her boldness and creativity and could relate to her curiosities and discoveries and adventures. I also admired her determination to share her new found nudist/streaking activities with her friends. (I haven’t seen anything posted by her in a long time, but I saved all her posts and re-read them once in awhile). That’s when I got hooked on the forum and I still read nearly everything that gets posted there (although sometimes I get a few days behind).

I think it was the forum that gave me the courage to try some of the stuff I’ve done and written about during the rest of the year. I know I started my nude running earlier in the spring (March) than I would have otherwise. And most of the stuff that follows was definitely influenced by the forum.

In April and May, I gradually got up the courage to hike nude in the pasture mentioned above. Before, I had just sunbathed nude in a very secluded spot, but now I began to hide my clothes and then gradually hike further and further away. At first I hiked only short distances within the cover of the trees, but I gradually got up the nerve to hike longer distances. By the time summer rolled around, I was hiking clear across the pasture through open areas and over the hills and I did it completely nude having left everything hidden far behind. I’ve written a story or two about this.

In late May, I met a guy in school who I soon introduced to nude hiking by taking him out to the pasture with me. This whole experience came about quickly and was somewhat awkward, but once we got through it, I had an enthusiastic nudist convert on my hands and since then Jeff and I have become great friends. This proved to be a learning experience for me in how (and how not ) to introduce someone to nudism. I’ve written a story or two about this experience, also.

In June on my twentieth birthday, I did a streak for several blocks through a residential neighborhood in the early morning hours. What a thrill that was and I gained a lot of confidence from it.

All during the spring, summer and fall, I did a lot of nude running. There was a new housing development that I went to frequently and would run nude in the early morning hours before dawn. There were no houses or streetlights yet so I had several blocks of paved streets just for me to train on in my favorite running gear – my skin. I have no idea how many miles of nude running I logged this year, but it was a lot.

Another time this summer when I was nude sunbathing out in the pasture, I was accidentally discovered by a couple who were also out hiking. As it turned out they had been nudists all their lives and they sort of took me under their wings. I’ve had the opportunity to be with Ann and Jim and their kids a number of times since then including a weekend camping trip to the nudist campground where they belong. We’ve become good friends and I’ve learned so much from them – especially Ann. I’ve written about them as well and I’ll soon have the story about the camping trip completed.

In September, I did another streak in celebration of the 2000 Olympics. This one included the same residential neighborhood that I streaked on my birthday, but it was for a lot longer distance. Again, it was such a thrill and also gave me a sense of accomplishment and triumph. I know this sounds dumb, but now whenever I run through this neighborhood on a normal run, I always feel a sort of satisfaction and superiority - like I have conquered this territory. Is that just me or does anybody else ever feel this way?

In the fall, I put up my own website. I was receiving a number of requests to re-post some of my stories, so I just decided to put them all on the ‘net so that anybody could read them anytime. It’s just a plain vanilla site with only my stories, but I’ve been very surprised and pleased at the number of hits it receives. Hopefully, people are finding something there they can use. I don’t know if they’re being encouraged or inspired or just simply entertained, but whatever the reason, many thanks to everyone who visits.

And then there was Julie. Julie and I have been best friends for the longest time, but I had never tried to introduce her to nudism. In fact, she didn’t even know I was a nudist. Then when the fall semester began, she and Jeff (mentioned above) gradually got together and became an item. So now here was Julie with her boyfriend a nudist and me, her best girl friend a nudist and she didn’t have a clue. Well, that had to change. So we told her. Understandably, it was quite a shock for her finding out that her best friend was a nudist and had introduced her boyfriend to nudism. Things were pretty rocky there for a little bit, but with a lot of love and patience and understanding we all worked through it. Julie can now be counted among the ranks of the nude. She still can’t bring herself around to calling herself a nudist, so Jeff and I are the nudists and she is just a person who happens to be nude – a LOT! We’ve created a MONSTER! Seriously though, I couldn’t be happier that my best friend now shares my enthusiasm for nudism. I should have told her a long time ago. I will soon write up the details on this experience in hopes that others can benefit from it.

Well, that’s how things turned out in my little world over the past year. The best thing of course was finding friends in nudism. This includes brand new friends as well as old friends that I helped bring in to nudism. In fact, that’s my goal for the new year – share nudism with others whenever possible and have more nudist experiences. And if that includes some streaking adventures, then so much the better.

I’ve also met a lot of nice and interesting people during the year via the ‘net. These are people that I have met either through the streaking.org forum or my website. We’ve shared our experiences and ideas via e-mail and I value these friendships, too.

Here’s wishing each and every one of you a happy, healthy, prosperous 2001.

Happy Nude Year everybody! Have fun!!