Humans are compelled from within ourselves to group together. We are social animals; it is our nature to be so. As we grow from childhood into adulthood, we develop not only an increasing awareness of ourselves as individuals but also of our place among other humans. As individuals, we develop awareness, through our own senses and thoughts, of our needs and feelings. We also discover that we are part of a unit of other humans. In fact, as we grow, we learn that we belong to many groups of people: some small, some large; some chosen, some without choice. Much of our individual identities come from being connected to groups of one sort or another. A group can based on family, gender, an occupation, a hobby, a geographic location, or on shared interests or philosophies. Humans gather together to survive and to prosper, thus the need to belong to a group is a part of each individual. And with this comes the desire to be needed by the other members of the group. A natural satisfaction and security comes from knowing that they are of use to others, that others value their contributions.
To be sure, an individual can find great meaning and enjoyment in the practice of nudity alone, however given our innate social nature, many nudists find they enjoy even more sharing nudity in a communal setting where they are able to interact with other like minded people and enjoy the support present within a group. This is the basic premise on which all clubs, fraternal organizations and social groups are constructed and the same is true where it comes to nudists. Some nudists have this need met through landed clubs or resorts (organizations that own property and club facilities). But for others, often those who do not live in close enough proximity to a landed club to use them on a regular basis, the need to be a part of a group is often satisfied by membership in a non-landed club. Non-landed simply means a club which does not own any club facilities but instead operates as a nude recreational travel club. Members typically meet at the homes of host members or travel together as a group to landed clubs and resorts. Non-landed clubs generally are organized primarily on shared geographical location but other factors such as age, sexual orientation and marital status can come into play.
Social nudity usually attracts more men than women. Many of those organizations which want more of a balance, therefore, do not allow unaccompanied men, and might even encourage unaccompanied women. Some venues avoid the accusation of discrimination by banning all single people and accepting only families and male/female couples. Other groups have quotas. These practices tend to generate criticism about it being somewhat hypocritical of a subculture which promotes acceptance to employ systems that seem to discriminate based on gender. When I became involved in naturism and became aware of the existence of non-landed clubs, I did begin investigating the possibility of joining a local group only to find that all groups in my area accepted only families or couples.
After joining an on-line nudist social networking site I became acquainted with a number of single nudists from my area who shared my interest in being a part of a local group and together we formed our own, single friendly, non-landed club, North Texas Naturists. Thus far we have ten members and are in the process of planning and holding our first gathering. Predictably, given that social nudity usually attracts more men than women as mentioned previously, the group composition at the present time is all male. I am hopeful however that in time the group will continue to grow and that we will become more diverse and will attract both couples and single females as well. I also hope that over time, if the North Texas Naturists prospers and grows, that it might provide the nucleus to form an actual landed club in the future and that as a group we might acquire property, build, own and enjoy our own local club facilities.
To be sure, an individual can find great meaning and enjoyment in the practice of nudity alone, however given our innate social nature, many nudists find they enjoy even more sharing nudity in a communal setting where they are able to interact with other like minded people and enjoy the support present within a group. This is the basic premise on which all clubs, fraternal organizations and social groups are constructed and the same is true where it comes to nudists. Some nudists have this need met through landed clubs or resorts (organizations that own property and club facilities). But for others, often those who do not live in close enough proximity to a landed club to use them on a regular basis, the need to be a part of a group is often satisfied by membership in a non-landed club. Non-landed simply means a club which does not own any club facilities but instead operates as a nude recreational travel club. Members typically meet at the homes of host members or travel together as a group to landed clubs and resorts. Non-landed clubs generally are organized primarily on shared geographical location but other factors such as age, sexual orientation and marital status can come into play.
Social nudity usually attracts more men than women. Many of those organizations which want more of a balance, therefore, do not allow unaccompanied men, and might even encourage unaccompanied women. Some venues avoid the accusation of discrimination by banning all single people and accepting only families and male/female couples. Other groups have quotas. These practices tend to generate criticism about it being somewhat hypocritical of a subculture which promotes acceptance to employ systems that seem to discriminate based on gender. When I became involved in naturism and became aware of the existence of non-landed clubs, I did begin investigating the possibility of joining a local group only to find that all groups in my area accepted only families or couples.
After joining an on-line nudist social networking site I became acquainted with a number of single nudists from my area who shared my interest in being a part of a local group and together we formed our own, single friendly, non-landed club, North Texas Naturists. Thus far we have ten members and are in the process of planning and holding our first gathering. Predictably, given that social nudity usually attracts more men than women as mentioned previously, the group composition at the present time is all male. I am hopeful however that in time the group will continue to grow and that we will become more diverse and will attract both couples and single females as well. I also hope that over time, if the North Texas Naturists prospers and grows, that it might provide the nucleus to form an actual landed club in the future and that as a group we might acquire property, build, own and enjoy our own local club facilities.
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