05. Naked and Unafraid

Where can you go where you are expected to be naked - and I'm not talking about a nude beach or nudist colony?

As my planning developed, I kept trying to think of ways to get naked without worrying about upsetting others. One day, as I walked home from work, I passed an Art School. I looked in the window at nothing in particular and saw a few nude paintings. I immediately, thought of a new approach. The actual studio was upstairs. These paintings were on display in a lobby.

The next day I called and asked if they needed models. They had plenty at the time, but I could come by and fill out an application.

I went during lunch. The receptionist told me to just call daily to see if they needed anyone for the next day. I asked if experience was needed and she said, "No, but practice some poses." I also asked if it mattered that I was older. I was mid forties at the time. She told me that they had a model in his sixties.

I called for a few days and each day they had enough help. I finally gave up, deciding that it was a good idea that just didn't work out.

About 4 months later I got a call asking if I was available; I responded. "Absolutely." I had no idea what to expect. I showed up the next morning only to be told that somebody had just gotten there ahead of me and that they would not need me.

As I walked away, I was told to wait. The receptionist checked with the instructor and he said that since I was already there he would use two models for the session. Now a few of my fears surfaced - what if the other person is pro and I'm a clumsy oaf - what if its a beautiful woman and I get a hardon - what if I'm not good looking enough. This was all settled quickly. The other model was a somewhat overweight middle-aged woman that was not very attractive. Please do not take offense - I do not mean this in a derogatory way. Afterall, I'm not the most handsome guy in the world. It simple put my fears to rest - It showed me that you did not have to be one of "the beautiful people" to do this. And as it turned out I was so focused on holding my pose that all of these fears were just stupid.

So, off I went into the unknown. The instructor had her go topless and sit in a chair in front of about a dozen students. He had me get completely naked and sit on the floor beside her legs with my left arm resting on her thigh. This was called the long pose. After about 45 minutes we took a break and then resumed for another 45 minutes.

During the break I put on a robe that I had brought with me and walked around looking at the drawings. They were actually quite good of both of us.

After the second segment was over, we were done. Normally there is a long pose and a series of short poses. He skipped the short poses I assume because there were two subjects taking extra time to draw.

I called into the school during the next week and got no further assignments. Again, I gave up. I figured that the call was just a fluke or the instructor wasn't impressed with me as a model. Three months later I got another call for a late afternoon session. Again, I was excited.

This was a solo performance. During the long pose, I was so relaxed that I actually dozed off - I hoped they didn't notice. During the break, I again looked at the drawings and was impressed. Then the short poses went well.

I was never called back. I decided that the first call was during Spring Break and the second call during the summer and that all their usual college-age models were not available during both of these times and that I was way down the list.

The school has since moved and I have not done anything like this since. Now I'm too old.

Those two sessions however were priceless for me; I was completely naked in front of a bunch of people and completely relaxed. It is how I imagine a stripper must feel when performing, people staring at me and my every move and me, enjoying every second of their staring.