“Openness may not completely disarm prejudice, but it is a good place to start.” ~ Jason Collins ~ first active NBA professional to publicly announce he’s same gender loving
DEDICATION:
This post entry is published in posthumous appreciation, gratitude and as a tribute to Jason Paul Collins (2 December 1978 – 12 May 2026). May he rest in peace for all eternity.
“The door Jason Collins widely opened can never be shut again!” ~ Aaron Michael Peterson-Poladopoulos ~ ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
My thoughts:
Proverbial words of wisdom offered in a simple statement of fact by a man who had ability, skills and talent in his professional career. Essentially, a very basic truth: honesty is the best policy. The truth, especially about what and who we really are, may be criticized by others, but it can never be disproved. Honesty empowers and enables us.
I own who I am. I am same gender loving. I am gay. I am queer. I am a homosexual. I acknowledge and admit to being all of those labels. I know who I am. I know the truth.
My knowledge of the truth about myself empowers me to try to be the very best man that I can possibly hope to be. This knowledge also enables me to determine freedom and truth rather than restriction and dishonesty.
Jason Collins
The Late Jason Collins:
Jason Collins became the very first male professional basketball player to “come out” (announce) his sexual orientation while active in the National Basketball Association (NBA). His acknowledgement inspired a same gender loving (SGL) version of the NBA logo, shown below:
A colourful emblem that represents us being us! Not appreciated by everyone who’s a fan of the NBA but it definitely offers some “food for thought!”
Jason and his identical twin brother, Jarron, were born and grew up in Los Angeles, California. Jarron also played in the NBA.
His first professional team was Houston, Texas Rockets. He played throughout the USA including the New Jersey Nets, The Washington Wizards and his final season with the Brooklyn, New York Nets.
Prior to Jason’s coming out, he played in twelve (12) consecutive seasons in the NBA and impressed not only his fans but also his fellow professional athletes. Throughout his life he was dedicated to helping others in any way possible.
Jason came out as same gender loving on 29 April 2013 in Sports Illustrated magazine cover story. In May 2025, he married film producer Brunson Green.
On 11 September 2025, the NBA announced that Jason Collins was undergoing treatment for a brain tumor. On 11 December 2025, Jason revealed that he was diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma. He died at home on 12 May 2026.
On 22 June 2026, it was announced that Jason would be posthumously awarded with the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage for his impact on GLBTQ+ visibility in professional sports at the 2026 ESPYS in July. The Arthur Ashe Award for Courage is given to a professional sportsperson who has made a difference beyond the field of play by fighting for what they value.
In announcing this honour, the NBA included that the award would be received by his twin brother, Jarron. Jarron’s confirmation added: “It is profoundly bittersweet but deeply meaningful to accept the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage on my brother’s behalf, celebrating a legacy of visibility, strength and love that will endure forever.”
Naked hugs!
Aaron and Roger/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for tomorrow, June 30, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “Bottoms-Up! June, 2026!”
“There was no gay pride before Stonewall. Only gay fear and gay isolation and gay distrust and gay self-hatred.” ~ Edmund White ~ gay author and Stonewall Inn customer
This upcoming Sunday, 28 June 2026 is the fifty-seventh (57) anniversary of the Stonewall Inn Riots (SIR!) This anniversary is reason to celebrate our progress as a community and culture and to recognize that we continue to have challenges and struggles to endure. As gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer+ (GLBTQ+) people, we march forward together!
As we read this summary of the events of 28 June 1969, we recall the efforts and the frustrations of all those who suffered before us and we salute their courage and sacrifice! This story is now our story, to recall and to remember with confidence, devotion, love and pride!
As bare practitioners, it is important for us to know and to understand our same gender loving (SGL) heritage. It is also the same importance for our heritage of nakedness. The Stonewall Inn riots (SIR) always are a part of our past, a part of our present and a part of our story!
Prologue:
World War II officially ended in 1945. The walls that divided different socio-economic and educational classes of people began to slowly disappear. The eradication of “separate” between persons of a variety of ethnicities and racial heritages began to decline also. These changes didn’t occur suddenly; it was an eventual shifting of bias, distrust and prejudices as the larger general society started the tedious, slow and incremental process of enlightenment and evolution.
The 1940s became the 1950s and social change lost the incredibility and novelty it once generated. A brief pause became evident as reluctance to move forward into the unknown overcame the dream to build and to renew. By the arrival of 1960, a temporary stalemate emerged that was short-lived and soon replaced by active and mounting protests from the disappointed youth and the despondent innovators.
The televised assassination of the youthful US President John Kennedy in November, 1963, ended the fragile truce between the progressives and the traditionalists. The growing frustration soon erupted into increasingly active and aggressive protests over racial injustices and segregation, feminism and women’s rights, the Vietnam war, military conscription (the draft) policies, equal labour practices and educational values.
Turbulent and violent soon became the usual descriptive to the situations unfolding in the lives of the nation. Traditional authority concepts began to recede into obscurity and the custom of unquestioned acquiescence to the “status quo” rapidly vanished.
While these drastic shifts in public opinion and perception appeared in broader society, subtle occurrences happened in the “homosexual” (gay, lesbian, bisexual) world as well. Still illegal and officially marginalized, all the while conveniently and openly despised, our “homosexual predecessors carefully, cautiously and discretely began to emerge in the larger urban areas such as Washington, D.C., New York City, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. They individually and in small groups joined in public protests and general boycotts focusing on the progressive social change movement.
In 1961, the state of Illinois legislature became the first to repeal the law designating “homosexuality” as illegal. The seeds of change and progress were finally planted!
June, 1969:
The Stonewall Inn (it was never a hotel) opened as a bar catering to the “homosexual” community in 1967. Prior to that, it had been a stable (for horses), a French bakery, a tearoom and lastly a restaurant that had burned out of business. It opened as a bar serving alcohol under Mafia-affiliated management and very closely connected to organized crime. The establishment consisted of two main rooms, each with its own dance floor. The front room was popular with older clientele and the back room attracted youth.
At the time of the Stonewall Inn Riots (SIR), it was unlawful for “homosexuals” to gather in public. Same gender intimacy was outlawed and persons subject to arrest and being fired from their jobs (with no legal recourse). They were ridiculed and attacked publicly often without any consequence. Simply being a “homosexual” was considered an antisocial and criminal act. Everyone was required, by law, to wear clothing appropriate to their birth gender – the only exception was for Halloween.
Friday evening, 27 June1969 was a hot and humid start to a weekend. Most of the patrons gathered inside the Stonewall Inn were looking forward to a night of dancing with their friends, relaxing with cocktails and enjoying a summer’s night in New York City. They had no idea that they were about to witness a historical event that would change their lives – and the “homosexual” world – forever.
“The door of the Stonewall had wrought-iron bars across this peephole, a little wooden thing that slid open. And the man inside would look at you and, if you looked like you belonged there, he would let you in.” ~ Chris Babick ~ Stonewall customer describing the entrance to Stonewall Inn
Both the dance floors at Stonewall Inn were full of dancing “homosexual” couples. It was now after midnight and 28 June 1969 was in its infancy. Suddenly, the music stopped. The lights that were dimmed to enhance the atmosphere came back on in a bright glare that caught everyone by surprise. Almost at once, the realization dawned on the festive crowd: the police were raiding the bar.
The New York City police department was long familiar with conducting raids on gay and lesbian bars. Their process was fairly routine and they all recognized “homosexuals” as a relatively compliant and passive crowd. For this reason, only one police transport vehicle (paddy wagon) and one marked squad car were included in the raid. Less than a dozen officers were assigned the task of managing and segregating the crowd, confiscating all the alcohol and arresting the Stonewall Inn employees.
“The police weren’t letting us dance. If there’s one place in the world where you can dance and feel yourself fully as a person and that’s threatened with being taken away, those words are fighting words.” ~ Tommy Lanigen-Schmidt ~ Stonewall Inn patron and riot participant
The arrival of the police raiding force caused participants to erupt inside the Inn. Customers searched in vain for an escape route or for a place to hide. The police immediately began confiscating both liquor and beer as evidence against the establishment and dividing the crowd: bar employees, cross-dressers (transgender persons) and the “regular” “homosexuals.” The bar employees and the cross-dressers were to be arrested for violating the law. The “regular homosexuals” were to be given citations once they showed the officers their proper identification.
The year, 1969, was at the end of a decade that had witnessed violent social unrest. The African-American struggle for civil rights, the birth of the feminist and women’s rights movements, the anti-Vietnam War demonstrations and the equal pay marches for primarily Latino immigrant farm workers were underway during this time. The “homosexuals” who had participated in these public unrests were energized and many wondered when their time for equality would happen. Little did they, and the police raiding the Stonewall Inn, know that moment had arrived.
As the police began checking the identities of those inside the bar, those with proper credentials were released and herded outside the door. Only this time, instead of just leaving the premises, they congregated on the sidewalks and at a nearby park. Once law enforcement attempted to disperse them, they grew confrontational and belligerent.
The police, unaccustomed to “homosexual” defiance, continued to press the order to vacate the area. The crowd, emboldened by their frustration with being treated as “deviants” and second-class citizens began to chant and to empty trash cans and hurl the garbage at the officers.
By this time, passers-by, curious as to what was happening, joined the angry and upset “homosexuals” to express their dissatisfaction with the raid. The crowd outside the Inn began to grow in both number, disappointment and curiosity. Once word of what had transpired inside the bar began to spread, even more “homosexuals” started to descend into the neighborhood and amass in the vicinity.
“You could hear screaming outside, a lot of noise from the protestors and it was a good sound. It was a real good sound that, you knew, you had a lot of people out there pulling for you.” ~ Raymond Castro ~ Stonewall Inn customer detained inside the bar during its siege
By now, the police trapped inside the facility understood that the situation had gotten beyond their control. They tried to call for reinforcements but were unable to reach any source for assistance. They had secured the bar but were trapped inside and the crowd outside was swelling in both size and fury. A few hundred patrons had now grown into a furious mob of several thousand and more were joining them by the minute.
No one in the New York police department had anticipated the “homosexuals,” always believed to be meek and mild, to fight back. The years of abuse. oppression and ridicule had taken its toll and the frustration now became revolution. The time for retribution was at hand. Unfortunately for the police, the pent-up anger at law enforcement was now being released and returned in kind. The police were now themselves prisoners inside the Stonewall Inn.
Two hours after the raid began, the police and their detainees were trapped inside the facility and no relief was in sight. The two-way communication devices between the raiding party and their office weren’t working properly and the only “pay phone” inside the bar wasn’t able to connect with any local police precincts. The passive “homosexuals” had finally achieved a “first” in their spontaneous riot: the police were contained, surrounded and they were all very nervous. By this time, the crowd outside the Greenwich Village neighbourhood bar now numbered more than three thousand with a full-fledged riot underway.
In an effort to relieve the inflammatory predicament, the besieged decided to send the detainees and half the officers inside the Stonewall in the two police vehicles to the closest local police station. There, the detainees would be formally charged with arrest and the officers could make arrangements for a police riot force to assemble and rescue the remaining law enforcement personnel. This relief effort finally was able to return to the bar several hours later and eventually dispersed the angry mob of “homosexuals” and curious onlookers after reinforcements finally arrived.
Despite damage to the Stonewall Inn facility and the loss of the license to sell alcoholic beverages, the bar opened for business (dancing and soft drinks) the following night. By Saturday night, stories of the historic disturbance the previous evening had spread throughout the city’s closeted “homosexual” community (primarily by word-of-mouth). A larger than usual crowd gathered both inside and outside the now notorious establishment. Most didn’t expect a repeat of the raid the night before and a significant number of those who came mainly to inspect the facility damage.
The police, however, had different ideas. They were strictly outside the bar – in full force – with a large number in riot gear. They had learned their lesson the evening before and were determined to remain in full control should the patrons become unruly again.
The “homosexuals” had been empowered by the riot the previous evening and weren’t about to be bullied into submission again. As the large police presence attempted to disperse those gathered outside the Stonewall Inn, they were confronted by verbal insults and an array of street-savvy tactics that saw law enforcement chase off onlookers, only to have them run around the urban block and return again. Silent obedience to uniformed officers was no longer a fact of life for New York’s “homosexuals.” They were tired of suffering abuse, disrespect, ridicule and treatment as second-class citizens.
The second night of the Stonewall Inn congregation wasn’t as disruptive and violent as the one before. No further damage was done to the bar establishment. However, an awakening consciousness was raised within the “homosexual” community that would change the way society viewed them and – most importantly – the way they perceived themselves.
For the first time, the too often compliant and passive “homosexuals” stood up for their rights and demonstrated that they, as individuals and together as a community, had “had enough!” Through time, this singular incident has been recognized by many as the spark that ignited the flame for the same gender loving equality movement worldwide!
Naked hugs!
Roger Poladopoulos/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Original!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for Monday, June 29, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “A Penny For My Thoughts!”
Reference sources:
Ann Bausman Stonewall: Breaking Out for Gay Rights
The Juneteenth Day commemorates the end of slavery in the USA. On 19 June 1865, Major General Gordon Granger ordered the enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in the state of Texas at the end of the US Civil War.
By June 1865, almost all of the enslaved population had been freed through the victory of the Union Army over the Confederate Army. When the13th Amendment to the US Constitution was ratified (approved) in December 1865, the remaining slaves in Delaware and Kentucky attained their freedom.
Early Juneteenth Day celebrations were first observed in 1866 and involved primarily church sponsored community festivities featuring foods and singing. These began mainly in the south but soon spread throughout the entire nation as freed slaves moved about. During the Civil Rights engagements of the 1960s, the Juneteenth Day events were eclipsed by the nonviolent nature of the equality occasions.
Juneteenth Day was officially recognized as a national holiday in 2021 when then-President Joseph Biden signed the Juneteenth National Day Act into law. It was first officially observed nationally on 19 June 2021.
Happy Juneteenth Day!
Naked hugs!
Roger Poladopoulos/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Old Faithful!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for Monday, June 22, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “HIV Testing Day!”
Every year, during the month of our GLBTQ+ Pride, the age-old debate/discussion persists: do we need to continue to observe pride? For appearances sake, some want to honestly engage in an examination of the necessity of retaining the preservation of our pride designation. Others see us as having outlived the need for that distinction. Aaron, my spouse and I both cast our votes in the yes! determination on this question!
The primary reason for our affirmation of keeping pride alive is that the need to celebrate us being ourselves is just as important and imperative today as it was in 1970 during the first anniversary of the Stonewall Inn riots (SIR). Case in point: the trumpster-dumpsters are continuing their assault on our community and culture and ourselves on a variety issues, notably the transgender concerns, identities and recognition. They are so biased and foolish that they fail to comprehend that their obsession with transgender is exactly what is underscoring the vitality of this situation!
The not-so-subtle attacks on the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark rendering in favour of marriage equality is now underway, again under the endorsement and patronage of the trumpster-dumpster imbeciles. As the GLBTQ+ communities and culture, we need to remain vigilant in preparing for defending our equality and our inalienable rights. We cannot allow the resurrection of a Jim Crow Part 2 in which all advancements are frozen in a “separate but unequal” status!
Into this foray is one basic reality for the continuance of our pride commemorations. Many of our community and culture exist in an isolated environment regardless of social media and online accessibility. If even one of those persons benefits from a pride encounter and/or experience, then an enthusiastic and overwhelming yes in answer to the question of the need of pride in our community, our pride in our culture and our pride in ourselves for being what and who we are!
If our retention of pride helps to prevent just one suicide from depression over feelings of being alone and/or totally misunderstood, then definitely keep pride alive! If our retention of pride helps two persons reunite and renew their friendship, mutual support and relationship – bromantic or platonic – then keep pride alive!
The above are not the sole justifications for pride preservation in our GLBTQ+ communities and culture. Out festivities offer us all the convenience and opportunity to network together. To reignite our acquaintances with others and to remind ourselves of services and situations that can reward and strengthen our cultural exchanges and enhance our lives.
Our involvement and participation in pride functions affords us prospects of development and growth in both our personal and professional lives. We stay aware, informed and introduced to exciting and refreshing concepts, ideas and plans that enliven and enrich our own lives and what we share with others.
In remaining active in pride events, we expand our familiarity of issues, persons and topics that embrace, enhance and impact us personally but also us being members of a variety of communities, cultures and groups. Our knowledge of people and resources is invaluable in sharing!
Additionally, there are the usual arguments for keeping pride alive. Foremost among those is the opportunity to enable us all to remain current on issues that we share as a community and as a culture. This allows us to explore the options available to us and to discuss the solutions with those whom we otherwise may not have the chance to consult.
Another advantage the interaction within our community and culture with cohorts we normally have no contact. We can renew acquaintances and/or encounter new persons. This permits us to expand and explore as well as socialize others outside our usual crowd and to stay abreast of new and exciting interests and issues.
Hopefully and ideally, it makes no difference how we define, identify or label ourselves – bisexual, gay, lesbian, normal, queer+, “real,” transgender – there exists within all of us an element of belief, confidence, pride and stamina in being the individual person that we indeed are. That we appreciate and understand that throughout this global “home” we all share that there maybe (possibly) lives another similar being who perhaps benefits from the nature (sense) of community and culture inspired through a celebration of our being what and who we really are – us!
This chance (enablement, opportunity) is sometimes worth all the effort (involvement) necessary to afford and offer this person the reason to continue living another day! Keep Pride Alive!
“Our pride in being bare practitioners (same gender loving nudists) extends beyond the month of June of every year. It’s an ongoing process that reaffirms our self-worth all year.”
“This development of our sense of confidence in ourselves doesn’t bestow on any of us the right of arrogance and/or the right of judgment. We, of all people, know better than to make that assumption. Most of us have been the target of prejudicial behaviour (or worse) in our own lives and know first-hand how that makes people feel. Patience and tolerance of others, regardless of the beliefs or values they hold, should be our guide. Our pride in ourselves includes pride in our actions towards others.”
“Being confident and proud of ourselves involves respecting the rights of others in allowing them to be proud of themselves, too. Our freedom should not entail denying the same to anyone else.”
~ Roger Poladopoulos ~ ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers! 1 June 2017
Naked hugs!
Roger Poladopoulos/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for Monday, June 8, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “Bare-Volution: Bare Celebrity Series #9!”
June: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer+ Pride Month!
June is Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer + (GLBTQ+) Pride Month!
The Stonewall Inn Riots (SIR) happened on the early morning of 28 June 1968. In honour of that occasion, seen by multitudes of people throughout the world as the inauguration of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer + (GLBTQ+) equality movement, the month of June receives the attention of being GLBTQ+ Pride Month! Of course, we all know that our pride extends to everyday throughout the entire year! It is not limited to just one brief month in every year!
Rainbow Pride Flag!
The original Rainbow Pride Flag was inaugurated in 1978 for the San Francisco, California, USA, Freedom Day commemoration of the anniversary of SIR. The emblems were added to signify same gender love (SGL)! Yes, our flag-bearer is completely boxer-free nakedness!
The above image was the initial flag display header for our early post entries here on ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers! Before then, I also used the picture for my original Guy Without Boxers blog.
Progress Pride Rainbow Flag!
The Progress Pride Rainbow flag is now the current emblem for our GLBTQ+ community and culture’s global campaign for universal acceptance, equality, recognition and respect. It includes the rainbow design of our original pride flag plus the addition of the arrow to designate progress necessary to complete the inclusivity of both our community and our culture!
GLBTQ+ Pride Month 2026 is a time for us all to join in and celebrate and congregate each one of us being the basic person that we truly are! Of our community and culture being an open reflection of us and our institutions and our interests. Of our acceptance, our challenges and our joy!
Yet within this time of celebration and festivities, there are some extremely alarming realities that we are facing. These concerns and issues are in small doses now, but the potential for future expansion is very present and tangible.
The transgender community – especially the vulnerable youth – are under attack from those who seek to erase their very existence. Recently, the U.S. House of Representatives barely enacted a delay on voting on H.R.2616: a ban on schools nationally from teaching about gender identity, using correct names and pronouns, having reference materials representing transgender persons and acknowledging an individual’s transgender status and even their existence.
This conflict happened this year. In this, the halls of the U.S. Congress. The so-called “land of the free!” All courtesy of the fierce determination of the supposedly “elected” trumpster-dumpster!
The value of GLBTQ+ Pride 2026 is on the horizon and has yet to be fully realized. This is a mid-term congressional election year in the USA and the future of our freedoms is being severely tested.
There have been supposed basics of our democracy that we have been taught not to challenge or to interrogate. Yet the time is upon us now that these clauses no longer hold true or are valid. Institutions built when women couldn’t vote, when Black people were enslaved, when GLBTQ+ people didn’t legally and socially exist at all and social exclusion was theoretically baked into the very foundation of our laws and values.
If we are dedicated and serious in maintaining a democratic system that represents the dignity and will of all the people, then the time to evaluate and examine as to the structure of that system is now upon us.
Perhaps it is time to eliminate the electoral college?
Perhaps it is time to set term limits on the Supreme Court?
Perhaps it is time to rid politicians of corruption and greed?
We, the GLBTQ+ community and culture need to resolve to forge with other groups and organizations to unite and let the entire world know that not all of us residing in this country are blind followers of bigotry, greed and ignorance!
Happy Pride Month, 2026!
Naked hugs!
Roger Poladopoulos/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for Friday, June 5, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “Keep Pride Alive!”
In the USA, the Armistice Day/Remembrance Day (November 11) holiday is not officially observed as a day of tribute to the deceased. It is a salutation to all who served defending this country as Veteran’s Day. In honour of those killed fighting for this country, the Memorial Day holiday is observed. On Memorial Day, flags are to be flown at half-mast in honour, mourning and remembrance from the morning until mid-day then raised to full mast at noon.
The courage of the deceased is honoured and then the fun of the season commences. Throughout most of this country, this holiday is considered primarily as the unofficial beginning of the summer season. From now until the Labour Day holiday (the first Monday in September), the majority of the population is focused on the joys of fun-in-the-sun!
The first national observance of what was then known as “Decoration Day” occurred May 30, 1868, in response to a proclamation from then Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, John Logan. He ordered the tribute as a commemoration of all the deceased in the USA Civil War (1861-1865). The occasion was annually observed.
Following the Great War (World War I: 1914-1918) and then World War II (1939-1945), the commemoration evolved into the observance of Decoration Day/Memorial Day officially on the last Monday in May by an action of the US legislature in 1968. Then in 1971, the US Congress standardized the name to Memorial Day.
Have a happy and safe Memorial Day!
Naked hugs!
Roger Poladopoulos/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for Saturday, May 30, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “A Penny For My Thoughts!”
Sunday, 10 May 2026 is Mother’s Day in Canada and the USA!
Happy Mother’s Day to all mothers, grandmothers, aunts, cousins and to all women authority figures who gave advice, guidance, love and tolerance to young persons in their care!
Thank you for all that you’ve done!
Naked hugs!
Aaron Michael Peterson-Poladopoulos and Roger Peterson-Poladopoulos
ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for Monday, May 11, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “World Naked Bike Ride!”
During the Great War – World War I (1914-1918) – the Ottoman Turkish Empire instigated the very first ethnic genocide (killing, massacre, slaughter) of the twentieth century directed against the Armenian minority living within the belligerent Ottoman Empire.
At the time, the Ottomans were allied with the Central Powers (Austria-Hungary, Germany) against the British, French, Belgian forces and the Russian Empire.
Turkey’s affiliation with the Central Powers led to a political coup that transferred the authority of the government from the Sultan to the Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), a substitute for civilian authority.
Flag of Armenia
On 24 April 1915, the CUP ordered the deportation and expulsion of the Armenian residents of the capital city, Constantinople. Soon, the order was extended throughout all the Ottoman Empire and extended to also include execution. Massive crowds, often entire villages, were forced to march into the Syrian Desert, without food and water. They were raped, robbed, starved and brutally beaten.
The deportations and deaths became massive, prevalent and real. The overthrow of the monarchy and the division of lands formerly occupied by the CUP allowed atrocities against the Armenians and others until almost midway through the 1920s. By that time, an estimated 2 million Armenians had been exterminated. The emerging Turkish country had reduced the Armenian population from 2.5 million to under 400,000.
Genocide Memorial
Tsitsernakaberd: The Armenian Genocide Memorial
The Genocide Memorial was built in 1967 on the hill of Tsitsernakaberd, just outside the capital city of Yerevan, Armenia. The Genocide Memorial Museum Institute was added later and officially opened in 1995.
Every year on 24 April, the complex hosts the National Remembrance Day Ceremony where hundreds of thousands of people line for hours to place floral tributes and to offer prayers for the victims.
Ceremonial offerings
Personal Connection:
My maternal grandfather was one-half Armenian, his mother was born in the Ottoman Empire. He remembered the Turkish soldiers congregating the Armenian people inside their village church and setting the entire structure on fire. He and several of his friends were absent from school on that day and ran off when they witnessed the soldiers assaulting the village.
A Turkish family helped them escape to safety.
Naked hugs!
Roger Poladopoulos/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for Monday, April 27, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “Bare-Volution!”
Analogy: if similar in some respects, then they must be similar in other respects.
The header photograph (above) probably needs no explanation as it is obvious that the two men are pointing to the penis on the other; therefore, they are referencing it. And as a notation, the Black man is a celebrity within the same gender loving (SGL) film industry (porn). His stage name (performance) name is Landon. We are unsure as to why they are discussing penis but on closer inspection they’re both almost identical in length and thickness, at least while flaccid (calm, relaxed).
The .gif images published below also feature Landon, today’s guest celebrity, this time sharing a sudsy bath with a different partner.
Landon and his partner’s buttocks!
Comparing all the visuals of Landon and his accomplices, perhaps they are sharing information on hygiene and/or what is known as “spring cleaning.”
The fact that Landon and his cohort appear to be clean, it is appropriate to speculate that cleaning is a similar trait in their personal routine. Given Landon’s professional status, hygiene is expected of him as part of his work preparedness.
Landon’s fascination with male anatomy!
A patronizing inference is not intended so we can safely assume the same applies to the level of cleanliness of Landon’s buddy/friend/lover/partner. Thus, the phrase “spring cleaning” in no way refers that they each bathe just once, annually, in the Spring!
Hence, the usage of “spring cleaning” may infer – hopefully – to the routine of maintaining a tidy, pristine and safe environment (body, living space, etc.) by both men, individually and/or jointly.
Footnote #1: No disrespect to Landon nor to his friend. Aaron, my spouse, and I both appreciate his DVD scenes as well as his personal appearance. Just a “spring speculation” on an uncertain phrase and what it really means!
Footnote #2: Since we’ve identified the analogy here, perhaps the time has arrived to rename the title of this posting. A suggestion of something more accurate and descriptive. Maybe: Bare Spring Cleaning? We are, after all, bare practitioners!
Naked hugs!
Roger Poladopoulos/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for today, April 24, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “Armenian Genocide Day!”
Author’s Note #2: My maternal grandfather was Armenian by birth and after his entire family was brutally murdered by the Turkish extremists he was exiled to Greece.
Great and Holy Easter celebrates and commemorates the triumph of good over evil and of love over hate. The Resurrection is the promise of eternal life!
Background:
The Eastern Churches (Armenian, Chaldean, Coptic, Orthodox, etc.) follow the older calendar effective during the time of Jesus. The Western Churches follow a revised calendar thus the two different dates for most holy days.
Great Friday, 10 April, 2026:
The epitaphios procession through the churches.
In the Eastern Orthodox Church today is known as Great Friday, the Day of Sorrow. In the liturgical year, it commemorates the last day of Jesus alive here on earth and the sorrows he endured: the beating at the pillars of the Jerusalem Temple, the crowning of thorns, and having to carry his cross and then his crucifixion. When he expired, his body was placed in a tomb that belonged to St. Joseph of Arimathea.
Annually on this day, believers remember the agonies and pains that Jesus experienced. The shroud of the icon of the Crucifixion is placed in a tomb that is carried through the church in the epitaphios (tomb). As it is carried, the faithful chant the Lamentations hymns that recount the events of Great Friday. In the churches inside Greece, the epitaphios is bourne by active members of the military: army. navy or air corps.
After sunset on Friday evening, there is a candlelight service in churches where the icons have been covered in mourning. The Divine Liturgy is not sung again until midnight on Easter morning. The prayers offered reinforce the sadness and suffering of the occasion.
The Great Lent:
Anticipating the Glorious Resurrection, the six weeks before the arrival of the Holy Feast are spent in a period known as the Great Lent – a time of extreme fasting and sincere prayer. Growing up, my parents would direct the discussion topics to the importance of faith, prayer and service to all in our lives, our obligation to our church (Greek Orthodox) and to our family.
The fasting aspect of Great Lent involves abstinence from all meat, seafood, dairy products and eggs. The focus is on receiving nutrition naturally from nature’s resources. The fast is in effect during the entire season of the Great Lent.
The Great and Holy Easter!
The only offering of the Divine Liturgy (the principal prayer service in Holy Orthodox Churches) is always at Midnight on the Feast of Pascha (Easter). This allows for an entire day of celebration and feasting. The service begins outside the church (weather permitting) when the candles of the Resurrection are lit, and the priest leads the entire congregation to circle the church three times. While processing, the people sing the Resurrection hymns (Christ is Risen! Indeed, He is Risen!).
After the third encirclement, the procession then moves inside the church as the deacons uncover the holy icons, and believers light candles and offer prayers. The Resurrection hymns continue as the clergy, deacons, and servers line up for the offering of the Divine Liturgy.
The traditional Easter greetings!
Among all the popular treats for the Easter feasting, the most recognized is the egg which also represents the rebirth of the spring season. The hard-boiled egg is dyed red to recall the blood lost by Jesus during the crucifixion. The Lenten Fasting removed the availability of eggs from people’s diets but gave them notoriety as an Easter treat!
In the early hours of Easter morning, following the conclusion of the Resurrection Liturgy, the faithful exit the ecclesiastical sanctuary of the churches and encounter baskets and trays of traditional dyed Easter eggs ready to be consumed. The festive spirit of the holy day continues with all participating in the classical custom of greetings.
Holding the egg in the palm of the hand, one salutes another with the phrase, “Christos anesti!” (Christ is risen!). The other responds: “Alithos anesti!” (Indeed He is risen!). The two then collide their open-palmed eggs together with the victor emerging as the one with their egg-shell uncracked or intact. Multiple eggs are devoured in this manner and the Great fast of Lent is officially over!
Families – and sometimes multiple households – after the greetings and egg-breaking hurry home for an early morning Easter meal!
Tsoureki: Greek Sweet Easter Bread!
Tsoureki:
The widely and wildly delicious Easter delicacy that is a favourite of all – both the religious Greeks and those who are indifferent to faith. My spouse, Aaron, is the chef of our household and has my paternal yaya’s (grandmother’s) recipe for this special bread. He is the culinary commander and even though he never met any of my grandparents, he has spiritually inherited yaya’s ability, skill and talent in tsoureki baking. My siblings extol his exceptional perfection of her triumph! Aaron has even framed her handwritten recipe (in Greek) and it hangs in a place of honour in our kitchen!
Yaya’s tsoureki recipe generally takes approximately 18 – 19 hours to mix, prepare and to rise and over an hour to bake. After years of experience, Aaron has not been able to alter the process.
The tsoureki (in my family custom) is served with the main feasting that occurs in the late afternoon on Easter Sunday. One loaf usually serves about twenty-four (24) people and multiple loaves are served.
Kala pascha! Happy Easter!
Naked hugs!
Roger Poladopoulos/ReNude Pride: Guys Without Boxers!
Old Faithful!
Author’s Note: The next post entry here is planned for Monday, April 13, 2026, and the proposed topic is: “Budding Season!”
Francois:
Francois is excited to have some of Aaron’s tsoureki again!
