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Axie by nydudearon2
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Wednesday, September 17, 2025
Happy Birthday today September 18th
Phoebe's Choice...
'I like you both...and I don't know who to choose.'
Phoebe Buffay
Many FH readers know that I use sit-coms as a sleep aid. One show I rarely use however is Friends. I LOVED the NBC sit-com during it's original run. Friends ran through most of my University years, and I would record it on VHS and watch it on the weekends. I also often went to a friends house, where a few of us would gather to binge a few episodes, before binging was really a thing.
Maybe in part it's because of Matthew Perry's death, but I'm just not drawn to watching. There's also been some 'high sight' criticism of the show's lack of diversity. I certainly get that, and I also see some really bad, and overused homophobic jokes and tropes weaved within the humour. Still, I cut most older shows some slack, although by the early 2000's, in the shows last few seasons, the writers should have known better.
The other day however, while flipping channels, I found myself on a episode. The show, episode 23 from season 3, was titled The One With Ross's Thing. The A story centered on a 'bump' Ross had on his butt, and the B story featured Phoebe and the two men she was dating. I remember first watching the episode and falling in lust with the two actors playing Phoebe's dates. I didn't know who either actor was at the time, but both became favorites over the next decade or two.
The story was rather cleverly written with Phoebe dealing with the age old question, beauty or sensitivity. One of her boyfriends Vince is played by Matt Battaglia. Vince is a hunky fireman who Phoebe assumes doesn't have a great deal to offer in the brains and sensitivity department. She's also dating Jason, played by Robert Gant. Jason is a sensitive artist, who Phoebe assumes does have a lot to offer under his artists smock.
Of course later, Phoebe discovers the fireman writes his thought in a journal, and loves to paint. She uncovers her artist working with his shirt off, seeing he has the body of an Adonis. Who will she choose? Of course her choice isn't as dramatic as Sophie's, but it's a dilemma none the less. Phoebe decides to choose them both, which of course doesn't end well.
I don't think I could choose either, from the characters, or the actors. Both went on to show their talents, and beefy butts on Queer As Folk, and both continued to work steadily throughout the 2000's. If I HAD to, I'd probably choose Gant, but only after ensuring I had a a lot of sex with Battaglia first. Some of you may remember I've previously featured Battaglia's nude scene resume in my Actors & Skin series HERE: Who would you choose, decisions, decisions!
Thanks to Scene of Male Skin for the high quality clips from Queer As Folk
Walking in Castro: Axie by nydudearon2
'Stripping down in the Castro was top of my list to do while in San Francisco.'
One of the things I love so much about working on FH is the things I learn, and the places I get to virtually visit. I'd never heard about history, and current tradition, of stripping down in the Castro neighborhood in San Francisco. Thanks to model Axie, who shared both the images, and his story and experiences visiting the region, I now do!
If you follow Axie on social media, or have seen my previous posts on his erotic exploits, you know the Aussie adventurer is no stranger to naked excursions, often in public. I've been lucky to have have featured several of Axie's previous public outings, including experience at Pride, (HERE:) Melbourne's WNBR, (HERE:) and his various other journey's both unclothed and undaunted. (HERE:)
San Francisco has always had a bit of an anything-goes reputation when it comes to showing off au naturel. In my research, I learned that or the better part of the 20th century, San Francisco didn't bat an eye at public nudity. That all changed in 2012. That is when local lawmakers narrowly passed a ban on public nudity in the city. The restrictions were later upheld by the North Circuit of Appeals in 2017.
Although it's still legal to be nude at certain sanctioned public celebrations and events, the new legislation bans exposure of genitals, perineum, and anal region. This means no more naked walks or strolls on city sidewalks streets or on public transit. Now that didn't stop many in the largely LBGTQ region of Castro.
It still isn't that uncommon to see people, mostly men, walking around 'almost' completely naked. They get away with it by 'technically' following the letter of the law by not exposing their genitals or anal region. Anal region is a 'iffy' term, medically it refers to the anus, (butthole) and area just around it. It doesn't technically refer to the buttocks itself. In the very sex-positive Castro area, if your junk is covered, you probably won't be bothered by the police. You will however, likely garner a lot of attention from some locals, and tourists wanting you to take a photo with them.
Fans of Axie's work may have noticed a slew of new work on his social media pages late this summer. You may have also seen new images of Axie on the pages of many photographers based in America. That's because the Melbourne based model ventured on a whirlwind 37 day shooting tour in the United States and Canada. Within those 37 days, in addition to hours of travel, Axie completed 25 shoots, many with some of my favorite photographers.
Between the 20th of June and the 26 of July, Axie traveled to various locations including; San Francisco, Chicago, Toronto, Montreal, New York City, Fire Island, Boston, Provincetown, Los Angeles, San Diego and Palm Springs. During his time in San Francisco, Axie met up with Aaron, (nydudearon2) a fellow model and photography enthusiast. As the two walked the streets of Castro, Axie stripped down while Aaron used his iPhone to capture Axie, the neighbourhood, and the many men drawn to Axie's naked neighbourhood stroll.
'Stripping down in the Castro was top of my list to do while in San Francisco - but I had not had an opportunity to explore this nude adventure until my final afternoon in the city. Earlier that day I had met with Aaron (@nydudearon2) for a photoshoot, and much to my delight he agreed to meet me in the Castro to take some photos of my shenanigans.
I felt a little nervous arriving in the Castro. I love getting naked, but I never want to offend anyone. I knew that full nudity was no longer allowed, and had heard that the older nudists in the Castro walked around with little sock cocks on. I'd decided that I would just strip down to a jockstrap - wanting to make sure I didn't get into trouble or upset anyone.'
Feeling more confident, Axie was ready to strip down when Aaron arrived. To read more of what happed on Aaron and Axie's walk in Castro, including Axie bravely removing his jockstrap and interacting with others on the street, quickly head on over to THE NEXT PAGE HERE:
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