Monthly Archives: August 2016

August 31, 2016

The Exhibit

By Joe

The above picture has to do with a tiny part of our exhibit. The exhibit opens today. We will have an opening reception with dignitaries from the university in attendance. As for the picture above, I cropped out the part that showed the actual “short arm inspection.” The guy in the middle is quite handsome in my opinion.

The outbreaks in World War II in 1939 brought interest in the sex education by the Public and the government. During this time period military maneuvers and activities, sexual hygiene and conduct had proven to be a major problem for the Worlds’ Armies, and WW2 proved to be no different. Soldiers and Sailors on assignment overseas were often lonely, had time to spare, got homesick, or were just looking for female companionship. Due to this many men started to have multiple sex partners and as a result sexually transmitted diseases were again another major health concern. During the Great War, Venereal diseases had caused the Army to lose the services of 18,000 servicemen per day. Although by 1944 this number had been reduced 30-fold, there were still around 606 servicemen incapacitated by V.D. every day. This drop in numbers was partly because of the Army’s effort to raise awareness about the dangers faced by servicemen through poor sexual hygiene, but also because of the important developments in medicine in the area of treatment of the disease. In late 1943 a case of gonorrhea required a hospital treatment of 30 days, and curing Syphilis remained a 6-month ordeal – by mid-1944, the average case of gonorrhea was reduced to 5 days, and in many cases the patient remained on duty status while being treated.

Leave a comment | posted in History, Work

August 30, 2016

Nothing Twice

By Joe

Nothing Twice
by Wislawa Szymborska (1923 – 2012)

Nothing can ever happen twice.
In consequence, the sorry fact is
that we arrive here improvised
and leave without the chance to practice.

Even if there is no one dumber,
if you’re the planet’s biggest dunce,
you can’t repeat the class in summer:
this course is only offered once.

No day copies yesterday,
no two nights will teach what bliss is
in precisely the same way,
with precisely the same kisses.

One day, perhaps some idle tongue
mentions your name by accident:
I feel as if a rose were flung
into the room, all hue and scent.

The next day, though you’re here with me,
I can’t help looking at the clock:
A rose? A rose? What could that be?
Is it a flower or a rock?

Why do we treat the fleeting day
with so much needless fear and sorrow?
It’s in its nature not to stay:
Today is always gone tomorrow.

Lazy Weekend

By Joe

There is not a lot to write today. I spent a lazy weekend binging on episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and eating takeout Chinese food. Honestly, there isn’t much more to report. Isabella and I just lazed around. It was a good weekend after a very busy week. This week will also be busy. I have two receptions to attend (I may only go to one of them), and I’m sure there is still more to do to get our new exhibit ready for the opening.

1 Comment | posted in Miscellaneous

August 28, 2016

Community

By Joe

I received an email the other day about getting together a group of gay Church of Christ members or former members. I know that some of you have found my blog through my posts on being gay in the Church of Christ, and so I know that some of you grew up in the church or are still in the church and might be struggling with being gay and a member. Matthew 18:20 says, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” I’ve always advocated a regular group of gay Church of Christ members but have found little interest, though I still think it is worthwhile. Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

If you are interested in being in such a group, please contact me and I will put you in contact with the person who emailed me.

Moment of Zen: Abs

By Joe

Leave a comment | posted in Moment of Zen

August 26, 2016

Work

By Joe

I may have been a bit blue the last few nights, but I have honestly been enjoying work. I’ve been busy, which is not something that I can usually say. Often I am waiting for people to interview, trying to find people to interview, and contacting people about interviews, which is the hardest parts of my job. The easy part comes when I am being used as a historian as opposed to an oral historian. I love being an oral historian, I love interviewing the people, when I can find someone to interview. However, our new exhibit is something on which I am considered an expert (although I don’t always feel like one even with a master’s degree in the subject).

I have been doing a lot of writing for the exhibit. You may not think about it, but all of the labels telling about stuff in an exhibit have to be written by someone. For this exhibit, I have done much of the writing and what I haven’t written, I have edited. To say that I love doing this would be an understatement. I wish that this was my job. It has been discussed that education coordinator be added to my job title. If that was the case, and it may become a possibility, then I would be writing curriculum to go with the exhibits, plus I would be putting together educational programs, like the reading and discussion group that I am already coordinating.

If they ever get the museum studies program going, I would also be a faculty member, which is what I really went to graduate school to do, though it didn’t work out. There are lots of possibilities with my job, and the busier I am the more I like it. I know that can’t be said for a lot of jobs, but I like to stay busy when I am at work. One thing about when I was teaching, there was no down time. Yes, I had a free period, but that was spent working to get things graded and making out assignments and tests. If it hadn’t been for the students, I would have loved teaching, but the students were just too rowdy and out of control. I hated discipline. Now, I don’t have to worry about that. It’s just a matter of doing my job and helping where and when I can.

It’s nice when your boss and your coworkers tell you on a regular basis that they are so glad that I came to work there. However, just being appreciated has not been enough to bring me out of my depression. I wish it was, but I miss home, I miss my friend I lost, and I miss being nearer to family. I don’t mind living away from my family, in fact, I prefer it, but I wish I was at least within driving distance.

Blue

By Joe

For some reason, I felt a bit blue last night. I don’t know what it was, but I had been feeling down since I left work. Work went well today, so I know that’s not the problem. I was really missing my friends and family last night. I wish it knew what triggered these episodes. It’s like a feeling of great sadness and longing. I hate the way I look. I hate the way I feel. I hate everything about myself. It’s a pity party, and I know it. I’ll be all right, I know, but the only solution for last night was to go to bed early and wake up hoping today is a better day.

Fell Asleep

By Joe

I fell asleep last night before I could get a post written.

Leave a comment | posted in Uncategorized

August 23, 2016

I Don’t Believe You

By Joe

I don’t believe you.
When you tell me something must be wrong with you,
that you feel broken or less than good enough,
and that you are the reason you are alone.
I don’t believe you.
You see yourself through the cracked lenses,
of another persons life and some how expect me
to see you the same way they did.
You don’t believe me,
when i say you’re everything you should be
and that all the things and all the pieces
are in all the right proportions.
You don’t believe me.
I see you with my own eyes,
unclouded by the self doubt you feel
and what i see is clear:
You’re beautiful.
A wonder.
A treasure that could never be replaced.
You, yes you, just as you are.
You are someone I wish to know.
You are someone I place value in.
YOU are someone that a person like me,
would love to call my own.
You don’t believe me when I tell you these things,
and I will never believe those things about you.

Unknown Author

1 Comment | posted in Poetry

August 22, 2016

Isabella

By Joe

Isabella is a classic beauty. I was looking at her face this weekend and it is such perfectly proportioned. There is no doubt she is female, because she has soft beautiful features. As she gets older, I can now tell that she is not all black, but has white hairs here and there. It just adds to her charm.

Isabella is also a wonderful companion. She’s never more than a few feet away from me. She follows me from room to room. She is insistent that I tell her goodbye when I leave or she begins to cry quite loudly. I’m not sure what she does when I am not home, but I suspect she sleeps because that is what she does when I’m home during the day.

While she likes to be near me, she doesn’t like to snuggle. She’s not big on being held either. However, when I lay on the bed, she is never more than a foot away. When I turn out the lights to go to bed though, she sleeps either under the covers or under the bed. She does do a little roaming at night. Occasionally making lots of noise. She is an early riser too. She likes to wake up between 5 am and 6 am, while I tend to sleep until at least 7 am.