A Woman in Labor; Giving Birth to Feminism in Construction

 In my brief time with the electrician's union I have been the subject of sexual harassment many times - *as it is strictly defined. I PERSONALLY have felt intentionally and uncomfortably harassed three specific times. The first two I was able to brush off. The third broke the proverbial "camel's back".   We undeniably live in a patriarchal society. This is a fact that discomforts people because "patriarchal" comes with so many negatively angled, liberal/feminist connotations. Our society is patriarchal because it was founded by and it continues to be run based on gender norms established in a past era that discriminated against women and racial minorities. This. Is. A. Fact. The constitution that governs our society was written over 200 years ago by a community of men protecting white, landowning male properties and rights. We have still never had a female president. Women still hold a minority of political positions. Women are still fighting to have eq...

 I decided it would be easier to read and digest if I broke up the original entry into multiple sections. So it continues... HERE WE GO - the next element: prostitution. Half of the men I have worked with thus far have spoken of multiple times in their recent lives when they have bought the services of a strip club dancer or sex worker. Of course, the former makes up the majority of their experience, but that only makes their hand job/blow job stories all the more exotic (in their retellings). As the more common experience, and (in my opinion) the more psychologically interesting choice I will focus on their universal love for strip clubs. Humans crave temptation. The tease, and in this discussion, the inability to participate in penetrative intercourse despite being intentionally aroused is a situation that we pursue. Whether or not we are all conscious of it this denial of our most primal desire can be more satisfying than the completion itself. (Side note, this reality always ir...

 I would like to quickly make a personal disclaimer concerning the title and topic of this entry: first, I recently was exposed to the new noun "womxn" which among many other purposes, serves to bypass the inherent sexism of the word "women" (wo-men, fe-male; get it?). I really like this word as I have always felt... feministic disgust? from the second half of "women". However, as I am criticizing society as seen from the traditional, patriarchal viewpoint, I will continue the use of "women" at this time.  Second, I do not believe any divide in humankind should be or is necessarily irreparable. But given the mindsets of the men I work with and the stories and perspectives I will be sharing below, it seemed like a good question to throw out into the universe. Will there always be a considerable fighting force of traditionalist patriarchal figures who refuse to consider the world from any other angle, and refute female-led arguments in favor of a n...

 Definitely a misleading title, but mortify is a word to which I'm partial. When I was fifteen years younger, my present choices may have been mortifying. Now they are a manifestation of who I am; a person that may not love herself just yet, but who is comfortable with herself. My first months at this job, I felt as if I was in junior high school again. It seemed that I could not commit to a character profile as I was not sure if I wanted to fit in or stand out. I'm certain that (as is the case with anything) I wanted a balance of the two, but I wasn't sure how to achieve it without sacrificing a bit of who I am. How could I be bold and confident when I knew nothing? How could I be polite and studious when I was constantly heckled? I vacillated between extremes. Reflecting upon every past feeling and behavior I can conjure up, I realize that as a human it is normal to have a many faceted personality with occasional (and often provoked) flares in emotion. The unusual bit was...

 As I am sure any introspective adult has observed, we become more tolerant of pain as our experiences compile. I have been consciously aware and contemplative on the subject of pain management since I began working in labor seven years ago, although I'm sure a more primitive area of my brain has known and congratulated me on my callousness for years before that. It seems outwardly very natural that humans should come to accept pain on any level as a regular consequence of living. But as so much pain could be avoided and other pains are a sign of an issue that requires immediate attention, I can't help but be fascinated by the process of building resistance to bodily pain; we build endurance (largely subconsciously?) so we may withstand greater discomfort as we expand our knowledge and experience.  I suppose I will start with an observation made at work (since in theory this is meant to be a blog that reflects upon my time as an apprentice). One afternoon, nestled in the back ...

 Sounds like a fantastically comedic show, no? This wouldn't be the first time I've considered how to turn my job into a sitcom or a play, but the fact of the matter is that the antics would be the only source of amusement. It isn't like a barista job where there are wacky new flavors on their chalkboards or a restaurant where the wait staff has witty banter with their customers. We sometimes rarely see our "customers" and when we do we generally ignore each other because there is nothing a customer can do but distract from the task at hand. But conceptualizing an electrician themed performance was not what I came here to do (wait... Tim Allen's Home Improvement... how much of that tackled actual repair work?). The program I am a part of is considered "indoor" electric work. This is not necessarily the case. I AM lucky to be currently working indoors as the season grows colder, and I acknowledge that the cold I've endured thus far is barely a whi...