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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (May 1, 1985)
Flower power by B illy Russo I com e from that old macho school that says the best defense is a good offense. Be sides addition, subtraction, and some very basic reading and writing skills, that's all I learned at that school. Mot long after I came out in the workplace a group of us were washing tables in the dining hall and one of the women I work with — she was shop steward at the time — placed a flower in my hair. We all wear hairnets, so actually she placed it under my net. She also placed a flower under her own hairnet. Some of the other women did likewise. We rarely Roseburg Report have live flowers in the dining room. A vete ran’s group had provided them. An hour later we were working in the dish- room when a supervisor happened by. Mind you, there were half a dozen people in the dishroom with flowers in their hair. Granted, I was the only male thus adorned, but I wasn’t the only person. Anyway, the supervisor made a beeline for me: “ Take that flower out of your hair," she said. I batted my eyes at her a couple of times and said, “ Mo." She turned and walked briskly away. One point that the Civil Service Act is very clear on is my right to challenge any order given that is not clearly outlined in my job description. About an hour later, when the head cook cam e on duty, the supervisor returned with him in tow. He looked at me for a minute, cleared his throat and restated her order. I restated m y response. He looked at me for a minute, looked at the supervisor, shrugged his shoulders, turned, and walked away. She followed him after giving me a bewildered look. Shortly therafter, they both returned with a shop steward. It was the same woman who put the flower in my hair in the first place. She inform ed me that if I didn't take the flower out o f my hair that we would have to go to per sonnel to address the issue. She was visibly nervous. The first thing that stuck out in my mind was that she had placed the flower in my hair in the first place, next was the obvious fact that she was still wearing the flower she had placed in her own hair, and lastly, four or five other w om en were also wearing flowers. But, being the cooperative type, I removed the flower from my hair and with exaggerated m otions inserted it in my mouth, stem first. I d id n ’t swallow it. For the rest of my shift — about an hour — anytime one of them glanced at me I opened m y m outh wide to show the flower. One would think that that would be the end of it, but let me assure you that that is not the way the federal government works. The next day when I got to work there was a notice on the bulletin board next to our mailboxes — even a dishwasher has its own mailbox in the federal workplace. The notice read: “ The wearing of live flowers under the hairnet is strictly forbidden. Live flowers attract live bugs." It went on to explain that artificial flow ers were acceptable. That was too m uch for me to resist. The following day I showed up with a big. black rubber cockroach under my hairnet. The supervisor who had first told me to remove the flower took one look at it, started to say som ething, thought better o f it. then marched right into the head cook's office. The head cook came over and took a good look at it. shook his head and walked away. The mailboxes that I mentioned earlier are the pigeonhole variety. There are about sixty of them. They are assigned alphabetically, so m ine is in the middle about two-thirds of the way down, just about eye level. Besides a copy o f my job description and a copy of the master agreement between labor and m an agement. I also keep my trophies in there: trophies from battles I had won with manage ment. When no one challenged my rubber bug, I retired it to my mailbox to accompany the bottle of nailpolish and the beaded hairnet that made up my permanent trophy collec tion. The rubber bug nicely complemented the collection. I noticed that the next time one of the supervisera stuffed the latest memo, directive, or whatever, into my box, it sprang right out and onto the floor. A few days went by before I tested manage ment's newest rule again. This time I showed up with a little stuffed bear under my net It was really neat Everytime I turned my head guickly it changed positions under the net. It also dis played a little button which said. "I like older men." When management ignored me again, I eventually removed it and placed it in my mail box. I positioned it so that it was looking out, waving, and displaying the button. The next day I was called into the head cook’s office for a counseling. A counseling is the first documented step on the road to an adverse action. Adverse actions are tacky, and I usually try to avoid them. The head cook then • inform ed me that I could not keep the stuffed animal in my mailbox. He explained that I could, however, keep it downstairs in my locker, out in m y car, or anywhere I choose outside the workplace. I let him say everything he had to say about the stuffed animal in the workplace. I started at him in passive silence for a m om ent or two and asked: "What about the rubber bug and the beaded hairnet? Do they have to go, too?" A half hour later I walked out of his office over to the mailboxes. It was obvious to me that the half dozen or so food service workers still on the floor were curious as to how I made out. I made eye contact with the one furthest away from me and holding the stuffed animal high above my head. I spoke in a loud, clear voice: "I lost on the stuffed animal, it has to go. But I won on the rubber bug and the beaded hairnet." SOMETIMES THE MAGIC WORKS eft Custom Color Prints Custom Black&White Prints * * Copy Negatives * * Volume Prices Portrait and Commercial Photography “Let us work a little magic your way” CallGinny 2 3 8 -1 0 0 4 , 2nd A N N U A L WOMEN Æ WOODS A "Gay & G rey" W orkshop sponsored by Phoenix Rising A tw o -p a rt w o rksh o p for older lesbians and gay men approaching 50 years & beyond This w o rksh o p is designed for n e tw o rk in g around the shared and unique concerns, joys, problem s and expectations of our aging process Led b y : A rt W ilcox, M A O a te s & T im e : Thursday, M ay 23rd, 7-10 pm & Thursday, M ay 30, 7-10 pm a t B R EIT EN B U SH H O T SPRIN GS A u g u st 9 th , 10th & 11th, 1985 Three-day weekend retreat for lesbian women held at historic Breitenbush Hot Springs Resort, located adjacent to M t Jefferson |60 miles east of Salem. Oregon) Come and enjoy the natural setting, therapeutic hot springs, pools, steam sauna, hiking trails, rustic cabins, old mountain lodge, ovo-lactic vegetarian meals (included) and powerful energy of women together Just Out Mav 1985 C ontact Phoenix Rising for registration and fu rth e r in fo rm a tio n at 223 8299. Time available for healing workshops, play, relaxation, music your choice Sliding fee scale from S65 to S125 (set your own fee) Register early, space limned Send $25 deposit (refundable until June I ) to PHOENIX RISING FOUNDATION 408 S\X/ 2nd. RO O M 407. PORTLAND. OR 97204 (503) 223^8299 Carpooling available from Portland or Salem 17