Poem of the Day - Part 81

When I Heard at the Close of the Day
by Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman (1819-1892) was an American poet most famous for his poetry collection Leaves of Grass and the poems he wrote after Lincoln was assassinated: O Captain! My Captain! and When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd.

Whitman was almost certainly gay.  Leaves of Grass was criticized for wording that implies homosexuality in some of the poems.  Some contemporary critics called the work obscene, but others, including Ralph Waldo Emerson, praised it.

This poem, published in Leaves of Grass (1860), is about how becoming famous didn't make him happy, but his male lover coming and sleeping with him did.  If that's not gay, I don't know what is.

When I heard at the close of the day how my name had been receiv’d with plaudits in the capitol, still it was not a happy night for me that follow’d, 

And else when I carous’d, or when my plans were accomplish’d, still I was not happy, 

(Note: this sketch depicts Walt Whitman in 1854, slightly before Leaves of Grass.)

But the day when I rose at dawn from the bed of perfect health, refresh’d, singing, inhaling the ripe breath of autumn, 

When I saw the full moon in the west grow pale and disappear in the morning light, 

When I wander’d alone over the beach, and undressing bathed, laughing with the cool waters, and saw the sun rise, 

And when I thought how my dear friend my lover was on his way coming, O then I was happy, 

O then each breath tasted sweeter, and all that day my food nourish’d me more, and the beautiful day pass’d well, 

And the next came with equal joy, and with the next at evening came my friend,

And that night while all was still I heard the waters roll slowly continually up the shores, 

I heard the hissing rustle of the liquid and sands as directed to me whispering to congratulate me, 

For the one I love most lay sleeping by me under the same cover in the cool night, 

In the stillness in the autumn moonbeams his face was inclined toward me, 

And his arm lay lightly around my breast – and that night I was happy.

*          *          *

The photographs above, taken by Thomas Eakins c. 1883, are titled Naked Series: Old Man.  The name of the man was not given, but some people think the model was Walt Whitman, based on the striking resemblance to other photos of Whitman's face in old age.

Artists - Part 84

Carlo Maria Mariani

Carlo Maria Mariani (1931-2021) was an Italian painter.  Above, a self-portrait.  I think he was commenting on his style being between the ancient classical style and unrealistic 20th century art.

Some critics denounced his "postmodern" style, but at least one described it as "an extraordinarily complex, beautifully executed attempt to make classical drawing and painting meaningful again."

His style was very realistic, not at all abstract.  Sometimes his subjects are very traditional; sometimes they are puzzling.  Above, Ganimed (Ganymede), 1978, a traditional depiction of the cup-bearer and male lover of the god Zeus, who here takes the form of an eagle, which is also traditional.

Not all of Mariani's paintings feature nude males, but many of them do.  Sophrosyne, 1982, is named for the Greek concept of ideal character, including temperance, moderation, and self-control.

Lubricus Nudus Nocturnus, 1982.  The title means "Slippery Naked Night" in Latin.  This composition features a satyr with an erection and a sleeping character, possibly the Greek god Hermaphroditus, who had both female breasts and male genitals.

Dionysus, 1985, depicts the Greek god.  Mariani oddly shows him with a lion's paw.  Dionysus was associated with lions, but not just a paw, and he was also associated with snakes.

Ecco, sei tu eletto (Behold, you have been elected), 1985.  I don't know what Mariani was depicting, but it could almost be a comment on our current divisive elections. "You have been elected – now what?"

La nascita del pensiero (The birth of thought), 1985.  The large figure is holding an artist's paintbrush.  Is this about how the artist creates his works out of nothing but a thought?

Hypnos, undated, was the Greek god of sleep.

We end with Capriccio, 2000, showing a figure with what look like multiple Pinocchios.

National Hugging Day 2026

National Hugging Day

Today, January 21, is National Hugging Day.

It was created in 1986 by Kevin Zaborny, a juvenile delinquent treatment specialist at Boysville in Mt. Morris, Michigan, as a day devoted to public displays of affection.  He chose January 21 because it's roughly midway between Christmas and Valentines Day, when he thought people were at an emotional low.

Zaborney said that Americans are embarrassed to show feelings in public, and he hoped that a National Hugging Day would help change that.

In August, 2025, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney got into the news for hugging this Pride Parade participant in Vancouver.  

And of course, there are also tree huggers

But this day is for showing affection.  Give someone you love a hug!

Beach Bums - Part 78

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Gods, Myths and Heroes - Part 75

 Isaiah

In the Biblical book of Isaiah, chapter 20, God commands the prophet Isaiah to walk naked and barefoot for three years.

To quote the King James Version:

2 At the same time spake the LORD by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.

(Note 1: There isn't much art depicting naked Isaiah, so I'm showing a man walking naked and barefoot in the Bay to Breakers race in San Francisco.)

(Note 2: I changed the wording on his sign to fit Isaiah. It originally said: "Attention Beyond this sign you may encounter naked cavemen".  I like my wording better.)

(Note 3: Yes, I know Isaiah was circumcised, and this guy isn't.  Deal with it.)

3 And the LORD said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia;

4 so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.

The image above depicts the naked Egyptians and Ethiopians after being defeated by Assyria.

What was this all about?  The prophet Isaiah walking around naked was supposed to be a warning to the Jews not to rely on an alliance with Egypt to save them from being conquered by Assyria, which at the time controlled most of the Middle East, because the Egyptians and their subjects the Ethiopians would be defeated and led away naked, which was apparently the customary way to treat prisoners of war in those days.

However, the idea that anyone would see a guy (Isaiah) walking around naked and conclude "Oh, that means that our allies will be militarily defeated" strikes me as totally bizarre.  It's much more likely that they would think "Oh, it's another one of those crazy prophets, and this one is not only crazy, he's naked."

World Naked Bike Ride - Part 84

London 2025

Today we look at the WNBR (World Naked Bike Ride) in London, England on June 14, 2025.  Riders gathered in a park.  Above, we see the guy who calls himself lehairyhunk at center.  We've seen him before at other World Naked Bike Rides.

Here's lehairyhunk from the rear.

And here he is straightening his socks before the ride.

The ride started at the Wellington Arch.

The riders crossed the Waterloo Bridge.

Then they rode past the Houses of Parliament.  That's the clock tower containing the bell known as Big Ben.

A short video clip of some of the WNBR riders on the city streets.

Some riders had signs painted on them supporting the WNBR's goals, like the ones above saying "Road Safety" and "Stop killing cyclists."

The other major WNBR goal is to encourage people to ride bikes instead of driving cars, because cars generate harmful pollution.  Hence this "Anti-Car" sign.

Or, to put it another way, "Less Gas, More Ass."

Others sported their own messages.  This guy points out that we were all born naked, so why is being naked something to be ashamed of?

We end with a photo of lehairyhunk on his bike.

Estonian Photos - Part 40

Estonian Photos

We continue our series of photos from the Tartu Ülikooli museum of anthropology in Estonia.

For those who haven't seen my previous posts in this series, a few words of explanation.  The museum provides no information about the men, other than the photos came from the Institute of Anatomy at the University of Tartu.  In particular, it does not say who these men are, or when or why the photos were taken.  However, the photos are labeled "Füüsilise antropoloogia pildistus" (physical anthropology photography).

Who are these men?  My best guess is that they are military recruits.  The very short haircuts suggest that these photos were taken during or shortly after the enlistment process.

Many of the men in this series have dark faces and hands.  Are they are tanned from working outside like farmers, or are they dirty from some dirty occupation?  We don't know.

Note: the dark faces and hands are not particularly visible in today's post as they have been in some previous posts.  Perhaps the photos in today's post were taken in the winter, when farmers would not be spending as much time outside getting tanned.

When were the photos taken?  My best guess is between World War I and World War II, when Estonia was an independent country with its own military.  Before WWI, Estonia was part of the Russian Empire, and after WWII, Estonia was part of the Soviet Union until 1991.

A clue to the time frame is that these photographs were made on glass plates, not film.  Dry glass-plate photography started in 1871 and began to fall out of use in the 1920s.  I found some references to it in Estonia through the 1930s.

Since the use of glass plates fell out of use in the 1920s, I think the photos were most likely taken shortly after World War I.

One other clue to the time frame of these photos is that in two previous batches, one of the men is wearing a wristwatch.   Wristwatches were considered to be for ladies before World War I.  (Men used pocket watches.)  However, during the war, wristwatches proved very useful for soldiers and pilots.  After WWI, wristwatches came into fashion for men.

Although wristwatches were evidently rare in Estonia (only two men wore a wristwatch among the hundreds that were photographed), it suggests that these photos are post-World War I.

Although these appear to be military recruits, these are probably not military photos.  We know that the museum that currently has the photos got them from the Institute of Anatomy at the University of Tartu.  If these are military photos, why would they end up at the Institute of Anatomy?

I believe the photos were taken by academics doing a study of physical anthropology.  Scientists at the Institute of Anatomy were trying to measure what they considered racial characteristics of the population by measuring the body, including phrenology (measuring the skull), ideas which are now discredited.

I think that the scientists at the Institute of Anatomy may have persuaded the military to let them take photographs of the naked new recruits for "research" purposes.  I have no written evidence to support this idea, but since the photos were at the Institute of Anatomy, and the photo subjects appear to be military recruits, it's now my best guess as to what happened.

One other question that perennially arises from these photos is: why were the men photographed in pairs?  Was it to save film?

The answer is that these photos were made on glass plates, not film, but glass plates were more expensive and involved more labor than film, so yes, it's likely that the men were photographed in pairs to save on glass plates.

So, bottom line: My best guess is that these photos were taken after World War I, the subjects are new or recent Army recruits, and the Estonian military allowed scientists from the Institute of Anatomy to take photos of the naked recruits for a study of physical anthropology.