Things that irritate me about other people

So this may seem like a strange title for a blog post for a class but this weeks readings and the video last week irritated me to no end and I feel I need to say something. So first off, the book readings were not so bad it is just the lack of excitement for the idea of historic preservation the authors have make spreading their works so much harder. I know textbooks, especially history ones, are bland and boring but I feel like when you aver writing about what makes you get out of bed every morning (Gardner and LaPaglia), there should be some excitement in your voice. I know we talked about how a lot of historians and archivists are super introverts but still how can a person wake up every morning, do the same thing for hours and not be excited about it? 

Oddly enough I actually found the Wallace book more interesting because it actually gave some history behind the preservation movement but that was still a little too much information to get a relatively simple point across. Maybe this kind of learning isn't really me, I would rather hear a little bit about the history of preservation and spend more time getting to know actually people who life the preservation and restoration lifestyle like the owners of the Harrington Hotel. Real world application seems more interesting to me than just reading about it in a book. 

I was also super annoyed while reading the response letter to Dr. Cebula. Talk about  super defensive and close minded about how history should be presented to the public. I understand having a stake in your organization but there maybe a time when you need to ate a step back and re-evaluate yourself. I don't really think the author of the letter really understand the importance of teaching "our generation". She claims that people in our generation aren't taught anything and I kind of see her point that there is a lack of interest from people of my generation but don't feed into the idea that we are going to be a stupid generation. This museum should be another resource for learning for students and the general public not just a superficial place for kids to go hear ghost stories and origins of sayings, which seem to be misguided anyway. 

Another thing I don't really think the author realizes, is that she needs to present history in a way that is as true as possible. Leaving out mention of slaves in a house that was run by slaves is a misrepresentation of the history they are getting paid to present. Being a true historian means presenting the good and the bad even if it makes people uneasy. Face it, history is not always butterflies and rainbows and everything should be presented the way it happened or to the best of the presenters ability. 

I guess I have the same irritation with the lady historian in the movie we watched in class. The movie was titled the Last Conquistador which followed the controversy of a statue being erected in honor conquistador Juan de Onate in El Paso, Texas. The historian that is presented in the documentary seems to only really care about what presenting the history that helps her cause. She completely disregards the enter history if Onate, the Spanish conquistador that slaughtered hundreds of natives in order to form him settlement in Texas. Again, I understand having a passion for your heritage and organization, but discounting large parts of history to make your point make sense is stupid and wrong.