Henry Morgan's Ask Blog

My name is Henry Morgan, and my story is a long one. You may use this blog to ask me questions about me and my life, and I will do my best to answer them.

[ask-henry-morgan]

What is your opinion of A.I. art generators?

I was not aware that this technology existed. I'm afraid that reading this question caused me to flinch violently enough that I many have injured my neck. While I don't know enough about this subject to come to an informed opinion, I would find it difficult to imagine that a computer could recreate the same depth of emotion and soul that humans incoporate into their art.

[ask-henry-morgan]

My dearest Doctor Morgan,

I hope this letter finds you in good health!

I am wondering, for literature research purposes only ofc, if you've ever suffered from hypothermia after emerging from the Hudson river and thus died twice in say a winter's night?

Best wishes,

A curious time traveller

Thank you for your inquiry. Firstly, when I'm in New York City, I tend to wind up in the East River on most occasions rather than the Hudson. There have certainly been times when I've died two or more times in a given night (or day) in the winter. However, it's not always as a result of hypothermia, and hypothermia does not always result in a death. It does greatly depend on how quickly I'm able to get dry and warmed up. I'd say drowning is a much more common cause for multiple deaths in winter if the conditions of the river are rough. There are times when the cold exposure will put enough of a strain on my immune system that I will fall ill after a death. This could be as mild as a cold or it could be as severe as influenza, bronchitis, or pneumonia. There have been times when these illnesses have resulted in secondary deaths, but generally that does not happen on the same day/night. I hope this has been helpful for your research.

[ask-henry-morgan]

I miss you so much ❤️ hope you’re doing okay

Thank you for your message. I'm all right for the most part, but I have been taking some time lately to work through some of my past trauma, which has been rather exhausting. I sense it will be a very long process, but I've got time, and every little bit helps.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Happy Birthday, Henry! Hope you have a great day!

Thank you! I appreciate the well wishes. Unfortunately, I did have to work today, but thankfully things weren't too terribly busy at the morgue and I was able to head home early to enjoy a quiet evening at home with Abe and Jo.

[ask-henry-morgan]

How are you doing I miss you

I'm all right, other than feeling a bit drained. Things have been a bit hectic at work lately, but I do try to rest when I can. I hope all is well with you.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Where were you living during the polio epidemic in the 1950’s? What was your job then?

I was living in New York City at the time working in a hospital during this unfortunate period. I was primarily a surgeon, so it wasn't generally my responsibility to be treating those that were afflicted with this illness. Given my condition, I'm usually more willing than most people to treat those with serious contagious diseases, but I did become more cautious after adopting Abe, not wanting to accidentally pass anything on to him.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Hello. What was it like living in the 1950’s and the 1960’s?

My apologies for not replying sooner. This is a rather broad question, and I wasn't quite sure how to respond without composing an entire essay. I did manage to limit myself to a few paragraphs, and even that took me some time to write given how slow my typing speed is.

Unfortunately, before I managed to save what I'd written, Prospero jumped on the laptop and somehow managed to exit the website. (Prospero is the crow that I adopted several years ago if you haven't happened to see any of my previous posts regarding him.)

I'm afraid I don't have the energy to retype everything I'd previously written for the time being, but if you'd like to ask me something a bit more specific about those decades, then that might be more manageable. For now, I'll leave you with one nugget of information on a subject that's been on my mind lately. In the 1950s and 1960s in the United States, there was less freedom under the first amendment than we currently enjoy. Back then, people were actually arrested for using profanity in public. Today, there is still censorship that happens regarding profanity, but it's no longer considered a crime in most states.

[ask-henry-morgan]

How has the death of Queen Elizabeth II affected you?

While there is sadness in any death, the Queen lived a long life, and it was not unexpected. Though, I can't say her death affected me much personally. While I still consider myself a proud Englishman, I didn't spend very much time in England during her reign, so I suppose I never developed much of an attachment to Queen Elizabeth II as a figurehead.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Hey Henry! Just wanted to wish you a very happy birthday. Hope you have a great day!

Thank you. I greatly appreciate the well wishes! As it's a Monday, I actually celebrated yesterday. I just had a quiet day at home with Abe and Jo, but quality time with those I care for is the best present I could ask for. The new scarves I received were quite nice as well.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Hello Dr Morgan, I was wondering out of all the time periods you have lived through, which has been your favourite style of clothing? I'm a tailor who specialises in historical fashion and some I like are the Victorian era, 1920s and 1950s.

I must confess that I’m rather biased towards the Georgian and Victorian eras for fashion. Perhaps this is only natural as those eras made up the earlier chapters of my life. Fortunately, the elements of a good suit haven’t changed too drastically in the last 200 years. Even so, I’m never as comfortable in my clothing as I’d like. I do have a very good tailor, but in order not to stand out too much, I’m forced to adopt a more causal style of suit than I was used to in my earlier years. Of course, it’s all a matter of perspective as much of what I wear is considered to be business formal by today’s standards. I will say that one of the things I was very grateful for with the changing times was when male corsets were done away with. I avoided them as much as possible in daily life when they were in fashion, but it was expected for formal social events.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Hey Henry! Just wanted to wish you a very happy birthday. I hope you have a great day!

Thank you. Given the state of things, I just spent a quiet day in with Abe, Jo, and Prospero. Work has been exhausting as of late, so it was nice to have a day to rest and spend time with loved ones.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Have you ever tried bubble tea?

Unfortunately, I'm unfamiliar with bubble tea. I assumed it must be some form of carbonated tea, and tried asking Abe about it. He gave me a strange look and said, “It’s not for you, Henry” refusing to elaborate. I received similar responses from Jo and Lucas. Everyone must collectively agree that it would upset me if they are all refusing to explain what bubble tea is. I must admit that at this point I’m afraid to try looking it up on the Google engine.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Did you ever see a live dodo bird?

Just precisely how old do you think I am? Unfortunately, the dodo went extinct around a century before I was born, so I never had the opportunity to observe a live one.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Hey Henry, I found a couple of shirts that I think are right up your alley.

https://www.redbubble.com/i/sweatshirt/Always-Alive-Even-When-I-Die-by-FreshThreadShop/12208200.NUC7A

https://www.redbubble.com/i/sweatshirt/The-Anthem-2-Fresh-Threads-by-FreshThreadShop/10121986.9HM5V

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for thinking of me, but I fear wearing one of these garments would be rather reckless.

[ask-henry-morgan]

I really must apologise for my long absence. I’m afraid I haven’t been very active or much of a beacon in recent months. Things have been rather chaotic with one thing after another coming up. Abe has referred to it as “playing a losing game of whack-a-mole”. Since these two questions pertain to the same subject, I will answer them together. I suppose it will be easiest to start with my religious heritage. My mother was Welsh, and her family followed the old Druid religion, but she was forced to convert to Christianity when she married my father. Though, she never truly converted in her heart, and there were a number of times in my childhood when she snuck me off to participate in the ancient Druid rituals. As a child, I felt more connected to Druidism than I did Christianity. I liked that it was based more on nature and the changing of the seasons, which was something I could actually see. I’m not sure I ever actually believed in any deities, however, regardless if they were Celtic or Christian. As I got older I turned more to science, and eventually set religion aside for the most part. My general thoughts on religion and spirituality is that it’s an important part of many people’s lives. It can bring them comfort and a sense of purpose, and this definitely goes for young people that turn to religion after growing up without it. If they turn to more pagan religions, that simply means that those religions offer them something they need which they aren’t getting from mainstream religions, and I see nothing wrong with that. Sometimes I think I’d be happier, or perhaps just less anxious, if I was actually able to believe in some sort of a deity. I only wish that religion didn’t cause such conflict. To me, discriminating over religion, and even going to war over it, is as pointless as trying to force your favourite colour on everyone else. I would say that in the absence of being religious, what brings me meaning is being able to cherish the time I have with my friends and loved ones. I also find great meaning and purpose in being able to help others, through my work or otherwise. I find a great deal of meaning in my self-development. I’m always trying to learn new things and better myself. And lastly, I find great meaning in the beauty in the world, whether it’s in nature, in art, in literature, in music, or even in mathematical / scientific equations. This in itself is almost a kind of spirituality. Now as for the supernatural, well something does not have to be religiously based in order to be considered supernatural. There are a great many things in this world that science can’t currently explain, including my own condition. I would say that this doesn’t mean that science would never be able to explain these things. What is that saying? “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” There are technologies that people take for granted today that would probably have appeared to be witchcraft when I was growing up. There are things that are currently considered supernatural that quantum physics is starting to shed light on. One day I hope science will explain my own supernatural condition. Lastly, Abigail and I always tried to make sure Abe was well educated about his Jewish heritage, even if we had to enlist help in order to do it. We made an effort to learn the Jewish holidays and celebrated some of them along with the Christian holidays. I suppose the hardest part of it has been any time Abe has experienced anti-Semitism, and all I could do was listen and support him the best I could, but I always made sure that he knew that he was loved and accepted. I do hope I managed to cover everything asked in these two questions, but please feel free to send in some follow-up questions if there is anything else you’d like to know. I will endeavour to answer any additional questions in a much more timely manner.

[smileytiger28]

YESSS tysm Henry!!! If I remember correctly I asked both of those questions at different times before reading your hiatus message (and before getting a tumblr account) - that’s why they’re of the same topic. (Sorry, I’ll be more patient next time.) So sorry about your life being so chaotic!!! Speaking for all your followers, we’ll always admire the profundity of your thoughts on any subject, whenever you have the time and energy to deliver them. :)

[ask-henry-morgan]

It’s quite all right. I believe I posted that message some time after receiving your questions when it became apparent that I wasn’t going to have the time or energy to respond any time soon. At least things have settled down a bit now. Thank you for your reply. It’s always nice to know that my words have had a positive impact on those that read them.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Hey, Henry. Just wanted to wish you a very happy birthday today. I hope you manage to have some fun today despite the current world circumstances.

Thank you. I’m always pleasantly surprised when I get these anonymous birthday wishes, and it is nice to know I’ve made enough of a positive impact that people are thinking of me this way, even if we’ve never met. This year, my birthday falls on the Jewish new year (so I’m wishing my Jewish followers a very happy new year), and while it’s not a holiday that Abe normally bothers with, due to everything going on, he wanted to prepare some more traditional food for this holiday to bring a sense of meaning and hope, and I was happy to indulge him. One thing he did, was make matzah ball soup, which I’ve always been fond of, even though it’s more traditional for the Passover holiday in the spring. Unfortunately, there have been many years when the weather was far too warm in the spring to properly enjoy the soup, so I really appreciated him making it for my birthday. Other than that, I just spent a nice relaxing day at home with Abe and Jo reading when we weren’t watching films together. Just being able to spend quality time with those I care about the most is the best gift I could have gotten.

[ask-henry-morgan]

Hi, Henry. Glad to see you back on Tumblr. Hope your life has settled down a bit more than it has been. I saw this music video on YouTube and found myself wondering what you'd think of it? I can't put a link in the ask, but just search for "2Cellos Thunderstruck".

Thank you for the recommendation. I’m afraid I needed a bit of time to recover after watching this video as it left me confused on multiple levels. I would say that my reaction was probably fairly close to most of the audience members in the video. I will say that these young men must be quite talented indeed to be able to play the cello like that!