My mom kept rectal thermometers at both our beach house and river house. I have vivid memories of her taking me into my bedroom at the river house putting me on my bed, pulling my pants down and taking my temperature.
I remember when we went back out to the patio by the river a family friend asking what I had been pitching a fit about and mom telling her “I was taking his temperature."
Everyone present knew that I had just gotten a thermometer up my butt.
Edit: This one I had almost forgotten until discussions on ziti brought the memory back. We went on vacation to the Carribean when I was in first grade. I was surely 6. I got extremely sunburned (blisered) at the beach and mom took me to a little local clinic to get Silvadene ointment. It was packed to the rafters.
As we waited to see the doctor a nurse came out and handed a rectal thermometer globbed with Vaseline to the mother of a boy my age and said “We are short on exam rooms. Please take his temperature and just bring the thermometer to me at the desk.”
I immediately started getting nervous and asked mom “Is she going to make you take my temperature right here in front of everybody?” Mom responded “We'll see. Just calm down.”
A moment later here came the nurse with another lubed up thermometer. Mom was already standing me up to pull my pants down.
I was too shocked and in pain to even cry or struggle. I just laid in her lap and put my head down.
When it was over I expected everyone in the room to be looking at me but no one was.
When we got to see the local doctor mom introduced herself (she was a pediatrician but not licensed to practice medicine in the islands which are under the authority of numerous nations other than the U.S.) the doctor was happy to give her the Silvadene and slather me with the silvery white ointment. He then said “Wait here a minute and I will put together a care kit for him. You may not be able to find everything you need in the local pharmacy. Everything is in short supply right now.”
He returned with a shoe box that contained gauze bandages, swabs, a huge jar of Silvadene and you guessed it! A jar of Vaseline and TWO rectal thermometers!
I counted my blessings when she took my temperature in the privacy of my bedroom at our rental beach house. I didn't complain at all.