a couple days ago i was reading someone's blog and they had their list of what constituted a "real man". one of the bullets was "real men don't bake". i was running errands today and it made me think about that. i had to get 9mm and .308 ammo to go shooting with a friend, i stopped at the dealer to talk about upgrades to my motorcycle, i bought some stuff to finally finish off my desk project and i stopped and bought a new stand-up mixer because i was tired of using a hand mixer to make frosting for a cake decorating class i'm taking. why am i taking a cake decorating class? because everytime i saw a cake i kept wondering how the hell they make the flowers and stuff and because for the life of me i could never ice a cake and make it look normal. most of mine looked like they'd dropped on the floor or something. so i took the first class and had fun and am now taking the second. it's interesting to learn how they do all the intricate stuff, the teacher is an absolute hoot and so are the students. they're a pretty wide mix of people. the added responsibilities kinda help keep me focused as well. i have to spend a couple hours every sunday getting ready for the class and it actually pries me away from the office one night a week. and it's just completely different from everything else i normally do.
frequently when i pull into a place with other bikers around i get razzed for riding a sportster. "hey, you know what real men say about sportsters?" "uh, i'm not gay. i don't try to pick up men with my motorcycle. so no, i don't know and i really don't give a shit. hey. wait a minute. why do YOU care so much?"
doing a search on the internet i find that apparently real men:
-wear kilts
-cook
-have depression
-are tax deductible
-do yoga
-exfoliate
-are not media representations
-love flowers
-cry
-cheat
-don't cheat
-are promise keepers
-point and laugh at promise keepers
-wear pinstripes
-are real
-want bush
-don't click
-don't play GURPS
-wear flannel
just to name a few... who knows what a "real man" is? anyways. it's funny, i'm 33. i couldn't call myself a man until recently. like, in the last couple of years. when i thought of a "man" it was my dad or my uncles or a couple other people i really respect. calling myself a man was an insult to them. it wasn't me, i was still a kid. i don't know what changed, when i decided things changed, when i could take myself seriously to call myself that. or maybe i never could, but everyone else did and i finally stopped fighting it. but i don't remember ever wearing a kilt...
7 comments:
sounds like you are a real man to me...well, do you clean the bathroom?! real men clean the bathroom...hahaha!
what kind of stand up mixer did you get? you will love that thing, at least i adore mine and use it all the time!
you are the second person who has enrolled in a baking place, it sounds interesting to me...might have to look into that.
ahhh shooting with friends...i shot the 9mm saturday, it was so relaxing.
oh yes, i almost forgot...happy belated veteran's day and THANK YOU.
I think "real man" is as subjective a label as anything else. Characteristics that make one person a man may not apply to another. I don't think it really can be defined by some arbitary things.
Real men are honest. Honest about their feelings. Honest about their actions. Honest to themselves, and those around them. For me anyway, that's the list.
I was watching something on the History channel yesterday and they were interviewing a WWII vet. He said "Once the first bullet is fired at you, you become a veteran."
This post reminded me of that quote.
Happy Veterans Day. And congrats on the new mixer.
Real men don't hit women and don't abuse people.
Whatever their hobbies are, are up to them. Real men don't bake cakes. Bah!
By the way, it's awfully nice of you to be baking me a cake for my 30th birthday. ;)
I might not be able to fully describe a real man-
but I know one when I read one :)
I love that you bake~ that's awesome :) One of the sweetest things hubby does is when he makes breakfast on Saturday mornings for the family- something he's just started doing. It's completely out of his routine- and so great for our kids to see.
It's also good for them to see me up a ladder and caulking the trim on our house- or checking the air pressure on the tires! :)
Cake decorating is one of those things I always thought about trying. There is a good reason why I didn't. I know damn well that I would eat every last one of those pretty little flowers despite the fact that I don't really like icing (except for chocolate and cream cheese). Good for you for trying it! You should post pictures of your work!
Oh, by the way, real men don't care if people think that real men don't bake.
Mmmmmm...kilts. I think it should be mandatory dress code for all men at least once in their life. And if there is be a bit of a breeze that day, what a shame THAT would be ;)
Post a Comment