I was reading Instapundit today and found this piece, decrying the death of the male space. As usual some of the comments are interesting.
Basically the article talks about how many males are being pushed out of the homes, figuratively, and how very few men have a Ward Cleaver den anymore. Since they have lost the smaller, defined spaces in the modern open layout, men have been relegated to basements and garages for their space.
Well, speaking as someone who LIKES spending time in the garage, and the basement workshop, I say:
SO?
But, as someone who has other possessions that can't, or shouldn't be, stored in either a garage or a dusty workshop, I also want my piece of the house.
Maybe it goes back to the commercials you used to see, where the young couple is combining households; her stuff goes into the living room and his goes into the dumpster. it seemed funny at the time, but maybe because if the humorous tone of the ad hid the total emasculation of the male in the ad.
I am using Male, instead of Man because Male is genetic; Man is earned.
I was at the Mall one time and one of the kiosk vendors offered me some hand creme. I declined. But, she says, lots of men use hand creme. No, I replied; its impossible to be a man and have soft hands.
It is the hand creme wearing males that started this whole mess. Get in touch with your feminine side. Remember when that was popular 20 years ago? I'm sorry; the greasy cuticles, dirty, torn jeans and ball cap so filthy you can't read the name it once advertised IS my feminine side. Now get out of my way before my Man side unloads on you.
But, I digress.
One of the things that separates Men and Women is the male competitive nature. I am of couse speaking in general, and not in absolute; there are always exceptions to the rule. So what better way to start turning young boys into males instead of men? Stop letting them compete. Turn a competition into plain exercise; like... Stop Keeping Score in BASEBALL. Or end games, like Tag or Dodge Ball that create winners and losers.
Let me tell you about Dodge Ball. I suck at Dodge Ball. If life were based on Dodge Ball I wouldn't have made it past 5th Grade. But guess what? I learned that since I consistently lost at Dodge Ball, maybe I should focus my time and effort elsewhere. So I did.
Without keeping score and defining winners and losers, how do you know to stop wasting your time on an activity?
Well, once again I have wandered away from the point.
The point is Men didn't lose their den last year; they lost it in second grade.
Come on Men; Man up and take back a room for your own, even if you have to build it in the basement. Hang your mementos on the walls, put your feet on the couch and hang a 'No Girls Allowed' sign on the door.
Then start keeping score again, so you can count this one as a WIN.
Basically the article talks about how many males are being pushed out of the homes, figuratively, and how very few men have a Ward Cleaver den anymore. Since they have lost the smaller, defined spaces in the modern open layout, men have been relegated to basements and garages for their space.
Well, speaking as someone who LIKES spending time in the garage, and the basement workshop, I say:
SO?
But, as someone who has other possessions that can't, or shouldn't be, stored in either a garage or a dusty workshop, I also want my piece of the house.
Maybe it goes back to the commercials you used to see, where the young couple is combining households; her stuff goes into the living room and his goes into the dumpster. it seemed funny at the time, but maybe because if the humorous tone of the ad hid the total emasculation of the male in the ad.
I am using Male, instead of Man because Male is genetic; Man is earned.
I was at the Mall one time and one of the kiosk vendors offered me some hand creme. I declined. But, she says, lots of men use hand creme. No, I replied; its impossible to be a man and have soft hands.
It is the hand creme wearing males that started this whole mess. Get in touch with your feminine side. Remember when that was popular 20 years ago? I'm sorry; the greasy cuticles, dirty, torn jeans and ball cap so filthy you can't read the name it once advertised IS my feminine side. Now get out of my way before my Man side unloads on you.
But, I digress.
One of the things that separates Men and Women is the male competitive nature. I am of couse speaking in general, and not in absolute; there are always exceptions to the rule. So what better way to start turning young boys into males instead of men? Stop letting them compete. Turn a competition into plain exercise; like... Stop Keeping Score in BASEBALL. Or end games, like Tag or Dodge Ball that create winners and losers.
Let me tell you about Dodge Ball. I suck at Dodge Ball. If life were based on Dodge Ball I wouldn't have made it past 5th Grade. But guess what? I learned that since I consistently lost at Dodge Ball, maybe I should focus my time and effort elsewhere. So I did.
Without keeping score and defining winners and losers, how do you know to stop wasting your time on an activity?
Well, once again I have wandered away from the point.
The point is Men didn't lose their den last year; they lost it in second grade.
Come on Men; Man up and take back a room for your own, even if you have to build it in the basement. Hang your mementos on the walls, put your feet on the couch and hang a 'No Girls Allowed' sign on the door.
Then start keeping score again, so you can count this one as a WIN.
No comments:
Post a Comment