Men ONLY please...

[Sundae]

Well my dad is a huge role model for me, and my grandpa. Though Benjamin Franklin is another man who was great and is a role model for me.

[161803398874989]

Everybody's different and that applies to standards as well. For some people, a real man has to be able to repair lots of things. For others, a real man must be good at keeping his cool in stressful situations. Checklists will always be insufficient to truly capture the essence of 'man-being'.

Joke lists are pretty fun and it's always good to 'earn man-points' if you can check off a lot of items. I can almost fill the whole list Blaizen posted (except for the CF stuff, but I think my understanding of bodyweight terminology, Dutch, English, French, German and Latin more than make up for it ). However, I can't fill any of the points on Conk's list.

For me, it's not about 'being a man'. It's about becoming as awesome as I can get and this just happens to have a lot of overlap with 'being a man'.

[67alecto]

Face scar, beard, rebuild engine, rescue kitten, smoke tabacco from a pipe, had glenlivet 21 which is older so I count that, did masonry work on a log cabin so im counting that too... And im 1/5 as manly as steve mcqueen.

Rescue kitten from tree - does using a hose count?

Take up smoking tobacco from pipe - no thanks. I grew up with two parents who smoked (mom cigarettes, dad cigars). Smoking was never "cool" or "suave" for me.

In terms of the rebuild an engine - that brings me to another point. Every "man" should know his way around an engine compartment. Every woman should too, but I'll limit the discussion here for men.

Here's my proof.

My Fury's engine before and after I rebuilt it:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]1827[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]1828[/ATTACH]

You need to, at a minimum, be able to:

Check all of your fluid levels

Change your own oil (not saying you have to do it every time, but you need to be able to know how)

Change your wiper blades

Change your air filter

Jump start a car

Drive a manual transmission

Change a tire using your vehicle's jack

Change your fuses

Change your bulbs

I'm sure there are others, but those are what came to mind this morning.

Have fun out there and keep the shiny side up

[Conk]

I guess not everyone figured out that my "man card" was a random picture I found online for fun.

I believe that a man is not classified by what he can do, or the skills he has. Sure, rescuing a kitten, changing your own oil, and building a log cabin are cool beans and all, but they don't have anything to do with being a MAN. I know a lot of boys who can do all three of those things.

What changes a boy into a man is not skill or puberty, but a man mentality. Like I said before, there are 15 year old men and there are 60 year old boys. Of course, as men biologically are predisposed to, I am going to write it out in a list form:

1. A man should have a sense of identity, and be confident in it. They know who they are, and they know who they are not. They are able to live off of this premise without waivering from side to side. Not just an identity, but a stable identity.

2. A man should be a leader. The human male, after puberty, is biologically and mentally predisposed for leading. However, this leader is not the kind that sits on a recliner getting fed grapes by naked women (which seems to be the predominant thought of most of our culture). Leadership is not just power, but sacrificial responsibility. Male leadership requires making hard decisions, and taking the full brunt of the consequences without hesitation. Male leadership requires you to fully devout your time and energy to those whom you are leading, not merely just to yourself in the mirror. Male leadership requires a "good of the group" mentality, not the "whatever I feel like" mentality.

3. A man should be resilient, and take the blow for the team. When you look at ancient men, there were fat kings who stood and watched the battle from afar, and there were the kings who put on their armor and charged in with the front lines. One of those kings is a coward, and the other is a man. I think you can figure out which is which. A man must have the courage to overcome fear, in order for his group to survive. Initiative in taking on challenges, regardless of circumstance, is what a man needs.

4. A man should be able to teach and mentor, the fundamental attributes of a father. Without fatherhood, your group will die when you die. This applies to both literal fathering a child, in addition to business leadership. If you cannot humbly teach and pass off your knowledge and occupation, you will destroy your family. Do you know why we have so many adolescent criminals present? Because so many "men" have abandoned the home. There was no father to teach their kids right from wrong, to teach them how to be a man. A boy rasied solely by a single mom cannot learn the traits of manhood, and resorts to "doing whatever he feels like."

5. Finally, a man must have a compassionate conscience. If a man kills five mountain lions with his bear hands, has a Fortune 500 company, can deadlift 800 lbs, but is unable to love one woman his whole life or cannot help a homeless man get off the street, he is still a child. If you don't learn to love others, all you do is in vain. If you actually don't care about those you lead, how can you consider yourself a leader? When you look at nature, the alpha male in packs is usually the biggest, strongest, and smartest. But if being the biggest, strongest, and smartest is the goal in itself, why are they the leaders? The alpha males use those abilities to look out for the rest of the group. They make the decisions, because they know what is best for the group, because the alpha male CARES about what happens to the group.

[Guest Snake McClain]

Rescue kitten from tree - does using a hose count?

Take up smoking tobacco from pipe - no thanks. I grew up with two parents who smoked (mom cigarettes, dad cigars). Smoking was never "cool" or "suave" for me.

In terms of the rebuild an engine - that brings me to another point. Every "man" should know his way around an engine compartment. Every woman should too, but I'll limit the discussion here for men.

Here's my proof.

My Fury's engine before and after I rebuilt it:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]1827[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]1828[/ATTACH]

You need to, at a minimum, be able to:

Check all of your fluid levels

Change your own oil (not saying you have to do it every time, but you need to be able to know how)

Change your wiper blades

Change your air filter

Jump start a car

Drive a manual transmission

Change a tire using your vehicle's jack

Change your fuses

Change your bulbs

I'm sure there are others, but those are what came to mind this morning.

Have fun out there and keep the shiny side u

I just sold my 69oldsresearch cutlass yesterday. It made me sad.

I guess not everyone figured out that my "man card" was a random picture I found online for fun.

I believe that a man is not classified by what he can do, or the skills he has. Sure, rescuing a kitten, changing your own oil, and building a log cabin are cool beans and all, but they don't have anything to do with being a MAN. I know a lot of boys who can do all three of those things.

What changes a boy into a man is not skill or puberty, but a man mentality. Like I said before, there are 15 year old men and there are 60 year old boys. Of course, as men biologically are predisposed to, I am going to write it out in a list form:

1. A man should have a sense of identity, and be confident in it. They know who they are, and they know who they are not. They are able to live off of this premise without waivering from side to side. Not just an identity, but a stable identity.

2. A man should be a leader. The human male, after puberty, is biologically and mentally predisposed for leading. However, this leader is not the kind that sits on a recliner getting fed grapes by naked women (which seems to be the predominant thought of most of our culture). Leadership is not just power, but sacrificial responsibility. Male leadership requires making hard decisions, and taking the full brunt of the consequences without hesitation. Male leadership requires you to fully devout your time and energy to those whom you are leading, not merely just to yourself in the mirror. Male leadership requires a "good of the group" mentality, not the "whatever I feel like" mentality.

3. A man should be resilient, and take the blow for the team. When you look at ancient men, there were fat kings who stood and watched the battle from afar, and there were the kings who put on their armor and charged in with the front lines. One of those kings is a coward, and the other is a man. I think you can figure out which is which. A man must have the courage to overcome fear, in order for his group to survive. Initiative in taking on challenges, regardless of circumstance, is what a man needs.

4. A man should be able to teach and mentor, the fundamental attributes of a father. Without fatherhood, your group will die when you die. This applies to both literal fathering a child, in addition to business leadership. If you cannot humbly teach and pass off your knowledge and occupation, you will destroy your family. Do you know why we have so many adolescent criminals present? Because so many "men" have abandoned the home. There was no father to teach their kids right from wrong, to teach them how to be a man. A boy rasied solely by a single mom cannot learn the traits of manhood, and resorts to "doing whatever he feels like."

5. Finally, a man must have a compassionate conscience. If a man kills five mountain lions with his bear hands, has a Fortune 500 company, can deadlift 800 lbs, but is unable to love one woman his whole life or cannot help a homeless man get off the street, he is still a child. If you don't learn to love others, all you do is in vain. If you actually don't care about those you lead, how can you consider yourself a leader? When you look at nature, the alpha male in packs is usually the biggest, strongest, and smartest. But if being the biggest, strongest, and smartest is the goal in itself, why are they the leaders? The alpha males use those abilities to look out for the rest of the group. They make the decisions, because they know what is best for the group, because the alpha male CARES about what happens to the group.

Agreed.

[WizardTrip]

To keep this thread alive, today's AoM post. Never really thought about these other than the badass Gladiator quote that gives me chills every time:

Maximus: My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next.

http://artofmanliness.com/2012/02/24/unsung-manly-movie-quotes-for-every-occasion/

[bigm141414]

Yeah i read that article this morning. Good stuff. The Rocky quote is quite stirring as well.

[Gainsdalf the Whey]

That one is good, and it gives me chills every time.

However the bigger one for me is the Rocky quote in that article. I see too many people in life these days blaming everything on everyone and everything else in their life. Too few take the responsibility for their decisions and their predicament on themselves. Until you do that, you have no power to change it.

[chairohkey]

Yeah i read that article this morning. Good stuff. The Rocky quote is quite stirring as well.

I literally tear up everytime I watch it.

[bigm141414]

I literally tear up everytime I watch it.

I literally see what you did there.

[WizardTrip]

Yeah i read that article this morning. Good stuff. The Rocky quote is quite stirring as well.

That one is good, and it gives me chills every time.

However the bigger one for me is the Rocky quote in that article. I see too many people in life these days blaming everything on everyone and everything else in their life. Too few take the responsibility for their decisions and their predicament on themselves. Until you do that, you have no power to change it.

I agree, that one really hit me hard too! I had forgotten all about it until I read it there.

[Anivair]

I like the Rocky speech. Never saw the new movie. Was it any good?

[Gainsdalf the Whey]

Wasn't great, wasn't terrible. I just hate the twist the use to help make it realistic.

[Thrillho]

I sort of liked the new movie... at least it wasn't as godawful as the new Rambo movie. Pleh. The new Rocky was a very well-made, well-shot and well-acted movie, but it wasn't a great movie. Good way to end the series, though, after Rocky V.

I really like this thread and I have a lot of stuff I think I could add to it, but right now I have two kids hugging my legs, demanding waffles. Excuse me.

[wildross]

Waffles!!

[Conk]

I also demand waffles!!!!

STAT!!!!

[Thrillho]

You'll have to fight my daughters for them, and the older one is cranky. She'll fuck you up.

[Red1263]

I guess not everyone figured out that my "man card" was a random picture I found online for fun.

I believe that a man is not classified by what he can do, or the skills he has. Sure, rescuing a kitten, changing your own oil, and building a log cabin are cool beans and all, but they don't have anything to do with being a MAN. I know a lot of boys who can do all three of those things.

What changes a boy into a man is not skill or puberty, but a man mentality. Like I said before, there are 15 year old men and there are 60 year old boys. Of course, as men biologically are predisposed to, I am going to write it out in a list form:

1. A man should have a sense of identity, and be confident in it. They know who they are, and they know who they are not. They are able to live off of this premise without waivering from side to side. Not just an identity, but a stable identity.

2. A man should be a leader. The human male, after puberty, is biologically and mentally predisposed for leading. However, this leader is not the kind that sits on a recliner getting fed grapes by naked women (which seems to be the predominant thought of most of our culture). Leadership is not just power, but sacrificial responsibility. Male leadership requires making hard decisions, and taking the full brunt of the consequences without hesitation. Male leadership requires you to fully devout your time and energy to those whom you are leading, not merely just to yourself in the mirror. Male leadership requires a "good of the group" mentality, not the "whatever I feel like" mentality.

3. A man should be resilient, and take the blow for the team. When you look at ancient men, there were fat kings who stood and watched the battle from afar, and there were the kings who put on their armor and charged in with the front lines. One of those kings is a coward, and the other is a man. I think you can figure out which is which. A man must have the courage to overcome fear, in order for his group to survive. Initiative in taking on challenges, regardless of circumstance, is what a man needs.

4. A man should be able to teach and mentor, the fundamental attributes of a father. Without fatherhood, your group will die when you die. This applies to both literal fathering a child, in addition to business leadership. If you cannot humbly teach and pass off your knowledge and occupation, you will destroy your family. Do you know why we have so many adolescent criminals present? Because so many "men" have abandoned the home. There was no father to teach their kids right from wrong, to teach them how to be a man. A boy rasied solely by a single mom cannot learn the traits of manhood, and resorts to "doing whatever he feels like."

5. Finally, a man must have a compassionate conscience. If a man kills five mountain lions with his bear hands, has a Fortune 500 company, can deadlift 800 lbs, but is unable to love one woman his whole life or cannot help a homeless man get off the street, he is still a child. If you don't learn to love others, all you do is in vain. If you actually don't care about those you lead, how can you consider yourself a leader? When you look at nature, the alpha male in packs is usually the biggest, strongest, and smartest. But if being the biggest, strongest, and smartest is the goal in itself, why are they the leaders? The alpha males use those abilities to look out for the rest of the group. They make the decisions, because they know what is best for the group, because the alpha male CARES about what happens to the group.

I believe this is a very solid definition that we should strive for, with modifications specified for each of our individual situations. Also, I look at the website Art of Manliness.com for some more ideas as to what responsibilities and traits I should strive to achieve for the title of 'Man'

[161803398874989]

Argh, sometimes I hate one of my friends. >.> Anytime the topic of the conversation is about sex, he starts talking about 'our' inexperience, constantly talking about how 'we' can't get girls. Referring to me and him. I'm very tempted just to get a random girl to make him shut up.

[Guest Snake McClain]

I keep leaving for a week to come back to good things in this thread.

[notanartmajor]

Oh come on, the new Rambo was good. Mind you, my childhood impression of Rambo was less "First Blood style emotionally broken war veteran" and more "machinegun ALL the things!" so it really delivered what I was expecting.

Methinks I need to catch up on the topics discussed so far.

Penises, while hideous, are certainly something to be proud of sometimes. Please use responsibly.

Beer is so-so (with the exception of a few dark varieties), mead is what the real barbarians drink.

I don't really have a role model as such. I wish I did have a wise mentor-type person, but sadly that's not the case.

I have some (a lot if you ask my wife) gray hair, I'm only 27. Whatever, long as it doesn't fall out it can be whatever color it pleases.

I'll gladly take the hit to my mancard, but Crossfit shouldn't be a component of it.

Art of Manliness is great.

There, I think I covered the high points.

[Thrillho]

My mead almost killed me. Smelled like turpentine, tasted like flat Coke with absolutely no trace of alcohol, and one crisp, cool mugful had me completely hammered. BY ODIN'S BEARD IT WAS GOOD.

[notanartmajor]

That might've actually been turpentine. Did you make it yourself?

[Thrillho]

Yup, out of black honey I got from a local apiary, Hilltop Farms. It was rock-solid honey, wasn't good for much except baking, so I turned most of it into mead.

[Waldo]

Argh, sometimes I hate one of my friends. >.> Anytime the topic of the conversation is about sex, he starts talking about 'our' inexperience.

LOL @ young single guys

Amazing how it changes over the years and how the discussion disappears (aside for comedians). The art of getting some -> the art of doing it better than anybody else -> the art of getting the wife to put out....