Manliness- they say it is a lost art

• Jude Law is too effiminate for my tastes.
• Russel Crowe is an angry, dumbass redneck.
• Tom Cruise isn't really human; he's a droid.

I don't need a man to be sensitive to my needs. I want someone to be a decent companion, be responsible for himself, treat me with respect, and operate out of love and understanding. Playful personality is a definite PLUS.

I do disagree with the premise that "everything is out of control with women wanting to be equal in every way." I think women are enjoying being womanly, girly or whatever kind of female they want to be. I've met very few no women who want to be like men. Women seem to be embracing their Girlness.

Are you talking about "The Alphabet of Manliness" by Maddox?  That's the one I'm looking forward to... comes out in June I believe.

bts 

I only pretend to be a man.  It's a hard job!  OK, I'm off to paint pink flames on my treadmill.  Carry on.

I don't know, I think that statement is bunk, personally. Why can't you just let people be people? If a man wants to be manly and a woman wants to womanly, that's fine. But let people be attracted to whomever they want to be attracted to. I just don't think that anyone should be forced into a box that predetermines how they act based on their gender. My husband is not particularly chivalrous and I don't particularly want him to be. It works for us. It seems to me that a lot of this talk about men being men and women being women is euphemism for taking a few steps back in terms of gender equality. Suffice it to say that I think that all should be granted equal opportunity and rights and that individuals should carry out their personal lives as they see fit.

Manliness is too broad (pun intended) of a term.  It can include knuckle dragging neanderthals.  Here at BT we prefer to be called retrosexuals.  Our "bible" is largely contained in this thread started by Pigpen (Grand Marshal of the upcoming Retrosexual Games).

http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/discussion/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=34746&start=1

Viva la Difference 

I, for one, find nothing wrong with a "girly girl" that also works out.  As someone said, a hottie all sweaty at the gym is sexy.  So is the Lady you take on the town in the "little black dress and pearls"  It is all about knowing how to dress for the occasion that is sexy, and having the confidence to do so.

I didn't see the interview and haven't heard about the book before now, but it sounds like this guy needs to stop whining.

Real men don't complain about the "lost art of manliness". They quietly go about the business of doing what needs to be done with humility, compassion and determination. It's a pretty simple formula. Not necessarily easy all the time, but simple.

I like a guy who dresses like a guy....flannel shirts, workboots, jeans.....kind of outdoorsy if you know what I mean, but will happily put on a suit to take me someplace nice and look damn handsome in it.

I like a guy who works a guy type job.....construction, plummer, mechanic...a blue collar job, and who knows that even though some people look down on people with those kinds of jobs, he's proud of the work he does and could not care less what other people think.

I like a guy who drives a truck.

I like a guy who could, if the situation warranted it heaven forbid, be able to physically protect me.

I like a guy who can totally crack me up, is smart and has common sense, and is totally unpretentious.

I like a guy who can build anything and fix anything and everything that might break and would never in a million years have to call a "professional" to fix it.

I like a guy who has guy friends that he can act like a guy with occasionally, but who's number one priority and preference is to spend time with me.

I like a guy who will talk to me at length about what he's thinking and feeling and who is very openly loving toward me and his children.

I like a guy who is secure enough with himself to let me do my own thing and be totally supportive of it.

Yeah, that and a good butt......works for me.

It's topics like this that make me realize if I ever went to a prison that housed a representative slice of our normal population.... 99.9% of my potential cell mates would be my b*tch from day one. Thankfully I'm sufficiently afraid of that 0.01% that I manage to keep my nose clean....

Tania, are you perchance, describing your father?

Isn't it interesting how often we choose spouses that are so much like one of our parents.  This seems especially true with women and their fathers. 

And to Marmadaddy, a-freakin-men brother.  The coolest people I've ever met are those who defy definition or compartmentalization simply because they're unique and interesting people.

Tom