LabRat and BRM have done an excellent job in the past few days discussing perceptions of manhood and the problems with these perceptions.  Read all of their posts, because they put it much better than I could ever hope to.

As for myself, I have some ideas on what makes an adult human male a man:

• A man will hold the door for women, help an old lady with her groceries, and defend a ladies honor.  He does this not because women cannot do these things for themselves, but because they should never have to.
• A man will take his turn at the 3 AM feeding and diaper change.
• A man will overlook a slight against him, but will immediately apologize if he realizes he’s been impolite.
• A man will sometimes act childlike, but should never act childish.
• A man will wash the grease from working on the truck off of his hands before braiding his daughter’s hair.
• A man means it when he says “This is going to hurt me more than it does you”
• A man may like it when he comes home to a hot dinner, but is more than willing to cook his wife a hot meal before she comes home
• A man may be gruff, grumbly, and altogether prickly all day long, but will still be happy to read Dr. Seuss before bedtime
• A man will come home from a long day of hunting or fishing and be grateful for the healthy salad that’s prepared for dinner
• A man will, without complaint, sell the sports car and the boat, drop all of his expensive bad habits, shut off the cable TV, and work three jobs if that’s what it takes to put food on the table and heat in the house.  He will not do this for any reason other than it’s what’s expected.
• A man will recognize that his wife is perfectly capable of earning at least as much money as he does, but he will never take it for granted.  
• A man will always make sure that his wife and children know just how important they are in his life, even if he never heard it from his father.

All of us have things we wish we could do again.  There are places and people we’d like to see one more time.  Some of them are from our childhood, some we experienced as adults.

Every now and then, and for some reason more frequently lately, I will be reminded of something that I cherished, but will probably never see again.

• Sunrise over the desert in Arizona
• Sunset in West Texas
• The night sky over the Great Plains
• Snow drifting across the prairie
• The changing of the guard at Buckingham and Red Square
• A thunderstorm coming down a valley in the Wasatch
• A lightning storm in the Chiracahuas

In light of the air war in Libya, I thought I’d put these up.

Where have all the hippies gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the hippies gone?
Long time ago.
They’ve gone silent for one of their own.
When will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?

Fighting liberals from the sky
These are men who whine and cry
100 missiles will launch today
But Cindy Sheehan has nothing to say

And it’s one, two, three
What are we fighting for?
To get oil for France and Italy
Next stop is Tripoli
And it’s five six seven
Open up the oily taps
Ain’t no time for congressional approval
Whoopie! Let’s talk about Quaddafi’s removal!

Scientists in Spain have found the skeleton of a prehistoric rabbit that got quite big:

The giant rabbit, dubbed Nuralagus rex, weighed 26.4 pounds, about six times the size of the living European rabbit

That is one large hasenpfeffer on the hoof.  A rabbit that big would feed a family of four for a week.  A family of them would provide enough fur to make a fuzzy lingerie for Rosie O’Donnell.


Too bad the species is gone.  Bunnies that big would make a good emergency protein supply for TEOTWAWKI.  

I’ve been out of the net since last night.  Anything happening?  Mothra climb out of Tokyo Harbor yet?  Did Fearless Leader land on the Charles De Gaul to declare victory?

I thought this was appropriate for today, given the fact that the President sent our men and women into harm’s way while he was in Rio for the weekend.

Presented without commentary.  I think these speak for themselves

As Commander-in-Chief, I will never hesitate to defend this nation, but I will only send our troops into harm’s way with a clear mission and a sacred commitment to give them the equipment they need in battle and the care and benefits they deserve when they come home. I will end this war in Iraq responsibly, and finish the fight against al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan.  – Senator Barack Obama  Speech at 2008 Democratic National Convention Aug 27, 2008

  “I don’t oppose all wars.” Obama said, “What I am opposed to is a dumb war. What I am opposed to is a rash war….” –  Obama for Beginners, by Bob Neer, p. 36-37 Apr 1, 2008

Now let me be clear: I suffer no illusions about Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal man. A ruthless man. A man who butchers his own people to secure his own power. The world, and the Iraqi people would be better off without him. But I also know that Saddam poses no imminent and direct threat to the United States, and that in concert with the international community he can be contained until, in the way of all petty dictators, he falls away into the dustbin of history.  – In His Own Words, edited by Lisa Rogak, p.143 Mar 27, 2007

Thanks to On The Issues for compiling these. 

This is extremely appropriate to my day so far.  Enjoy

Over-pumped 20-something douchebag spotter:  OK MAN!  HOW MUCH YOU GONNA LIFT THIS TIME!?
Over-pumped 20-something douchebag lifter:  ALL OF IT MAN!  ALL OF IT!  UUUNNNNNNGGGGGG!

BANG! BANG! CRAASSSHHHH!

Spotter Douchebag:  Crap!  OK, put the side with the weights down easy.  You OK, man?

Sometimes, the Lord does indeed answer prayers.

I’m a big softie myself.  I’m not a tough guy, or even an especially brave one.  Like the man said, I’m not a hero, but I’ve served in the company of heroes.  I’ve known some really hard people in my life: Navy Seals and Green Berets who were going through language training and enjoyed showing privates how to do evil things with piano wire and 550 cord, Finnish truck drivers who regularly drive from Helsinki to Kazakhstan and back with two quarts of vodka and a big pipe under the driver’s seat, World War II Marine veterans who told me what it was like to assault an island from an open air boat, and the list goes on and on.

But I’ve never heard of anyone like Hideaki Akaiwa.  This guy, after surviving the tsunami in Japan, goes into the waters not once, not twice, but every single day since then looking for survivors.  He’s not military, nor is he a policeman or fireman.  He’s just a normal guy who found courage within himself at a crucial moment and did something outstanding.  The world needs more people like this.

Mal Hombre!