Man talk
A hypothetical situation: two men who have not seen each other in a while finally decide to get together for a beer. One dude shows up at the other dude’s house. Here’s an actual conversation they might have.
Dude 1: Hey, man, what’s up?
Dude 2: Aah, not much. You?
Dude 1: Same old, same old. New TeeVee?
Dude 2: Yeah, wanna beer?
Dude 1: Sure, man.
They proceed to watch the game. To you women readers (both of you) that’s all you see. But to men, what they really said was this:
Dude 1: I understand you’ve been having a hard time lately and I’ve come to check in on you and make sure you’re OK.
Dude 2: Yeah, the new job might be more than I can handle. I think I may have overextended myself financially. Me and the significant other aren’t quite getting along like we used to. The IRS is kicking my ass. If this deal doesn’t go through, I might be screwed. I feel a bit depressed and I’m hoping that you can provide me with some advice and companionship to get me through this tough time. And I think my house has termites. What significant things are going on in your life?
Dude 1: Stressed out about raising kids. Feeling the effects of middle age. I’m kinda tired all the time. Marriage ain’t what it used to be with constant activities involving kids. I really need some more me time and alone time with my wife. I need to start working out and taking better care of myself because I want to be there for my kids when they’re older. And I should probably have this twinge checked out but I hate doctors and I hate bad news from them more. So, in the fine tradition of men, I’ll just ignore it. And, given your financial troubles, you bought a new TeeVee?
Dude 2: Yeah, not smart. But I needed something to take my mind off of things. And I appreciate you coming by and showing concern for my general well-being during this tough time. And I’m here for you.
Dude 1: You know I’ll always be there for you, in that non gay way, of course.
With men, less is more.
June 11th, 2007 at 2:57 pm
Excellent class in Male as a Second Language.
June 11th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
Hmm. Yeah.
June 12th, 2007 at 7:13 pm
[…] back of my mind as blogfodder: despite all the talk about women being more intuitive and empathic, guys manage to communicate just fine. And we don’t even have to use words. posted by TD at 7:13 pm […]
June 15th, 2007 at 4:28 pm
Dude!
July 9th, 2007 at 9:08 am
[…] To Dr. Helen: I’ve explained this before. […]
July 9th, 2007 at 11:08 am
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