Girls rule and boys drool. For those of you who don’t realize it that is a proven fact. The girls go to college to get more knowledge and boys go to Jupiter to get more stupider part isn’t completely accurate. Boys do go to college.
Joking aside, I’ve seen a few things lately that make me wonder about gender in our society.
I grew up with brothers. I have sons. Boys are not foreign or scary to me and I had many masculine friends who had a better eye for a nice shoe than I did and they were pretty comfortable with that. I also know many women who can swing a hammer and are in general pretty handy. In fact, two of my brothers are useless with a tool box and when something comes marked assembly required it’s their wives who pull out the screw gun. In fact, I’m reasonably sure the screw gun belongs to their wives and my brothers wouldn’t have a clue how to even turn it on.
Men and women do have differences but having good male friends is like having that great pair of jeans that always seem to fit just right. After my divorce I was faced with the realization that I hadn’t been on a date since I was 19 and though I was only in my 30’s much had changed in the dating world. Since my brothers’ dating advice was along the lines of don’t date, or who would date my smelly sister, it was nice to have a few male friends to turn to with the all important questions like what does it mean when they don’t call? Does this make me look fat? Am I going to die alone surrounded by 100 cats? Of course there were other more intimate questions as relationships progressed but there was a difference in advice from my male and female friends.
Some of my female friends would invent all kinds of scenarios like he must have fallen into a well, I’m sure a truck hit him and he’s in a coma, or I hear amnesia is going around. My male friends, on the other hand, would give me a smack on the back of my head and tell me to snap out of it, get over, he’s not interested. And let’s not forget why limit yourself to 100 cats? What’s wrong with dogs? Of course that would be followed with fond memories (theirs) of all the inventive ways they dumped someone. Most did not involve a phone call or the words sorry I’m just not interested.
Dating advice wasn’t all I enjoyed about my male friendships. There is something nice about going to a Jets game with your best male friend knowing there will be no such thing as fat-free anything at the tailgate party. Chips, dips, beer, and heroes along with whatever we threw on the grill and then eating until we were sure we would explode but somehow we made it to our perfect seats on the 50 yard line with our faces painted because we were supporting our team, man! I never quite got the belching part down but my efforts were always appreciated. Not many of my female friends could appreciate any of that although I do know a few who could belch it out of the park.
I love men and not in the way I love Adam Levine. I love that they are different than women. I love that they are rough around the edges and I love some of the many interesting conversations that border on hilarious just because of chromosomal differences. Maybe it is because I grew up with brothers and that I have sons that I get the part where they don’t care if the bathroom is gross or if you eat it out of the can. I also get the part where they can be loyal and loving and sincere if given the chance, just like most of my female friends. Yeah I still think girls rule, but drooling isn’t so bad sometimes.
