He's a REAL man!

[columella]

And you have to say that with the proper inflection.  :)  Today the times published and article about an article in Popular Mechanics.  (amusing, that concept.)  It was about the 25 Skills they say every man should know.  Went over them with the husband and scored a 23 out of 25 - the only things he could not do was frame a wall and fillet a fish.  It is an interesting list and apparently causing quite a discussion on their forums - as to whether it is the right 25 things.  

Personally it has made me wonder - not about the husband (who I already knew could perform a great variety of tasks) but about what we *should* be able to do.  In this day and age I believe our society has moved far away from do-it-yourself and into pay-someone-else and I wonder about that.  Of course some of it is technology related as many things have become so complicated that it is difficult to do them yourself.  But, couldn't someone still learn to change their own oil??  My father taught me how when I was a teenager and it sure saved me some money when I was struggling financially.  These days I am happy to pay someone else to do it, but I would like E to know how to do it himself and how will that happen if we don't do it ourselves?  Hmmm, thoughts to chew on.....

Comments

[crevette.livejournal.com]

#26--Give their partner multiple orgasms.

Just sayin'.

[gilmoure.livejournal.com]

I got all those down. Kind of an odd list, actually. Where's Do Your Own Taxes or Contact Your Congressional Representative?

We're focusing with Miriam, on teaching her that just about anything can be done, if you have the right tools and you read or look up on the internet, how to do it. With all the knowledge and mail order out there, is pretty easy. Just about ready to start teaching Miriam how to weld. Just need to find a child size helmet.

[gilmoure.livejournal.com]

So...if you give multiple women one orgasm apiece, does that count?

[gilmoure.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah, I like this comment:

79. RE: 25 Skills Every Man Should Know: The List, Ready for Your Debate:

how to bleed breaks, sharpen a knife, clean a bolt action rife, mix concrete, maneveur a car out of a skid. Are you sure this was not a coded list for 25 skills every HITman should know?

[columella.livejournal.com]

Well, it is definitely not a definitive list....

[columella.livejournal.com]

I can think of a lot of other things that could be on it - but it is a great start for discussion!

[slamson.livejournal.com]

ROFL!! OMG, must breathe....

[slamson.livejournal.com]

I cannot bleed brakes or frame a wall, although I have the tools to do both, lol. And you know, I think I COULD probably frame a wall after the Girls Inc Haunted House experience; just haven't done it myself. For that matter, give me the instructions and I could bleed the brakes after helping Dad all those years.

And yeah, I could add quite a few to that list. The list of things I can do, thanks to Dad and his "you can do anything any little stud can do" attitude, is pretty long.

[peacockharpy.livejournal.com]

Definitively not.

[red-goldilocks.livejournal.com]

Oh lord. The only thing I cannot do on this list is clean the rifle. Does that make ME a Real Man?

[mistressrhi.livejournal.com]

I can do at least 18 now, and with proper instructions, could probably do 3 more. Ain't reworking dead outlets though, no matter what! My grandfather was an electrician and I'm smart enough to hire one for electrical work rather than DIY myself into a hospital!

[g-allen.livejournal.com]

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects." --Robert Heinlein