100 Skills Every Man Should Know

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Mar 1, 2014
3,660
4,963
I'm just here for the cat conversation.
Last year while I was out in the barn smoking my pipe, a kitten, probably not more than a few months old, runs up to the door.

Whether it escaped from the nearby town or was dropped off, I don't know, but that poor thing has had to put up with me ever since.

He gets free choice food, but only gets water in Winter (the pond for the horses is nearby), has never lived indoors, and I am basically the only living thing that Animal (official name, it's on the veterinary card from when he got fixed) has ever interacted with that wasn't another cat trying to attack him.

So about twice a week I walk out to the barn, yell "cat" and he usually comes running, meowing the whole way, and is desperate to sit on my lap, purr, and try to bite me. Occasionally he swats at my face.

It's all very playful though, never drawing blood, he'll gently put my arm in his mouth an just look at me, as though asking for permission. Of course the aggressive behavior most likely comes from allowing that sort of thing when he was a kitten, so now I have to be careful to gently guide him to not view me as a play thing.

It's really bizarre trying to figure out how to give a negative reaction to a cat. If I grab him by the scruff or smack him, then the game is on, that means it's play time and he acts worse. If I push him off my lap when he bites me, he flops to the ground and looks completely clueless, and grabs some food. He knows well enough to stay in the barn, as I'll consistently chase him away from the house, but territorial rules are probably the closest I've ever come to teaching him something.

 

drunkblowhard

Starting to Get Obsessed
May 30, 2015
112
1
Huge +1 for motonbriar's roles/rolls pun. That's the kind of wit we need around here damnit!
Huge -1 for the lazy and short sighted thinking that having two dads or two moms makes one less of a man.

 

johnnyreb

Lifer
Aug 21, 2014
1,961
614
Huge -1 for the lazy and short sighted thinking that having two dads or two moms makes one less of a man.
The title of the thread is "100 Skills Every Man Should Know". The OP said nothing about what it takes to be a man. To which Cosmic replied, "Here we go again..." implying that these kinds of threads frequently come up, a notion supported by Pat's post with the appropriate links proving that they do.
If someone grew up with two mom's who taught him the appropriate skills (not manners, that's for the other thread) to grow to be a complete man then more power to them. I would think the odds are against it.
Good critical thinking on understanding the posts on your part though.

 

fnord

Lifer
Dec 28, 2011
2,746
8
Topeka, KS
Carver:
"Anyway, next time, I'll just keep it to myself."
Don't get your undies knotted up.
Several of the cats who commented on your OP would be the first responders to your "My hootch/apartment/home went up in smoke and I've lost everything." The offers of burners and tobacco would be - I promise you - overwhelming.
The sarcasm comes from seeing so many of these "Being a Man" threads.
In an age where being a man is trivialized, and people just wait to be insulted, I hope you can understand the somewhat jaundiced response. (Hell, your thread was swell. There were several items listed I can't do to save my soul.)
Hang tight. Don't quit. Stay vocal.
I enjoy and appreciate your voice,
Fnord

 

tbradsim1

Lifer
Jan 14, 2012
9,215
11,842
Southwest Louisiana
Carver, I" m drinking my coffee, getting ready to load some Nitecap, mosey on porch. Don't think you are the first to come around on this, it's just us doing the MAN thing. In Cajun land a man knows how to sew , iron things, butcher a hog, cow, fix a tractor, pick Blackberries, help neighbors in need, we don't need a rule book to tell us how to act like a Man, I guess that was all the Folks underlying feelings. You got a question, ask, you feeling Blue, get on a thread and somebody is gonna help you. Some of us Old Farts are not as Articulate as the younger crew so we come across as gruff, we're not, remember there ain't no such thing as a Manly Man, that's fake, I saw that in S Asia sighting down the barrel of a gun. Treat people right, help those you can help, don't be too quick judging and you will be a Man.

 

jpmcwjr

Lifer
May 12, 2015
26,263
30,344
Carmel Valley, CA
Good advice. May I call you a c***a**? (That's a compliment if offered and taken in the right way; it's certainly offered cordially.) But it's not PC! OMG!! OK, frivolity over. I used to love traveling to Louisiana and getting out in the country, but I had a job where the travel was free as long as there was business involved. Now, I am somewhat confined to the almond orchard.
I took the comment about two moms or dads as perhaps a reason there might be more questions by children as what it is to be a man. Plus the internet age, with attendant anonymity, makes asking questions and making comments easier. Some things you wouldn't ask face to face many times.
But, please, please, don't call "it" your "man cave"! [/mini rant]

 

fnord

Lifer
Dec 28, 2011
2,746
8
Topeka, KS
Carver:
When "il Padrone," the godfather of this forum weighs in - that would be tbradsim1 of Maurice, LA - doff your cap, tug a forelock, grab a knee and get ready to learn.
I've never gutted a hog or fixed a tractor in my life. But when I do, I'll ask Brad to show me the way. (My mom used to talk about butchering days on the farm. They'd wash out the hog bladder and use it for a volley ball.)
In the meantime, if you want to meet a veteran of that dust-up in French-Indochina, learn the history of our country and the deep South, make a friend for life, appreciate Perique, find a guy who can talk you through pipe buys, salvage and repair and then recommend an up and coming carver in addition to commenting about his wonderful family and yours - well, goddamn - do I have a phone number for you.
Cheers,
Fnord

 

johnnyreb

Lifer
Aug 21, 2014
1,961
614
The problem lies in defining those 100 skills. I'm sure every one of us who has posted on this thread would come up with a different skill set every man should have. Depending on what type of household you were raised in would go a long way in determining that skill set. If your skill set includes things like what color necktie to wear with your periwinkle shirt, I wouldn't have a clue!
Here's an example of a male firefighter who obviously was taught, and a 19 yr old would be robber who wasn't...not even manners:
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/texas-firefighter-takes-down-would-be-robber-n392876

 

jpmcwjr

Lifer
May 12, 2015
26,263
30,344
Carmel Valley, CA
I bet the kid was squealing like a stuck pig!
Good lesson: If you're going to rob a convenience store, take a pistol, and don't push other customers around and then turn your back. Better still, wait till there's no one around. Even better yet: Get a job!

 
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