Amy's Challenge

[Guest Doodlen]

Alright, so anyone who read the thread Amy made about us guys (Thanks by the way ) has probably seen her other comment:

To all of you guys in here, have you some fun. I keep expecting to see some posts on bugs or guts or something cool and boyish like that, but noOOOOOOoooo.

seriously, favorite guy movie quotes, coolest bugs, favorite MMA or UFC fighters (besides Gina Carano, she is too obvious), step it up. I am calling you out. This cute, purple obsessed, heart loving, lace wearing, hair twirling girl who was called too girlie by more than a few is calling you lot out.

Stop pretending to be mature about being men. Though FtM men are far more evolved than cis men that doesn't mean that you have to pretend to not be interested in all of the dirt and blood that men so seem to enjoy. Seriously, get out there and play.

Alright guys, you heard her! Amy, I accept your challenge. Let's make this the manliest post ever!

[JJ]

Uh,.......while i keep searching-the T & C make this a challenge in some ways guys....here is a start. I'm a jelly Belly fan

[Guest Stephen-Renae]

Haha, didn't see her original post...but she's got a point. And I'll happily stuff my face with Jelly Bellies next Easter xD

I'm thinking about digging out my old pocket knife.....

The Art of Manliness - How to Play Mumbly-Peg

[Guest AlexForever]

Look up "Shower Products For Men" on youtube by Chag136 (HILARIOUS video)

So...about bugs...I don't really like some critters, but I do like tarantulas and caterpillars! And giant snails!

Also snakes, bats and rats. I would really love to have a pet bat but it's not a very good idea for the bat too bad

[Guest Stephen-Renae]

That video was hilarious. And yes, Chuck Norris sponsors Sueeve products for men xD

So I was looking through my bookshelf today for something to take with me on a trip next week, and I found my "Totally Amazing Insects" book from when I was 8 I thought I'd share a few things...

Terrifying ants: The Australian Bulldog Ant and the African Driver Ant. Dunno about the bulldog ant, but I'm pretty sure that once the driver ant hooks onto you, they act like a tick, aka it's Very Hard to get them off. There was a special about them on Discovery Channel

And here's an African Goliath Beetle. They're one of the heaviest insects in the world, and they wrestle for their mates. Kind of like teenage humans you see in older movies

Eh, I'm gonna go try to recover from the itchy-crawling sensation on my skin, now. Oh, and watch Slim Jim commercials about the Navy's #1 Torpedo Catcher

[JJ]

Hate all things with 8 legs. Really hate them.

But beetles and ants and snakes and anything with fur are okay. Especially things with fur.

And I've eaten a few bugs too. Some even intentionally. Like chocolate covered ants-they have an interesting tang. And chocolate covered bees and fried grasshopper. Okay the fried grasshopper didn't make it to my stomach but I tried. Funny how determined I was to prove how tough I was when I was in my teens and 20s. Even was proud of not getting sick at a bull fight.

Now I take hapless insects outside and bull fights appall me. Seeing the light of life fade from anything appalls me. Not a gender thing as I once thought -but a recognition of the value of life.

While I don't mind having a thread about manly things I also wonder what they are-outside of of cultural stereotypes?

What picture can I in conscience post here? I know there are differences-I just don't think they are based on things like blood and dirt and bugs.

But I will buy that men prefer action more than women. That they would rather watch Terminator than Sleepless in Seattle.

So here is my manly pic-a robot to make fire breaks.

Johnny

[Guest ranse]

My typical guy stuff as a kid: LEGOs, Hot Wheels, Matchbox, comic books.

As a teenager: girls, drums, music (I know, music is for everyone but I turn into Daniel Stern's character in the movie "Diner" where I can't handle anyone mis-shelving/rearranging/messing with my albums and CDs and I used to know all the pointless trivia about every band and song.)

As an adult: most of the above, fishing, introducing my children to horrible 50s monster movies, etc.

Not really and blood and gore/dirt and mud fan, but I do love to be outdoors and I still like play with Nerf guns and stuff like that.

[Guest Miss_Construe]

I LOVE it.

<3

Amy

[Guest ranse]

Thank you, Amy, for letting us have our inner boys back.

You got any magic tricks to help me remember how I used to walk and act like a boy without thinking about it? As a child, everyone thought I was a boy to the point that teachers often didn't believe I was a girl on the first day of school and people would ask my parents about their "son."

Sorry to get all serious again.

I vow to regroup and go watch "Monster A-Go-Go" or something.

[Guest Stephen-Renae]

Hey Amy! Thanks!

And oh. Hotwheels. I still have all 3 cases of mine, along with the old green tracks they used to sell, the ones you had to put together yourself with the connectors. I never liked those fancy car wash/dinosaur-attack/jaws/etc pre-build things.

Ahaha, when I was younger, I always loved playing in the dirt. My mom encouraged it, because 'at least I was outside', but....I'd always come back in with either rocks, rollie-pollies, or worms in my pockets

It was my love of dirt and dinosaurs that pushed me to say "I wanna be an archaeologist" in kindergarden. Also responsible for my love of Indiana Jones

[Guest Miss_Construe]

Ranse and all of my boys,

I would say the magic is in just like going swimming. Plug your nose, close your eyes and dive in. I know I really pull out the stops in acting feminine without thinking if I just keep the thought in my head that I am a woman and no one can take that away. People can tell me I am not a woman, but that will only change my opinion of them (I wish I could hold on to that for longer than a very short time). You are a man so you know it all in your heart. Just let your heart shine through.

Now get back to having fun. It doesn't have to me machismo driven, just not serious. Embrace who you are and just amplify it. We all know that gender is not related to interests, abilities or anything other than what you think of yourself, but that doesn't mean we all don't have things that just make us feel like who we really are. If singing Katy Perry in falsetto while wearing a fluorescent pink tutu makes you feel manly then that is the manliest thing I have ever witnessed. I just used guts and bugs as a stereotypical example for humor purposes. Now get out there baby, you are a firework. I should probably stop posting in this thread. The only way for me to feel manly is to invade a boy's personal space, and that ain't happening any time soon and .

<3

Amy

[Guest Doodlen]

I am a HUGE pro wrestling fan. Undertaker forever <3

I have no problem with bugs besides June Bugs and Earwigs. Gross. But besides that I'm fine.

I Love snakes. They're so cool. When I was little a friend of mine had a pet snake and she had babies and he named one after me

JJ - Now I want Jelly Bellies

[Guest Captain Troy]

I've got one for you guys. Who would win: Great White Shark or Killer Whale? They finally have the answer.

(search Great White vs. Killer Whale on Youtube)

I watched an entire two-hour special on this with my dad last night. So awesome. (warning: shows footage of the actual fight going down. Very little gore, but a corpse is shown). I was going to include a link to a website devoted to these kinds of hypothetical fights, but then realized the violence level was over PG, so y'all need to search it on your own.

And in case you were wondering, I'm not a cruel person, I'm incredibly kind to animals and treat them better than I treat most people. I just really like hypothetical cage-matches, animals or superheroes.

Speaking of superheroes, any of you read comic books? I'm a huge comic/sci-fi nerd, and adored the latest X-men movie.

Edited June 12, 2011 by Carolyn Marie
embedded video removed, per T & C that prohibits non-trans related videos

[Guest ShortyT]

Well doh *points to avatar*

[Guest AlexForever]

Hey Amy! Thanks!

And oh. Hotwheels. I still have all 3 cases of mine, along with the old green tracks they used to sell, the ones you had to put together yourself with the connectors. I never liked those fancy car wash/dinosaur-attack/jaws/etc pre-build things.

Ahaha, when I was younger, I always loved playing in the dirt. My mom encouraged it, because 'at least I was outside', but....I'd always come back in with either rocks, rollie-pollies, or worms in my pockets

It was my love of dirt and dinosaurs that pushed me to say "I wanna be an archaeologist" in kindergarden. Also responsible for my love of Indiana Jones

Oh me too! I loved toy cars, dirt and dinosaurs! (and lego too)

I used to collect this thing that they sold weekly at the news-stand, there was one pieces of a plastic T-rex skeleton in every one so that you could build it, and there was also a small "book" about various dinosaurs and their habits and it was really interesting; I still have all of the "books" but I don't have the T-rex anymore

I also loved to climb trees! It was my favourite thing ever and everytime we went to the park I spent almost all the time climbing the big tree that no one was supposed to climb but that was always full of kids

I always wanted a pet snake but my parents always said no now I don't know if I'd want one, not because I don't like snakes but because I'm not sure on how I'd feel about keeping one caged

So I watched a lot of documentaries about snakes (and other kinds of animals too, but snakes and lions and tigers, and sharks and other animals of the sea were my favourites...but I was afraid of sharks even if I liked watching them. the only one I wasn't afraid of is that huge one who only eats plankton).

[Guest John Chiv]

Amy,

I know the intent behind your wanting the men to have a little fun and you are a sweetheart. I am not posting anything in this thread but high five to all the guys who took Amy's invitation in the sincere caring spirit it was meant to be.

I am learning stuff about you guys LOL

John

[JJ]

While I recognize that Amy's post was made in a sincere and caring spirit I have seen the worst stereotypes and slurs made in jokes and lighthearted fun. Ask most women who have had to laugh at a joke about women that was at heart demeaning. Or someone whose ethic background or religion was part of some funny joke. People will laugh and accept things in humor they would find outrageous otherwise. And therein lies the danger.

It's okay to play with them but I think it's okay too to remind ourselves that people are sometimes misled and wounded even in jest and fun when that was not the intent.

When it comes to stereotypes I hit them all as a child. Hated dolls, played with toy horses and cowboys and Indians and had turtles and snakes and a jar of ants that I carried everywhere. I played happily in the mud and loved besting anyone at any and every game. Tough was important to me.

I guess sports was an exception. I never cared for sports much. I preferred skimming scum off a pond to examine under a microscope to baseball any time. But I was the best tree climber in town. I would hold a firecracker the longest and never flinched at mumbly peg. Not to prove I was a boy because I believed in my heart I was-but just because that was the way I was made.

But having witnessed violent deaths 3 times by age 8 I was not into blood, or anything bloody. I am not saying that males aren't different -I also read Shakespeare in that tree by the way and saved tadpoles from drying puddles-I am just saying even in jest we need to be aware of stereotypes and how harmful they are for all of us. That many of us are uncomfortable and unhappy when they come up in any context.

And here is my pic of the scariest bug on earth as far as I'm concerned

Eboli

Johnny

[Guest ranse]

While I recognize that Amy's post was made in a sincere and caring spirit I have seen the worst stereotypes and slurs made in jokes and lighthearted fun. Ask most women who have had to laugh at a joke about women that was at heart demeaning. Or someone whose ethic background or religion was part of some funny joke. People will laugh and accept things in humor they would find outrageous otherwise. And therein lies the danger.

It's okay to play with them but I think it's okay too to remind ourselves that people are sometimes misled and wounded even in jest and fun when that was not the intent.

When it comes to stereotypes I hit them all as a child. Hated dolls, played with toy horses and cowboys and Indians and had turtles and snakes and a jar of ants that I carried everywhere. I played happily in the mud and loved besting anyone at any and every game. Tough was important to me.

I guess sports was an exception. I never cared for sports much. I preferred skimming scum off a pond to examine under a microscope to baseball any time. But I was the best tree climber in town. I would hold a firecracker the longest and never flinched at mumbly peg. Not to prove I was a boy because I believed in my heart I was-but just because that was the way I was made.

But having witnessed violent deaths 3 times by age 8 I was not into blood, or anything bloody. I am not saying that males aren't different -I also read Shakespeare in that tree by the way and saved tadpoles from drying puddles-I am just saying even in jest we need to be aware of stereotypes and how harmful they are for all of us. That many of us are uncomfortable and unhappy when they come up in any context.

And here is my pic of the scariest bug on earth as far as I'm concerned

Eboli

Johnny

I don't believe any of us are encouraging following stereotypes, especially not ones that demean women or minorities, or excusing violence. The blood and dirt references in the original post seemed to me to be more in reference to entertainment such as action movies where stuff blows up, and not that any of us should have a desire to see blood and violence and horror in real life. I'm not a mind reader; I'm not in Amy's head to know the intent of her wording, but that's how I interpreted it.

If the basic message of "lighten up and have a little fun" was the intent, I do agree.

I know I'm new here and not as seasoned as some of the rest on this path, but I do feel the FTM's posts often read as if everything is earnest and that we can't lighten up like the girls do. I keep reading the small joys the girls feel in painting their nails or finding an outfit that makes them feel excited and happy in their womanhood and don't really see us doing the same. I don't really see many posting about the pleasure of their shaving ritual or the tiny glow that comes from having a straight woman read you as male and do a little flirting with you. Those little affirmations go a long way toward solidifying the attitude of male identity just as a little fashion fun or having a man open a door for them helps the women feel more secure in their identities. I haven't read every post on the entire site, but that's my general impression.

I've gained a lot from reading the discussions that center on transitioning strategies and passing, etc., but a little fun and humor can't hurt us.

[Guest John Chiv]

I don't believe any of us are encouraging following stereotypes, especially not ones that demean women or minorities, or excusing violence. The blood and dirt references in the original post seemed to me to be more in reference to entertainment such as action movies where stuff blows up, and not that any of us should have a desire to see blood and violence and horror in real life. I'm not a mind reader; I'm not in Amy's head to know the intent of her wording, but that's how I interpreted it.

If the basic message of "lighten up and have a little fun" was the intent, I do agree.

I know I'm new here and not as seasoned as some of the rest on this path, but I do feel the FTM's posts often read as if everything is earnest and that we can't lighten up like the girls do. I keep reading the small joys the girls feel in painting their nails or finding an outfit that makes them feel excited and happy in their womanhood and don't really see us doing the same. I don't really see many posting about the pleasure of their shaving ritual or the tiny glow that comes from having a straight woman read you as male and do a little flirting with you. Those little affirmations go a long way toward solidifying the attitude of male identity just as a little fashion fun or having a man open a door for them helps the women feel more secure in their identities. I haven't read every post on the entire site, but that's my general impression.

I've gained a lot from reading the discussions that center on transitioning strategies and passing, etc., but a little fun and humor can't hurt us.

Ranse,

My friend, well said.

I posted a thread on flirting a while back to get a lighter topic in the FTM forum and got great responses but they were serious. I know the guys here are varied and full of fun and I would like to bond and share the humorous side we all have. Even though I cannot relate to the women's threads when they talk about certain things, I enjoy reading the light-hearted ones. Then again, other than posting jokes, and a few humorous posts, I am usually serious. We men just need to be ourselves, and relax because there are threads where we let our hair down. Johnny has a great thread on partying by the pool. And, Matt has a great sense of wit and I am waiting to see his response to this thread. I can guarantee you it will be funny.

John

[Guest Michael Heather]

Humm, what makes me feel manly, you ask? Let me give you a few examples...

Listening to epic music, whether it's from musicals or metal albums doesn't matter. (Though Meatloaf belongs to the favourites.)

Spending time with my girlfriend, 'cause she treats me like a guy. Even though she tends to be more masculine than me. XD I guess I'm just a little camp. ;P

Drawing. And especially drawing pretty dresses, for some weird reason!

When my sister freaks out about a spider and I don't! She's genuinely afraid of the little creatures whilst I just tend to be creeped out, but it still makes me feel soooo much better when I can pick it up and put it outside while watching my sister scream.

Dancing also belongs to the group of "weird" reasons for me to feel manly. Maybe 'cause I let everything go and just let the music be the beating of my heart and the sound of blood flowing through my veins...

Singing any song in my deep(-ish) voice and managing to hit most of the low notes.

There, now you have some examples of my manliness. XD

As for the so called "weird" reasons, I guess I'm just a little strange. But then again, who isn't?

[Guest John Chiv]

What makes me manly?

The right woman who appreciates me just as I am.

John

[Guest Miss_Construe]

Michael,

Music is just awesome. I keep my sanity through Collide, the Agonist and such. You should check out the 300 soundtrack. Definitely a must for the gym.

Also:::: Dancing is NOT a weird manly activity. The physical experience of activating your muscles and creating all of that tension is a magical experience. Dancing is meditative and helps me get more in tune with my body. Guy or girl I would guess that the experience just really helps one feel more aligned and in tune with their musculature. Besides, male dancers are kind of hot (Hugh Jackman [aka Wolverine] and the guy who played the Red Pyramid in the Silent Hill movie are both dancers.).

John, why would you let someone else hold such power over you?

<3

Amy

[Flint]

Actually we do have a post where us guys have posted a lot of random 'fun' stuff. It's called "Beerless Beer And Tobaccoless Tobacco" Where we have talked about cars, women, music and some other stuff..I think films and books came into conversation.

Guys separate things into categories a lot. I think really the whole FTM section is seen to many of as, as the help and advice section for us. And the general chat section for general talk.

Not to mention the fact that there are indeed separate sections for movies, music and so on on the forum itself. I think many guys just choose to post in what appears to be the 'correct' place.

[Guest John Chiv]

John, why would you let someone else hold such power over you?

<3

Amy

Amy,

No one has power over me. I thought this was a thread for us to express what makes us feel manly and have a little fun. And this topic has generated some great responses. Thank you so much for starting this thread. I hope you are having a great day.

John

[Guest John Chiv]

Matt,

I just love your response. Well said. Your post is a great reminder to visit sections that we don't normally visit.

John