During our adolescent years my friend Jackie would always want to play with my GI Joes; mainly because she thought soldiers were handsome and one day planned to marry one. As do we all. She would give me her barbies and then we would have a lovely tea. Consistently her parents would come across us and scold us for swapping and have us swap back. Our friends also thought it was odd during playtime.
This would make Jackie incensed. She wanted to play with the soldiers. (So did I but for different reasons) So when she wouldn't get her way, she would behead all of the dolls and toss their bodies out her third-story bedroom window. I myself was never a doll person either way. But I appreciated her drama. In this day and age, men have much calmer reactions to wanting to participate in things that are designated "feminine." And they are discovering a whole new world.
Bring it in bro
the office hug GIF by EditingAndLayoutGiphyHugging your friends could be nice.
I feel this. I spent years being really insecure and would not initiate a hug, and when I did hug it would be really awkward. I'm over that now, but now we're in a pandemic so... sucks to be me?
Dance Away
Dancing ballet. I was a dancer for years, mostly hip hop and acrobatic before I tried ballet. Wish I would have gotten into it sooner. I didn't start until I was 23. Both yoga and ballet really help with body control. Which to me, means reducing the risk of injury from other physical activities. I did it for about 8 years. I noticed an improvement in my other forms of dance pretty quickly. I'll probably go back to dancing next year.
You Don't Bring Me Flowers...
I've never understood why the only pretty, feminine delicate things men were supposed to like were women. Makes no sense.
I'm not supposed to like flowers, but I'm supposed to like a woman that's pretty like a flower? What kind of sense does that make?
It is really silly when you think about it. The people who came up with that logic are the same people who think a little boy playing with a Barbie will make him gay. Surely the best way to instill straightness in little Johnny is to only let him play with muscular G.I. Joes and nearly naked pro-wrestling action figures. That will somehow teach him to like girls.
Good hygiene is an imperative aspect of life. Who doesn't like a luxurious shower and a clean body? And aren't we all attracted and drawn to people who smell good? For years society has complimented women on their fruity or fresh hair scent, or the soothing smell of a body oil or shower gel. And all the while men just had industrial soaps. Well look out world the boys have discovered the eucalyptus. And they are never going back.
No Shame
happy turn around GIF by Dr. Donna Thomas RodgersGiphyCurrently using my housemates "glitter unicorn" shower foam and I unashamedly love the way it makes me smell every day.
Scent of a...
I love lavender, vanilla, and baby powder scented things.
I accidentally bought a baby powder version of my normal deodorant and loved it. I can't seem to find it anywhere these days though.
It's funny to me how some scents are considered feminine.
"mandarin orange and mango"
I accidentally bought women's shower gel once and now use nothing else. It just smells so much better.
I also like that the name on the bottle usually implies what the scent is. The "mandarin orange and mango" scent actually smells like that, while I'm still unsure what XTREME WOLF RUSH smells like, unless it's the toilet at a furry con after a wave of e. Coli.
Coochie-Coo
I shave my face with this stuff called "Coochie Cream." It's a brand of shave butter that, according to my ex-girlfriend, is very popular amongst strippers. I have to shave every other day and I swear by the stuff.
I used that back when I was shaving my head, it works amazingly.
And sometimes it's the simple pleasures in life. Why is it not masculine to sit and enjoy a nice chamomile tea? Who decided what makes a man less a man by the way he derives rapture. Everyone needs a safe space and maybe when they're there they want to read a book or bedazzle a towel. Don't judge.
Everyone needs blankets...
Crocheting. It's very relaxing and you create useful things. But almost every pattern I find is some kind of female clothing or accessory. There are pet toys but those are the only exceptions.
Have you heard of The Crochet Dude?
Also afghans/blankets are a good way to go. They take quite a bit of time to make but are easy to make more masculine or unisex.
Also amigurumi is pretty cool. I suppose stuffed critters can be considered "girly," but there is such a wide variety that it would be worth checking out if you haven't already!
Fan the Flames...
I knew a (really wonderful) dude who told me he wanted to start buying candles because he'd recently talked himself into buying plants and liked how much they spruced up his apartment. It struck me as so wild that buying plants and candles was like... not a thing he considered doing because it was very aesthetic/ambience-focused and he'd broadly heard that was "feminine."
As a woman, there's definitely some stuff you don't think of as feminine until you talk to a man who's been told otherwise.
My Locks
Will Brad Pitt GIF by FriendsGiphyI'm a guy with hair down to the bottom of my shoulder blades. One evening, I was hanging out with a bunch of friends when one of them decided she wanted to braid my hair. Oh my God did it feel amazing! I love the feeling of someone else playing with my hair.
It's a new world in the realm of gender boundaries... finally. I myself have never cared about a gender boundary. As I child, I loved a good, sassy high heel. And I didn't care who new it. And I never understood why anyone would. I've just grown out of them, Lord they are rough on concrete. But if a buff, Texas born construction worker wants to blow off some steam in a heightened Jimmy Choo while sipping prosecco with his boys at a rodeo bar. Then so be it. If he's smiling while doing it, he earned it.
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