Lord of the memes

You get to express yourself in a healthier masculine way in Middle Earth because you're not worried about fucking driving an hour to work and back to make some asshole rich while you worry about if you're going to eat next week, all the while trying to numb your senses with substances and stave off the fear that at any time, an illness could ruin you and your family financially and put you on the street. At least in ME, the existential problems men face are quantifiable: there's an orc that wants to kill me, etc.

I wish there were more people like OP, because the only way I can make people who are neither my friends or family recognize that I'm being treated unfairly is by getting angry. Humans have a gigantic range of emotions they may feel and yet most of them think that just because you belong to one gender or another only a portion of those emotions are valid.

r slash niceguys

Whoa, this comment thread is wild. Sorry to those who have to deal with shame. I also don't like being hugged or kissed, but that's true regardless of their gender. That said, you should be allowed to cry, and you should at least be allowed to express your feelings. It's not a sign of weakness, and if anything, a sign of bravery.

But, reading your comments, grateful to not have a wife who judges my masculinity. I still gotta do my part around the house and stay respectful, but if I needed to vent over a bad day, she's all ears. Thanks for that.

That’s what happens when a gentleman who fought in WWI and dreamt of a cottage writes fantasy.

Sure, the last time I tried to be tender and emotional like this my wife mocked me for crying. Do I wish for close relationships like this with my fellow men, yes but there's no room for it for some of us. Toxic masculinity is also expressed by the women in our society (USA)

No shaming at all! But I think it’s important to recognize that not all cultures express affection the same way.

One very poignant scene I remember well was when a Disney exec met the famous Japanese director Hiyao Miyazaki for the first time. The American exec rushed forward to hug them and I remember thinking that Miyazaki may have felt pretty uncomfortable with that. As an Asian American that spends a lot of time in both cultures I find that Americans tend to (for lack of a better word) impose their cultural norms on others - either through well meaning ignorance or cultural chauvinism I don’t know.

Edit - replying to Boozilla. Not sure if it worked.

Hey dol! merry dol! ring a dong dillo!

Ring a dong! hop along! fal lal the willow!

Tom Bom, jolly Tom, Tom Bombadillo!

​

I mean, the problem here is that if you want emotionally available men you have to treat men better.

Good luck getting people to do that.

Look up Troy Hawke on Instagram and use his act as a guide.