'Merica

I never really thought about what it means to serve your country until my girlfriends brother joined the army a few months back….hell, I’m sure I still can’t fully understand the sacrifice someone makes to serve their country. I just found this fitting because I’m flying out to Oklahoma this week for his graduation from basic training.

I can sit here and toot my horn day in and day out about manly things but don’t know the first thing about what it takes to dedicate myself to protecting this great country of ours. I’m not going to go off and rant about the army, and America, and how we could all give just a little more…. However, I would like to take some time and remind everyone that the single manliest thing you can ever do is serve our country.

I think I really started understanding what it really means to serve our country when I was downtown back in 08’ for the wings parade after they won the cup. I started hearing this wave of cheers and clapping rolling towards me from the north on Woodward. When it had finally reached me I saw it wasn’t Nick Lidstrom or Pavel Datsyuk….it was four marines. They walked and waved at all the people cheering for them, it was the most humble I had ever seen another.

To me it’s important to; at the very least thank these soldiers for what they’re doing. I fear that if these great men don’t feel the appreciation they should for doing this it will discourage future generations from doing what keeps America what it is; proud and free….

So next time you meet a soldier, thank him/her for serving our country, they deserve it.

Here fishy fishy fishy....

In my eyes, every guy liked to fish….whether they know it or not. To me it’s like a rite of passage to becoming a MAN! When you’re younger you think “man, this is extremely boring, it’s nothing like it looks in the cartoons!”  I remember my first experience with fishing. I was watching Sesame Street and Burt and Ernie were in a row boat. Burt was having a hell of a time getting anything…. And all Ernie would have to do is yell “HEEEERRRRRRRRREEEEE FISHY, FISHY, FISHY!!” Sure as hell one fish would jump into the boat.
                Of course I didn’t think that fishing was like that in real life, but I thought it would be a lot easier than it actually was…. Man, was I wrong! Some like to call it the sport of 100 casts, or if you fish for musky you can upgrade to 1000 casts. Fishing to a newcomer at my age would have to be the most aggravating thing in the world.
                You constantly have to assess conditions and change technique and of course it’s always a guess. Now I’m not necessarily a fishing purist, but I do get upset if I have a noisy gaggle of toddlers 100 feet from me throwing rocks in the water. This is my fun, go play on the monkey bars! You don’t see my throwing footballs at you while you’re swinging just because that’s where I chose to do it.
                Don’t get me wrong, im not complaining…..well not too much atleast…. I just like to think of this as just another thing that I enjoy, like a good beer, or a cigar, or a fast car.  This is just another thing that I think makes a man. When im out there I can disconnect from the real world and get back to mans roots of being self sufficient. The hunter and gatherer feeling is my high and I think every man should experience that.
                Sunday I caught my first fish of the season. It was an extremely momentous occasion for me because it marked the beginning of many long fights of strength and wit. Don’t be fooled about this fish story though, it may sound like a whale of a tale, but it definitely doesn’t reflect Sundays catch!!!

The red, white, and BREW!

Man cave, a sanctuary, somewhere where everything is man without worry of insensitivity. What makes a man cave? Does it have to be in a basement or a garage?

                To me it doesn’t…I don’t personally have a basement fit for a man cave, so I tend to use my local establishments and social gatherings as my own personal man cave.

                Think of it! You don’t have to have a bar in your basement to enjoy man cave-like activities, you can head out to your local brewery, I personally prefer Khunhenn.

                Why have game rooms, when you can go shoot pool or at snookers or shoot craps and play blackjack at MGM?

                To me, everywhere is my man cave… resource where I can stretch my manly wings (masculine wings, like on a hawk or eagle…..not that swan crap) and feel like I am in my own man cave without the wife interrupting to do the laundry or the kids wanting to watch sponge-bob on the “big TV.”.

                We’ll smoke cigars, talk about cars, Kate Upton, what the Tigers are doing, what the Lions aren’t doing, drink some good beer and just have a bitchin’ time.

                So grab a stool at the bar and get a pint….this is gonna be fun.