... maybe the reason why you no longer see manly men dominating scuba diving is because it's no longer considered a "manly" activity ... thank goodness ...
... and real men drink beer when they're watching a football game ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
Beer raises estrogen levels.
Beer Is Making You A Girly Man | RPM FITNESS
---------- Post added September 1st, 2014 at 01:00 PM ----------
Having given this matter some more thought, I think there is a big difference between a spouse in a the middle of a long term marriage wanting to invest some of the money they have saved together over the years in a new hobby and a girl friend voluntarily attaching herself to a middle aged (or older) man who has long established diving as an integral part of his life. If she did not already accept that diving life style, she would not have agreed to the arrangement.
Of course, I am assuming this girl friend voluntarily agreed to the relationship, Trace--or did you whack her over the head with a club and drag her into your cave by the hair?
My father was a real tough-guy marine. The loss of an eye never held him back from building a successful career, hunting, fishing, horseback riding, etc. On the outside he was like Archie Bunker or the Great Santini. On the inside he had a great appreciation for art and beauty. He played the guitar and loved zithers and music with a latin flair. His favorite sport was figure skating. He hated football. It's funny because he would make me watch figure skating with him which I found to boring. But, he would sit their rapt in interest describing each competitor's strengths and weaknesses and point out the things that he felt were more important to the "art" rather than the sport. As I got older and could appreciate pretty girls and the art a bit more. Watching it wasn't that bad. In fact, I think it is one of the sexiest sports a woman can do. Who knew years later that he would have given me the tools to date a professional skater and truly know and appreciate what she does and how hard she worked since age 3.
Diving has been the same for me. A lifelong pursuit. She and I understand each other and the need to do what we do. These are the things for which we live. People have lost their way as to the things which are truly important. My siblings and I were allowed one activity per season be it baseball, football, or majorettes in my sister's case. My parents had time for theirs. My mother liked to ride horses (she was an equestrian instructor and college education prof), fish and target shoot. My sister and her husband (she's a child psychologist and he's a teacher) have almost no time for themselves since their 5 kids are involved in several activities each. If a soccer coach said practice was from 10 PM to midnight the parents would gripe but find a way to make it work. If a coach told my dad that practice was 10 PM to midnight he'd take me out of the activity.
Today, we place too much emphasis on kids, structured play, sports, and worry about what college the kids will get into when they are in pre-school. In school, natural male behaviors are being stifled. I'm sure you know all about the controversies regarding males adapting to school policies, the use of drugs to control what might be normal behavior, etc., as an expert in that field. Mothers tend to focus on the children, the home and their own careers and forget the needs of their husbands. Not all, of course. But, it's far more prevalent today. I think we hit balance at some point between the 60's and 21st century and the scale is tipping with men, especially white men, becoming the losers.
In college, I asked my religious studies professor why I dislike church even though I'm a Christian. She loaned me a book, "Wildmen, Warriors, and Kings: Masculine Spirituality and the Bible." It was an interesting read focusing on what's been happening in society and the way we worship that attracts the feminine and repels or subjugates the masculine and the decline of men as the spiritual leaders in the homes.
I'm all for 50-50 relationships. But, I think that we are destroying men. I think men naturally excel and feel comfortable with leadership and responsibility. In the poor communities have so many unwed mothers with men not taking responsibility to be fathers because they aren't being taught to be strong men any more. In the 'burbs, we have "the wife" because it's somehow wrong for men to be strong-willed.
The feminist win in the battle of the sexes has become a phyrric victory.
From what I've been reading online, it seems that the twenty-something women want their men to "Man Up" again.
Scuba has become a middle-aged activity with little adventure (Look, but don't touch. Take only pictures, leave only bubbles) while the SPORT of freediving appeals more to the young than ever before. Hot bodies + deep depths or dead fish = danger = sexy.
