Cute vs. Creepy

 I'm quite baffled by the concept of "game", as I've mentioned in previous entries. I say this because I can't seem to comprehensively postulate a probable theory as to why it works in some cases and not in others. But, I guess everybody's got their moments. 

 Case in point, my big brother. Now, when in his presence, I'm constantly treated to a spectacle of erratic behavior and slap-in-the-face comments. While he is a brilliant, direct individual that I admire, without getting into specifics, his "game" resembles mating rituals of exotic apes in far off lands that we only become aware of by watching some random show on National Geographic. And yet, he's been laid. I can't fully explain why that surprises me, but like many other things, I guess its like a joke, you just had to be there to get it.

 But, it does raise an interesting point. When in the presence of a lady or in the pursuit of getting one's attention, my brother, like a lot of us, would make certain comments that we normally wouldn't make. When in the presence of women, we often come across as something that we're not. Granted, in the initial stages of co-ed introduction, that's the name of the game. To convince them you're something that you may or may not be. 

 But, the reality is, guys that do step up to women are, 9 times out of 10, actually guys that these same women would find pleasant enough to be around and even friendly. But, once romantic intention is thrown into the equation, once actual direct interest is established, then it all, for lack of a better term, turns to shit. 

 The most common descriptive of this is the all-to-common reaction that women find these men too direct, brutish and even creepy. Perhaps its the assertive nature in their approach. Perhaps its the cheeky/arrogant/condescending tone of voice, that's meant to come off as confident. Perhaps its the overwhelming body language that is aimed at expressing physical desire, like dolphin mating dances or what have you (no folks, I don't watch Animal Planet, so forgive my inaccuracies). 

 In any case, it happens. What sucks about this is, it happens more often than we realize. We come off as creepy by attempting to be crass and crude, bold and suave, so on and so forth, instead of just being you. Perhaps its main stream media. Perhaps its all the self-help nonsense that's available. Perhaps its the high standards imposed upon us by the dating world. Perhaps its insecurity and self-consciousness. Whatever it is, we guys are following in a huge trend where, by forsaking common sense and a degree of decency, we end up being construed as disturbing, not dashing, weird, not worldly, creepy, not cute. 

 The theory behind a lot of "pick-ups" is that by disarming the woman's defenses, you leave her vulnerable to whatever approach you have in your arsenal. Methods of disarming can range from sly, backhanded comments to outright insults, limited or lackluster interest, even a certain degree of abuse (of a non-physical variety, so don't go getting any ideas, whoever is reading this). This would quickly be followed up by a comment that would be either complementary or encouraging, aimed at expressing some interest and eliminating any sense of predictability in this exchange. After some continued back-and-forth banter, the man would either take the lead or walk away, the intention of this being to leave them wanting more.

 So yeah, we can break down the science of this. We can view some of the successful stories. We can even derive a formula to ensure future success. And, while we're at at, we can also, by using these methods, learn how to break the spirit of wild horses, memorize the lines to Hamlet or hang glide through the grand canyon with bamboo and sewn-together prom dresses.

 I guess my point is, WHAT THE HELL IS THE POINT!?!? Sure, in terms of success,  this could lead to, ultimately, some personal experiences that you could tweet about or further detail in a letter to penthouse. But, is that all? 

 I guess I'm just "trippin" at the moment because of my inability to understand just why exactly we need to go through this. Perhaps, its Darwinism. Perhaps its a socially-crude form of "selective breeding", without the probability of an offspring, though it does happen. But, in the end, its just demeaning.

 Gentlemen, we are men. We stand tall and proud. So, would you rather be cute by being yourselves, or risk being "creepy" by being something that you may not be? I guess my message behind this is, don't just respect women. Respect yourselves, in all your glory and folly. Besides, when it comes to cute and creepy, what are the odds of meeting someone that can't tell the difference?