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steve66oh wrote:Which reminds me - I recently figured out that it's impossible for one man to be a "Real Man" on both sides of the Atlantic - in Europe, a "Real Man" loves "football" - played with a round ball that people are forbidden to touch with their hands, but in the USA, a "Real Man" loves "football" - played with an oblong ball that is carried in the hand and forbidden to touch the ground... and he LOATHES the sport that Europe calls "football". So, there are actually two, mutually exclusive definitions of "Real Man".... go figure!

I guess that means I will have to move to be a "real man" then... I pay little attention to either set of the primadonnas who are (over) paid for chasing a bag of wind around a field.

Have fun,


Ian (Who is not worried about being masculine, just happy to be me).

Ian,
A "real" man wears socks with his sandals to cover the vibrantly coloured toes.
Add to that a knotted handkerchief on his head to prevent a matching pate.
In a skirt, pipe alight or, at least, unfiltered cigarettes.
(Mcgonigall, has a lot to answer for)
Steve.

If I wear nail polish I will wear clear nail polish on my fingernails and only certain colors on my toenails.

I wear nail polish on my toes only when it is the season to wear sandals, and then I wear dark grey, black, gunmetal blue, or cinnamon red. So in the dead of winter I don't wear nail polish on my toes.

I used to wear nail polish on my fingernails but that was too high maintenance since I cannot stand chipped nail polish.

John

Milfmog wrote:

steve66oh wrote:Which reminds me - I recently figured out that it's impossible for one man to be a "Real Man" on both sides of the Atlantic - in Europe, a "Real Man" loves "football" - played with a round ball that people are forbidden to touch with their hands, but in the USA, a "Real Man" loves "football" - played with an oblong ball that is carried in the hand and forbidden to touch the ground... and he LOATHES the sport that Europe calls "football". So, there are actually two, mutually exclusive definitions of "Real Man".... go figure!

I guess that means I will have to move to be a "real man" then... I pay little attention to either set of the primadonnas who are (over) paid for chasing a bag of wind around a field.

Have fun,

Ian (Who is not worried about being masculine, just happy to be me).

I'm not worried about being masculine either. The way I groom and dress are definitely outside the narrow mould men are expected to conform - and that includes the use of makeup and the wearing of dresses and skirts, although I don't try to pass as a woman. The pitch of my speaking and singing voice is definitely masculine as I am a basso profundo.

Instead of calling pompous arrogant "male" characters prima donnas I think the term "primo uomo" (singular) or "primo uomi" (plural) could be used. They mean "first man" or "first men" and the terms applied to castrati.

In my opinion a real man - that is a male who is secure with himself - does not concern himself with looking "manly" in the plain and ugly look that has been imposed on males in Western society. This plainness is really against nature where most male creatures look more dazzling than the females such as cardinals, mallards, and even lions. This plain, ugly, monotonous look (e.g., the coat and tie look for formal wear) came about because of the French Revolution where men were guillotined for having an aristocratic look.

John

I read Ya Bob, Its like acceptence, as for the topic, I had to read all the posts, as my wife and I were cruising the local mall, there was a small consession selling these enamel nail appliqes, alot of really artistic designs, and I was thinking I should develope a line called "Nails for Males" with Football team logos, Baseball team Logos, Jungle Cammo, Desert Cammo, Even Mini pictures of Good
looking girls, It would be absolutely as Socially unacceptable as wearing a skirt in public, but it would be fun! My wife would be as ashamed as when I shaved my legs!

Wear whatever you want to...if you want to wear the entire FEM look, that's fine for you, I guess. Not me though, I like a masculine looking skirted garment for comfort as a man, not to look like a pretend woman. I tend to the Tupenu, Sulu, Kain or my Clan "hunting Fraser" Kilt.

Nail polish is, in my view, a luxury to be indulged in by people who do not have to (or find it beneath them to) work with their hands.My nails are well clipped back, mainly because they chip and split if allowed to get too long.

Sarongman wrote:Nail polish is, in my view, a luxury to be indulged in by people who do not have to (or find it beneath them to) work with their hands.My nails are well clipped back, mainly because they chip and split if allowed to get too long.

Nail length, and nail color, are two separate issues. In some Eastern cultures, men grow their pinky nails extremely long - sometimes 3" or more - to demonstrate that they are "above" common labor. For myself, I like my fingernails best at about 3/16" to 1/4" (about 6 mm) past the fingertip. I work in heavy construction, so I wear leather work gloves most of the time, and the gloves definitely help prevent chips, splits and breakage. The gloves protect the color too. One of my duties is occasional vehicle maintenance, and the only work I've found that threatens my color, is brake line replacement - hard to do with gloves on, and the brake fluid eats right through the polish. Other tasks - welding, cutting, hammering, digging, machine operation - rarely affect my nails. I frequently wear a color for two weeks straight, and it's usually outgrowth - not tip wear - that inspires me to change colors.

I'm not saying that your opinion is "wrong", I'm only saying that my experience has been different.

I grow my nails long for playing guitar and other stringed instruments. I prefer to use my fingers to using a plectrum. I grow my nails on my right hand and keep them short on my left. I also enjoy painting my nails sometimes, but with the playing, it rarely stays on for long! I have found that using nail polish does make my nails themselves less prone to breakage, though. Most often I use a see-through coat which keeps my nails strong but doesn't show any chips (and doesn't need to be changed to match my outfit )

Different_Trains wrote:I grow my nails long for playing guitar and other stringed instruments. I prefer to use my fingers to using a plectrum. I grow my nails on my right hand and keep them short on my left. I also enjoy painting my nails sometimes, but with the playing, it rarely stays on for long! I have found that using nail polish does make my nails themselves less prone to breakage, though. Most often I use a see-through coat which keeps my nails strong but doesn't show any chips (and doesn't need to be changed to match my outfit )

I was wearing clear polish while playing guitar and as I bent the string under the one above it, I watched a chip of polish break off and go flying.

rick401r wrote:as I bent the string under the one above it, I watched a chip of polish break off and go flying.

You bent the string that far without breaking the string? I think I misunderstood, because that sounds like a hell of a way to bend one string!

What might also make a difference is that I play nylon string guitars and other instruments. Although I do play some instruments with steel strings I generally prefer the sound and feel of nylon.

Different_Trains wrote:I grow my nails long for playing guitar and other stringed instruments. I prefer to use my fingers to using a plectrum. I grow my nails on my right hand and keep them short on my left. I also enjoy painting my nails sometimes, but with the playing, it rarely stays on for long! I have found that using nail polish does make my nails themselves less prone to breakage, though. Most often I use a see-through coat which keeps my nails strong but doesn't show any chips (and doesn't need to be changed to match my outfit )

There is an interview with Clive Carroll on YouTube where he describes what he does to help him play (acoustic steel strung, just about any style imaginable)

Found it! This little clip, about 2 1/2 minutes in and through to the end Clive describes how to make fingernails last when torturing them with a guitar.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&featu ... OYgnTKXCfo

Great clip, B&B. The guy's gifted, of course, but he's using the glued-on overlays for strictly practical/professional use. Nothing about looking nice or quirky or whatever.
I have two male offsprings who play guitar at gigs for money and maybe I ought to steer them in the direction of this guy's advice,

T.

Different_Trains wrote:I grow my nails long for playing guitar and other stringed instruments. I prefer to use my fingers to using a plectrum. I grow my nails on my right hand and keep them short on my left. I also enjoy painting my nails sometimes, but with the playing, it rarely stays on for long! I have found that using nail polish does make my nails themselves less prone to breakage, though. Most often I use a see-through coat which keeps my nails strong but doesn't show any chips (and doesn't need to be changed to match my outfit )

This

I have had my GF give me a pedicure ( Nice Orange - Bronze color ) and I could feel the extra stiffness it gave my nails. That might be enough to give me the courage to have her do my finger nails too. It drives me nuts when i get those little snags on the nails. keep snagging them on everything. grrrr.

For what it's worth, I did once play with a flamenco guitarist who bought false nails to play with!
I tried them once but they didn't feel right. I'm sure once you get used to them they feel fine though, much like those finger-picks steel stringers and banjo players use.