Leave The Ladies Home

Day 67 – This morning I woke up on Folly Beach. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t actually wake up on the beach. I woke up on a beach house couch.

Last night, we held Pub Politics Episode 76 at Wild Dunes on the Isle of Palms. For those of you not from South Carolina, it’s an upscale private beach community outside of Charleston.

After Pub Politics, a part of my crew headed south toward Folly to grill some deer Matt killed. We then hit the bars.

I have to tell you, Folly in October is pretty amazing. It’s like a ghost town. The beauty of the beach still remains while a peaceful calm engulfs the island. We were one of only a few people out last night, which gave us some time for guy talk and what those at my church would call “fellowship.”

ArtofManliness.com writes: “Friendships are an important part of a man’s life. Friends are those men you can count on when the chips are down. They’ll back you up even when the whole world is against you. Friends are those men who will buy you a beer when you lose a job or your lady dumps you. While the man friendship looks like a simple relationship, its history is actually quite interesting and complex. The virtues of duty and loyalty have remained the same guiding principles in man friendships throughout time.”

Through my marriage, I’ve learned that guys and girls look at friendship completely different. Girls need other girls to go out with and to gossip with, but to me it looks like a relationship to help unwind. On the other hand, guys bond with one another in a daily relationship. ArtofManliness.com boils those factors down to guys being truly loyal, non-judgmental and straightforward.

To guys, friendship means something deep and important. Friendship is something we need.

If I go three or four days without grabbing a beer with my crew of guys, I start getting antsy. I need those guys to vent to or to get advice from. Sometimes I don’t even need to talk about anything important at all. I can just sit and drink a beer while watching a game.

This isn’t a new trend. We’ve seen it throughout history, in the Bible, in war stories and in the formation of our nation.

Guys, go be guys. As the Avett Brothers sing, “keep the baby makers home” and go hang out with your buddies.

- Wesley Donehue

PS – Ok ladies, chill out. I was just kidding with the baby makers quote.