"Intergender" friendships, a mith or an art

When it comes to relationships, I like to believe that there is more than one type that can be cultivated between a man and a woman; yet, what I want to think is possible and what actually is, sometimes does not run hand in hand for me...

Is this the only way?!

I'm all for platonic bonds between the two opposite genders ~ hey, I even practice the sport myself! ~ but I do wonder (many a time) if it's just something I wish were real or if it truly is. You see, the thing that bothers me the most is the way people react when things start spinning out of control. Since you ain't bosom buddies with another female whom you can simply call "biatch" and cuss at for having done you wrong (oh, normal girls don't do that? strange...) when you have an issue with a male friend, the gender aspect is the first one that arises: "It's all because he's male!", "I should've known there is no such thing as true friendship between a man and a woman..." bla bla bla...

I might be wrong, but how many of you actually point out logical things such as "Oh, his point of view is not valid simply because he is superficial." and not because he is a man or "He turned out to be less understanding than I thought." and not "He turned out to be male!" ?!

Oh, alright...this is the "men and THEIR bullshit" section, I remember...be patient, I'm getting there!

Anyways, who or what is to blame when a friendship between people of opposite sexes fails? Some say it never existed to begin with, some blame sexual attraction, some state it's all about the rules and yet, some simply don't give a flying f*ck. I say: It's WHO the male is!

Sure, it helps if he's not an Adonis-Ryan Reynolds-I-wish-you-had-me-by-the-wall kind of stud, BUT that does not mean that you can't be just good buds with a handsome male if you're an assured, self-sufficient woman who does not lack the attention of every ding-dong on two well-muscled legs! Par exemple, I love my man loads and I've been in situations where I've met good looking men and I did not feel like throwing myself at them just because they had some brains to match those looks and THAT seems pretty normal to me. On that note, I trust that males can reciprocate that feeling, if with a bit more difficulty, because...DAMN, the poor fellows sure are susceptible to a butilicious backside...*sigh*

Try keeping up with me now...:) Second of all, having different perspectives in life can also happen between females, so this is definitely NOT a reason! I know it's hard to make a man see from a woman's point of view, seeing how their "views" are often quite, well, misogynistic (Hey, even Thomas Jefferson aka the father of the Declaration of Independence did not offer his negro female lover freedom UNTIL AFTER his death, so don't you dare say I'm not a fair judge of men's character!!!) but it is not uncommon.

The last and most important criteria, in my opinion, is being honest and communicating with your bro. No! Don't say it! We all know that men having to admit to a woman that she is right about something is like pulling a bone from a starving dog, but like pets, men can also be trained! :D It might not be as easy as throwing snacks to Scooby Doo and teaching him to roll over, but if you can avoid a condescending tone when making your point, the fellow might just think he was the brilliant one who came up with the idea! :D (Ah, hell, call it manipulation if you want, but really, how are we supposed to control their testosterone levels otherwise?!)

All in all, it depends on who you're dealing with...is what I'm trying to say! Hence...get yourself a gay Danny-DeVito-looking pall that graduated Oxford and is mostly into nuclear physics and spare yourself the trouble! :D

Up yours,
sweetheart J