Men Becoming Boys

img @ flickr

During tough economic times, it’s nice to have the option to move back home with your parents and save money so that in a year or two, you can have a bundle of money and start your path towards adulthood. However, it seems as though more and more men these days are making a lifestyle choice to remain immature, living off their parents well into their 30s.

A recent Newsweek article by George Will showed some disturbing statistics, that 13% of men between the ages of 25 and 34 are living with their parents (while only 8% of women do). That might not seem like a lot, but in the dating game, that is significant!

When there is a disconnect between the maturity levels of adult-aged men and women, it makes relationships, dating, and even just hooking up less appealing to both sexes: men thinking women are too serious, women see men as unattractive puberty-stricken little boys.

In his article, George Will discusses the popularity of places like Dave & Busters, a “perpetual refuge from adulthood” where men go to drink beer and play video games and generally escape the monotony of, well, growing up.

Let this be a warning to  men who insist on acting like boys: it’s time to be an adult. You can’t go out looking to pull women when you’re still spending your nights playing Call Of Duty until 5 in the morning. While we all appreciate the single life, enjoying adulthood without the responsibility of marriage and parenthood, there is nothing wrong with taking down your Pamela Anderson posters and considering a career outside of a bar.

Growing up means having a little ambition, a little work ethic, and maybe just a tinge of self-reliance. There is nothing more sexy in the world.