Gentlemen: listen to the smart brain, not the dumb brain

I can only speak about a man brain, but it seems the testosterone-infused members of the human race have two sides to their brain – good and evil, or smart and dumb – however you want to look at it.
We should always listen to that part of your brain that is filled with common sense and reason. We should, but often men do not.
Listening to the enticing lure of the dark side is more common among younger members of the male species.
For some reason, stupid ideas just don't sound stupid when you are a young buck full of energy and lacking in wisdom. In fact, a lot of the time they sound pretty cool.
“What could possibly go wrong? We tie the fireworks to that little tree over there, light the fuse and enjoy the show,” said an equally young and dumb buddy of mine many years ago.
“What if something catches fire?” was my reply as I looked at the tinder-dry mountainside we were perched on.
“Don't worry about it. It's a rocket and it will shoot eight bright balls of fire high into the sky. No problem,” was the reply.
“D'uh, OK, let's do it,” was my reply.
We lit the fuse and the rocket exploded where it sat, sending eight bright balls of fire in eight different directions.
I would have said 'I told you so,' but we were too busy stomping out eight little fires.
Stupid idea? Absolutely. We did get all the little fires out and vowed to never again play with fireworks (until the the next time we had some that is.
So yes, I have done my share of nutty (a.k.a. stupid) things and I have the scars to prove it, but with middle age strangling the bravado side of my brain, I now know better.
But even as you get older, the dumb part of you brain still chimes in with all sorts of 'brilliant' ideas.
The secret is learning to ignore the dummy inside and go with the mature, intelligent man you really are.
“Honey, do these jeans make my butt look big?”
Loaded question, I know, but a wise man will easily come up with the 'right' answer no matter what the answer really should be.
“Of course not Dear, you look fantastic,” said the smart man who ignored the evil voice in his brain and went on to live a life of happiness and marital bliss.
“No, the jeans don't make your butt look big, your butt makes your butt look big. It looks like two blue Smart cars trying to pass each other,” said the dumb man who now has to learn to sleep pretty much anywhere he can including on the couch, in the garage or even under the stairs.
The key is to listen to the smart man brain and not the dumb man brain.
The older you get, the better you should become at differentiating between the two.
After all, it is a matter of survival (and marital bliss.)

Copywrite 2014 Darren Handschuh