"Self-Made Man"

I'm reading a book called "Self-Made Man" by Norah Vincent. The book is about her experience of living as a man in order to learn more about men and their world. This had nothing to do with her changing gender. She lived the role for 18 months and then wrote a book about what she learned (and went back to living as a woman).

It's funny...I spent my whole life "feeling male" and always felt like I didn't belong in the female role. That feeling changed when I changed almost 4 years ago. The interesting thing is that even though I felt male, I never learned to think or feel "male". It wasn't until I changed and got to know men better that I realized how much of a girl I really was! I wonder how part of me knew it and the rest of me didn't.

I have done a lot of reading about men and how they differ from women. I've also had a couple of good men that have helped me. I have discovered that I really like the differences between the sexes. I have a lot of respect for men and I'm learning better how to accept the caring things they do even when words of caring aren't spoken. I'm also learning about some of the things that are important to men: respect, recognition of their accomplishments, being admired by those they care about and by their peers, gratitude for what they provide, and sex. I'm sure this list isn't complete but these are the things I've learned about so far. What I don't understand is why those things are seen as being too difficult for some women to give. Surely those things are important to women as well.

Sometimes, the more I learn about men, the less I like about women. But, of course, there's always two sides to any story...right?