Today's man Who is this person? By Melissa Schulz Most of us love our men the way they are (even with the wrinkled shirt, three-day beard, and the scuffed shoes), but we dream of those evenings that he may surprise us dressed up in a nice suit, with perfectly coiffed hair and clean fingernails. In the wake of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, men are becoming more and more conscientious of their looks. And secretly, some of us may hope to see those fashion savvy guys from Bravo show up on our front door to whisk our man off for a day of makeover magic. But the popular new label "metro male" does not only apply to outside appearances. This man is secure and confident, capable and cool, typically well educated and stylish. Heterosexual with a twist, not gay by any means, but he probably has a few gay friends, and might be mistaken for gay by red necks and jock types. So what has brought about this phenomenon? I have a metro male friend, Richard (I'll call him that for the sake of this article), who was raised by his mother; a card carrying feminist. Is that Why he is like he is today? As the years have past more and more children are being raised by a single parent, typically their mother and with a lack of male role models. Does this contribute to it? Men are now starting to primp more as women have done for years, is that it? Have men just now learned that grooming does not make them less manly? One other thought to ponder is the fact that most Women enjoy ‘the company’ of homosexual males. Being one of those women I have to say they are a lot of fun and I tend to feel more comfortable around them then I do other men. So are men picking up on this and using it to pick up more chicks? Whatever the reason, it seems the metro male is here to stay', and businesses arc starting to take notice. There is now a new skin care line called Metro which offers a full array of products including anti-aging eye cream, daily essential moisturizer, and even metro vitamins. Go to wwwww.mymetromale.com for more information. And we even discovered Metro for Men right in our own backyard. It's a salon exclusively for men located in Irvine. A place where men can be unabashedly pampered. Haircuts are done by a licensed barber (a rare find) or cosmetologist, and they also offer manicures, straight edge shaves and executive massages. Metro has a manicurist, skin care specialist and masseuse on staff. Each haircut appointment comes with a complimentary consultation, complimentary shoe shine and scalp massage, using the latest men's techniques for the 21st century cut, a relaxing shampoo, finished with a hot towel to sooth the skin and clean up -all while watching TV. Krista Martin, owner of Metro, started this business with the idea of focusing exclusively on men. She has created a private retreat that feels like a men's country club. There is a definite masculine ambiance; one can sit in a plush leather chair, open a beer, or get a gourmet cup of coffee and smoke a good cigar all while reading golf digest or watching ESPN on one of the televisions. Go to www.metroformenn.com or call 949.450-0150 to check it out.
At metro, we speak male, think male, know male!