what is this thing that men do, they put their hand down their pants when lounging around?

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i rly thought this was Al Bundy lore, but i hear it is actually done... a lot?

i don't understand. do you do this?

what is the appeal? how far down do you go? is it like, over the boxers?

Surmounter, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:05 (fifteen years ago) link

depends on setting for most ppl. my stepfather'll do it over boxers around the house, but one of my best friends will go all the way just about ANYWHERE

abe being busy (k3vin k.), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:07 (fifteen years ago) link

what

Surmounter, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:08 (fifteen years ago) link

some guys just like warm hands that smell like cocksweat

Wes HI DEREson (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:08 (fifteen years ago) link

i yell at dudes when they do this. it makes one look completely ridiculous.

He grew in Pussyville. Population: him. (call all destroyer), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:08 (fifteen years ago) link

dudes are just checking to see that their balls are still there

"yep, still there"

Neotropical pygmy squirrel, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:09 (fifteen years ago) link

it's the call of the taint. it can seduce the weak-minded.

2 ears + 1 ❤ (Pillbox), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:10 (fifteen years ago) link

Most people just sort of tuck a hand under the waistband, right? (I think there is something weirdly relaxing/relieving about this, but I have no idea what -- keeping the hand warm might actually be part of it.)

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:10 (fifteen years ago) link

loooooool i am doing this right now, altho never outside my abode

Stop relegating Hull you miserable gits! (country matters), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:11 (fifteen years ago) link

it's the call of the taint. it can seduce the weak-minded.

this is from a TKK song, isn't it

the call of the taint (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:12 (fifteen years ago) link

xp nabsico you're totally right but there's no way this should be acceptable when you're in the company of others.

He grew in Pussyville. Population: him. (call all destroyer), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:12 (fifteen years ago) link

this is me pretty much 24/7 unless girls are around

Hoos Passansteeno (J0rdan S.), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:12 (fifteen years ago) link

I just take my pants off.

plenty chong (libcrypt), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:13 (fifteen years ago) link

it's a rap thing

FREE DOM AND ETHAN (special guest stars mark bronson), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:14 (fifteen years ago) link

generally hands down the pants is not a public thing unless there is some sort of adjustment that needs to be made--and then it's only a furtive in/out when no one is looking.

ian, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:14 (fifteen years ago) link

...

How can there be male ladybugs? (Laurel), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:15 (fifteen years ago) link

WELCOME TO THE MAGICAL WORLD OF MEN, LAUREL

the call of the taint (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:16 (fifteen years ago) link

just re-arranging the furniture downstairs

Neotropical pygmy squirrel, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:17 (fifteen years ago) link

Well sure, not in company, apart from like significant others and extremely close-knit lazing-around situations. Like, I dunno, siblings.

Are there seriously many people who get the hand actually on the goods when not alone?

(Another reason this might be associated with middle-aged men in particular: maybe part of the point of the tucking-under-waistband move is to give that bit of your emerging middle-aged gut a rest from being pressed on by your waistband.)

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:17 (fifteen years ago) link

That was for Ian, actually, and it was shorthand for "Sounds like my prom night." But tell me more about these "men". Do you know any?

How can there be male ladybugs? (Laurel), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:18 (fifteen years ago) link

you were secretly rubbing one out at prom??

ian, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:20 (fifteen years ago) link

this is from a TKK song, isn't it - I think it stems from an old German cautionary childrens' tale (seriously tho, it was my very own dumb bullshit)

2 ears + 1 ❤ (Pillbox), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:23 (fifteen years ago) link

ha, i remember being a kid watching 'married with children' and thinking this was so gross, but now i totally do it when alone. i'm going with the hand warming hypothesis.

i'm grand like auto theft 3 (Jordan), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:25 (fifteen years ago) link

i have told people off for doing this in public

lex pretend, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:25 (fifteen years ago) link

people can do what they want alone as long as they wash their hands

lex pretend, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:26 (fifteen years ago) link

I don't really do this in public or private but I do occasionally (in private) lift up my t-shirt and place a hand on the belly area...prob for similar reasons. Whatever reasons these are...

Local Garda, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:27 (fifteen years ago) link

xpost: anything? really?

2 ears + 1 ❤ (Pillbox), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:27 (fifteen years ago) link

It holds one's hand(s) and arm(s) snugly against the body, very comfortable when napping. Sometimes I'll stick my hands under the waistband of my pants, but more often I'll just sleep with my hands in my pockets.

WmC, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:28 (fifteen years ago) link

You know, there may also be something about the palm against the abdomen that is soothing or relaxing to people.

Now I'm wondering how closely this is related to the masculine posture of hooking your thumb under your waistband right around the line between abdomen and thigh -- it's sort of the same thing, only with the fingers and the thumb trading sides of the pants.

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:29 (fifteen years ago) link

yeah anything. also, as long as they don't feel the need to inform me of it

xps

lex pretend, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:29 (fifteen years ago) link

xpost to LG re: the belly-rubbing. Yeah, that's the one I find myself doing, putting a hand below the shirt sort of on the side of the stomach

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:30 (fifteen years ago) link

which makes you look like a junkie, actually

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:31 (fifteen years ago) link

It's probably an echo from our evolutionary past!

jel --, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:31 (fifteen years ago) link

please let this not become another clusterfuck of manners btw, live and let fondle

Stop relegating Hull you miserable gits! (country matters), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:32 (fifteen years ago) link

I blame acid reflux for this...I think my version looks less like a junkie and more like pregnant woman tho. Who knew the two were so close, gesturally speaking...

Local Garda, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:33 (fifteen years ago) link

this is like having a pocket, except it's the inside of your pants so it's not as confining as a small pants pocket.

Hoos Passansteeno (J0rdan S.), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:34 (fifteen years ago) link

people do this to adjust their cock rings

follow the fudge through this chocolatey challenge (Curt1s Stephens), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:35 (fifteen years ago) link

i just like the way my balls feel, what

laying | (goole), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:35 (fifteen years ago) link

xxp also the pocket has a phallic-shaped hand warmer which is a plus

xp otm

abe being busy (k3vin k.), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:36 (fifteen years ago) link

Some people are part seahorse

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:37 (fifteen years ago) link

^ lady gaga thread is on ILM

follow the fudge through this chocolatey challenge (Curt1s Stephens), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:39 (fifteen years ago) link

Maybe it's an evolutionary instinct? Maybe hundreds of thousands of years ago there was a distinct advantage to be had in keeping a hand near the goods at all times.

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:40 (fifteen years ago) link

this is like having a pocket, except it's the inside of your pants so it's not as confining as a small pants pocket.

loool, it's like a pocket, except you can't put anything in it except your hands because it falls through the pant legs.

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:41 (fifteen years ago) link

we need to do a randomised controlled trial.

jel --, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:41 (fifteen years ago) link

only drawback of lounging w/ hands in pants is typing with one hand

Hoos Passansteeno (J0rdan S.), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:43 (fifteen years ago) link

Expanding on the evolution idea, I can only guess that perhaps Cro-Magnon men relied on the twirling, waving and thwapping of their goods for communication.

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:44 (fifteen years ago) link

Confucius say..

2 ears + 1 ❤ (Pillbox), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:45 (fifteen years ago) link

Well gorillas and stuff often sit around with their hands in their laps, it's the way their hands incline.

jel --, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:45 (fifteen years ago) link

But tell me more about these "men". Do you know any?

I know a few but they're all too busy sticking their hands in their pants to talk to anyone.

the call of the taint (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:52 (fifteen years ago) link

that's no excuse, they've only got their hands on cocks, not their mouths

lex pretend, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:53 (fifteen years ago) link

For reference

http://i41.tinypic.com/2yvnuv7.jpg

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:54 (fifteen years ago) link

Only Al Bundy can pull that off with such chutzpah

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:54 (fifteen years ago) link

See Alpha Male Ape pose!

jel --, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:55 (fifteen years ago) link

ps. I got a D in science.

jel --, Monday, 23 March 2009 18:55 (fifteen years ago) link

Now I'm wondering how closely this is related to the masculine posture of hooking your thumb under your waistband right around the line between abdomen and thigh

I don't know how masculine this is. I do this. I think it's just a pants-wearing posture.

unexpected item in bagging area (sarahel), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:58 (fifteen years ago) link

hook my thumb under the waistband, not lounge around with my hand down my pants, that is.

unexpected item in bagging area (sarahel), Monday, 23 March 2009 18:59 (fifteen years ago) link

OK, I've done 2 minutes of hard thinking on this, and I think we should rule out the "keep the hand warm" hypothesis. See exhibit A (Al Bundy). Only ONE hand is in the pants. This is typical man behavior - it is very rare, even unsettling, to see someone with both hands down their pants at the same time. Furthermore, field observations indicate that most men who stick their hands down their pants consistently choose the same hand. Unless only one hand is cold at any given time, the hypothesis is not supported.

Exhibit A: Al Bundy

http://i41.tinypic.com/2yvnuv7.jpg

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:00 (fifteen years ago) link

Yeah, I guess there's a unisex normal-person version and then a John Wayneish masculine gunbelt version, depending on what you do with your hips

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 19:01 (fifteen years ago) link

If anyone will fund my research for a few years, I guarantee I will find the answer.

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:02 (fifteen years ago) link

OK, I've done 2 minutes of hard thinking on this

2 ears + 1 ❤ (Pillbox), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:02 (fifteen years ago) link

it's a matter of practicality. if you warmed both hands at the same time you couldn't drink a beer or operate a remote control, so you have to make compromises and alternate.

i'm grand like auto theft 3 (Jordan), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:02 (fifteen years ago) link

the beer is crucial, actually, because the hand holding the beer will get colder as the hand in your pants warms up, bringing you to a natural switching ppoint

the call of the taint (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:03 (fifteen years ago) link

But that's the thing. No one ever alternates.

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:03 (fifteen years ago) link

i disagree but this is the point where we need lab research

i'm grand like auto theft 3 (Jordan), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:04 (fifteen years ago) link

I do this all the time but I'm not sure that I didn't pick it up from emulating Al Bundy. I kinda hope that's the only thing I picked up from that show.

Yeah, I don't alternate.

Euler, Monday, 23 March 2009 19:05 (fifteen years ago) link

i never do this, never even think about the possibility of doing it, so i'm waiting for the findings of this thread with "bated" breath.

I think no pants is sexy. (Matt P), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:07 (fifteen years ago) link

I wonder if truly ambidextrous men alternate. Exhibit A is using his right hand, which I imagine is his dominant hand. Do left-handed men use their left hands?

unexpected item in bagging area (sarahel), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:07 (fifteen years ago) link

Uh I just found some Married With Children fan-fiction:

http://www.bundyology.com/fs1.html
http://www.bundyology.com/fs2.html

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:09 (fifteen years ago) link

really though, why dudes? not a single good reason so far. it's weird and gross.

I think no pants is sexy. (Matt P), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:10 (fifteen years ago) link

I was going to mention the ambidextrous thing too. I hear the point about drinking beer leading to a cold hand and then a switching of the hand that goes down the pants, but when I think about it, I always drink with my right hand. Drinking with my left hand just doesn't happen.

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:10 (fifteen years ago) link

Come to think of it, I routinely keep one hand (alternating subconsciously) in some socially acceptable warmer place, like resting on my knee or thigh (or kind of under my knee toward the edge of a chair cushion, which is less awkward than it sounds when described).

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 19:11 (fifteen years ago) link

Do left-handed men use their left hands?

speaking as a left-handed man, i think this might very well be true.

i'm grand like auto theft 3 (Jordan), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:12 (fifteen years ago) link

If you are looking for a reason to put your hands down your pants when lounging around, you are doing it wrong.

xp: I often stick a hand underneath one of my legs to keep it warm.

the call of the taint (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:13 (fifteen years ago) link

i put my hands under my legs/ass when i'm sitting all the time. maybe this is a top / bottom divide.

I think no pants is sexy. (Matt P), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:14 (fifteen years ago) link

haha whew, Dan, I was worried I was going to be found weird for doing that

nabisco, Monday, 23 March 2009 19:15 (fifteen years ago) link

oddest thing I probably do is, when stretching, putting a hand down the collar of my shirt behind my head (I mention it because I subconsciously just did it now)

xp: I was going to recopy yr post and substitute "between the asscheeks" in it for lols but (for once!) figured I might as well not go there

the call of the taint (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:16 (fifteen years ago) link

I think it's weird that someone would put their hand in such a position that I'd think would be painful/cause hand to fall asleep.

unexpected item in bagging area (sarahel), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:18 (fifteen years ago) link

that is under the legs while seated.

unexpected item in bagging area (sarahel), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:18 (fifteen years ago) link

really though, why dudes? not a single good reason so far. it's weird and gross.

― I think no pants is sexy. (Matt P), Monday, March 23, 2009 2:10 PM (6 minutes ago) Bookmark

besides dan otm, i've been doing this since i was a teenager, dunno why it started. just figured it was a dude thing

Hoos Passansteeno (J0rdan S.), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:19 (fifteen years ago) link

yeah i'm realizing that me putting hands under my legs is just as irrational so w/e

I think no pants is sexy. (Matt P), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:22 (fifteen years ago) link

to challenge the middle-aged gut pressure-relief hypothesis: I think the gut pressure-relief is more easily accomplished by unbuttoning or unzipping the pants to the point where the gut can comfortably emerge.

unexpected item in bagging area (sarahel), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:23 (fifteen years ago) link

ew

I think no pants is sexy. (Matt P), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:24 (fifteen years ago) link

clearly it is much more socially acceptable to unzip your pants in public than it is to put a hand in your pants

the call of the taint (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:24 (fifteen years ago) link

The implausible option:
http://i44.tinypic.com/2j0fe6q.jpg

I f'd up the word rear (Z S), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:25 (fifteen years ago) link

Thanks to Z S's photoshop skills, my workload has been cut by 90%!

WmC, Monday, 23 March 2009 19:26 (fifteen years ago) link

xp Hi Dere: when lounging around. That is, sitting at home in front of the television set then eventually falling asleep. My dad does this.

unexpected item in bagging area (sarahel), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:27 (fifteen years ago) link

ew Dad!

the call of the taint (HI DERE), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:28 (fifteen years ago) link

I just think it feels relaxing. I don't have a better reason for it than that, and certainly don't do it when people are around.

Your heartbeat soun like sasquatch feet (polyphonic), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:29 (fifteen years ago) link

the untucked shirt covers anything untoward. I'd be more "ew" if he sat around with his hand down his pants.

unexpected item in bagging area (sarahel), Monday, 23 March 2009 19:30 (fifteen years ago) link


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