Everytime I read Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo which is everyday, I feel like I am sitting at the feet of a wise old sage. Well, would you know, he is only 35/6? He revealed that somewhat in a post a couple of weeks ago, when he was talking about Rep. Harold Ford.

Reading this guy makes me feel inadequate and total waste. He is only a couple of years older than I am, yet he is wise beyond his years, dispensing erudite disputations on a variety of issues as an elder statesman would. How does one become so smart?

Speaking of age, I would like to read something, maybe a study, on how men perceive themselves a they grow from adolescence to adulthood. For me there was something definitely "adulty" about being 18 or 21, but I could never think of myself as a "man." I was always shocked or suprised when someone referred to me as "man." I was not a "boy," words like "guy," "dude," or even "young man," worked. It was not until I was 25 that i felt that i could self-reference as a "man." Up till them a "man" was someone who is 20 years older than I am. But even at 25, 27 and even 29, I bristled at being called "man." That term is just to oldish for someone who considers himself young.

Now, at 35, the interesting thing is that there are people who I refer to as "sir" or "ma'am," because they are people of authority or look like they are . . . "sirs" or "ma'ams," only to find out that they are slightly younger than I am or my age. Then it occurs to me that people see me that way, which is why I get quite a few "sirs." (However, when I shave off my beard, i go back to being "dude and 14years olds come up to me to shake my hand as I contemplate smacking them on the head and letting them know that I could be their dad.")

I think self identification has to do with responsibility and accomplishment. For instance, I am older than or the same age as Brett Farve. I pause for effect. Now, that freaks me out. The reason that Brett Farve seems so old is that he has accomplished so much and in society's eyes, I haven't.

On the responsibility front, I think that men who marry earlier, have kids earlier, or are in the military where they eventually become responsible for others, or assume leadership or managerial roles earlier in life, find it easier to self identify as "man." I was the type that regularly worked two or three jobs, but was never in any managerial roles. It was not until my late 20s that I began to get those roles.

It's the same thing when an unmarried person hangs out with friends who have a family, they just seem more "adult," even if they are younger. Something about being responsible for someone else's life.

I think in the end, our society and perhaps human nature sees manhood in terms of one's accomplishments and/or the responsibilities one shoulders. It is all so fascinating.