Rihanna has, to be frank, been quite the lightning rod over the past few years with her relationship with Chris Brown. And while that’s something that certainly can be dealt with at a different time, what’s been lost in all of the nonsense is the fact that Rihanna is, and has always been, one of the hottest ladies around. As will no doubt be proven in the upcoming film “This Is The End,” where a whole bunch of comedy folks do their thing about the end of the world. And while it’s sure big news that the guys from “Freaks and Geeks” are all back together, what really makes our blood boil (but, in a good way!) is the news that Rihanna is in this. Because, just look.

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You’re always looking at her

You think you’re being seductive by trying to exchange glances with her across the room. She thinks you’re staring at her. If your eyes are boring into her every time she looks at you, she’s bound to think you’re a tad obsessive. While eye contact can be a great tool, it has its limits. You can only make eye contact with her so many times before it gets weird. At some point, you should stop staring at her from afar and just go up to her and talk to her.

You contact her too often

Be sparing with how often you contact her. If her phone is constantly buzzing with you texting her asking what she’s up to, she’s going to feel suffocated. She’ll imagine that if she actually got together with you, you would probably never let her out of your sight, making her even less inclined to give you a chance. If she hasn’t replied to the last few texts, take the hint and don’t keep sending more. Even if she has a soft spot for you, constantly contacting her will very quickly give her the impression that you’re far too clingy.

She’s probably just not interested

If a man she was enamoured with was always gazing at her and calling her all the time, she would be pretty excited. Yet when you do it, she thinks you’re a creep. The difference is that she doesn’t reciprocate your interest. The main reason she thinks you’re a creep is that she’s not interested in you. Your eager behavior serves only to repulse her further. You probably don’t have a chance in the near future, but if there is to be any hope at all, it is in you not acting so keen.

You complain that no girls like you

Perhaps it’s not as personal as you trying to get too close to her, too soon. It’s going to set off huge alarm bells in her head if you’re one to complain about how girls don’t go for nice guys, and you’re such a nice guy and you can’t understand why no girls respond to your advances. Alternatively, if you boast about how many chicks you got with last weekend, she will also think you’re a bit off. Your first mistake is in referring to women as girls/chicks or other words which give the impression that you haven’t realised women are fully grown humans. Your second mistake is talking about your successes and failures with a woman you’re trying to pursue. All you’re doing is giving her forewarning that you lack social skills with women, so she can form an opinion of you as a creep in advance of you actually doing anything creepy.

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For example, here’s what he says if you’re one of those clever hipsters who are wielding about a mustache:

What tools do you absolutely need to maintain a mustache?
You need a boar’s hair brush and a little balm if you want to have it look neat. The current trend is a little bit of a thick moustache that descends just below the top of the lip, until it’s almost hiding the lip. There are two types — the one that’s ever so slightly above the lip, with a thin line above the lip. But what we see more often is to leave the moustache more natural.

If you have a thin lip, you can camouflage your lip a little bit, make it seem bigger by having a thicker moustache above it. You can’t let your facial hair overgrow its original shape. You have to maintain the lines daily, otherwise when you go to shave, the razor won’t catch the hair evenly and you’ll have a jagged line. Especially in the morning, when you’re not completely awake yet, you want to have a clean line to follow.

But the advice goes beyond just the silly little hair on the top of your lip. Head on over to the link to check out the rest of the vital information, and then get to grooming gents.

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As far as I can tell there are three phases of a sports program. The first is that of a loser, not wishing to be harsh, but a team, no matter the sport, that loses more contests than it wins. The next step is the winner, when a team wins more that it loses and competes week in and week out with its opponents. The third step is the championship team, like Oklahoma, where anything short of a championship is a failure because of the continued success of the program.

All professional sports are already like this. There is no second place Super Bowl trophy, second place World Series trophy, second place Stanley Cup or whatever. There are expansion teams that work up to their first success, but once they are there (like the Tampa Bay Rays or Florida Marlins) they’re expected to compete to win every year.

Maybe college sports have been always been like this as well, but it seems to me that going to a bowl game or getting to the NCAA basketball tournament used to be, I don’t want to say enough, but it meant a good season. At some point, that no longer became true. Now, instead of competing against around 32 teams or less like the NFL, NBA, MLB, MLS or NHL, only one college team out of hundreds gets the championship. Fair? Sure, if you’re a fan of Oklahoma, but if not, like me, is it a realistic hope for my Missouri Tigers to beat 119 teams in football or 339 schools in basketball? Probably not. So, I head off to Tulsa, to celebrate the state’s college athletic success and to drown my college athletic sorrows at this first spot, before seeing what else Tulsa has to offer.

Drink many beers at James E. McNellie’s Public House

The beer list for James E. McNellie’s Public House in Tulsa is four pages of a pdf. I want to drink them all. My first choice will be a beer combo called the Chocolate Covered Banana that combines Young’s Double Chocolate Stout with Wells Banana Bread. Then, a Guinness and Black Bush whiskey and beer pairing followed by a flight of beers. Mmm, I have already forgotten what I was thinking about – it’s Cardinals baseball season.

Explore the Tulsa Air and Space Museum

As I recover from a sure to exist hangover, I hope the Tulsa Air and Space Museum won’t be too loud. Fortunately the F-14 Tomcat there doesn’t crank up its jet engines.

Go to the Woody Guthrie Center

The Woody Guthrie Center just opened recently as a place to exhibit the archives of Woody Guthrie’s work. One of the highlights is the handwritten lyrics of “This Land is Your Land.”

See one of the films at the Terrence Malick curated Philbrook Summer Film Series

During the month of July, the Philbrook Museum of Art will host a different film screening every Friday picked by Terrence Malick. The series starts with “Beat the Devil,” then goes to “The Lady Eve,” then “Zoolander” and finally “Badlands.”

Look at the Yellowstone exhibit at the Thomas Gilcrease Museum

I have a favorite mountain, Mount Moran in the Grand Teton Range in Wyoming. The Thomas Gilcrease Museum has an exhibit this summer featuring watercolors of the Yellowstone area by the namesake of that mountain. I’m there.

Any suggestions for things that I missed? Any additional recommendations for the area? Just let me know in the comments.

Leather or nothing

Bomber jackets are most commonly available in nylon or leather. Always go for leather. Nylon can be practical, but it’s far more practical than a civilian needs. Leather is more comfortable, and more importantly it looks better. Turn up your nose at any bomber jacket that isn’t leather, or at least a very good imitation of it. Any shade of leather is fine. Light brown leather is very 1970s, but don’t let that put you off. Keep your look modern and sleek, and maybe don’t have a bushy 70s facial hair if you’re going to go with brown leather.

Fuzzy vs. bald

Bomber jackets with a furred collar have two advantages over those lacking. Firstly, they’re warmer. Secondly, they look better. Bomber jackets without fur usually zip all the way up and have a mandarin collar. Doing it all the way up, including the collar, is honestly hideous. No matter what your body shape, this is the least flattering look you could ever go for on a jacket. For this reason alone, bomber jackets with a furred collar are preferable. A quality leather bomber jacket is even more divine with a shearling collar.

Getting a perfect fit

Bomber jackets are a great trick for skinny guys to bulk up without ever hitting the gym- all those pockets and the thick fabric make you look bigger than you are. You don’t need to be slim to don a bomber jacket though; they suit all body types as long as you get a decent fit. Watch out for length and shoulder width. A bomber jacket should hit the top of your hips, and have just enough give for you to comfortable move your shoulders. You should be able to zip it up without having to suck in your stomach, and it should have enough material that it doesn’t have to stretch over your abdomen at all when it’s zipped.

Some bomber jackets have elastic around the hem and cuffs- which adds another dimension to your jacket, but provides more challenge in getting the right fit. The elastic shouldn’t have to stretch at all while you’re wearing it. If you need to squeeze your hands through the wrist elastic, it’s not the right fit for you as eventually the cuffs will become stretched out.

What to wear it with

Bomber jackets, being quite puffy, look neat with snug pants. Fitted blue jeans paired with a bomber jacket make for a killer look on most guys. Maybe throw on a scarf to give your outfit a softer touch.

The top you wear under your bomber jacket should be fairly unnoticeable- you want all eyes on your jacket. You don’t want anything with a collar. A plain, long sleeved top in a muted color is ideal. It’s fine to wear a tee shirt, but not one with a graphic print.

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Which is why we’re heading over to Men’s Health where they have a list of tips about how to build those summer abs in time for you to whip off your shirt at the beach. Among the tips they have to get you on track:

Rocky Abs

How to do it
Lie on your back with your legs straight, arms extended behind your head, and hands grasping something that won’t move, such as a pair of heavy dumbbells. Raise your legs, butt, and lower back until they’re perpendicular to the floor. Your weight should rest on your upper back. Keeping your body as straight as possible, brace your core and take 5 to 10 seconds to lower your body. That’s 1 rep. Do 5 to 10.

Why it works
“Your muscles can handle more weight on the eccentric, or lowering, phase of a lift,” says Durkin. Slowing the pace of that phase forces your muscles to work harder, accelerating your gains.

So head on over to the link and check out the other four tips to get those abs in tip-top shape.

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1. Hit the gym.

This one is easy and actionable immediately. If you got dumped yesterday, you can always hit the gym and pump some iron today. I always feel better after a grueling 2-hour workout. Plus, working out is healthy and you look better too boot. I prefer CrossFit or a sport like basketball.

2. Book a trip.

Just the act of buying a plane ticket makes me feel better. This can be as simple as a weekend trip to visit some friends (preferably your bros) or as elaborate as planning a bro-cation to Vegas or some exotic locale. Last year my buddy got divorced so he planned a trip to Spain for running of the bulls and partying in Ibiza. He had an absolutely killer trip and got to chase some Spanish tail. Win all the way around.

3. Pick up some books.

Also actionable immediately, I like to get 3-4 books that are a mix of fiction, inspiration, and non-fiction. The original novel of Game of Thrones is addictive and will get your mind off your exploded relationship. Besides novels, don’t be afraid of books on personal growth. It’s always good to work on your inner game. I remember back in the day, the way I got over a bad breakup was reading Neil Strauss’ The Game for the first time. Totally changed my perspective.

4. Get a haircut and a new shirt.

Pretty self-explanatory. I always feel better when I look my best, so a haircut and a cool new shirt turns the trick.

5. Go out and get 5 numbers.

This is a classic way to get back in the saddle. I’ll usually go out with a wingman or two, get loaded on a Saturday night, and throw mad game around. By Sunday morning I’ll have 5 new numbers in my phone that are ready for dates the next week. If things go well, I might taken home the drunk chick at the bar also. I often combine this with #4 above for best results.

6. Get some ass.

The magic potion of feeling better after a breakup, nothing beats nailing a hottie or two post-breakup. It proves you still got the touch.

It usually takes me 2-3 days to get over a breakup, maybe longer if it’s really bad. I’ll sometimes do all of the above items even if the breakup isn’t that bad just because it’s good for your bro soul. Once I’m back in the saddle, I’ll usually take a couple of months to work on other projects before finding a new girlfriend.

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One of my favorites is Arkham Horror, in which all the players team up to beat the game, which throws all sorts of nasty Lovecraftian beasties at you in an attempt to crush your pathetic human spirit because it hates you. It’s so great.

Anyway, Arkham Horror was put out by Fantasy Flight Games, a board/card game company based in Roseville, Minnesota. They’ve been around since 1995, and their founder, Christian T. Petersen, is still their CEO. As you may have guessed, he’s this week’s Self Made Man.

Christian was born in the States, but grew up in Denmark and latched onto board games early. He also latched onto the idea of being an entrepreneur early, starting a game importing company in 1988 and a Danish game convention, creatively titled Games Weekend, two years later.

Christian returned to the US to get an economics degree from St. Olaf College, and started Fantasy Flight Games after graduating. FFG started slowly, mostly importing European comics to retail stores as Christian built up the distribution end of the business. Once he had a good network set up, he started creating his own games, including Twilight Imperium and Disk Wars, both of which changed the hobby gaming industry. Disk Wars was particularly effective at building up FFG’s brand, thanks to the rules system and low up-front cost for a collectibles game.

Part of FFG’s success comes from Christian’s instincts; he knows how to balance what his market likes (fantasy, science fiction, and horror) with game designs that will challenge them. In Christian’s own words, FFG games “deal with a myriad of components, scenarios, and try to push a player interaction and player immersion in a way that simply does not appeal to a certain group of gamers that hunger for a more clinical play experience.”

The other part is fantastic customer service. One of my friends spilled beer all over his Arkham Horror board, and called FFG to order a replacement. When the guy on the phone heard what had happened, he laughed good-naturedly and sent my friend a replacement board for free, telling him to “keep the drinks off the table next time.” Christian knows the loyalty of his hobby game enthusiast demographic, and thus understands the value of treating them well, along with making fun and intricate games for them.

These days, FFG is hard at work with some franchise titles for Warcraft and Game of Thrones, so check out their website to get a closer look at what they’re up to.

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Here is the short list of cool and wonderful actors you may not remember (some obvious, some not) that were in the first prequel: Keira Knightley; Dominic West (McNulty of “The Wire”); Terence Stamp (General Zod from “Superman II”); Sofia Coppola (director of “Lost in Translation”); her brother Roman Coppola (writer of “Moonrise Kingdom”); and the voice talents of comedians Greg Proops and Peter Serafinowicz.

Of course, when I look at that list, maybe the fact that they were all actors was the problem with the film. Combine the writing talents of Serafinowicz (“Look Around You”) and Roman Coppola with the direction of Sofia Coppola and a master improviser like Proops and all of the sudden, well, I won’t guarantee the movie would have been great (it is about tariffs and a boy brat after all), but I bet it would be more interesting and more intentionally funny.

So, let’s purge the taste of the “Star Wars” prequels from our gullet and look at this diverse list of five movies from Rose that are much, much better.

5. I Capture the Castle

When I watched “The Hour” with Romola Garai, I couldn’t take my eyes off her style, acting and beauty. Combine her with Rose as well as Henry Thomas, Tara Fitzgerald and Bill Nighy and this movie, that was on my watch list, moves up even higher.

4. Bridesmaids

As far as the top “R”-rated comedies of the last few years go, “Bridesmaids” is easily my favorite. But, since I really didn’t like “The Hangover,” that’s probably not saying much. I have to watch “The Hangover” again, because I wonder if I didn’t give it a chance the first time.

3. X-Men: First Class

Again, superhero movie, Rose and Jennifer Lawrence, meet my wheelhouse.

2. Insidious

There have only been three movies that have spooked me over the past few years. “Paranormal Activity” (counting the series as one movie, because they all pulled the same scary chain within me), “Drag Me to Hell” and “Insidious.” I think the quality of acting from Rose and Patrick Wilson helped this one greatly.

1. Sunshine

The only Danny Boyle movie that I didn’t see was “The Beach.” The only Danny Boyle movie that I didn’t enjoy is the same, and that’s probably because I haven’t seen it yet. Even though his other movies win Oscars, this one is my favorite.

Agree? Disagree? Which movies would make your Rose Byrne top five?

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Most women don’t like the idea of being someone’s booty call which is exactly why men need a little skill in order to make it happen. This article is here to show you what I do in order to convince and then keep a chick as my booty call.

Always call on that same day/night.

Ideally you’ll want to reach her during the night and ask to meet up right away.

If you’ve been with the chick a couple of times, you can afford to set the “booty call” ahead of time, during the day when she’s done with work/school. This automatically implies that you should have a decent idea of her schedule because you want to get hold of her in order to make it more difficult for her to reject your invitation.

Do it at her place.

Most if not all of the booty calls should happen at her place. This is important because it’s a lot easier for her to accept a dude coming over than her having to get dressed, get ready, leave the house and travel somewhere to get a lay. You also want to get her used to having sex with you at her place so it’s again, more comfortable for her.

The only time when you don’t go at her place is when she’s out with her friends and she is the one that’s popping over late at night. Makes sense since she’s probably getting a cab anyway…so why not stop over at your house and play with the snake.

Occasional sleepovers are a must.

First time it happens, you best sleep over. You don’t want her to immediately class you as a dude that’s just using her for sex (or the one night stand). Then, considering that most interactions happen at her place you’ll need to sleep there at least once every three booty call nights. This is important because it will always help her believe that more may eventually happen.

If she’s out with her friends and will be coming over, it’s probably impossible to get rid of her after the sex. Many will even ask if they can sleep there and a “YES” is what you have to say in order to get that booty. If that’s the case, let her sleep over, you’re only seeing her at night, not spending any money so it’s all well and worth it at the end of the day.

Keep your calls brief.

The whole point of the call is to find out exactly what she’s doing right now, tonight or later on. You need to formulate your questions in such a way that her answers come out as “Nothing, I’m wide open”. Sure, that’s never going to happen but as long as she doesn’t have anything interesting to do you’ve already primed her for the next part.

Make sure all calls are no longer than 3 minutes on previous booty called girls and no longer than 5 minutes on first time booty call girls.

Push her for the win.

If it sounds like she isn’t doing much it’s time to push her for the win. You should say: “Ok so, can I come over right now/tonight/later on?” or if you feel like she’s really ready for you, say: “Alright then, I’m coming over”.

If it’s the first time, she might be a bit apprehensive but you can say things like “Alright?” “Ok?” “Is that cool?” in order to get her to answer or agree with what you just said.

Be prepared to answer the question “Why do you want to come over?” with something elegant such as: “I just want to hang out for a little while” or “I just want to spent a little time with you” or if she’s the more straight up type you can say “Well why do you think?”

Once that’s dealt with she’ll either agree to everything or come up with an excuse. If she agrees, you’re sorted but if she hands you the excuse, don’t despair because there’s still some hope.

Excuses You’ll Run Into and How To Deal With Them:

“I’m tired” – it’s late at night and you want to come over…of course she’s tired. This is probably the most common excuse you’ll come across. It’s hard to tell if she’s really tired or just faking it as many women can be great actors. Either way, you can use the “It’s only for a little while” line which can be enough for her to accept. She might actually think it’s only for a little while but then you get her all wet and the bed is just there, things can quickly get out of hand.

“I’m going out with my girlfriends” – this is my favorite one because I can always get them to come over to my place since I live close to all the main venues in my city. If that’s not the case with you, tell her “I’ll come by when you get back, my friends are chilling at my place so I don’t think I’ll be sleeping”. Then take you car and drive there.

“I’ve got a lot of work to do (school/job/family)” – again say you’ll come right over after she’s done with it.

If it seems that she really is busy and won’t be available on the night, drop it and try again in a few days. If she seems busy and unavailable all the time, you might want to consider the fact that this chick might not be that into you.

Women also want to have sex and booty calls give them the opportunity to get sex with zero effort (dude is coming over to bang them). Even though they may seem reluctant in the beginning, some easy pressuring can take you all the way to the end.

For really successful booty calls you need to get them used to you as the person that’s fulfilling that “sex” desire in her life. You want to be the go to guy when she needs to get boned. If you manage to pull that off you’ll always get the call when she’s in need.

This is the sort of mentality I discuss on my blog and in the free eBook I give out. If you want to increase your success with women visit ThePlayerGuide.com – a place where the “dating” mindset is thrown out the window in favor of more direct (and fruitful) methods of meeting and seducing women.

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