Man's Take Magazine

One Man’s Pursuit of Heat

By Maxwell G. Moore

The pursuit of heat is the fundamental calling of a man… especially this particular man. Perhaps I’m still a cave man at heart trying to reinvent fire, but warmth is king in my world. Considering that most of the universe around us is either mind-bogglingly frigid or nuclear meltdown hot, we’re pretty lucky to have the option of exploring a tolerable range of temperatures. It took me decades to discover how everything relates to heat and how it fulfills some innate desires within me.

I’m not exactly a typical person, so some readers may not be able to identify with this concept. I know there are some who live for cold, but I think the more natural inclination is toward a moderately high temperature range. In fact, I think that some enjoy cold only because it helps them to appreciate warmth even more. Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section.

I hate cold. I like a cold beer and a bowl of ice cream, but everything else should be warm… super warm… hot. My definition for the perfect point on the heat scale is one degree below the most I can stand. I’m not just talking about weather and chicken wings here, but everything. I’m speaking of temperature in the literal physical sense as well as the more figurative emotional sense.

I’m sure most men can identify with a cool afternoon spent cooking on a gas grill. The grill I have now can peg the thermometer at 800 degrees Fahrenheit. It can literally burn the hair off my arm with one mere sweep over the cooking surface when I try to flip a burger. I love it. I don’t love the smoke in my eyes or the smell of burning arm hair, but I still enjoy the overall experience. I also like sitting in front of a blazing fire in the fireplace until I’m so toasty that my shirt burns my skin when I get up. But this is only the beginning.

I love hot tubs and saunas. The feeling of hot steam settling in over my skin as I pour a cup of water over the coals in the sauna is pure bliss for me. When I step into a hot tub I feel disappointed if it doesn’t nearly scald the skin off my feet. If it doesn’t feel burning hot at first touch, I know it will quickly lose the feeling of overwhelming warmth as I settle in.

I might be crazy, but I think you know what I mean. Who doesn’t love a relatively controlled bonfire on a cool fall evening? This passion for the warmer things in life may be one of the factors that compelled me to become a firefighter nearly two decades ago. I have been in buildings where the ceiling temperature was over 2000 degrees and I’m still excited to rush into a burning building as everyone else runs out. But this passion extends far beyond things a thermometer can measure.

Another thing I enjoy is spicy food. Truly mouth-burning peppers seem a strange thing to consume since it does cause physical pain both on the way in and … during final exit from the body. The heat of a chili pepper can be measured in Scoville Heat Units. The Scoville scale measures how much capsaicin is in a pepper by diluting it until the heat becomes barely perceptible to human taste testers. There are actually more scientific means of determining “spicy” heat, but the Scoville scale is more widely known.

I think the Scoville model more accurately describes the type of heat I’m referring to because it shows what a tiny taste of the heat will do rather than the entire blazing inferno. Clearly “heat” in all its forms is dangerous, and thus in tune with the adventurous spirit of a human male. One could argue that because men typically experience emotion less strongly than women that they are more emotionally attuned with cold. I don’t buy that. Men may not experience the breadth or duration of emotion that women commonly do, but they often experience greater depth. This of course leads us into more dramatic (heated) confrontation that can result in violence.

The next level of heat that I’ve been known to enjoy is that intense lust for a “hot” young lady. We males are constantly seeking that warm place between her legs. It’s not about a warm bodies cuddling up to each other on a cold night, but that brief fire that ignites between two people and drives them both into a frenzy of passion and lust. This too is core to the pursuit of heat.

Keep in mind that intense burning and itching sensation in the nether-region that accompanies indiscriminate and unprotected pursuit of this particular source of heat. Just like a fireman, always play it safe and wear your protective gear to avoid getting burned.

Most men need to experience some form of adventure, at least every now and then, in order to function properly. Without this we get restless and stray from mundane yet important roles we occupy. Adventure and danger often spark the release of adrenaline. For me an adrenaline spike feels like a warm jolt of energy flooding into my body. Whether it’s a fast car, a roller coaster, or a more intense activity such as skydiving, we need to feel some cool wind on our faces to fan the fires of adventure and temporarily release some of our desire for danger. The exhilaration following a major thrill allows us to relax more deeply and be at peace for the dull parts of our lives.

I am passionate for life and all of its pleasures. Those include a warm sunny day on the beach, a tub full of infernal buffalo wings, and a scantily clad female pressed up against me. It includes the thrill of a dangerous moment and the mindless commitment required of an all-out fight. I’d rather sweat than shiver any day of the week. By understanding our motivation to seeking out the warmer parts of life, we can begin to control those instincts and feed them with safer, more reasonable versions that elicit similar effects. Of course, that’s not nearly as much fun…

Light up those fires and keep warm my friends.

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