Age Before Beauty

I'm getting older every minute and I couldn't be happier about it.  First of all, I'm having the time of my life right now, and really, it beats the alternative.

Sure I have my aches and pains but honestly most of those started when I was in my mid-thirties.  One conclusion I have come to over time is that I don't enjoy pain, and I will actually go out of my way to minimize or avoid it.

One of the great advantages of aging for me is that I no longer care if my appearance pleases  the universe. Which means I will no longer totally sacrifice my comfort in order to look good.  It's not that I don't try to present myself in a positive light.  It's just that now I try to be reasonable about it.

Let's start at the top- with my hair.  With the help of my wonderful hairdresser, I have a haircut that I believe flatters my face in a color (which coincidentally doesn't happen to be gray) that complements my skin tone.....but I keep it short because I don't want anything that takes more than 5 or 10 minutes to fix in the morning. 

I had to gently explain to my eye doctor and stylists who help me choose my frames that I wear eyeglasses in order to bring focus and clarity to my life; without them my world is just one big blurry Impressionist painting.  While I certainly want glasses that are stylish and attractive, it is even more important that they have a large enough lens to accommodate my trifocal prescription with a large enough middle vision that I can use my computer for an 8 hour workday without headaches or blurred vision.  I want to wear the same pair of glasses everywhere, and that means everywhere, including the big fancy dinner dance or my son's upcoming wedding.  I want to be able to see my son get married.

I wear makeup everywhere, so of course I'll wear it to the wedding, but I'm thinking that some waterproof products might be in order because I am already starting to tear up with happy emotion at the thought of it.  

Which brings me to my shoes.  I am a clumsy woman with two bad knees and size 7 WW feet featuring a wide instep but narrow heel. I do not wear sneakers everywhere, but all my shoes are what one might refer to as "sensible"- i.e. comfortable and basically flat.  I do NOT wear heels, ever, anywhere.  For my son's wedding I bought a pair of dressy ballet flats that are shiny and have a little "bling" on them that feel like I'm wearing slippers when I have them on.

Rest assured that when you see me fully dressed on the street that I will be wearing underwear, however I want to be able to forget that I have it on. I want a bra that is supportive AND comfortable and pantyhose that does NOT control my top.

One thing I've learned over the years is that you don't have to have perfect teeth to have a beautiful smile that emanates warmth and happiness, but comfortable underwear sure helps.