Because I'm Not A Junkie . . .

When you are young, and you think about aging, wrinkles are what you focus on. You also worry about gravity, but I think it is wrinkles that are what we dread the most. So, for many of us, we use sunscreen and moisturize faithfully, doing what we can to do ward off the inevitable wrinkles. And then we get hit from other directions, from things no one ever warned us about. For me, it was fingernails and eyebrows. I  always had nice fingernails. I never had a professional manicure, but I always took good care of my nails. I will admit it, it was definitely a vanity of mine.  These are my nails on my wedding day; even then I would never have thought about wasting money on a manicure. And I think I did a damn good decent job.

Okay, this is not a picture of me, it's a picture of Brooke Shields. I include it because Brooke and I both sported the extremely heavy, cave-man style eyebrows. In fact, thank goodness for Brooke, because until she came along my eyebrows were not actually considered attractive.

Then I turned 40 (cough years ago). And my eyebrows disappeared before my very . . . well, my very  eyes. Not only did they disappear, some of them turned gray. This was not something I'd been warned about. These are my eyebrows in their current, sad state. Where once my tweezers were my daily companion, now I can go days without using them (well, on my eyebrows at least; I keep a pair handy at all times for one of the other unsung indignities of aging, the random facial hair that springs forth from your chin, fully-grown, while you sit at a stoplight).

Now, I never bothered to take a picture of my fingernails when they changed overnight from strong, healthy, and long to weak, splitting and unable to grow. And when you Google "Raggedy Nails," you mostly get pictures of Raggedy Ann. You'll just have to use your imagination. Suffice it say, my vanity suffered. Which brings me to the reason for this post's title.

My friend and neighbor, L, and I were discussing getting our nails done. I decided I wanted to restore my nails to their former splendor, and was going to have to spend some money to accomplish this. Being frugal by nature, it was not an expense I took on lightly. No, I needed justification. So, L and I were pontificating on the justification aspect of spending money on (gasp) ourselves. We came up with the fact that since almost everyone we know has a daily Starbucks, at about 4 bucks a pop, and neither one of us had that habit, we actually had about $28 a week that we really were entitled, nay virtually obligated, to spend on our nails.

L's husband, the very witty B, was listening to our conversation. "Don't forget, you don't shoot up heroin either." We looked at him. "You're saving money that way, you know by not being junkies." We looked at each other. True that!

I will be eternally grateful to B--whenever I'm on the fence about a purchase I can tell myself, "Well, I'm saving money by not being a junkie." 

These are my nails now. I can't do anything about the aging hands, but I'm rockin' the nails!

For anyone else blindsided by the aging process, I highly recommend Nora Ephorn's book, I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being A Woman. It will definitely make you laugh.

Comments

[Little Miss Sunshine State]

I'm also leaving my nails to the professionals these days. I decided to quit coloring my hair this year and I'm actually quite happy with how the grey is blending in with the rest. I figure the money I save on the hair, I can spend on the nails.

[debbie]

My favorite is leaving the house thinking everything is looking good, then by chance, running my hand across my chin and realizing I have a huge, surely quite dark lone hair....how the hell could I have missed that? And how can anyone else? Then I spend the whole day trying to hide it!! Will keep tweezers in my purse from now on!!! ** My mom got that book and said it was too funny....am waiting for my chance to read it!! *
Will do my nails and move focus from "laugh lines" to hands!!

[Reluctant Blogger]

With me it is my legs. I had great legs. But just lately my knees seem to have grown chins. It is not pleasant at all. Urghhh! I think my days of wearing shorts in public are severely limited. It's not a weight thing either - I am still skinny, it's just that my legs are not what they once were.

My great aunt always used to say to me though "look after your feet" - her line of reasoning was that it doesnt' matter too much what you look like re wrinkles etc when you are old, but you still want to be able to get about, not have bunyans and hobble about unable to wear anything but slippers. So I have always heeded that.

This is a bit depressing! I usually try to forget that I am over 40!!!

[Life As I Know It]

This post made me laugh. I am mid 30's and am obsessed with wrinkles! I somehow acquired a permanent furrowed brow recently. ACK! I spend every night slathering on night/anti-wrinkle cream, which, of course, is doing no good at all.
Thanks for giving me a glimpse into my future!

Just found your blog today...

[Grandy]

Hey you...I JUST deleted a picture from my cell phone of my nails. You are not a junkie, but are beautiful.

I've sent some link love your way and tagged you for a meme. Come check it out and let me know when you've done yours so I can check it out.

Take care!!!

[Sharon]

Loved this logic. Using this money saving option of not being a junkie either, i think I'll go get my nails done too. Yours look great! And maybe a pedicure! Let's go.

[Mrs. G.]

Your nails look marvelous. I can't sit still long enough to get mine done. I have to sit a long time for highlights and that is about all I can stand. But you inspire me.

[Mary Alice]

Your nails look fabulous. It is important to spend time (and a little money) making ourselves look good. When you look good, you feel good...and that is impowering. And what the Hell? In the last year the random sprouting chin hair has started for me. Why did someone not warn me about this before?? Oh they tell you all about what will happen when you get your period...but this Perimenopausal stuff ....not enough warnings.

[Cheri]

Hi! Great post! I totally did not see that eyebrow thing coming either. I too had to Brooke Shields brows, and they mortified me as a pre-teen. Now I'd pay big money to have them back. I've been pondering whether to give up the brow pencil; I think it may pull out more hairs than it is worth.

[Smalltown Mom]

My eyebrows are disappearing, too. And I don't have to shave my legs any more. So why do I get those damn chin hairs?

[Beth]

I'm not a junkie nor do I drink Starbucks coffee (on a daily basis). I am now making my wish list because of all the money I've saved!

And Norah Ephron's book was great - loved it.

[Maggie-beth]

My natural nails have all the strength, beauty and luster of toilet tissue. My only hope (ever) has been acrylic nails. However, acrylic nails are high maintenance, ruin the pathetic little twarfs that are your real nails, and are a tad costly. For the reasons just mentioned, I decided to have the acrylics removed, and it has taken OVER A YEAR to get my (pathetic) REAL nails to the point where I don't keel over from the pain when a drop of water hits one of them.
Naturally, I am thinking of getting the acrylics applied again, because, really - who doesn't want to go through all the pain, maintenance and expense of having "pretty" nails? Why do we do this?!