<p>And remember, there is always the option of donating to your favorite charity and letting the beauty radiate from the inside out. :)</p>
<p>I’m pretty happy with the way I look. I think the only time in my life I didn’t like how I looked was as a teen in the 70s when board straight thin was in. I’ve got curves. I found the “losing looks” thread sad mostly because I can’t imagine being tied to my youth as a precursor for happiness. I really can’t imagine why anyone would want to guess other women’s ages or even care? I’ve always cared about appearing healthy and groomed, but I’m not sure that is for other people as much as simply what I want to see when I look in the mirror or simply what my 50s mom “taught me.” I’ve never looked at others and thought “I wish I looked like that” except for curly hair…I’ve always wished I had some curl in my hair :-)</p>
<p>Njres, I think that is funny too. Hey, apparently you look five years younger than you are!</p>
<p>I do think that it’s about controlling the things that you can control and accepting the things that you can’t. I try to keep my weight down. I try to exercise. I color my hair and I wear make-up. Beyond that, I just accept the inevitable. There are more important things to attend to so i try not to obsess on the way that i look.</p>
<p>I have a lot of friends who go on and on about their weight. I admit that I get impatient when they moan and groan about it but fail to make any lifestyle changes that will help control it. I know how hard it is, especially after menopause but, really, it’s not going to get better on it’s own without some effort. This is something that we CAN try to do something about. Hopefully, we still have decades to live and thrive and I want to be as healthy as I can be during those later years.</p>
<p>No power on earth is going to get me to dye my hair. I like the salt and pepper look (though it’s still mostly pepper) and I could never, ever keep up with the maintenance. I like how that looks on men too.</p>
<p>I live near an affluent area where there are many “high maintenance women” (and men) and I think my lack of hair dye love is partially a reaction to that. Also, my mother dyed her hair even when she was losing it to chemo and that was just so sad. You can get stuck in a rut where removing the dye or growing it out would be too drastic of a change and then, well, you’re stuck fixing those roots forever. </p>
<p>To each their own, just no dye for me! OTOH, my hair is nicely cut and looks youthful in style and I like how it’s gotten wavier as I’ve gotten older. I also like my white “highlights” since they are the only ones that look good on really dark hair.</p>
<p>It’s great to see what others find to be non-negotiable about their upkeep! I could never give up my hair color! Although I do like the look of a full head of gray hair when it is the right silvery color. It makes the complexion look more rosy and youthful. Unfortunately, my natural color is a nondescript dark brown with a lot of bray in it. It is not becoming.</p>
<p>If you had to be stranded on a tropical island for year (with a lot of other people) and you could only bring one cosmetic item, what would it be?</p>
<p>“Cosmetic item” is open to interpretation, I suppose, so I would pick something practical like hand cream or lip balm. I carry those everywhere.</p>
<p>That IS practical. I would want sunblock, I guess. But I might sneak in my lipstick.</p>
<p>Lipstick is sunblock for the lips!</p>
<p>I have thin, fine, limp hair. From high school until age 35 I had perms. (D1 loves her baby pictures with my ‘fro’!) At that time, I started getting highlights, which have the added benefit of adding body to my hair. One of the early signs I need to get my roots done is I can’t get it to hold any sort of style. I understand why people don’t want to color their hair, but mine just hangs on the side of my face unless I do.</p>
<p>I have to say I’m a little bothered by wrinkly knee and elbow skin. That, and spider veins. At least I don’t have varicose veins, which I’ve heard are uncomfortable. </p>
<p>Compared to real health problems, these are small potatoes!</p>
<p>
First and foremost, I’m happy that I’m old enough to no longer look like prey. </p>
<p>I look young for my age (early/mid thirties); up until a year or two ago, people often asked me which college I was attending. This is somewhat a function of genetics, but is also a function of using sunscreen for two decades and eye serum for ten years, fifteen years of vegetarianism, and a lifetime of being somewhat athletic. </p>
<p>My boyfriend thinks that I’m lovely, and his opinion counts the most. Professionally, looking young isn’t much of a problem, as I dress professionally, not young. Make-up appears to make me look a bit older, or more serious: the au natural looks removes years. </p>
<p>Outside of the office, it’s a pain when random strangers treat me like a kid, and downright infuriating when it happens with law enforcement. (Not that I often get tangled up with law enforcement, but I’ve found that “I’m doing A and B, not X, Y, and Z; as an attorney [reach into wallet and pull out bar card], I know I’m well within my rights; what’s the issue?” works wonders. You would think that such a move would lead to handcuffs, but when someone is being a bully and thinks they are bullying a kid, they back off when the ‘kid’ is a litigator.)</p>
<p>The only thing that is “high maintenance” about me is coloring my hair, and it’s really not all that high maintenance. </p>
<p>Like someone already mentioned, some of my gray hair is resistant to color, so my hair appears to have natural highlights. Most people are very surprised to hear that I color my hair, and that is what makes me look a tad younger than my age.</p>
<p>Other than that, I just try to take care of myself. I don’t spend much mental energy worrying about or fighting off aging. That would be a fruitless endeavor, as women who try this aren’t really fooling anybody. All too often, efforts to “reverse” the aging process merely end up making the woman look sad and desperate. We’ve all seen the bad facelifts, the hideous lip implants, etc. which make the woman look FAR worse than if she felt at peace with herself and just made an effort to stay healthy and interesting.</p>
<p>If I could be described as someone who looked happy, healthy, and “good for her age,” that would be awesome.</p>
<p>I agree with that!!!</p>
<p>Near where I live we have a new retail clothing store called Hot Mama. At first I thought it was a maternity store but when my D and I went in we realized that it’s a clothing store for women who want to dress a bit younger than their years. Hmmmmm, It was a bit pathetic, IMO. Not than I think we should all be wearing elastic waist pants and sensible shoes but desperately trying to hang onto our youth by dressing like we are twenty years younger is an obvious sign of denial and discomfort with who you are and where you are in life.</p>
<p>Amen to that. A co-worker who is 40 showed up for work last week wearing denim capris with (intentionally) frayed holes on the knees/ thighs. Looked like something a teenager would wear. She’s brand name conscious so I guess she thought since her pants had a 7 for all mankind label on the back,the holes were really classy.</p>
<p>The real questions:</p>
<p>Is she good at her job? Did anyone die as a result of her wearing capris with frayed holes? Does she live and let live or expect you to start wearing clothing with holes, too?</p>
<p>Compliance with any dress code the business has would be applicable to that individual to the same degree it is for everyone else there.</p>
<p>I’m fine with how I look–I have been blessed with great genetics. Neither of my parents looked their ages and both lived a long time. I’m not young enough that I get carded, but when I have to show my ID (TSA, etc) everyone does a double take when they find out my age. People routinely guess that I’m 10-15 years younger than I am. </p>
<p>I guess I could say that it’s a result of eating well and take care of myself and exercising, etc. etc. (which I try to do) but I think that there are lots of women who do all of those things and still don’t look younger than their years. I think genetics plays a huge part in how one ages and it’s hard to take credit for that.</p>
<p>Having let my hair go gray, I totally look my age. However, I happen to think one can be “hot” at 56:). The time has come for society to rise above the biological connection of fertility to sexual attractiveness. Individual people certainly have.</p>
<p>You said it Alumother!!!</p>