Tag Archives: women

one for the sisterhood…

24 Jun

Rushing around before work this morning and I was left  with no time to ‘put my face on’ before I raced out the door !

aaagh panic… naked face…work day…. NOOOO!!!!makeup

I managed to slap some mosturiser on, and figured I would do the rest  at the traffic lights en route…then add  finishing touches as soon as I arrived at the office. But when I was fifteen minutes down the road I began to sweat with panic … I was suddenly convinced I’d left all of my make-up at home.

There I was naked lashes, no eyebrows, pale lips and shiny moisturised ’50Something’ skin.

makeup2I was torn whether I should go back home (and then be extra late for work) ….. or dive into a store along the way to grab some basics….I’m glad to report that common sense prevailed and I pulled over to REALLY look in my bag, and there it was, my makeup purse with all the requisite supplies. phew!

I remember the days when my skin was youthful enough to be seen naked in public, and I even had enough colour in my lips to just add gloss…. but I’m embarrassed to say I have not left the house without mascara since I was 13!!! …yeah yeah …but I’m a redhead OK?

Anyway… all was well in my world once I had those basics sorted.

~I’m 50 something ….but I’m not dead yet~

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it’s a fine line between pleasure and pain…

4 Jun

hairdresser1Those of you that have been following my musings, will know of my hairdressing dilemma. How to break in a new one that I…  like.. trust… can get to easily every 3 weeks… and that I can communicate with (especially given my vocal limitations).

I found ‘Ms J’  and, while she will never be able to ‘fill the scissors’ of my old super-hairdresser… she is lovely and ticks most boxes. However…there is a new dilemma.hairdresser

You see, she has a school-based apprentice working in the salon, who is a shocker….surly, unfriendly and really really ROUGH.

The first time I was treated to her fingers at the basin, I found myself wishing that I was having hot pokers stuck in my eyeballs… but I cut her some slack because she was so young and new.

The second time I was hoping for an improvement, but alas no !… More pain, less gain and the best part of a salon visit had been reduced to torture.

I finally found the courage to have a quiet word with Ms J and was happy (but not surprised) to hear that many had gone there before me. PHEW …I wasn’t imagining it… and it’s not just ME  that she doesn’t like.. she really is awful at her job, and yes… she is ‘being encouraged to do better’

THAT was 3 weeks ago.

hairwashingSo tonight I went expecting to find a slightly less aggressive approach with the suds …(I  even dared to look forward to it)…  You can imagine my disappointment when  she jumped in and  started ripping at the roots while scrubbing the same spot round and round in circles for what felt like 2 minutes of sheer agony. By the time we progressed to conditioner, to her credit, she did ask ‘is that pressure ok?’   … so I guess you could say that’s an improvement.

Having survived the basin Ms J asked me what I thought,  so I replied that perhaps she should encourage her young charge to consider a career change….as a hairdresser she would make a great accountant (or anything really, as long as it doesn’t involve touching another person).

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the curse of curvy calves

1 May

For as long as I can remember I have been well endowed in the calf area. As a young’n I recall being desperately upset when long zip boots first came in fashion and I struggled to find a pair generous enough to accommodate my meaty mid-leg.

curvy calvesIt’s true that my dimensions are not exactly petite… but nor would I say that I am obese. No matter whether I have been in peak shape in need of some trimming … my calves have been a constant. In fact I would go so far as to say that the curvy calf is somewhat of a family tradition, with Mum’s looking like the best ‘baking leg’ you could buy.

Curvy calves are a curse, and for women that share this affliction, exercise becomes fine line….too much walking, jogging, cycling will pump them up even further  and soon have us looking like we are on steroids.

Anyway the reason for this reflection is my current skinny leg jeans attraction. I have a couple of favourite pairs, they fit and feel good…however I find as the day goes on that the lower leg begins to twist and I end up with a side seam somewhere up the front of my shin…worse on the right than left. Now originally I blamed the production process, thinking that the fabric had been cut crooked … however, not so… it is the power of the curvy calf that causes the constant creep.

BUT I will not be beaten… nor will  I give up my favourite jeans!.

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more cozy cubicles…

28 Mar

Another cubicle complaint today …. I’m sorry to repeat myself BUT seriously what is going on ???

I know that I am not in the ‘petite’ category …. but nor am I ‘obese’and yet today I struggled to get into a toilet cubicle and manoeuvre my way around to ‘take a seat ‘.

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Unlike the detailed explanation of my toilet experience @ Central Station  a few months back , THIS time I was in a  Public Hospital loo. …Surely it’s not TOO much to expect them to cater for the ‘average dimensioned’ woman’s needs.

It seems clear that the ruthless Health Cuts, of late have made their way  to the humble toilet cubicle…. we now have the  ‘bean -counters’ asking “how small can we sub-dived the bathroom…to get he most seats in place and away with it” ???

There I was sandwiched between the industrial sized toilet-roll holder on one side and the sani-bin on the other, with no elbow room at all…. I can only imagine the difficulty if ‘one of the sisterhood’ turned up with a baby in tow …. OR was eldery or disabled’ … It just doesn’t bear thinking about really…

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there’s nothing basic about black

20 Mar

While it seems that my wardrobe seems to contain quite a number of ‘basic black’ pieces, I have come to the conclusion that there is actually nothing ‘basic’ about them….every item has a very specific use.

Where is this heading ??? I hear you thinking.drawers

Well this morning I was rushing to get ready for work, it was early and the light was not great. I was searching for a particular black singlet top to wear under a coloured jacket…  a fairly standard layered look for a work day.

Now a black singlet shouldn’t be too difficult… BUT there I was rummaging through draws amongst black undies, black camisoles, T shirts and singlets and unable to actually SEE the one I was looking for.

I know all you women will relate to the importance of having the right strap width, correct length and fabric for a particular outfit… so here I was in the poor light emptying draws in a panic to locate the perfect one…. and wishing I loved white.

I’m happy to say it ended well, but it was not until I had decanted all draws, that I turned and put my hand right on it laying on the corner chair. ….phew, emergency averted (AND I made it to work on time).

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from Russia with love ….

2 Mar

furSo… today’s observation involves many ‘slightly-older-than 50 Something’ women hanging out in politically incorrect ‘head- to- toe’ fur.

We took the subway out of Manhattan to check out the infamous Coney Island. Despite the fact that it is heading toward spring… it  felt more like middle of  winter with temps around minus 8 deg… BUT, rugged up in our winter woollies, we headed for the (rather desolate) boardwalk to take in the beach and all it had to offer.

As we pondered the depressed greyness of what is meant to be a ‘fun park’ the thing that struck me was the number of more mature women wrapped in a variety of animal pelts… The striking similarity between them all got us to wondering…. and then all was revealed.

Coney Island and it’s surrounds, is apparently a Russian enclave … full of Slavic ex-pats bringing with them a range of fabulous food …and ‘fur fashions’. I saw more fur hats, wraps and full length coats in a square kilometre than I have seen in a lifetime… What they were in a past life is anyone’s guess, but one thing is for sure, these well dressed Russian women were certainly warmer than those of us wrapped in our synthetic coats and acrylic scarves.

The fur trade? …. politically incorrect perhaps;  but like it or loathe it…maybe it’s a case of recycling at its finest (just saying).

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how to ruin a good movie …and lunch

8 Feb

Sitting in a cafe today and I was acutely aware of the bizarre scene that was unfolding at the next table.

Nothing dreadful (well I guess, that’s debatable lol), just two ’50 something women’ talking. Perhaps I should rephrase that ~ one talking …loudly and non stop, while the other made strange noises like ‘ooh’… ‘o-h’…’reeea-lly’…’mmm’ …’yeah’.

It was the most absurd demonstration of one sided babble, while woman #1 proceeded to tell her friend (and anyone within earshot), the entire storyline of a new release movie. At every opportunity she mentioned ‘Geoffrey Rush’  by name, as though she was trying to sound cultured, although the loud and monotone voice was a dead give-away on the question of culture. shhh

Then, only mildly more irritating than the Geoffrey Rush echo was the repeated chorus line  ‘you’ve just GOT to see it’  … well here’s the truth ..No she doesn’t…. and neither do we, now that we know the whole darn story.

Perhaps it’s vocal envy, and my inability to compete… but I have to say that overbearing voices are right up there on my list of the ten most irritating behaviours ~ even worse than nose picking or pimple squeezing.

I’m irritated and ’50 something’…P1120647 but not dead yet.

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size does matter …..

23 Jan

As my fingers begin to tap out today’s reflection …I suddenly realise that it is a combination of several earlier observations. …How could eyebrows, handbags and toilets possibly collide in one blog I hear you ask…well, let me explain.

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This afternoon I travelled into the city by train for a meeting. Now, despite my “bag management strategy” from a few days back, I found myself carrying both my oversized handbag, and a bag full of meeting papers (to keep me amused on the train). Predictably, as soon as I arrived at Central Station my first stop was the loo…and this is where things got interesting.

I don’t think any of us are  huge fans of public toilets, but let’s face it ….they are a necessity…However, they need to be BIG enough!!   

I found an empty (and reasonably clean) cubicle, but as I tried to manoeuvre my way inside…. I struggled. I mean really STRUGGLED!

Juggling the two bags… I found myself needing to straddle the loo backwards in an effort to get in far enough to turn and close the door. Now I admit that I am not ‘delicately dimensioned’ …BUT I don’t consider myself to be in the ‘oversized’ category either… It was ridiculous!!

Anyway, after I eventually managed to get back out of the cubicle; I was washing my hands and I glanced in the mirror, only to see an ‘afternoon face’ (missing lips & eyebrows… and in desperate need of a ‘freshen up’). The problem was that there was NOWHERE to hang… put…or perch my bags while I did the paint job… I ended up with bags jammed between my legs, clutching tight with my thighs while I did my best to draw on some eyebrows and throw some colour on my lips…

Who would ever think that a visit to the loo would be blog-worthy?

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the need to pee ….

21 Jan

Over recent years I have noticed a very bizarre phenomenon… the need to pee as soon as I pull up in at home and the keys are removed from the ignition.loo2

This strange situation usually happens at the end of the day, when… with great relief I wheel into the garage and begin to unload the shopping (along with all the sundry bags and items collected throughout the day). It’s a though a switch is flicked, and I have to pee….right then and there.. !!!

It quickly becomes a mind game, as I employ every single muscle fibre of my well tuned pelvic floor (at least it once was)…  to buy myself enough time to at least get all the stuff as far as the kitchen before rushing full speed into the bathroom (God help me if the backdoor is locked and my hands are full while I fumble for a key).

But here’s the puzzle…the normal trip home is 30 mins, yet on the odd day that I am travelling from the city it can be up to 2 hours …it makes NO difference how long or short the trip is. Nor does it matter that I make  a conscious habit of going to the loo before leaving the office, it’s just an automatic response to arriving home (mmm what does THAT say?).

I cast my mind back to the 80’s when I worked as a Childbirth Educator… coaching couples in the care and fitness of their pelvic floors, drilling them in their exercises like it was boot camp. I wonder just how bad things would now be without the benefit of all that training.

Guess it’s just another one of the joys of being ‘50 something’ !

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viagara ….and the old fella

8 Jan

Well here we are tonight P1120315surrounded by an auditorium full of baby boomers…. and listening to a stand up comedian wax lyrical about all things ‘middle age’. It’s hilarious  EXCEPT for the fact that I look around the room and think OMG   I am NOT as old as all these people …am I ??

The men with balding heads (and muffin tops spilling over their collars) … the women who look tired, and like the essence of their life has been sucked right out of them!!! … I’m trapped in a moment of dread and question …where DO I fit??

I know that it is right and proper that we pass the baton to the next generation… but somehow I still dread the idea that I have been relinquished to the pile of nondescript middle aged women who just blend into the background …like white noise.  Don’t get me wrong … I equally fear being seen as ‘mutton dressed as lamb’  … you know, one of those women who insist on dressing like their daughters (or worse still…. their granddaughters) … BUT I’m not quite ready for the twinset  and pearls or ‘sensible clothes’ that are befitting of a ‘woman my age’ …whatever that means !!

I’m 50 something … but not dead yet !!!

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