Forward Motion

I am a walker.  Big-time.  I walk nearly everywhere, mostly because - since we live in the city - it's a lot easier than waiting for the bus or the subway, and I don't know how to drive.  I do ride my bicycle, but my main mode of transport is my own two feet.

Sometimes I go for an exercise walk, and sometimes I head to the gym for exercise.  But in any event, I tend to wear out my shoes pretty quickly.  And with various foot problems, I have learned that it is worth it to invest in a good pair of shoes for exercise.  

Lately, though, I've been wanting to try a little bit of running.  I have no plan to become a marathon runner, or someone who runs above all else, but I am itching to add something a little bit different to my activities.  If nothing else, at this time next year, I'd like to be doing the Komen Race for the Cure running instead of walking.  Mostly, just to see if I can.  

Having thought about this and deciding to give it all a try, I stopped in last week at Philadelphia Runner, a store in the city devoted to running shoes, apparel, and other equipment.  A really nice young man waited on me, and he pulled out three different pairs of shoes to try, that would be good for both running and walking, as well as a set of Superfeet insoles.  At the time, I told him that I wouldn't be able to actually make a purchase until payday on the 30th, but he was nice enough to give me 100% of his assistance anyway.  Of the three pairs I tried, two were especially comfortable, and according to him, were very well-made, and not likely to wear out as quickly as the typical walking/running shoe.  

And of course, since there were two pairs that were possibilities, it was just as well that I wasn't having to decide right then between them.  Decisions such as that can cause me such agony, it's not even funny - especially for anyone trying to help me, or even just accompanying me.  But a couple of days ago, I made my decision - and in the end, it was because I liked this wild color of the New Balance W1080V3:

For someone who is used to mostly white walking shoes, or dark gray trail shoes, these are truly adventurous!

I just hope they make me adventurous enough to actually try running, and to be able to run the 5K next May ...

Product Disappointment

My eyebrows are extremely light - in that, they are often only noticeable at the inner corner where there are actually more than 2 hairs.  As a result, I try numerous eyebrow pencils, powders, etc.

About two months ago, I tried the Bobbi Brown Natural Brow Shaper.  I have nearly always been happy with any Bobbi Brown products that I've tried, and though I am not the most loyal brand customer, I go back to things that I like and that work for me all of the time.  So I was pretty excited to try this, particularly since it seemed so easy to apply.

And it was easy to apply, being on a spoolie brush like mascara.  The wand is, though, quite a bit shorter than mascara.  My biggest problem is that I was never able to control the amount being applied.  This could be user error, but when I would end up with too much product on my brow, it was really hard to remove.  It seemed to dry very quickly as well as dry firmly.  An eyebrow brush or spoolie was really hard to get through it to try and redistribute the product evenly.

On the occasions that I did get it "just right," I was disappointed to see that it tended to clump in some areas.  Maybe my brows are too thin to start with, but I just couldn't get the Natural Brow Shaper to look like it was anything like a natural brow.

It's too bad, since it was a fairly decent price (I paid $22.00 at Sephora) and would likely last a while, and the ease of application would have made it perfect if I could have made it work for me.  So although I had high hopes, I was very disappointed, and am unlikely to try it again.  

Thoughts on a Friday

Today is an important day in my personal history.  Eight years ago, on this date, I had a mastectomy and reconstruction on my left breast.  It was life-changing in so many ways.  But in the end, all in a good way.  I thought of it today when I was eating my breakfast and decided that I needed to remember that no matter what else happens, I'm still above ground!

Here are some thoughts from my brain for this week.

1.  I need to "up" my activity and better eating level.  I am feeling too sluggish most of the time, and I want to feel better and healthier. Not that I am hopeless, but I need to remember that feeling better makes me happier, and get with the program!

2.  I wish I could find a nice pair of navy blue slacks.

3.  I think my makeup-buying spree last weekend actually has me set for spring and summer, for the most part.

4.  I tried "tightlining" on my eyes this week, and liked the result.  (Google the term, it will explain it so much better than I can.)  I love eyeliner, and since I can't get the "cool" look so many others seem to be able to get, at least I can make my eyes look prettier. I really like eye makeup, but not garish - just soft, pretty, and enough to make my eyes look awake!

5.  I want to try running.  Not that I will ever become a running fanatic, but just to mix things up a little bit.  Then again - see #1 - I just need to do things more consistently!

6.  One of the activities I want to do is to get our garden in shape.  Before the ick of summer heat and humidity get here, I want us to be able to enjoy ourselves in our nice, private outdoor space.  I used to love it when we would eat meals outside.

OK, that's it for now.  I am overall happy with myself.  I just want it to stay that way.

Brows

I spent a good part of my life not thinking about my eyebrows at all.  I mean, they were neither really thick (like Brooke Shields' brows), nor a skinny line drawn on with pencil, like so many older women I would see.

A few years ago, I noticed that they were a little bit sparse at the ends, and sort of heavy on the part near my nose.  The place where I was getting my hair cut did other beauty-related things, so I tried getting my brows waxed.  BIG MISTAKE.  My sensitive skin bled, and I walked around with two bright pink lines near my eyebrows for two weeks.

Then a place near where we live advertised brow-threading, so I gave that a try.  Uncomfortable, but not bloody, though I still had the telltale pink lines.

So I decided I would take care of my own brows, by tweezing them.  That, however, didn't work because even with a magnifying mirror, I couldn't see well enough in the mirror to tweeze them ... and I couldn't tweeze them while wearing my glasses!

Yesterday, I decided that enough was enough, and called the local Blue Mercury to ask if they tweezed brows.  I was able to schedule an appt this morning.  Success!  The woman who did my brows was very nice, very careful, and she did a wonderful job.  You can bet I'll go back there!

And it's funny, but all day when I've caught a glance of myself in the mirror, I feel like I look a WHOLE LOT better.  Maybe I do, and maybe I look exactly the same.   But I feel like my brows look a whole lot neater.

Now I just need to figure out what product works best on them.  For a while, I used Anastasia Brow Powder Duo, in the Strawburn shade.  I like it, but decided to try something less involved.  I've had luck with Bobbi Brown products when I've tried them, so when I say they had a new Brow Shaper, I decided to give it a try. But it seems to deposit too much product onto my brows - maybe I have a heavy hand - so only time will tell.

In the meantime, at least my brows look better on their own ... :-)