Maintenance Level

Before I say anything else, I have to tell you that I am SICK of rain.  This entire week it has rained every single day, and today I felt like I just should have tried to swim to work rather than attempt to walk!  I know rain is needed for plants, flowers, the planet, etc., but I enjoy it more when it is occasional and not constant.  And when it is not pouring as it was this morning.  I've spent the entire week longing to feel dry instead of damp ...

OK, now that I've gotten that off my chest, let's proceed.

A couple days ago, I read this blog post, and it got me to thinking about my own thoughts and ideas about beauty, aging, appearance, etc.

I think I've stated more than once that I enjoy fooling around with makeup, and that I like to try new things from time to time.  There are times when I think I spend too much time reading or thinking about it.  At those moments, I consider myself High Maintenance.

Then I'll read an article with a title like "How Supermodel Pretty McLovely Looks Natural" and realize that maybe I don't even *have* a level of maintenance, compared to others!  To me, using approximately 15 products on your face and/or person before you go out the door with your "everyday" look is nuts.  Granted, I don't rely on my looks to make a living, but it's amazing to me how many different things some people use on a daily basis.

My sister Nancy, for instance, never leaves the house without a full face of makeup.  I mean, lipstick, eye makeup, mascara, the whole thing - even to go to the gym!  WHAT?  And I know that she longs to get Botox, cosmetic surgery, etc., but cannot afford it.  Don't get me wrong, she's a lovely woman who always looks nice and extremely fashionable, but when she visits or I visit her, just watching her get ready to go to the grocery store is exhausting, you know?  And I have no idea what Nancy's actual hair color is, or if she has gone gray at all, since she has colored her hair since she was in high school and I was a little girl.  I assume she has gray hair, but couldn't swear to it in a court of law. ;-)

Then there is my other sister, Mary Ellen.  Who has worn mascara to each of her daughter's weddings, and that's it.  A few summers ago, her daughters talked her into getting her eyebrows waxed and she said, "I had no idea such a thing could make such a difference."  She has that lovely gray hair that everyone wants but so few are lucky enough to get.  She enjoys seeing her daughters try different makeup, hair color, etc., but is just not interested herself.  She finds even just the mention of something like Botox offensive.

All of my nieces love makeup, hair products, clothes, etc. in various degrees.  None of Mary Ellen's daughters understand her disinterest in such things, though to their credit, they find it more amusing than anything else.  I know that at least two my nieces get Botox injections pretty regularly (one is in her early 40s, the other in her mid-30s), which always surprises me.

So clearly, I'm not even has high maintenance as members of my own family!

I guess I'm at medium level, and even then, it depends on the day and what is or is not happening.  Theoretically, I would love to look great and put together whenever I leave the house.  In reality, if it's not a work day or I'm not going anyplace special, I look clean and neat, and that's it.  I've never been interested in cosmetic surgery or Botox, mostly because I cannot imagine why anyone would voluntarily have surgery or want someone to put needles into their face.  Admittedly, I used to look disdainfully at people who did either or both.  I have become slightly more forgiving, having convinced myself that a) it's none of my business what others want to do with their appearance, and b) they don't care what I think anyway.

I enjoy makeup.  I have colored my hair in the past, and may do so again the next time I go for a cut; I haven't decided.  I think it's important to be neat, clean, and have a good overall appearance.  And for some occasions, I'll spend a lot of time and effort before leaving the house to look my very best.  But I cannot imagine devoting a large chunk of every day to just getting ready to walk outside.

What about you?  Where do you fall on the maintenance scale?