Thursday, March 18, 2010

Touching 30

I stood in the restroom here at my work, looking into the mirror while I put my mascara on and dusted my cheeks with makeup. I considered my age and smiled. This might come across as weird, but I don't mind being as old as I am.

Yes, I do have dark days still - and this is going to be embarrassing to admit. When I was a teenager, and even in my early 20's, I tended to look at 30 as the point in life when women became uninteresting. I mean, I would pick up a book, see the protagonist was in her thirties, and I would put it down and move along. Shame on me.

Guys are allowed to be interesting at 30, because that is the time when they have settled down and turned into the people that they are going to be. As far as I know, women go through that same stage when they are 20. <- Though, technically, I was 22 when that day happened.

Women - when they turn 30 or start getting up to that age - always seem to be fighting aging skin and hair, sagging figures, ticking body clocks, dancing babies... and they are also fighting to keep their men from losing interest and yenning after 20 y/o college girls. <- That is such a depressing prospect!

So sometimes, I'll sit cross-legged on my bed and DWELL on the fact I'm stuck on a one way street in a runaway Toyota whose brakes don't work at all.

But...

Looking at myself in the mirror I noticed that my face has more character than it had when I was a round-cheeked twenty-year old. I feel pretty and confident behind my face, and that was definitely not going on when I was getting into my 20's.

A couple days ago, I saw a story about the French President's wife, Carla Bruni. She was a model at one time - and had guys eating out of her hand. Now she's in her forties, she has had extensive work down on her face (from all appearances, anyway). She had botox to tighten up her forehead and collagen filler put in her cheeks and lips. She also had a lot of makeup on in a failed effort to hide the crinkly skin under her eyes.

Maybe I'll feel differently when I start getting up closer to my forties... but right now, I see the beginning changes in my face, and I like them. The only thing I'm frantic about preventing is the undereye problem. *grabs eyecream and smears on generously*

But seriously -

I agree that most women find themselves in their early twenties. But it is possible that there are some who don't actually feel like swans until much later.

While I'm dithering thusly, the point is that I can see myself down the road starting to write novels with thirty-something protagonists. IMO, it is just as important a find-yourself time as turning sixteen.

2 comments:

  1. I so agree - men have it much easier than women. (In pretty much everything.) Look at Kate and Leo. How many years has it been since the movie Titanic and Leo looks practically the same, while you can tell that Kate has gotten a little older with the years and with having children (though she is still drop dead beautiful). I think your attitude towards the passing years is wonderful. I'm turning 25 this year, and most of my friends have already had quarter-life crises. It's like, why? Why shouldn't we just celebrate how much we've learned and grown over the years instead of looking at it as "getting old"? One of my best friends is turning 30 this year and she's of the same mindset, despite being single and how much pressure her mom is putting on her. She couldn't care less! She's happy where she is and I hope to be the same when I hit the big 3-0 ... not too long now!

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  2. Thanks Julie<:

    Heheheh, like I said I do have dark moments sometimes. I'm happy where I am right now, but sometimes wish I hadn't spent so much when I was younger... *hates paying bills*

    When you're younger, it's easy to think that you have the rest of your life to pay off all the bills. Then a few years after graduation, you realize that the rest of your life is a VERY LONG TIME. You start to feel like Ben-Hur rowing in the galley of that slave ship. Working hard but not getting anywhere as far as you can see. :D

    Um, but the rest of the time... life is fast moving and there is always something to enjoy. Reasons to feel young and happy.

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