Our house rule is if you want something done a certain way then YOU do it. I've had to learn to let go of some things (like how to fold laundry) but it can be hard too :) Biggest phobia: Ground wasps, those buggers are vicious! Hairstyle and hair color in the 80's: Long and straight, it just won't curl...sigh. First car: A maroon 1971 Granada with one gold door andhood. It sat 7 comfortably though. Favorite saying: No worries! Best sports fantasy: Winning at anything, not likely though. If no one would know, what would you watch on cable all day: The nanny and the Golden Girls - except first we'd have to get cable. I think not having HGTV has helped making building decisions since I don't know about all the cool new stuff out there. Favorite comfort food: Mashed potatoes and gravy (which DH had ready and waiting last night after a very long day / week at work :) What your mom never found out: What I did incollege...shhhhh. Best hangover cure: A big glass of water and two advilbefore bed. I am most confident when: I know what I'm talking about. First job: Picking beans and tomatoes for a neighboring farmer. What my significant other appreciates in me: I'm easy going and calm, I laugh at his jokes, and I like his cooking (but I make better tea). What my significant other does not appreciate in me: Mornings. Choose one: MIL (or pick an annoying relative) stay with you for 1 month or camp 1 month in cheap tent. Tent. I love my MIL, but I like my privacy - I can only stand living with my DH because he is so dear. I can be anti social sometimes, it's why we live in the woods. Time you usually go to bed: That depends on the season. Spring and summer, it's 11, then 3, then 5 (critter feedings). Winter and fall 11:30ish. Perfect date would be: Lying in a hammock with a nice breeze to keep the bugs off and someone bringing us drinks. (All the while someone else is in the house cleaning it and doing laundry...) Household chore you hate the most: vacuuming, especially in the fall and spring when the live oaks shed their leaves. Where you were born: Great Lakes Naval Hospital. Your best friend once told you: Dinner's on the table come home! (he's a great cook too)

Trailrunner, Jterrilynn, & Nance...thanks for the kind words! Golddust, I love your haircut. It enhances your pretty, delicate, heart-shaped face & high cheekbones. Adorable! Dlm, wow! You have great hair & look marvelous with it straight or curly! Nice to have options. I assume that's your DH & son? They are certainly handsome too! Beautiful family. LvrGolden, Mona, & Rose...all beautiful ladies over 50 with great hair! Oakley, I am dying to know what you think of your virtual hairstyling! I think Kelly found just the right do for you, and you know what? You really, really do look like Meg Ryan! You two have very similar features except that you are not scarecrow thin like she is (fortunately...'cause that's scary!) You would look great with layers around your face if you want to take baby steps toward shorter hair. I'd be delighted to get free advice too, if anyone has any suggestions. All feedback is good feedback. It can be hard to know what hairstyle options to pursue as we find ourselves no longer 25!

I am getting close to 50 and the biggest change I've noticed is my feet. I keep them well moisturized and do my nails same as always, but the foot itself looks bonier and thinner-skinned and just old. My toes even look longer. I wear sandals 9 months a year so this is hitting me where it hurts. I have had good luck with my skin, which I attribute to wearing SPF 15 every day since age 24 and not smoking. I just started to get a line between my eyebrows this year, even though I am a big scowl-er due and squint-er due to poor vision. I do wish I paid more attention to my manicure, but I don't. I buff smooth every Sunday night and leave it at that unless I am going to a special event. I think updating eyeglasses and shoes is important for me to feel my best. I am hunting for new frames now and always on the lookout for comfy shoes that don't read "old". Some funky/casual styles that gals with smaller feet can get away with look like orthopedic shoes on my size 10s. Others' responses remind me that I need to drink more water and sweat sometimes. My DDs are makeup hobbyists and they really like TooFaced, but it hadn't occurred to me to try it. Hearing that the lipstick lasts may send me rummaging through their stashes--pale lips are my genetics and I hate them!

I am confident that every single one of us have entirely too many anecdotes from our own experiences detailing times when we felt demeaned, objectified, ridiculed, and treated as a “lesser than.” It IS infuriating, and I am also confident that although the push towards being “woke” about such things has achieved a measure of success, there remains a lot of inappropriate garbage going on out there. There remain a lot of gray areas, as well, where even those who have suffered the abuse and know what it is have difficulty in knowing how to appropriately respond in all situations. I know a female EY executive and thought of her when the news broke the other day and outed the firm for their discriminatory “training.” I’ll have to ask for her take on that. She has always struck me as someone who is extremely self-assured and commanding, and I cannot imagine her being on board with that sort of thing. But who knows? Maybe her outlook was more along the lines of going along with the established procedure so as not to rock the boat. I worked for a month – a whopping MONTH – at a small company where the boss referred to women as “skirts.” (Much like the “legs” comment above.) We interviewed during my brief time there for other positions, and he would “jokingly” ask female interviewees if they “did windows and fetched coffee.” Appalling. He threw a party for employees at his home, and insisted on giving female attendees a “tour” which culminated in a very creepy viewing of his bedroom. I will never forget how it felt to be led into that room by him, with his arm draped possessively around my shoulder. I cringe just thinking of that, even now – many years later. I left the company as a disgruntled employee, filing a complaint with the home office against this guy. I do know that legal action was brought against him at one point, but have no idea what the outcome was as I was long gone and moved on to an agreeable environment by then. In thinking of the truly creepy things I’ve endured in the past, I feel a wave of appreciation for those who have modeled respect and professionalism during my career. Most of my superiors have. It makes me a little more inclined to be forgiving towards the occasional lapse of thought and the comment that just comes across strangely. Things like that MAY reflect an underlying attitude, or they MAY just be attributable to social awkwardness. I do think that knowing at least a little something about the intent of the other person can make all the difference in how we choose to perceive their slips.