Made of Adam and Eve, Not Silicone.

We can’t all look the same. From the on start of your father’s sperm penetrating your mother’s egg, our genes are set. We have our mother’s hair or our father’s deep-set eyes. Our nose may go crooked when we smile and our skin may become rather dry in the winter but that is who we are. Perhaps our hair is unruly and doesn’t look like the model’s hair in the Pantene Pro-V ad. Our eyes might not be the “preferred” color for the opposite sex but they are a part of us. Why, then, do you think the beauty industry has such a strong grasp on young and older women? Is it to dissuade us from facing our real “face?” To make us unhappy with what we’ve got and to “better” ourselves? In a simple word, yes. Don’t get me wrong, I of all women have gone to the lengths so as to dye my hair an unnatural shade, to buy colored contacts and to apply anti-wrinkle cream at the age of twenty-four. Show me any magazine ad where the woman has not had 100 pounds of airbrushed makeup applied or twenty stylists succumbing to her every “beauty” need and I will buy that product. Show me a sustainable and un-enhanced beauty product and I might very well try it out. 

The question then arises, should I spend my time and money on such an endeavor in the chance the opposite sex would find me better suited for their taste? A much deeper and unassuming answer awaits. As a woman who has done the “dying,” the “bleaching,” the “plucking” and the “removal,” I can only offer this: If you ever plan on having a career or a family, don’t plan on having time to keep up such appearances. A family and a career and everyday stresses will lead to you looking, well, more like a working woman than a goddess. And therein lies the root of all our societies problems. If a man were to look for a wife who suits his aesthetic tastes, he should be ready to assume she will be spending most of her time preening and primping. Unless she has the money or the resources to hold up such a livelihood, he should be ready to see her bare all, unmasked and unkempt. 

Call me old-fashioned but in the age of woman’s rights, makeup was not a requirement but more of a luxury given to the upper class when the elite were seeking companions. In the same vein I wish to extend my comparison to men. A man nowadays holds much to his name and his credibility. A man in these times, during such economic turmoil needs to hold his own in such an unstable economy. Are these fair expectations for the male gender? I would say if men hold their self worth in their ability to provide for not only themselves but for a family, then they should expect their wife to be of substantial beauty. And by beauty, I mean by strength and respect. If a man cannot prize his family as a farmer prizes his land, then why does he work so hard to obtain such a life? I can only guess that what one finds fitting another finds distracting. 

Facebook: Friend or Foe?

As a functioning social-minded person of today, I find that Facebook lately has begun to grab more of my attention than that of my actual friends. Facebook is always there to advert my fingers from typing what I actually want to search for, such as “Adverse reactions to acetaminophen.” Instead my subconscious mind unknowingly types in www.facebook.com. There I am once again! Led to scroll through my friend’s status updates like a raccoon searching for his next piece of discarded buttered toast in the dumpster. Twiddling my thumbs for anticipation of the little red notification in the upper left bar, I anxiously await who saw my status update and/or newly updated profile picture and what kind of delicious comments I can gobble up. A feeling of accomplishment arises as I settle down in my green lazy-boy recliner and say to myself “Well done, you have shown the world a little piece of yourself once again and by the looks of it, people like you, they really like you.” Eventually, I forget what it was I wanted to accomplish on the computer in the first place and return to my mundane life, full of useless tasks such as work and actual eating. Sure, it might sound ridiculous to some, but Facebook has become my confidant, my friend in times of useless boredom and activity. It has become a place for the whole world to see who I really am.

On the other hand, I can’t help but wonder if there’s more to life than Facebook. People have survived for centuries without the use of frequent “Lol’s” on their friend’s funny Facebook photo or having to remember their new password because their ex-boyfriend kept phishing their account. People must have gotten on somehow right? Which leads me to my next pondery. I was at work the other day, having issues with my coworker wanting to exchange “words” so to speak and I became flustered pink with panic. At first my face had a quizzical expression as if he had just told me to go spelunking on the river gorge after I had finished my banana avalanche. The realization had hit me that he actually wanted a response soon, so my first thought was, “Go get your keyboard and post a status update asking your friends what to do in this situation.” Alas, I could not retrieve my laptop or my smart phone so I was faced with a dilemma, a dilemma that demanded an answer. When one becomes confronted face to face with exchanging “real” emotions and actual sounds, can we use our silly face emoticon or say, “ROFL?” You could, I suppose but it might merit an unsolicited response to go straight to the Looney Bin. Could Facebook be taking away the basic knowledge and skill of interacting with each other?  Quite possibly.

In conclusion, I leave the audience with this: What did prehistoric folk do when faced with confrontation? Did they take a swing of the bat, or aim of the gun if they knew their livelihood was being threatened? I’m sure they did, but we live in the 21^st century, the century of Facebook, and for that I am grateful no persons will be hurt in the manufacturing of new messages, links, updates, or photos. It is then up to you to decide if Facebook has made you a better person, a person like me, or if Facebook has left you wanting more out of life like actual friends or a “real” life (whatever that is), then perhaps facebook has become your foe. By the way, your grandfather added me as a friend, I hope you don’t mind if we hangout, on Facebook that is.