All the Purty Dresses

Hauled out the makeup the other day. Doesn’t happen very often. In fact, I purchased some of that makeup in Atlanta over 13 years ago.

Don’t tell me about it. I know. It’s just not worth buying more when I only use it every other year or so.

Yes, I’m one of those. I haul the makeup out and use it for job interviews and then for awhile after starting a new job. Just until they figure out I really know do how to do the job and they didn’t make a major error in hiring me. Then I put it away again. It’s really not the application I have issues with. It’s removing it that is the bigger pain. So to avoid the one, I just don’t do the other.

Since I’ve been at my present job over 12 years, there haven’t been many occasions to use the paints and pretties. I used it on the cruise my husband booked to celebrate our 10^th anniversary – which was 10 years ago. And I use it on very special occasions.

Last Thursday was one. (Oh, and by the way, that used to say “last night” - but I am a procrastinator extraordinaire.)

My daughter is making her second try at acceptance to the Naval Academy and Idaho’s annual All-Academy Dinner and Ball was last Thursday. Every Idaho midshipman and cadet at a military academy is invited, along with any student who received a nomination from an Idaho congressman or senator. Plus their dates and parents.

I gave some thought to just having my husband accompany her, but I knew she’d like both of us to attend. It’s a black-tie event and in light of my aversion to makeup [removal] and my lack of fancy dress, I wasn’t really equipped to attend anyway. But I did actually have makeup (albeit old) available and there are stores for shopping – even though I don’t really like doing that, either.

Yes, I am really female, why do you ask?

So we went shopping for formal wear last weekend. It wasn’t easy. I’m less than tall and more than thin. That makes finding a nice dress difficult. But the hunt was successful and I found a purty, sparkly dress to wear. Looked good with my tall, thin husband’s nice suit and my tall, thin daughter’s purty sparkles.

I felt quite chic. Unless I happened to walk in front of a mirror or other reflective surface. Then it was all:

Holy *#%@!!! If I sing IT’S ALL OVER!!

Sigh….