Senior anxiety, self-indulgence and a makeover

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Beauty's only skin deep, yeah, yeah, yeah.



I was never going to color my hair or wear makeup everyday or ever buy products marketed to aging babyboomers that were not even on the market a decade ago -- or if they were, I didn't notice.

BB creams, spot correctors, wrinkle firm lines and pore minimizer; laser-focus wrinkle fighter, intensive night cream and moisturizer and SPF 50 and concealer and eye cream, brow enhancer, primer before foundation and so much more.

What happened?

One day, with way too much time on my hands, on a whim I went to a department store cosmetics counter and ordered a woman in a deceptively reassuring white lab coat to give me a makeover.

The works. Look better, feel better was my justification.

She was a salesperson and I was a sucker.

When she finished I looked fabulous -- alert, bright-eyed and flawless. I walked out a few dollars poorer -- with everything she applied to my face along with detailed step-by-step instructions for how to apply every single item.

Several weeks later, here's what I know for sure: I am no makeup artist, even with the step-by-step instruction. Aging is not pretty, nor is it fun and beauty at any age is expensive -- and a lot of work.