Of course! In answer to your question. I would get new legs. If it were easy, didn't cost a penny and was instantaneous. My husband has the most beautiful legs...mine chunky, "strong" workaday legs. I'll take your beautiful nostrils for my hefty thighs. Deal?
I’d take your legs for my nostrils any day!!! But that’s a totally unfair deal. There’s nothing workaday about your legs and my nose?? Let’s just say it’s a looong work day… ❤️❤️❤️ Thank you for stopping by, sweet friend!!
Diane, thank you for sharing this piece with us. Beautiful and vulnerable. I of course have always had things about myself that I’ve wanted to change, but I think at age 32 I am more in a “reversible enhancements” phase. I haven’t tried anything yet. If money and upkeep weren’t an issue, sure, I might get a little tox here and there. But I am not sure I could ever get around to permanently altering something about myself - which may speak to that younger self you mentioned. I don’t want her to be forgotten! She got me here, crooked smile and dimples and all. Thank you for sharing and creating space for such important conversations about aging, especially as a woman! 🩷
Hello Diane. I loved your piece. You write about insecurity, aging, and self-acceptance with such humor, honesty, and warmth. Thank you so much for sharing.
So relate to this, Diane! My nose has also plagued me since my teens and I’ve thought of nose jobs many times. Same as you, it seemed to embarrassing to have work done at the time, but now no one would bat an eyelid over it, it has definitely occurred to me. But even a rhinoplasty is pretty gruesome (tho not quite as bad as peeling your face off 🤮). I also feel kinda weird now i have kids like - hey, mummy got a new nose. 🤪
It’s really crazy how the nose thing is something that is SO hard to get used to!!?? As I said to Lindsey, how have we NOT gotten used to our own faces by now?? And yes, it’s almost weirder for others to see us differently — they look at us all the time, but we only see ourselves in the mirror. So this might just be my lot in life. Staying away from mirrors!! 🤣
Thanks so much for reading and commenting. I’m so grateful for the support! xox
I'm with you, sister! That facelift sounds a little batshitty to me.
Here's the truth about cosmetic surgery: it's noticeable, and I dare say; not in a good way.
I have honestly not seen any older (or nowadays, younger) person who doesn't look odd after such procedures.
So, the question then is: old vs odd - which is better?
Have the old lines not deserved to leave a trace of the sweet and salty stories behind them?
Do you want to wipe them away to approve of yourself or so that others will approve of you? I don't think the answer will ever be yes for either scenario. That's rather sad.
I can't say I'm fond of the way my face does its own version of a yoga pose when I'm standing in downward facing dog or triangle pose. But lately I'm less inclined to resist these changes. My mind and body seem to be in a new kind of rhythm that feels like water lapping on a lakeshore. Sometimes it's calm and tranquil, other times it's a bit choppy. Yet it produces a constant sound: the unmistakable awareness of life and vitality - how precious it is.
Cheers to the wrinkles and the wisdom (we tell ourselves)!
I love your comment — it’s so much better than my post!! I’m going to have to hire you to ghost write for me!! But yes, the wrinkles have earned their place. I deal with them better than the very old imperfection that I’ve had my whole life — isn’t that funny?? It may not be true forever though. The wrinkles, sags and bags do seem more pronounced every day. But I find a way to laugh about them. That’s the best way I know to deal with aging!
Thank you so much for reading and commenting. I’m so grateful for your thoughtfulness, my friend: <3 <3
This was so great, Diane! I've also recently learned what goes on in these "new" face lifts and my stomach churns just thinking about it. The mirror fell off my medicine cabinet two months ago and I never put it back up and that's my version of cosmetic surgery haha
You are a gal after my own heart, Caitlin!! Not that you need to be avoiding mirrors! But it does work if you want to stay away from certain…uh…vanity projects…
Thank you so much for reading and commenting!! xox
It sounds like I am not the only one who gets startled by my own older face every morning. What I'd love to have, if cost were no problem, is glass skin with no speckles. My face, with so many brown spots, reminds me of the starry night sky, just the black and white reversed. But I guess there's not much I can do (other than that total face-off you just mentioned, which is just too "off-off"!)
Great piece, Diane, making us squirm, laugh out loud, and feel understood all at the same time. 😉💕
Ha! I have to say, I wouldn’t mind a little lasering to take off my age spots! They used to tell me they were cute when I was little, but that was when they were freckles. Now I look more like an overripe banana!
Thank you for reading and commenting, Yuni! I’m so grateful for your support! xox
I appreciate an advance medical directive that includes a clear case of sprucing up!
I actually have always hated my nose, too, but because it's way too small. Like I played the "steal a baby's nose" game and just kept it on my face. My mom was self-conscious that hers was too big. I think maybe death, taxes, and hating our noses may just be the inevitabilities of the human experience.
Ha! Yes I think you might have a point about the human experience. I doubt there are many other animals that give their noses much thought, so long as they do the job of smelling!
And I can’t imagine having a small nose. The grass is always greener, I’d say!
Thanks so much for reading and commenting, and being such a great promoter of my newsletter! I’m so grateful to you!! xox
So funny how the dream never goes away!! What is that?? How are we NOT used to our own faces by now??? 🤦♀️🤦♀️ But we can be sisters in rhinoplasty dreams, at least.
Thank you for reading and commenting!! So appreciate it!! xox
fascinated, sad, and terrified by this facelift phenomenon— even women in their 30s?! I’m at the point I’d like to tighten everything up, but can also see it’s devoting resources to a losing game (if we live long enough). Also, aren’t their more pressing problems in the world? So, I’m holding out.
Being seduced into buying products on Instagram? Well, sadly that’s another story. 😆 Someday I’ll learn, none of them do what they say!
I don't know if I'll do a facelift or not, but I am leaving my options open. I don't dislike my face. I just fantasize about rolling it back a few years. I have no illusions that it would fundamentally change my life, (and in fact I feel no need for that since I actually love my life) but I wouldn't hate feeling like I was putting my best possible face forward. I'm vain and I accept this about myself.
We do what we do!! No judgment!! It’s a funny combination of forces that work on us. Our own sense of self. Our upbringing. Our finances. We just have to find comfort in our own bodies somehow. What never ceases to amaze me is how hard that is!!
Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting! I appreciate it!! xo
Great read, Diane! I always had nose insecurities too — my mom even offered to pay for a nose job when I was younger (which only served to make me certain it needed fixing) — but I finally got to the same place you did. I wouldn’t be me without it, and I’ve actually come to like it 🙂 (Of course that was only after meeting with a surgeon about it, plus a face and neck lift … but after contemplating the invasiveness and recovery, plus the expense, I decided radical self-acceptance would be cheaper and easier!)
Wow, you have inspired me with your maturity and level of radical self-acceptance, Alexa Joy! And in the face (no pun intended) of parental hints that a nose job might be a good idea no less (like I said, my parents were the opposite - but it didn't make me less self-conscious -- so funny, right??). Thank you for reading and commenting! So appreciate it!
Well, it IS a process. I recently caved and got a small amount of Botox and fillers after promising myself I wouldn't -- and I honestly wish I hadn't because I don't like the way it looks. (Can you believe I miss my wrinkles?!) Never again! Live and learn!
I’m convinced that some of us will be self-critical no matter what we do (raising my hand here!!). But living and learning sounds good to me, especially these days. Plus, we’ll all have plenty of new wrinkles to embrace before too long, no doubt!! xox
I’m a little horrified to learn about face-pealing, but not surprised. I’ve seen a few TV faces that have been, shall we say, overcooked, in the filleting process.
I loved the zingers in this piece! So funny and well written! The descriptions were on the nose!
Wow, I had never intended to get a facelift but it never ceases to amaze me what some will subject themselves too.
Diane, I'm glad you made the right decision for yourself about your nose. I like to think we are who we are.
You do always crack me up though--love your new DNR acronym. Better than the big red file pocket that used to live on my parents' refrigerator! Someone told them that's the best place to put it at the time.
It's apparently called a deep plane facelift. 😲 Sounds so terrifying, I can't even imagine. And yes, we are who we are. It looks different for everyone--no judgment. But it seems that I'm going nowhere!!
Thank you so much for reading and commenting, my friend! I appreciate it so much!!
Breast reduction makes so much sense for many women, and I'm sure I'd share the impulse if I were built differently (if anything, I have the opposite issue-lol!). Hope it's in your future if that will make your life better!! xox
I haven’t ever lamented being uh…petitely built in that department! I would have to agree that it’s easier than the alternative. And I could totally understand a reduction just to make life easier, especially as we age. Gravity and all…
I quite fancied the Kardashian face lift in future! 🤣🤣 but now that sounds quite horrendous to have your face taken off 🙈🙈🙈🤦🏻♀️ tbf I also equally think it’s odd for someone 70 to pass for 30 something. I miss normal and unique faces! I haven’t seen anything wrong with your nose but I imagine we are all rather self critical.
Of course! In answer to your question. I would get new legs. If it were easy, didn't cost a penny and was instantaneous. My husband has the most beautiful legs...mine chunky, "strong" workaday legs. I'll take your beautiful nostrils for my hefty thighs. Deal?
I’d take your legs for my nostrils any day!!! But that’s a totally unfair deal. There’s nothing workaday about your legs and my nose?? Let’s just say it’s a looong work day… ❤️❤️❤️ Thank you for stopping by, sweet friend!!
Diane, thank you for sharing this piece with us. Beautiful and vulnerable. I of course have always had things about myself that I’ve wanted to change, but I think at age 32 I am more in a “reversible enhancements” phase. I haven’t tried anything yet. If money and upkeep weren’t an issue, sure, I might get a little tox here and there. But I am not sure I could ever get around to permanently altering something about myself - which may speak to that younger self you mentioned. I don’t want her to be forgotten! She got me here, crooked smile and dimples and all. Thank you for sharing and creating space for such important conversations about aging, especially as a woman! 🩷
Thank you so much for reading and commenting Claire!! So happy to have your youthful perspective on this. I’m all for hanging onto a crooked smile!!
Hello Diane. I loved your piece. You write about insecurity, aging, and self-acceptance with such humor, honesty, and warmth. Thank you so much for sharing.
Thank you so much for your kind words and for reading, Palabra! I deeply appreciate your support!
So relate to this, Diane! My nose has also plagued me since my teens and I’ve thought of nose jobs many times. Same as you, it seemed to embarrassing to have work done at the time, but now no one would bat an eyelid over it, it has definitely occurred to me. But even a rhinoplasty is pretty gruesome (tho not quite as bad as peeling your face off 🤮). I also feel kinda weird now i have kids like - hey, mummy got a new nose. 🤪
It’s really crazy how the nose thing is something that is SO hard to get used to!!?? As I said to Lindsey, how have we NOT gotten used to our own faces by now?? And yes, it’s almost weirder for others to see us differently — they look at us all the time, but we only see ourselves in the mirror. So this might just be my lot in life. Staying away from mirrors!! 🤣
Thanks so much for reading and commenting. I’m so grateful for the support! xox
Definitely all-over liposuction with a cupcake chaser
LOL! Perfect!!
Thank you so much for reading, commenting and RESTACKING Bria! I so appreciate your support here, as always!! xox
I'm with you, sister! That facelift sounds a little batshitty to me.
Here's the truth about cosmetic surgery: it's noticeable, and I dare say; not in a good way.
I have honestly not seen any older (or nowadays, younger) person who doesn't look odd after such procedures.
So, the question then is: old vs odd - which is better?
Have the old lines not deserved to leave a trace of the sweet and salty stories behind them?
Do you want to wipe them away to approve of yourself or so that others will approve of you? I don't think the answer will ever be yes for either scenario. That's rather sad.
I can't say I'm fond of the way my face does its own version of a yoga pose when I'm standing in downward facing dog or triangle pose. But lately I'm less inclined to resist these changes. My mind and body seem to be in a new kind of rhythm that feels like water lapping on a lakeshore. Sometimes it's calm and tranquil, other times it's a bit choppy. Yet it produces a constant sound: the unmistakable awareness of life and vitality - how precious it is.
Cheers to the wrinkles and the wisdom (we tell ourselves)!
🌸😁
I love your comment — it’s so much better than my post!! I’m going to have to hire you to ghost write for me!! But yes, the wrinkles have earned their place. I deal with them better than the very old imperfection that I’ve had my whole life — isn’t that funny?? It may not be true forever though. The wrinkles, sags and bags do seem more pronounced every day. But I find a way to laugh about them. That’s the best way I know to deal with aging!
Thank you so much for reading and commenting. I’m so grateful for your thoughtfulness, my friend: <3 <3
I can't ever be you, even as a ghost. You keep writing your funny little heart out.
💜
Thank you, Leonora❤️❤️
This was so great, Diane! I've also recently learned what goes on in these "new" face lifts and my stomach churns just thinking about it. The mirror fell off my medicine cabinet two months ago and I never put it back up and that's my version of cosmetic surgery haha
You are a gal after my own heart, Caitlin!! Not that you need to be avoiding mirrors! But it does work if you want to stay away from certain…uh…vanity projects…
Thank you so much for reading and commenting!! xox
It sounds like I am not the only one who gets startled by my own older face every morning. What I'd love to have, if cost were no problem, is glass skin with no speckles. My face, with so many brown spots, reminds me of the starry night sky, just the black and white reversed. But I guess there's not much I can do (other than that total face-off you just mentioned, which is just too "off-off"!)
Great piece, Diane, making us squirm, laugh out loud, and feel understood all at the same time. 😉💕
Ha! I have to say, I wouldn’t mind a little lasering to take off my age spots! They used to tell me they were cute when I was little, but that was when they were freckles. Now I look more like an overripe banana!
Thank you for reading and commenting, Yuni! I’m so grateful for your support! xox
Override banana? You made me crack 😅 Yes, they used to be cute freckles, but now they're spots. Dark, brown, age, whatever they call them. 🙄
I appreciate an advance medical directive that includes a clear case of sprucing up!
I actually have always hated my nose, too, but because it's way too small. Like I played the "steal a baby's nose" game and just kept it on my face. My mom was self-conscious that hers was too big. I think maybe death, taxes, and hating our noses may just be the inevitabilities of the human experience.
Ha! Yes I think you might have a point about the human experience. I doubt there are many other animals that give their noses much thought, so long as they do the job of smelling!
And I can’t imagine having a small nose. The grass is always greener, I’d say!
Thanks so much for reading and commenting, and being such a great promoter of my newsletter! I’m so grateful to you!! xox
Thanks for always writing such fun stuff so I can share! 💚
I am with you- i've been dreaming of a nose job for 30 years!
So funny how the dream never goes away!! What is that?? How are we NOT used to our own faces by now??? 🤦♀️🤦♀️ But we can be sisters in rhinoplasty dreams, at least.
Thank you for reading and commenting!! So appreciate it!! xox
I squealed at the filleting! I’m
fascinated, sad, and terrified by this facelift phenomenon— even women in their 30s?! I’m at the point I’d like to tighten everything up, but can also see it’s devoting resources to a losing game (if we live long enough). Also, aren’t their more pressing problems in the world? So, I’m holding out.
Being seduced into buying products on Instagram? Well, sadly that’s another story. 😆 Someday I’ll learn, none of them do what they say!
Maybe we’re just destined to be critical? For me, this is yet another reason to turn the mirror around-LOL!
Thanks so much for reading!! I so appreciate it!!
I don't know if I'll do a facelift or not, but I am leaving my options open. I don't dislike my face. I just fantasize about rolling it back a few years. I have no illusions that it would fundamentally change my life, (and in fact I feel no need for that since I actually love my life) but I wouldn't hate feeling like I was putting my best possible face forward. I'm vain and I accept this about myself.
We do what we do!! No judgment!! It’s a funny combination of forces that work on us. Our own sense of self. Our upbringing. Our finances. We just have to find comfort in our own bodies somehow. What never ceases to amaze me is how hard that is!!
Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting! I appreciate it!! xo
Great read, Diane! I always had nose insecurities too — my mom even offered to pay for a nose job when I was younger (which only served to make me certain it needed fixing) — but I finally got to the same place you did. I wouldn’t be me without it, and I’ve actually come to like it 🙂 (Of course that was only after meeting with a surgeon about it, plus a face and neck lift … but after contemplating the invasiveness and recovery, plus the expense, I decided radical self-acceptance would be cheaper and easier!)
Wow, you have inspired me with your maturity and level of radical self-acceptance, Alexa Joy! And in the face (no pun intended) of parental hints that a nose job might be a good idea no less (like I said, my parents were the opposite - but it didn't make me less self-conscious -- so funny, right??). Thank you for reading and commenting! So appreciate it!
Well, it IS a process. I recently caved and got a small amount of Botox and fillers after promising myself I wouldn't -- and I honestly wish I hadn't because I don't like the way it looks. (Can you believe I miss my wrinkles?!) Never again! Live and learn!
I’m convinced that some of us will be self-critical no matter what we do (raising my hand here!!). But living and learning sounds good to me, especially these days. Plus, we’ll all have plenty of new wrinkles to embrace before too long, no doubt!! xox
I’m a little horrified to learn about face-pealing, but not surprised. I’ve seen a few TV faces that have been, shall we say, overcooked, in the filleting process.
I loved the zingers in this piece! So funny and well written! The descriptions were on the nose!
Overcooked - ha! Yes, that does seem to be an unfortunate outcome sometimes!
Thank you for reading and commenting! So grateful for your friendship here! <3
Awww grateful for you too 💜
Wow, I had never intended to get a facelift but it never ceases to amaze me what some will subject themselves too.
Diane, I'm glad you made the right decision for yourself about your nose. I like to think we are who we are.
You do always crack me up though--love your new DNR acronym. Better than the big red file pocket that used to live on my parents' refrigerator! Someone told them that's the best place to put it at the time.
It's apparently called a deep plane facelift. 😲 Sounds so terrifying, I can't even imagine. And yes, we are who we are. It looks different for everyone--no judgment. But it seems that I'm going nowhere!!
Thank you so much for reading and commenting, my friend! I appreciate it so much!!
The face peeling off has put me off! 🤣🤣🤣 I haven’t tried any anti-ageing stuff yet (Botox and the like) but I’m also inclined to age naturally.
I nearly died when I heard the description. I had no idea!! 😲😲
I do plan to get a breast reduction in future. 🤞🏻 but most women I’ve heard anecdotally and on the internet do not regret getting this done.
Breast reduction makes so much sense for many women, and I'm sure I'd share the impulse if I were built differently (if anything, I have the opposite issue-lol!). Hope it's in your future if that will make your life better!! xox
I used to be very flat chested and I loved it. Didn’t bother me a bit…and then they grew halfway through high school 😭😭😭
I haven’t ever lamented being uh…petitely built in that department! I would have to agree that it’s easier than the alternative. And I could totally understand a reduction just to make life easier, especially as we age. Gravity and all…
Haha yes! Gravity hasn’t been kind for a while! 🤣🤣🤣🙈🙈🙈
I quite fancied the Kardashian face lift in future! 🤣🤣 but now that sounds quite horrendous to have your face taken off 🙈🙈🙈🤦🏻♀️ tbf I also equally think it’s odd for someone 70 to pass for 30 something. I miss normal and unique faces! I haven’t seen anything wrong with your nose but I imagine we are all rather self critical.
Raising my hand to the descriptor of self-critical, LOL!