Reflections of katlupe: The Best I Can Be At My Age

Not the most flattering picture, but my hair was long.

After I got myself all settled in to my new city life, I wanted to work on my appearance a bit. Since I am in my later sixties I am aware that I will never look like I did in my twenties, nor do I want to. What I want to do is to look and feel the best I can at the age I am now at. I had let my hair grow very long and it was really too long. Hard to prepare foods when your hair is in the way all the time. Not good for kitchen work at all. One of the reason I had stopped getting it cut at the hairdressers was because we did not have the money. I am serious. Our money was very scarce back then and we had no extras. Unless it was money to be spent on essentials, not luxuries.

After having my hair cut off!

So a few weeks ago, my boyfriend treated me to an appointment at Teasers, the hairdresser around the block from me. Sophie, my hairdresser took about 10 inches of hair off! Can you believe it? Yes, she had me donate it. So I am happy that I did not have to see my hair laying on the floor around my chair. I felt good about that because my hair was very healthy and shiny. I hope it is welcomed by whoever gets it. I had her cut it about shoulder length with bangs. Now it is easy to wash, dry and style. I love it! It is more stylish. Now I don't look so much like an old hippie from the 60's.

The entrance to the Oakdale Mall in Johnson City, NY.

Soon I wanted to do more. So I was looking for a place to get my ears pierced. I had pierced ears for years and always wore earrings and other jewelry. Then I got into the homesteading lifestyle and it seemed senseless to do that. Rings would get in the way working in the garden or kitchen. Soon I was not wearing any at all. My holes in my ears had closed up and when we needed money I sold most of my good jewelry on eBay. I just have a few pieces left. Next thing I know, my boyfriend is taking me to the Oakdale Mall in Johnson City, NY. My old stomping grounds! I spent an awful lot of time in that mall in the 80's. It was my favorite place to be in my previous life.

The Piercing Pagoda

We ended up at the Piercing Pagoda picking out a pair of amethyst studs. This is where I had my ears pierced originally long ago. I must say the woman who pierced my ears was very quick and I barely felt it. The piercing was free with the purchase of the earrings. I have to leave them in for a month before I can start wearing other earrings. I still have a few pairs of my earrings left which I did not sell on eBay. Now I am having fun looking at the jewelry on eBay! Uh oh!

Living in the state forest

People think I must have been living in a third world country to have gone without things that most take for granted. No, I was only 6 miles from the closest town. It was a matter of not having enough money for these things and every penny went for bills, hay, gas and what was left went for food. No extras. I was not in the position to go out and find a job. When I did, I had to spend money for gas to get to the place to apply, then go back for an interview and then it would be a dead end. Nobody would hire me for I could not walk very good and had to use a cane. I felt like that put up some sort of warning to them not to hire me. Because they probably thought my health was not good would mean lots of sick days. Though that has never been the case with me. I am rarely sick. My knees are bad and that is really the only thing that affects me. My walking ability without a walker or a cane is not good at all.