OH MADONNA & OTHERS, TOO

 

First and foremost, I've never been a fan of this singer and so-called actress. It feels strange that I find myself defending her now. But someone needs to!

Not long ago I saw recent photos of her online. She was attired in a tight black corset and appeared to have undergone more than a tad of plastic surgery. Beneath these photos were a slew of highly negative and ugly comments.

Mostly stating how unnatural appearing and unattractive she had become. I wondered if these people were viewing the same pictures I was seeing! I thought she looked beautiful! Of course there were changes from her younger days but far from unattractively so.

She did that tight black corset proud! How she keeps, or got her body that way is no one else's business!

Most criticized her for not accepting her age and embracing it. -- Why should she? Why should any woman?

And no, I have NOT undergone plastic surgery, Botox or any of that myself, the only reason being that I am too poor to afford it.

But often I've been accused of having had stuff done and I have to laugh. My firm skin is the result clean living and common sense. -- However there's always room for improvement! If I had the money I'd have everything lifted, sucked, or tucked! There is no shame in taking pride in one's appearance!

Remember that shaving your legs, armpits, and plucking your eyebrows is altering your natural appearance as well!

I've read that vanity is a weakness, in some cases it is, but it can also be a major strength!

At age 47 I underwent an expensive smile make-over. It gave me confidence and pride in myself I'd never known before. Even now at age 72 when I look in the mirror I'm not ashamed to say that I love the image smiling back at me.

In Madonna's case and that of other celebs what people fail to take into account is they're part of the entertainment industry. They have a brand and image to maintain. Had she allowed herself to age naturally, she would have been denigrated for that reason as well and probably by all those same people.

Life is full of no win situations and our society is not kind to older women. My personal philosophy is to always be good to myself because others are not. Call it my religion, I live by this!

A TEN YEAR PLAN, THINK AGAIN

 

"Where do you see yourself in ten years?" I've always detested that question! And tomorrow I turn 72 the same age as my mother when she died. Mom was a trip and memorable for all the wrong reasons.

I'm not expecting to die this year, (knock-on-wood) my mother was diagnosed with cancer at age 71 and by that time it had spread.

Never can I be sure what's going to happen tomorrow much less ten or even five years ahead.

Every time I've tried to make a plan, life would blindside me throwing everything on the floor scattered and broken like glass chess pieces. I'd pick them up, glue them back together and come up with a new plan; only to have the same exact thing happen.

So I'd buy a new chess set. And wait to see how other things play out before moving my pieces, hoping all of them would be correct, but it seemed they never were.

Actually I never learned to play chess. I wanted a set for Christmas when I was twelve. I watched kids play it at school and it looked like fun. However my mother refused, claiming I wasn't smart enough to learn anything that complicated.

I've read that our intelligence is inherited from the mother. So that doesn't say much for her!

2022 was a miserable and lousy year for a number of reasons. Also last year came many notable famous deaths as well as personal ones.

For example Queen Elisabeth of England, she was one I expected to go on forever; even long after the rest of us are gone. Unfortunately no one is immortal.

Then, came the death of versatile actress/comedienne Kirstie Alley. We were the same age and our birthday's close together. Ironically she died of colon cancer that spread, same as my mother!

One of my favorite original Dianne knock-knock jokes features Kirstie, read below:

Knock knock!

Who's there?

Kirstie Alley!

Kirstie Alley who?

Kirstie Alley cat who peed in my flower bed!

It seems less funny to me now that she's dead. Yes, I'm one of those people who chuckles at my own jokes.

2022 was also the year my remaining cousins all died. They were brothers of varying ages and I found it shocking that all passed within the same year.

The youngest, the one who always took the best care of himself died from two different kinds of cancer as well as a weak heart.

Death doesn't frighten me but other things do!

Thanks to modern healthcare our elderly live longer than nature ever intended. That's why we are now warehousing so many feeble old people!

My two older cousins were doddering dementia patients. This fate also befell my stepmother along with several dear and close friends. This is truly scary, I would prefer death!

I still recall every detail of my 25th birthday including what I ate for dinner. But nowadays I'm forced to wrack my brain to remember what I cooked the night before. And too many times I find myself standing before the wrong kitchen cabinet to retrieve something I know is in the opposite one, but it doesn't dawn on me immediately.

Equally disturbing are those evenings when I'm holding my DVR remote in my hand and I have to stop and think which button to press which I should know automatically by now.

I HOPE THESE ARE ONLY MINOR SYMPTOMS OF AGING AND NOTHING MORE!

I would never want to go on living after my mind is gone. Personally, I think dementia and Alzheimer's patients should be euthanized. This is merciful!!! I know there are people reading this who think I'm terrible for that. They seem to believe that letting these patients linger is kind. -- Actuality it's cruel!!!