Money is tight these days.
But I'm sure you figured that out as I'm unemployed.
As a result, the personal grooming budget had to be sacrificed.
It's not like was going out for facials, massages and seaweed wraps when I had a job but I tried to get my nails and hair done with some regularity.
You know, the basics.
Money hasn't been the only culprit, I've simply lacked the will to get off my ass and groom myself.
It's like a never ending downward spiral. You don't go anywhere so you don't get dressed. You don't get dressed so you stay in your PJ's all day. You stay in your PJ's all day so you don't comb your hair.
You know where I'm going with this.
But yesterday, I decided that I had to break the cycle. I couldn't look like a bag of ass anymore.
Yet how could I make the magic happen without breaking the bank?
The solution: Cosmetology schools.
For $5.00 plus a small tip, I was able to get the eyebrows tamed and a pretty good manicure.
So I feel better, look better and didn't spend a great deal of money.
Thanks, Truman Cosmetology Salon, I needed that.
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2 comments:
You've put me to shame. Here I am with unwashed hair, no make-up, and wearing yoga pants (my official unemployment uniform). Nowadays, getting "dressed up" means putting on a bra and possibly socks. Pathetic, I know.
If there is anything you always, ALWAYS do when you're unemployed, it's get the hell out of bed by 7 AM and get yourself dressed and made up.
Did you notice how "out of it" you feel when you get into the habit of slouching around in your nightie? You begin to feel like you are convalescing from an illness. You begin to feel congenitally non-functional.
This is a hazard of not only unemployment, but working from home. Don't acquiesce to it. I feel strongly that a potential employer or customer can darn well smell it from the other end of the line, that you are talking to her while dressed in your nightclothes. I once read of a spectacularly successful real estate woman who worked from her home office, and she always dressed to the business max early in the morning, complete with suit, high heels, make up, and perfectly done hair, before she set foot in her home office. She said it made her feel, and sound, more businesslike.
Having my hours and pay reduced has forced me, like you, to make a lot of adjustments in my personal spending, and I managed to cut my spending on cosmetics and toiletries by 65%. I gave up the "premium" brand cosmetics like Exuvience and Sheseido and Lancome, and switched to L'oreal and other moderate "drugstore" cosmetics. I found a facial cleanser at Aldi's called Lacura that not only is incredibly cheap, at $2.50 for 12 oz, but is very gentle and much better for my skin than the vastly more expensive premium cleanser I used to use. Lacura also has a wonderful "firming" mask for about $3 or so that is superior to anything else I can find for less than $20. And guess what? When I recover my full income, I will NOT be returning to overpriced premium cosmetics, because it is too much fun and too NECESSARY to save money, and worse, the expensive stuff has the same ingredients, by and large. Now I feel like a sucker for all the money I spent on the premium gunk over the years.
Being broke is not fun. I hate it. I hate what it is doing to my credit rating. But it can sure teach a person how to manage money creatively and appreciate the small pleasures in life.
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