Skin Deep...

Since I started using that magic soap, which is working wonderfully by the way, I realized that there were a lot of makeup products I don't use half as often as I thought. I took a good look at them today... I'm talking, a very good look... A lot of them had a layer of dust on them because I haven't used them in so long.

Gross, I know. But I realized all the different chemicals I was putting in my hair and on my skin ended up drying them out, and in turn, I was using more products to rehydrate it all. I cleared that cubby and cleared out the area behind my mirror... Holy wow. I feel so much better having all of it cleared out of the way. Less cluttered... I haven't thrown it all out, and I may end up doing that soon. But I've decided to test all of these new theories out before I chuck all the old stuff, just in case I realize I like the other way I did things better.

Now, all this crazy organic stuff I've been finding isn't very expensive. Some people automatically relate organic items as being more expensive, but that isn't always the case. A bottle of the castile soap that I got forever ago runs around $10-$15, depending on brand and where you buy it. I just saw it on sale at Smith's! And it lasts FOREVER. A little bit really does go a long way with this stuff. I've also been doing some research on different toothpastes and deodorant to actually see what's in what I've been using, and to see if it really would make any difference to switch... I'll post my findings when I figure out what they are.

Right, call me a hippie, again. I'm just trying to see if it makes any sense. I have this thing with not saying I don't like something until I've tried it. For example, Tegan's dad played World of Warcraft constantly, and I already knew I didn't like it because of what it did to him and how I saw how everyone else got when they played it. But, I tried it anyway just to see what all the hype was about. And now I can actually say, "That game sucks. You run around and kill the same things over and over again... Not worth losing sleep over." (Or social life, friends, relationships, and physical fitness....)

This try-everything-once rule doesn't always work with everything. Food, yes. Clothes, yes. Drugs, NO. Just clarifying. :)

I can now lead into something else that I've been thinking about....

Dresses.

Not just dresses, but how they relate to dating and trying new things.

There was this day that I went to try on dresses with some friends at Macy's. Once upon a time. In Florida. It started out simple enough, just trying them on for fun. Not like any of us would have the money to buy any of them. It eventually turned into a game of trying on the most hideous dresses... Kind of. They kept picking out dresses that looked terrible on the hanger, and I mean, make you want to throw up terrible, and they handed them to me to try on.

How the hell does it relate to dating? It's simple, really. I tried on dresses I would never have worn normally. And liked them. Back in the day, I decided to date a lot of different kinds of guys so I could actually see what I liked and what I didn't like... and a lot of the time, I was pleasantly surprised. Even if it was just a date here and there, it really helped me gain some perspective. I looked past physical appearance, and realized that they were beautiful inside and caught my attention. Something that looked good, could actually be cheap and hallow on the inside (which is actually what a found a majority of the time... yuck.)

So, the story with the dresses.... The last dress I tried on was over $300. No way was I ever going to buy it. I am not one to spend that much money on one article of clothing. But it was beautiful, and gold, and it fit me like a glove. I loved the way it fit me! But, of course, I couldn't afford it and if I did buy it, when on earth would I wear it? We did our runway show, and I went to take it off.

And the zipper would not budge.

I was mortified. It wasn't because I was too fat, because I wasn't. The zipper was just stuck on something. I was there with three other girls and they all made attempts to pull the dress down and up and in all kinds of directions, and it would not move. I put on some pants to try and cover up a little bit, and they all tried to lift the dress up over my head together! Isn't that an amazing mental picture? Three girls trying to lift a dress up over another girl's head? They were literally pulling me up so my feet were dangling.

The damn thing would not come off. It was the worst relationship with an article clothing I have ever had. The dressing room attendant had to actually come over and rip it off me.... Two hands on the back, one on each side of the zipper, and she pulled...

*RRRIIIIIPPPPPPPPPPPP*

Another employee came in to see the scene... So I had five people in there with me when this dress was torn off my body. It was the worst shopping experience I have ever had. The worst relationship with a dress I have ever witnessed.

Mortified. It reminded me of the worst relationship I have ever had. And that didn't end so pretty either.

(Sidebar: I didn't have to pay for the dress, because they determined it was the zipper that was the problem and it would have happened to someone at some point anyway...)

Looking back on it now, I laugh, but at the time it was terrible. And that seems to happen with a lot of things in my life. Terrible things happened, and I can actually look back on it all and laugh...

SO... Try a million different kinds of dresses and find out what you like and what you need... try it, even if it seems out of your league, even if it it hideous and something you wouldn't consider in your lifetime. And if it isn't going to work out and you can't get rid of a particular dress, someone can always come and rip it off... in a very not dirty way. Get your mind out of the gutter.... :)

Hopefully it will lead to the most beautiful dress you will ever wear.