"...a one-woman household is not going to survive the economic downturn. I'd better find a partner to share the expenses. Time to start taking care of myself again."

This is actually well established, there was an economics paper back in the 80s I believe that established that a reliable early sign of a recession was an uptick in lipstick sales. The idea being apparently that it is something nice you can splurge on yourself when you are feeling down that in the great scheme of things doesn't cost all that much.

Whore hoops and come fuck me pumps. A girl's gotta pay rent, ya know.

I think women may be investing in Botox because they're afraid if they "look old" in the job market, they won't get the job they need or the promotion required to keep ahead of the economic debacle.

I suspect at least some of this is related to the job market. When I have to go out to a job interview, I wear makeup and color my grey hair - something I don't do normally. But when you're trying to make a good impression on a job interviewer, it helps to look youthful and perky.

I've found that when an interview sees a few grey hairs, he immediately thinks that I must be less up to date on the latest chemical techniques. Sounds silly, but it's true. When I color my grey, I get more job offers.

Despite the laws against it, there's a strong prejudice in the industry against software developers over the age of 40. A lot of these guys are going to be thinking about hair dye, hair transplants and the like in this economy.

I was born in the year the Baby Boom birthrate peaked, 1953; I am 55 years old. This means that women born during the Baby Boom are now between 47 and 63 years of age.

Believe me, spending on everything that promises to return skin to it's formerly dewy, elastic texture will go up for as long as we can afford it, at least until we all accept the changes age brings.

The reason that sales of anti-aging skin treatments and cosmetics are up is due to the fact that more women think they need them than ever before.

Any other explanation is secondary.

As someone who's contracted, I have scores of job interviews every year. No one seems to care that I've old lady hair. They hire me for my mind.

And honestly, if silver hair weren't associated with age, women would color their hair the color of my hair. It's stunning. Sure, gold hair is the ideal, but silver is also a precious metal.

Never underestimate the earning power of beauty. Unfortunate, but true.

In some situations, beauty is the trump card, but what if your doctor or an engineer have lovely skin and skulls, but substandard skills? As the economy continues its collapse and competition increases for customers, what will matter most is talent. Talent will trump.

I wish I could remember where I read this, but, in developing nations, when people first get disposable income, supposedly women first buy lipstick and men buy cigarettes.

Of course, I'm more of a booze and smokes kinda broad, not much for the lipstick!

I've just been downsized after a 30 year career in a major corporation.

Although I'm not vain and pay very little attention to the latest-anything in fashion and so on, I'm acutely aware that I need to make my best entrance in the job market.

I have a very competent job record, but don't want to show up to an interview looking like a young manager's mom or grandma.

I haven't signed up for Botox just yet, but am considering it....

Anyone who is 10 years older than the managers they work for will be labelled "old"

And "old" in many fields means "out of date" "can't get them to work weekends" and "health problems lurking"

Women are far more susceptible to "old is useless" thinking, but men are starting to catch up to this.

Shooting your skin and muscles full of fillers and toxins is not "taking care of yourself".

Sorry about the layoff, but do you think botox will make a difference? Hollywood actresses buy the best botox in the world, but don't look younger. They just look botoxed.

Normally, I am the most practical of women. But having manicured nails really cheers me up. I buy funky shades of polish even when things are a bit tight. Now granted, I do my own manicures to save money, I buy $4 polish not $25 polish, I don't spend that money on other things, but I do love my crazy nail color.

And I will say, this goes for more than the high end fashion stuff. Years ago, I was talking to the owner of my daughter's daycare. She was complaining about how many people owed money on their child's care and how it caused her trouble making payroll.

I stood there feeling uncomfortable about how much money we owed and said something to the effect that I was sorry we were so behind. We had always had an arrangement, that due to the feast-or-famine nature of my business, that we would pay in chunks when we got money--and we did, religiously. But sometimes, we got very behind.

And she smiled and said she wasn't talking about us, WE always paid. She was talking about the people who were paying the subsidized rate ($35/week) and were literally months behind. Many of these waltzed in with fancy hairdos, expensive manicures, Sean John sweatshirts and the newest style of cell phone. She knew we were struggling because she saw me in no-name jeans and t-shirts without all the fashionable accessories. And lest you cry "racism" as a thinly veiled substitute for poverty, this was a black woman talking about black clients to a white woman. She knew, and resented, that people who were arguably poor and needed help chose to spend their money on fripperies, when they owed HER for providing an essential service.

And I suppose, this just goes to prove that if we don't have a lot of money, even when that "not a lot" means poverty, when we GET a little money, we sometimes spend it in ways to make ourselves feel better instead of spending it responsibly. And manicured nails, fancy hairdos and expensive skin creams fit right into that niche.

I may be broke. I may be scared. But DAMN, my nails look GOOOOOD.