day #9: a new face

i just wanted to buy some mascara.

i had researched it for months in relation to my preferred mascara brand of several years,

the green clinique tube i've perpetually used beyond the recommended 4 months.

and as i sat in the chair receiving my impromptu 15-minute makeover,

i thought how comparatively impulsive it was for me to agree to this.

the artist, a friendly woman named debbie, worked quickly as she informed me about the various products coating my face & eyes.

she insisted my skin was dry & required "hydration".

"hydration" apparently feels like lacquer.

now don't get me wrong:

i love makeup.

i have a kaboodle kit --

yes, i still own one

-- filled with various eyeshadows, lipsticks, & eyeliners that i employee throughout the week.

i've been wearing an evolving regimen of products since i was 12.

and i've settled on the fact that i am a lips & eye girl.

but even those are in moderation.

so when i peeked in the mirror after the final coat of mascara was applied,

i was shocked at the array of colors that greeted me.

after the initial befuddlement that impaired my response system,

i was able to stammer that it was "fun."

after some careful blending & strategic product removal,

i could confess i kinda liked it.

you know, in that way that accepts a new situation but offers no personal commitment to it.

debbie was pleased with her creation, having admittedly gotten carried away during the process due to me practicing a yes-and mentality.

D: "i'm going to do two types of mascara, jessica."

J: "yes, and why not make it extra thick!"

i drove away with my new mascara & nothing more,

save the free products that were thrown in for being a first-time customer

(&, i like to believe, a good sport).

at each stoplight, i chipped a few more layers off the spider-web eyelashes on my left eye,

the length of which,

due to the length-enhancing serum within that one type of mascara,

bore a striking resemblance to falsies.

my glossified lips formed into a smile at how i'd embraced an opportunity atypical to me:

i met a new person & tried on a new face, all in the course of a fraction of an hour.

passion this year is about trying new things & experiencing the consequences,

rather than fearing those consequences and missing out.

the cost of a tube of mascara was worth that lesson this afternoon.

day #5 & #6

much of my thinking takes place in the car.
i can already predict that --
should a pie chart be made of the topics this blog discusses this year
-- a mention of car drives will be a sizable & tasty slice.

as i drove to work yesterday, i found myself really listening to the lyrics on KLove.
i saw drivers & landscape around me.
colors were vibrant & organic.

in other words, i turned off the auto-pilot.

what fun to be engaged in the everyday moments!

i recall hearing eleanor josaitis, co-founder of focus: hope, speak once.
she remarked that she never took the same way to work.
now that is an adventure-seeker!
that is someone who is purposely keeping the auto-pilot off.

this morning, i decided to repeat yesterday's magic.
i even drove into work earlier so i could see a different landscape,
bathed with shadows & a deep-orange light from the rising sun.
i don't recall if i had the radio on the entire time,
but the songs that did play lifted my heart & energized me for the long day ahead.

sure, auto-pilot is helpful in some situations.
i'm not debating adaptational psychology here.
but today i'm keeping mine off so i don't miss a thing.