Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Dog food and makeup

Just a titch cranky this morning. Got my hair done yesterday and it's tighter than a .... fill in the blank. I decide to drag Juno out in the rain which so far she hates and she refused to do #2. I don't like the rain any better than she does of course but I figured if I get her out first thing, the sooner I can go back to bed with a cup of coffee and my laptop. But no, instead I drag her around like a pitiful child wondering what that nasty stuff coming out of the sky was. So back inside for food and then I drag her out again. Finally, success and back to my waiting coffee. And yes, it's still gooey. Her stuff, not mine. Sigh. But she goes to the vet tomorrow, so perhaps after some expensive test we'll figure it out. Mmm, yes, it's occurred to me that I manifested her runny bum to put off her impending surgery. Interesting. If I have to change her food again, fine, but she really likes the one she has now and at $20 a 4kg bag, she should. Whatever happened to the days where giving your dog supermarket canned food was the norm - have you ever looked at the shelves of a pet store lately? My god, these dogs eat better than some people in the world. They've got food with DHA in perfectly shaped kibble with human grade meat and vegetable and fruit products. Don't like chicken or beef? How about trout or venison or lamb or duck even? The one brand of food (that give her the squitters) looked like a can of chicken stew, you could even see the peas and carrots in it. They even have vegetarian dog food. And the canned products are even more expensive than a caramel macchiato. Of course, when you don't have a child to spoil, the furry critters of the middle class world get the best we can afford. don't look now, but they've got strollers for dogs. I'm not sure if they're for the infirm dogs, but they come in pink and blue. In my neighbourhood, organic rules and Whole Foods is a stone's throw away.

They've got everything for dogs here, but makeup for black people? That's a little trickier. Apparently, Estee Lauder has discontinued my shade of Walnut in the line I was using. I went to 3 counters downtown on Sunday looking for it. You can't even begin to imagine how pissed off I was. When I finally find one that is the right texture and close enough shade for me to use, they discontinue it. Which leaves me the choice of having to drive further afield in search of makeup that could be old and discoloured. The Fashion Fair counter disappeared years ago, then Clinique discontinued my colour, then Elizabeth Arden. Yeah, I've tried less expensive ones (which you can't get try before you buy) and I've tried custom blended Prescriptives. MAC was too oily and came off on everything, but maybe I'll go back and see if they have anything new. There are a couple of relatively new lines that are worth trying out like NARS, smashbox or Makeup Forever but I tell you, after having my makeup done by professional artists, I don't have much patience with young girls at counters that ignore you or don't know what the hell they are doing with black women or try to sell you so much junk you don't need. See, I told you I was cranky. Maybe I need more coffee. Years ago when I came to this city and tried to get some makeup. I had a professional membership card with MAC cosmetics in Toronto, but when I tried to renew it, they practically wanted my birth certificate in order to get the 30% discount. I'd show them my card but then they wanted more ID. My professional ID is either a 8X10 headshot or a laminated union card which doesn't have my picture or legal name on it. I had no intention of lugging my 8X10 headshot around so I could buy lipstick. And then I couldn't even get service because of all the young girls clogging the counters. And then when I did get service, I always ended up with the girl who had no idea of what she was doing. I'm a loyal customer so when I return to the same place, I know what I want, I want to get it, pay for it and move on in 5 minutes. If I even get a sniff of attitude like oh, she's not going to buy anything, I'll move on and probably spend twice as much right across the aisle and wave the bags in their faces. When I was younger I was ignored in the expensive stores and followed around by staff in other stores who thought I was going shoplift. And no, I wasn't wearing baggy clothes and carrying a duffel bag. Now I've developed a sense of entitlement when I go shopping in the fancy boutiques. And yes, it works. When you feel like you belong there, people take notice. If you skulk about, looking embarrassed and blanch when you see the price tag, people can see that. Last year for an exercise, I went into a high end boutique and tried on an expensive silk dress. I had lost some weight and finally felt deserving and once that silk hit my skin, I was in heaven. I had absolutely no intention of spending $1200 on a summer frock, but I was hooked on that feeling that I DESERVED nice things. That I was worth it.

I've tried the Iman line (disastrous) and I've tried Mary Kay which isn't too bad actually, not a perfect match but nothing but custom blended is. When I had lots of dough I would splurge on Prescriptives or Bobbi Brown, but I feel like I'm spending $1 a drop when I use those and god forbid I pore out too much on my fingertip or sponge. I'd try to pore it back in cause it was liquid gold. Do I need to do that when I'm just walking the dog? Mmmm, maybe. Cause I'm worth it, right?

8 comments:

WannabeMommy said...

You are very worth it! I wish I had your confidence. I work in a pretty chic neighborhood (Union Square-San Francisco), and last week after work I meandered into a dress shop, because I liked a dress in the window. I need something for a wedding I'm going to, so what the heck? When I saw the price tag ($1500! for one dress! And a short dress at that!) I high-tailed it out of there so fast, embarrassed that the sales girl might see me, and immediately infer my less fortunate bank account status. What the heck? Anyway... that dress wasn't THAT cute.

OHN said...

Wow. I guess I should be happy that I have a pasty white face, just about anything I smear on is better than what I was born with :) I go cheapo all the way! I recently found a brand that every item is $1. Hell, I just realized that I spend more on a candy bar than I do my face :)

Don't even get me started on the dog food. When I was a kid our dog at the same food, every day for his entire life. It was canned mush and smelled like puke.

My spoiled mutts eat stuff that is crazy expensive because it "keeps 'em regular" if ya know what I mean.ha.

lassie said...

I like Bare Escentuals. I have olive skin with a bit of rosacea that can be difficult to match and BE does a decent job while looking pretty natural.

I love the story of the $1200 dress. You're right, entitlement in an expensive boutique makes all the difference.

Hope Juno's gooey gut gets taken care of tomorrow.

loribeth said...

Doesn't it suck when your favourite products get discontinued?? I use Prescriptives foundation -- custom blend. I'm quite fairskinned & a lot of foundations are either too dark or too chalky on me. I'm sure if I had kids to spend $ on, I'd be using Cover Girl like my mother but since I don't... a girl has to spend her money somewhere, right?? ; )

loribeth said...

P.S. There is a guy named Edmond who works for Prescriptives in Vancouver... they bring him to the counter at Holt Renfrew in Toronto every now & then. He gives FABULOUS facials. I thought the girls at the counter were just doing their usual spiel when they booked an appointment for me with him, but he really is great!

Beautiful Mess said...

I hope you're less cranky today and Juno is feeling better. It is SO frustrating when a company discontinues a color. It takes a LONG time to find an adequate replacement., THEN that one get discontinued! Have you ever noticed that the ugly colors that nobody wears stay around FOREVER?
Have a great day!
*HUGS*

annacyclopedia said...

On the dog food - can you get Horizon out there? It's made here in SK and it's pretty awesome - Lucky's guts seem to like it, it's grain free and it's apparently one of the closest things to the raw food diet for dogs that you can get in a dry food. And I'm pretty sure it's a lot cheaper than 4kg for $20. Yikes!

Sucks about the makeup - I can only imagine how frustrating that is. I totally agree about just marching in and acting like you deserve to be there and get the best treatment, though. I'm constantly trying to rehabilitate my friend who has trouble going into the nicer stores (and that's HERE, remember - she went to New York last year and didn't even shop cause she was too intidated. Oh, the humanity!) It's something I get from my mother, I think - she once gave the finger to someone who had ignored us in a shop (although I think the woman had her back turned at the time) and I have absolutely no tolerance for being ignored or dismissed when I'm in a store.

And yes, you are worth it, even if you are just walking the dog around your chi-chi neighbourhood. Although I am well aware that being worth it and being able to afford it are two very different things...

Next time I visit, we should hit all the fancy boutiques and try on a million things and not buy anything!

OHN said...

Thanks for the spa idea...actually, now that I am not spending money on a condo rental, I may treat myself to a nice massage AND a haircut..thanks for the idea!

Also, ask your penthouse friends if they would like to adopt a slightly used 51 year old ;)