Wax On, Wax Off

C'mon.  You all get that reference!

I enjoy manicures and pedicures.  I've had both, both in drab and dressed.  Dressed, I admit, is more fun.  Dentistry, dressed, is more fun.

Normally, my fingernail polish comes off at the end of the day.  I've only had toenail polish put on twice, once in drab and once dressed.  I've often considered having my toenails done as Meg, but since I have always worn hose and close-toed shoes it didn't make a lot of sense.

This changed in Arizona.  This was also the first time I had both a manicure and pedicure in a single salon visit.  I've written about the visit; today's post is about the aftermath.

When I first had my toenails painted I left the colour on for weeks, until I had a possible outdoor barefoot activity coming up and I was afraid I'd really have to join in.  This was a few years ago.  I think, if it was today, I'd join in with painted toes and be prepared to answer questions.  The only thing that might have held me back was the presence of customers and the company might have been unhappy with that.

This time, as much as I would have liked to leave on the polish, I was going to be staying in a room with my son right after returning from Arizona and keeping my feet covered all of the time would be impractical.  So the toenail polish had to come off before my trip home from Arizona.

Polish on Friday after work.

Fingernail polish off before returning to work Monday (it turned out it came off on Sunday, as I wrote earlier).

Toenail polish off Tuesday evening, before flying out Wednesday afternoon.

Having nail polish put on is easy.  You go to a nail salon, pick out a colour (that's the hardest part), give some money to a nice nail technician who massages your feet and legs and hands and arms and rubs lotion on them, in addition to cleaning up your nails and cuticles and applying colour.  Even without the colour, it's a pleasant way to pass the time, and inexpensive.  I highly recommend it.  Don't be afraid to insist on the technician with your personal gender preference.  I also way over-tip.

Taking nail polish off isn't quite so easy.  Because I didn't want to carry a bottle with me, I bought a small bottle of polish remover (the acetone type; it works best) in Arizona and I dumped it before returning home.  Fortunately, it's not too expensive.

I brought q-tips with me to assist in the removal.

I fill the cap of the nail polish remover bottle with remover and put my first finger in.  I leave it there for about a minute, then I soak a tissue in the same remover and start to rub.  With luck, it all comes off.  Whether it does or not, I move on to the next finger and repeat.  If I'm feeling daring, I have the next finger soaking while I'm working on the current one.  Be prepared for spills if you try this.  Avoid carpets.

If at the end of ten there are some that didn't clean up well at all, I repeat wforthose fingers.  If there are spots of colour, I soak a q-tip and scrub the spot.  Colour really wants to stay in the cuticles.

Sometimes, a few days later, I'll take a really close look at my nails and see flecks of colour.  Those can usually be scraped off with another nail.

It's normally on for just a couple of hours, but it adds a lot to one's feminine image, I think.

I repeated this with my toes, which is harder because it's difficult to put a toe in a little bottle cap and the big toe is a bit too big for that cap.  I soaked tissues, I used the cap, I spent a bit of time and it still seemed I could see a bit of tint to my toes when I was done.  I had two choices:

* panic and start scrubbing all over again

* take a critical look.  My toes will be several feet (HA!) from anyone's eyes.  The colour could just be... normal.  Without close scrutiny anyway.  And no-one looks at feet anyway.

Besides, I wear flowery socks to the airport, knowing my shoes will come off.  What's a little tint anyway?

I was done.

On Another Topic, an anonymous reader named Bill wrote:

How would you explain hairless arms?
I have seen some male acqaintances with hairless legs and just ignored it. Hairless arms seem harder to ignore.

This is in response to my posting last Thursday where I said I'd answer questions by civilians (specifically, my friend P who came down for Halloween last year) if asked ~ my body hair is mostly gone right now, in the (dashed) hopes that Meg would make an appearance this week. 

And the answer is, I don't know.  P met Meg, without knowing she's more than a one-time thing, last Halloween.  Is saying "I shaved for my Halloween outfit and liked not having hair" a story?  My gut says it is, and I shouldn't offer that as an explanation.

Of course, what if P happens to see inside my closet, or the drawers in my room?  That's probably harder to explain away.

The easiest (and hardest) answer to everything is "Did you think Halloween was a one-time event?"

P often sends out things to everybody, something I never got in the habit of doing.  One of the more recent ones was a cheer for New York for approving gay marriage.  So he's probably open to the idea of Meg.  But he sure didn't act it last Halloween.

Maybe I should ask why he's so pro gay rights.  That might start a discussion that will have a happy ending for Meg.  I don't think it would result in an unhappy ending for a 30-year friendship.

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