Contusions & Makeup Names

So I came across a dark purple nail polish today called Bruised. It bothered me, yet it did appeal to my creative/poetic side, not to mention my beauty product obsession. I love the unconventional sexy names given to makeup products. I think they're a fun bonus to wearing the colors. (My blush pigments are Deep Throat, Outlaw, and Tipsy...) I have promiscuous tendencies when it comes to colors; it's half the fun of wearing them. But back to the purple that got under my skin. The name Bruised still makes me think of the bruises I lived through with Chad. I was going through my cell phone the other day and I found a text that I sent to Joseph a few days after the final blowout with Chad. My text told Joseph that I was moving to NYC and that my bruises were still sore and my nose fractured. It was so strange to see that living in my phone this far down the road. It made me think of the light green eye shadow called Fern that I used to conceal my black eye. It still makes me feel queasy to look at it yet I can't throw it out. It's a weird reminder of the past sitting quietly in the bottom of my makeup bag. It's hard to understand and digest the fact that I was trying so hard to cover up the bruise on my eye while Chad was sitting in the next room of my apartment; that I didn't follow through with kicking him out until the crap hit the fan. I confronted his cheating and it turned into a brutal fight that changed the direction of my life.

Where Are you Neo-Cary Grant?

With all of the affection that I have for classic movies - particularly romantic comedies with lightening fast dialogue and wit, it's easy to get eagerly swept up in the respect and adoration for women in so many of these movies. But yet another vieiwng of one of my favorites, Pillow Talk, has reminded me of the double-edged sword as far as sexual politics goes. Yes, the women (and yes, I realize this entire conversation is in the context of "movie women and men") are treated with such reverence and there is an obvious level of respect that seems to be all but gone today. But at what cost were women treated in such a manner? Protection and fragility don't end with dating.