And I plucked my eyebrows for this?

I'm pretty sure there's a lot more to life than being really, really good looking. - Derek Zoolander

As much as I adore fashion, makeup, and jewelry... I'm not what you would call high-maintenance. I'm not even medium-maintenance. Shoot, I think I'm barely low-maintenance. But occassionally I'll try. I'll pluck my eyebrows, get that pedicure, curl my hair. Heck, I sometimes even will wear high heels and change out my purse! But even that much effort requires a special occasion

I have recently realized, however, that when I do go through the effort of doing my hair, wearing makeup, and putting together an outfit, no one outside of work even notices. Not my neighbors. Not the hot guy on the escalator. Not the friend I have across the street. I get no compliments of any sort on the efforts I made to look more presentable.

What I have noticed, however, is that it is precisely when I don't try at all that people talk to me more. If I'm wearing sweats and flip-flops to the grocery store, some guy comes up and starts talking to me about the fruit. If I'm in my gym clothes at Blockbuster, the video guy is complimenting my gray-blue eyes. When I'm in a baseball cap, jeans, and t-shirt? A guy is trying to buy me wine at a Greek festival. Why is it that when I look my worst, it's the only time that people take notice that I'm there?

Maybe my makeup has magical "invisibility" powers, that cause me to become more and more transparent as I apply it. Maybe my heels make me look big and scary to the opposite sex (I do become, after all, a whopping 5'6'' with heels on). Or maybe my long hair hides me when it's taken down from the ponytail it's so use to being in.

Whatever the case may be, guys tend to flirt with me more when I look like hell. Period. Even my last "love of my life" told me that he doesn't know why I bother with all the makeup, hair gels, and crap. He liked me better au natural. Ugh. But... secretly I feel better with the makeup on. I like the way I look when I decide to fix my hair. And I feel a heck of a lot more confident when I do all of the above. But guys prefer me the other way, when I look my worst and have zero confidence? WTF? Maybe I need to learn to be more comfortable and confident no matter what it is I look like on any particular day. Maybe then I'll be able to flirt back on those "not so fresh" looking days. Until then, I'll keep playing with the hair, clothes, and makeup. And hopefully I'll be able to find a middle ground somewhere. Because... even though guys seem to like me all frumpy and stuff... I hate it. UGH!!!!!!!!!!