Week 1: Double Chin

My son reminded me almost a week ago that I'm almost 50.  It was the day I turned 49.  Just like me, he is always anticipating the future.  This time around it is more panic than anticipation --- on my part not his.  He thinks it's funny.  Well, maybe just my reaction is funny. 

Turning 49 was (I hope) a bigger deal than turning 50.  I have about 52 weeks to find out.  I decided I would take the next 50 some-odd weeks (chances of me doing this every week are slim-to-none) to jot down things I've learned or observed over the last, gulp, 49 years.  In no particular order of importance, that is what this blog will be:  things I've learned or things I just want to write about and share.   

Week 1 - Double Chin or Most of What I Remember is Useless

I've learned recently that if you take pictures with the camera slightly higher than your face your double chin disappears.*  Try it.  Sure, there are medical ways to take care of this, but who has the time.  Moving a camera 15 inches higher is just so much easier.  After all, that's what's important -- the photographic proof.  Somewhere along the line I heard that if you stand sideways, with 1 leg extended you'll look slimmer in photos. 

Why I remember this and what is being kept out of my brain because I do, who knows.  I feel the same way about a lot of so called trivia.  Why is that fact stuck in my brain?  Like, there really was a Max Factor and he was the makeup artist on I Love Lucy.  Don't believe me, check out the credits.  Perhaps this was indelibly imprinted on my brain from the countless hours of TV watching.

Yes - let's blame TV.  Not so fast, TV is definitely my friend.  More in future posts.  Although blaming TV would make sense, the theory doesn't hold up for the other two facts noted above. I figured out the higher camera myself and I think someone's stepmother told me about the extended leg photo trick. I thought her very shallow at the time, can't remember her name, but I remember the concept. 

How could any of this ever be useful information?  I'm sure these 'mind blockers', if you will, are keeping more important things out of my mind.  Until I erase them, we will never know what else I could retain.  I haven't figured out how to purge thousand of useless tidbits which is probably why I can't figure out the way to erase them.  You see the dilemma.  A real catch-22.  I do remember I read that book in college. 



* If you don't have a double chin, don't tell me.  I'll just be mad.