All feedback appreciated.

I like how both have doubts about their appearance and essentially have the same thoughts. Given the common predjudices about men and their tendency to hide their insecurities behind macho behaviour, it's kind of easy to forget that they are just like us women. (I guess, after all there's no way to be sure.

Hi Barbara,

I am definitely not an expert in how men think, but to judge by the number of "grow back your hair" advertisements one sees, it seems reasonable to assume that receding hairlines are concerning to at least some men.

Thanks for your comments.

Be well,
Lynn

Lynn, hair is not the only thing men media advertisers advise us men to grow (for the ladies in our lives, of course). And yes, Lynn and Barbara, we men are very concerned about our appearance. Many men - myself included - have little or no idea what women think is attractive, just that women generally shy away from a man who takes no care at all with his appearance or hygiene. I have heard women all my life point to some guy and say, "Wow, he's cute." And I don't know how they evaluate that quality. All I know is that I can jam my face into a bowl of dough and make gorilla cookies. I'm just very fortunate that my wife likes my personality.

Thank you, Terry, for that fascinating glimpse into how at least one man thinks.

I'm not touching that one with a ten foot pole. (Now, if we were on the nfic side of the boards, I would have written something ever-so-slightly different there.)

I have no idea what you look like, but I can say that your wife sees the whole you and, to judge by the longevity of your marriage, is quite happy with what she sees.

I know that my first opinion of my "one that got away" was that he was rather plain, but the more I got to know him the handsomer he became in my eyes. By the time he broke our engagement and my heart, he seemed to me to be the handsomest man I had ever seen. A short while back, when I saw him in some old pictures I happened to come across, he only struck me as somewhat handsome.

Beauty (or handsomeness) really is in the eyes of the beholder.

Joy,
Lynn

I can tell you that the same is true for me. I never really understood what makes a man like a woman's appearance. I guess, it's just different for every person who they find attractive. I got to listen to some guys talk when I went out with my boyfriend and another guy who was still single then. We talked about which of the girls around were his taste and which weren't. It was interesting, because they're girls I thought my two male companions would find attractive were rarely the girls they actually found attractive. Very strange.

My husband thinks I look like Scarlet Johanson. I disagree on that perception. But I've always been self-conscious about my looks, especially after I suffered from a facial paralyses that never healed completely. Now, my smile is slightly lopsided. But I've learned to appreciate my wrinkles, because I know how I look without them, which was rather spooky.

More important than the looks of a person is the character. A former boss of me is fairly attractive in a George Clooney kind of way. But he is so incredibly vain and self-absorbed that he is just a terrible person to be around. When he had invited me to the interview, he managed to charm me into believing he was such a nice guy. That first impression didn't last all that long, though.

Hi Barbara,

I actually like my gray hairs; I've earned every one of them. I see them, as well as the wrinkles that have just started to come, as badges of honour and as proof that I have had the wisdom and fortitude necessary to survive as long as I have.

Joy,
Lynn