The Honest Courtesan

Although there are many ways nowadays for a woman to keep looking young, it’s much harder for even an active woman with few unhealthy habits to keep her insides from aging much more quickly than her outsides.  And though I have been on HRT since I was 28, that only replaces the major hormones; my gynecologist tells me that there are a number of minor hormones my body is now losing (or has lost) the ability to produce.  That, in conjunction with entropy and ordinary wear and tear, means I’m gradually seeing more signs of age.  I have to dress much more warmly than in the past, and I tire more easily than in years gone by; if I have a really busy, active day I find myself dragging all the next.  My appetite has decreased, as has my physical strength; I used to be able to carry a 50# sack of feed on my shoulder with ease, and now by the time I lug one from the feed store to my car I’m huffing and puffing.  And then there are the various aches and pains, arthritic and otherwise.  But I think the one which has irritated me most is my slowly-declining eyesight.  I’ve been slightly nearsighted my entire adult life, enough to notice but not enough to need glasses; now I need to strain and use strong light to read very fine print.  Then about two weeks ago, I tried to read the small print on a bottle of medicated cream Grace needs for her feet, and found that I absolutely could not make it out, even in full daylight.  So I stuck it in my purse and took it to the store with me to buy a pair of cheaters; I’ve been thinking about buying some for a while, but they come in like five different strengths so I wasn’t sure what I needed.  So I figured I’d use the bottle as a test, and it worked; turns out I need a 2.5x pair, so that’s what I got.  Now all I need to do is somehow find more time for pleasure reading!