Put your lips on

Today I bought lipstick for the first time in I can't remember. Perhaps it is the first time I ever purchased lipstick. That's not to say I've never worn it; but for most of my life it's been rather easy to get by with the sample from a Clinique counter. Especially since I didn't live in the South.

Unfortunately for me, my staple lipstick was in my purse that was lost/stolen over the holidays. So I have been going with nothing other than chapstick for a couple of months, and therefore learned the hard way that it's not possible around here. People wear lipstick. Granted, I only wear it if I'm going out, or to church on Sunday's, but I noticed that I now feel a bit naked without it on those occasions. And some of my friends have said that they grew up with the expectation that you always put on lipstick before leaving the house.

Yes, while I was always expected to wear a belt before being considered "put together," apparently my southern counterparts were taught to "put your lips on" before heading out for the day. Now, I'm not saying that all 8 year old girls are walking around looking like they should be on Toddlers & Tiaras, but more that adult women consider putting makeup on and styling their hair as a routine part of going anywhere (I discovered that the big hair stereotype comes from the necessity to use a lot of hair product to combat humidity). And now that I have lived here for a while, it's starting to rub off on me too.

So while at the grocery store today, I purchased some lipstick. Wow, maybe I'll become a pseudo southern belle one of these days...