I've had it with "women's" magazines. It's bad
enough that they drag you in with those catchy
articles: "Lose 5 Pounds in 20 Minutes!" "Make
Stretch Marks Disappear!" "The Worst Sex I Ever Had
- 24 True Stories." But it's not the articles. It's
those insidious little quizzes. You know, the ones
like "What Kind of Mom are You?" I was in
bed for a week over that one. Not to mention ...
"Is He The Right Man For You?" I checked mostly B's
and discovered that after 28 years of marriage, my
husband is completely WRONG for me. Sheesh! I'm
always the LAST to know. Wonder how he'll take the
news?
But the straw that broke the camel's back was
the chart I just finished reading. It came in a
recent issue of PREVENTION - America's #1 Choice
for Healthy Living. Now, don't ask why I even
subscribe to this one. I think they initially
pulled me in with an article titled: Get Your Best
Body Ever ... more fool I once I discovered that
this wasn't advice on where I could go buy
this body, but was instead A QUIZ on discovering
the perfect workout. Hmmpf. I should have canceled
my subscription immediately. I didn't. Hence, my
present dilemma.
I read a chart today. Charts are just as bad as
quizzes. Maybe worse. At least quizzes give you
some choices - lousy choices, but choices just the
same. But the charts are already set up, in bold
black type. The information doesn't change
according to your answers, it's already there ...
every word ... just waiting for your brain to
process the facts. And here are the facts:
A Woman's Top 10 Regrets
Studies, surveys and polls over the past
several decades indicate that most women have at
least a few regrets about the choices they've made.
Here are 10 of the most frequently cited:
not enough education -
wrong career, wrong job,
wrong work situation
marrying, marrying too early,
marrying too late, marrying wrong person
having children too early or
not at all
not being assertive
enough
not being
self-disciplined
not taking risks
not having gotten along
better with parents, brothers, or
sisters
not spending enough time with
parents or not appreciating them enough
not having been more active
in neighborhood or community affairs
I only had to read this chart once to see the
truth. Oh, every now and then I miss not having
that college diploma, but I really didn't see the
point in spending all that money for a speech &
drama degree. And being a secretary, a travel
agent, a professional clown, a bookstore clerk -
well, they weren't wrong careers or jobs ... just
not life altering ones. I know I married too young,
but that wasn't a problem till THE TEST informed me
I'd married the wrong guy. I didn't have a child
too early, but waited six years and then was too
tired to have any more. I've never been
particularly assertive because it's more important
to me that EVERYONE is happy. As for
self-discipline - this article was supposed to be
written last week! The biggest risk I ever took was
buying 3 lottery tickets on the same day. I get
along fine with my mother and sister, but I've
never had a brother - great ... ANOTHER regret. My
mother lives 2500 miles away from me so I can only
spend time with her and appreciate her over the
phone. And community affairs? Well, at least I
recycle.
Up until I read this chart I didn't even
know that I had any regrets. Now I'm on my bed,
curled in the fetal position. There's 3 pounds of
chocolate and some REAL Pepsi at my side and I'm
chanting COULDA, SHOULDA, WOULDA.
Trust me ladies ... don't open those magazines.
On the other hand ... the chocolate ain't bad. :-)
Wym
Wyt &
Wyzdom is © 1997-2001 by Nina
Friedman &
ADWOFF (ADWOFF@adwoff.com) All Rights Reserved
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