A few weeks ago, I was out for happy hour drinks with the clan when my attention turned to an attractive brunette entering the bar. Wearing an off-white Diane von Furstenberg dress and peep-toe Jimmys, she gracefully found her table and tossed her locks as she sat down. The little makeup she wore highlighted her natural rosy-tint and her group of friends matched her easy elegance. She carried a Balenciaga clutch that she carefully sat on the table, reaching in to find her lipstick and apply it subtly without anyone noticing.
But I noticed. And I was surprised my friends didn’t see me turn green in envy as I watched her from across the room, wondering when I’d finally feel how I imagined that woman feeling. She seemed completely together, confident and assured, stable financially and otherwise, and beauty radiated around her.
Me, on the other hand? On the other side of the bar, away from the reserved tables she was welcome to join with sparkling wine and towers of expensive liquor, sipping on my signature pineapple and vodka (with a cherry) or house Merlot, I’m not like that woman. I’m not refined and utterly comfortable in my own shoes, though I often lust to walk a mile in someone else’s designer ones. I’m not a polished Manhattanite with a high-paying job, trust fund, or the ability to save every penny.
I’m rough around the edges. And sometimes, as much as I attempt to hide it, I know it shows.
I don’t always think ahead and I sometimes see each decision as the end-all-be-all to my future and definitely to my present. I freak myself out more than I calm myself down, and when it comes to thinking about the big picture instead of letting the little one weigh me down, I’m guilty as charged. I don’t keep my purse organized and clean, my clothes are not sorted by color, and my dishes are hardly washed before bed.
And while I’d like to think I’m quite poised, I don’t sit calmly and laugh in a not-too-high, not-too-soft tone, and I don’t (or at least I don’t think) I exude a sense of maturity and elegance. I don’t think about how I’m perceived or if I’m stomping in my heels instead of cascading, and if I’m greeting friends, I almost always insist on a hug. I’m even starting to get used to this Northern kiss-on-the-cheek salutation that’s not customary in the South.
I can’t decide if I like the way I am or if I’d rather be a smoothed out. Could I chisel away those pieces that keep me feeling like the woman I know I am, just don’t always show? Or is it that like a good wine, I’m really just going to get better with age? With more experiences and more trials that give me the skills and know-how I need to find my own footing. To find grace?
Is it better to be a little rough or finely polished? Or is there ever a happy medium between the two? Between maturity and immaturity? Between taking note of the little characteristics that go into making a person, and learning which of those qualities to tuck away until appropriate, or if appropriate at all? Between not feeling like you have to have the right thing to say, the right thing to do, and just saying what you want and doing as you please?
Am I a diamond in the rough….or just jagged?
loveaddictnyc.com 
;) maybe a little rough? btw, after me is mor good to be …with the legs on the ground than star for 10 minutes :)
It’s all an act, I think. Everyone’s a little rough around the edges; some of us just have the ability to camouflage it a little better with more interesting wardrobes and personal style. Seriously though, learning to deal with our rough edges, or even chisel them down, is a part of the process. I have my own that I try to work on, but it’s part of what makes me interesting. (Or that’s what I tell myself every so often…)
Diamond ? Nothing fake, you are you. The other girl is the cubic zirconium on the inside.
That “refined”, “together” woman likely stresses incredibly before she goes out, and is incredibly high maintenance. Likely won’t date less than a financial prince who will have to keep her in the style to which she expects to become accustomed. She oozes snob, and fakery behind the scenes. She’ll be making a guy feel bad he does not have enough of this or that, and is not giving her enough of what she expects. For which she deserves no real happiness.
If you’re relaxed and attractive, you’re far more the better woman. Be yourself. That’s when women are most amazing. And it pleases a man no end to enjoy your company, since there is little or no disdain, and plenty of joy in whatever you do. At least I hope so.