Task 10: Have a freebie make-up session in a department store

This particular task might seem a rather trivial and self-indulgent one to some, but for me it's definitely a one for the Facing Fears section. In glossy department stores I’ve spent more years than I care to remember head down avoiding eye contact with make-up consultants when walking through the beauty sections. Those perfectly made-up faces, flawless complexions, immaculately painted nails, beautifully styled hair – quite terrifying!  And I’d imagine sitting at a counter having my make-up done whilst hundreds of women (also with perfectly made-up faces etc) were walking past and thinking to themselves 'That poor make-up consultant - she's got a job on her hands there'. But at the same time, my mini phobia has resulted in total ignorance on my part about products and techniques that might be best suited to my maturing years. Hence having a freebie make-up session in a department store seemed a task well worth adding to my list. 

A couple of weeks ago, I was thinking ahead to our forthcoming weekend in New York and had another of my light bulb moments - Bloomingdales is located just a few blocks from the hotel we were due to stay at, so perhaps I could make Task 10 even more challenging for myself and have that make-up session in one of the glossiest department stores in the Western world......?

I identified three strategies to help me complete the task:

1. Head for Bobbi Brown counter (Bobbi Brown's philosophy of ‘be who you are’ sounded good)
2. Book appointment in advance (chance to pre-select understanding make-up artist)
3. Ask Lucy to accompany me to appointment (to act as my protector and stop me from running away)

 And so it was that on 21 June at 2.30pm Lucy and I arrived at the Bobbi Brown section in Bloomingdales. We were late, it was 32 degrees outside and my appearance was glowing to say the least.  But once sitting at the counter in the expert hands of my very welcoming make-up artist, Alison Tam, I began to calm down. I allowed Lucy to take a photo of me without my make-up on (unbelievable) and I very quickly forgot about the people walking past me (NB did they all have perfectly made up faces? I haven't a clue!)

When Alison had completed her work, she gave me a mirror to show me the results and I was actually able to scrutinize my reflection without flinching. I especially loved her very skilful use of eye-liner and the light as a feather foundation (effective but subtle - or ‘pretty powerful’ as Bobbi Brown would say). 

During the make-up lesson I was given loads of make-up tips and ideas without any pressure whatsoever to buy anything. But if there’s one key message I took away from my session, it's that good quality make-up brushes are worth their weight in gold, and so I did splash out on one (along with that fab foundation and eye-liner of course). And now I’m not only the enthusiastic user of a new make-up range, but also potentially a more confident customer at make-up counters in smart department stores. So Fenwicks beauty department in Tunbridge Wells, be warned, I may yet pay you a visit!

If you would like to follow this blog click here for information on how to do so.

Task 33: Visit the One World Observatory in New York

When I started putting together my Sixty at 60 list a few months ago, I knew that I'd be visiting New York with Andrew and Lucy in June 2015, and since it’s one of my favourite places in the world (and indeed Lucy's favourite place in the world), it seemed only right and proper to include an NY-based task, with the two provisos that it must be a new experience for me and one that would be a fitting tribute to the city.  I thought of taking a trip on the Staten Island ferry….or walking the length of the Brooklyn Bridge….or climbing to the top of the Statue of Liberty. Then I spotted an article in the Times reporting that the Observatory at One World Trade Center would be opening to the public on 29 May, and had a light bulb moment. On each of our weekend trips to New York since 9/11, Andrew and I have made a point of going to the World Trade Center site to watch it regaining its momentum and sense of identity. And so it seemed a fitting task indeed to visit the One World Observatory and celebrate the completion of OneWTC. Within ten minutes of reading the Times article, I had booked tickets for us on 21 June.

We woke up three days ago to the sight of rain, mist and murk in mid-town Manhattan. The weather forecast indicated heavy showers at 11.30 am, the very time at which we were due to be crossing the threshold of OneWTC. However, just as we emerged from the subway, the breeze picked up, the clouds miraculously parted and there soaring high above us was OneWTC shimmering in the sunshine. 

We felt a whoosh of excitement - maybe we'd see more than just a blanket of soggy clouds from the top after all? Once inside the building we joined a long but fast moving queue for the lift, where we watched an amazing 30 second potted history of New York whilst whizzing up 102 floors to the Observatory. We all piled out of the lift and stood in front of a screen to be shown a slickly compiled film of some typical NY montages. Then the screen finally rolled back and oh my word - there was New York's skyline in all its sunlit glory. It was quite a goose-bumpy moment and everyone broke into spontaneous applause (I felt thoroughly American).

The views from the observatory were amazing - the skyscrapers of Manhattan looked like Lego building blocks, tour helicopters buzzed like flies below us, the Statue of Liberty was a tiny figure in the distance, and the river Hudson snaked its way around the city. Every view seemed to demand a thousand and one photos - but here's the most important one, providing you with evidence that I really was there!

 It was a very special experience and I found I had a big smile on my face from start to finish - New Yorkers must be truly proud of what they have achieved. 

If you would like to follow this blog click here for information on how to do so. 

Task 1: progress report on my running programme

My friend Linda asked me a couple of days ago whether I’d actually managed to get out running yet (good point - after all the post setting out my plans to run a 10k only said I was going to start running…..) So here’s some evidence for you Linda! The picture below shows me on my return from my second run this week. I look a bit of a sorry sight (although in my defence I was laying it on thick to try and get some sympathy from Andrew – none forthcoming of course).  The good news is that my ankle seems to be coping well with the shock of returning to running circuits and it did feel nice (for a short time anyway) to be stretching my limbs again.

  

And hot off the press, I’ve now registered for the Tonbridge Running and Riding 10K on 25 October:

Vivien Hunot is entered for Tonbridge 10k Main Entry List on 25-OCT-2015  

http://runningandriding.co.uk/tonbridge-10k/

So Task 1 is cast in a tablet of stone (not an Ed Stone I hasten to add) – no turning back now....

If you would like to follow this blog click here for information on how to do so.  

Task 28: use my senior railcard to visit Liverpool for the day

Just look at what arrived in the post this morning - I think I can now officially call myself a senior.

The next step is to plan my daytrip to Liverpool  - one third off my rail fare courtesy of Senior Railcard.....it's time to embrace becoming a wrinkly!

If you would like to follow this blog click here for information on how to do so.    

How to follow my blog (if you feel like doing so that is!)

 It would be lovely to think that a small coterie of you might want to follow my blog over the next year and from my point of view it would be great to have some people breathing down my neck (ideally in a supportive and friendly way!) to make sure I’m working through the tasks. 

So…… if you would like to continue reading my posts on and off until I complete the Sixty at 60 challenge, my suggestion would be to become a subscriber to my blog, and you’ll then automatically get an email from me whenever I publish a new post.  All you need to do is:

 1. Put your email address in the box at the top of my blog

2. Click submit

3. Verify your email address when you get an email from Feedburner

4. And hey presto, you’ll be a subscriber!

This will be completely anonymous (Blogger won't inform me if you do subscribe), but if you decide that you'd like to let me know, just send me a quick email with the words I’m following you by email in the Subject box. 

The task that got away....

When I started putting my list of 60 tasks together, I initially included ‘Have a letter published in The Times’. However I’ve twice before (way back when, it has to be said) submitted letters to The Times Editor on some random topic or other and neither letter ever saw the light of day in the column. So having decided that my chance of success was zero, I ditched that idea in favour of having a request read out on Graham Norton’s radio show (see Task 47).

Anyway, yesterday I spotted an uncorrected typo in a small article at the bottom of Page 17 in The Times that made me smile. I threw together a couple of sentences (it took me about 5 minutes) and submitted it to the Letters page. I didn’t think anything more of it until this morning when I got to the letters page and guess what………. 

Gratifying I'll grant you, but also a little frustrating!  Graham Norton – I am now in your hands. If anyone knows how I can improve my chances of getting a request read out on his show, then I'm all ears.

Task 1: Complete a 10k run in less than 60 mins

Of all the tasks on my Sixty at 60 list, I think it's fair to say that Number 1 is going to be the one that really puts me through the mill (although squeezing a note out of a saxophone and learning the lindy hop both run a very close second.....).  In my forties I endlessly talked about how much I’d like to run a marathon, but never did anything about it – in my fifties I endlessly talked about how much I’d like to run a half marathon and never did anything about it. Now I've hit sixty I’ve scaled down the distance to a mere 10k (so important to keep my goals measurable, achievable and realistic as they say in CBT) – but the key difference is that this time I'm actually going to do it!! 

Before officially committing to Task 1, I decided it would be wise to do some practice runs to check that I was actually up to it. So I bought myself some very brightly coloured running shoes (my daughter in law Liz who knows about such things assured me these shoes are totally on trend these days and wouldn't make me a laughing stock in the running community) and a rather sporty looking running outfit. Here are the shoes - I'm going to spare you a photo of me in the outfit.

 I put on my gear, slipped my phone (with Runkeeper http://runkeeper.com/ newly downloaded, thank you to Sam my hairdresser for that tip - very helpful app) into my pocket, took a deep breath and stepped out into the lane in front of my house, thus exposing my outfit (far too new-looking), lack of stamina, and strange running style to the world at large. To my amazement no one stopped and started at me (in fact they just got out of my way) - way to go Hunot!  Over a 2-week period I extended my running distance, stupidly ignoring all aches and pains in my feet, until one morning I reached the dizzy distance of 5k. Runkeeper was very pleased with me and I was pretty elated with myself, until I spotted that my right ankle had blown up like a small balloon. One physio visit and diagnosis of a pulled liganment later, I found myself on a strict regime of nurofen gel, elevated leg, frozen pea compresses, and inevitably I suppose - no running.

Four weeks later my foot has healed (hurrah!) and my Sixty at 60 running programme starts tomorrow. This time I intend to build up my distance/pace s-l-o-w-l-y.  Mantra – ‘I am 60 years old.....I have a 60 year old body.....Keep it real.....’  I’m about to register myself on an official 10k run in Tonbridge at the end of October. Updates on my progress will follow. Now get training woman. 

If you would like to follow this blog click here for information on how to do so.     

Why I've chosen to fundraise for Alzheimer's Research UK

From the outset of planning my Sixty at 60 challenge, my overall goal has been to ensure that others will benefit from my adventures. There are many good causes that I would (and do!) support. But for the next six months the charity that I've chosen to raise money for is Alzheimer’s Research UK and I thought I must explain why.

When I first met Andrew's mother, Grace, she was in her mid 60s – a sweet-natured, gentle, modest, dignified, kind-hearted person, a little old-fashioned in her ways but just beginning to develop a http://www.laterbloomer.com/jenny-joseph/ take on life. She loved animals, was a devout church-goer and enjoyed a drop of mead on special family occasions – here she is with Andrew and his father the night before our wedding.

Five years on, just after her 70th birthday, Andrew's father noticed that she was becoming very forgetful and withdrawn. They arrived to stay with us for a weekend visit.  I brought out the tea tray and as usual asked if she’d ‘be mum’. I watched her pick up the tea pot and pour the tea into the sugar bowl. Now let’s face it, I’m capable of doing that sort of thing if I'm distracted! But what really struck me was that she then picked up the sugar bowl, proceeded to try and drink the tea-soaked sugar from it and didn’t seem to notice that her mouth was filling up with small dollops of sugar rather than a decent swig of tea. At that point, we were pretty certain that dementia was beckoning. 

Dementia did take hold of Andrew's mother. She lost the ability to hold conversations, to feed herself, to control her bodily functions and to engage in everyday life around her. Andrew's father became ill through having to look after her 24 hours a day and she was eventually admitted to a local cottage hospital for long-term nursing care. Our children never really knew her as a granny and were quite frightened by the fragile and sometimes agitated lady they went to visit in hospital. 

Since Grace's death 20 years ago, a number of other relatives, friends and neighbours of ours have been diagnosed with various forms of dementia. This isn't surprising of course, as it’s a highly prevalent
condition. Two in a hundred people aged 65-69 are estimated to have it and this figure rises to one in five for those aged 85 to 89. 

Living with dementia is highly distressing, not only for the person with the diagnosis but crucially too for those in a carer role, who are at risk of becoming isolated and exhausted. This means a very large number of people are affected by it. And yet research into Alzheimer's and dementia diseases remains severely under-funded.  There is little in the way of effective treatment to slow down its progress and none to cure it or protect us from getting it. 

That's why I want to help raise money for Alzheimer's Research UK - it's the leading research charity in the UK for Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, and I think it's so deserving of support. Over the next 6 months I'm hoping to talk to friends and neighbours who have been going through the experience of having or caring for dementia and I'll post their stories.  And of course I'd be really interested to hear of your stories too - either as comments posted on this blog or through emailing me at sixtyat60challenge@gmail.com.   

One of the most important tasks on my Sixty at 60 list is to become a Dementia Befriender (through Alzheimer's Society http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/ ) to offer support to families coping with dementia. As I work through the rest of the list, my hope is that you may feel sufficiently entertained or inspired by a task (perhaps one where I have to face a fear and/or possible humiliation??!) to make a donation, however small, through my justgiving page  https://www.justgiving.com/Vivien-Hunot/

If you would like to follow this blog click here for information on how to do so.     

Task 21: Attend Shakespeare play at the Globe Theatre

In June 1997, the newly re-constructed Globe Theatre opened its doors to great fanfare and acclaim. As someone who has always fancied herself as a bit of a history and English Lit buff (I achieved a 2 for English Lit and History in my O Levels. although only people over the age of 55 would have a clue what that means), you’d think I would been first in the queue to cross its threshold, especially since the Tudors have always been my favourite period in history (all those doublets and farthingales). But sadly it’s remained one of those places that I’ve repeatedly said I’m desperate to visit without ever doing anything about it. Until the advent of my Sixty at 60 list that is.

And so it was that last Saturday evening, for the second part of my 60th birthday celebrations, Andrew and the family took me to the Globe Theatre to see a performance of As You Like It.  I was very excited!

The theatre was packed, the weather was dry and not too chilly, our seats were well positioned (if a little hard - remember to get cushions next time Hunots) and the atmosphere was buzzing with expectation.  The performance began. Young men wrestled, maidens eyed up young men wrestling, maidens (one dressed as a man) were banished to Forest of Arden, older men had long philosophical conversations about various matters and a band of musicians played a stunning array of Tudor instruments. At the interval I confessed that it had been a bit of struggle at times to follow the plot. Much to my relief, various family members echoed my thoughts. Michael, my elder son, duly accessed a synopsis on his tablet (why hadn't we thought about doing that earlier?!)

After the interval Shakespeare and the Globe began to really weave their magic. I found my ear becoming much more attuned to the style and pace of the prose, and by the end of the play I had pretty much mastered the plot. I got my head around the fact that Rosalind disguised as a man was training Orlando to become the perfect boyfriend and that Phoebe had fallen in love with her in her manly guise - and I rejoiced at Rosalind’s return to court and her subsequent marriage to Orlando (NB I'm impressed by the speed at which the four different relationships resulted in weddings - it took my younger son Jonathan 7 years to propose to his girlfriend Liz). And what an amazing tap dance routine!  A wonderful production, so much fun and a great start to my sixty at 60 challenge - yes, all the world's a stage......

Task 7: Lindy hop until we drop

With my 60th birthday approaching fast, I had one final task to add to the list of 60 challenges. The more I tried to force myself to think of something, the more blank my mind seemed to become. And then two weeks ago Andrew and I attended the wedding reception of his godson Tom. The cake was cut, the music started and we took our places on the dance floor. All around us were wedding guests twisting, jiving, waltzing, hip-hopping and boogying (hmm - is boogying actually a dance? Anyway you know what I mean). And as for Andrew and me?  Well there we were, just bopping and dad dancing in the same old way that we've been doing for the past 38 years. At that moment a small nugget of an idea for the final task came into my head........

Fast forward to Saturday 30 May at 2pm, at Gauthier Soho http://gauthiersoho.co.uk/ (it's a fab Michelin starred French restaurant, tucked behind Shafesbury Avenue - can definitely recommend it), where a small band of family and friends were gathered together for my birthday lunch. The task was duly described to them:

Andrew and I will learn a dance (selected by our birthday guests), film ourselves doing a performance of it, and put a videoclip on YouTube. 

Each of our guests wrote down the name of a dance on the back of their name place card, put the card into a box and I then plucked out the winner. As you will have already realised (couldn't resist the blog title) it's to be.......the lindy hop! My daughter in law Liz is responsible for this inspired idea and has already sent me the link to a videoclip of happy-looking people lindy hopping http://www.swingland.com/. I'm very excited at the prospect of getting to grips with it (not sure that Andrew is quite as enthusiastic but his fate is already sealed) - and who knows, we may be putting on star turns at wedding parties for years to come. 

The photo below shows the other dances that were suggested:

Spot the imaginative spelling of paso doble. In defence of the individual concerned, I wouldn't have got it right either. As you can see, the Argentine tango (my worst nightmare!!) proved to be a popular one. In fact so much so, that a minor rebellion arose from within the ranks regarding our selection method. So in a moderating gesture, we've promised to learn it as well, as long as (NB caveats are so important at a time like this) we manage to get our heads and feet around the lindy hop without starting divorce proceedings.

This task is a work in progress and more than likely will take all year to perfect. I'll keep you updated. In the meantime any comments on our lunch guests' subconscious desire to make us suffer (highland fling - phew, narrow escape there) are welcome....