The price of beauty

A few months ago, I was talking to a group of guys who were complaining about how men are expected to pay for dates. I pointed out that, not only is that no longer necessarily the case, but women invest probably just as much in the date as they do -- makeup, good hair and clothes, for instance, don't come cheap.

Case in point: yesterday I went to the salon to get my hair done. I figure I may as well look good for my first day back at school. I got highlights and a trim. Total bill: $155 before tip (100 for the highlights, 55 for the cut). In my mind, this was utterly reasonable. I'm used to paying a lot of money to keep my hair looking fabulous, as probably most women are. My highlight specialist suggested that while I was waiting for the other hairdresser (the one who did my cut -- he was running behind so I had some time between the highlights and the cut) I get my makeup done. I was going out that night and figured, why not. It was actually kind of fun, and the lady who did my makeup was gushy and gave me lots of compliments. I love it when they do that.

So when the woman behind the counter told me my total was $155, I checked to make sure she had added the makeup, which I hadn't scheduled when I made my appointment. She went to check with the makeup lady about what she had done so she knew which service to charge me for. She came back to the counter and announced my new total: $205. That's right. My foundation, eye makeup, blush and lip gloss cost fifty bucks. FIFTY BUCKS! I don't mind paying to be pampered, but that seems like a lot of money to me for a fifteen-minute makeup application. I've paid half that for manicures that take 45 minutes. I mean, I looked good, but not that good.

So, gentlemen, the next time you don't understand why your girlfriend/wife/sister/female buddy flips out if you don't notice her new haircut, don't roll your eyes and think to yourself that women are crazy. We're not crazy -- we're proud investors. Think of it this way: if you bought an expensive car, you would damn sure expect people to take notice. Hair is our car. So, please, at least pretend to care once in a while.