The Best Kept Secret Blog - Come Hither, Not

I had a business meeting this morning.

As it's now mid September, there was a nip in the air so I decided to wear my new fall things - floaty blouse, brown suede boots and a grey knit skirt that is so au courant.

There I was, strutting down Bay street and I've got tell you, I felt good.

As I stood at a corner waiting for a light to change, a sudden gust of wind lifted my skirt and suddenly there I was, doing a Marilyn.

Only instead of looking sultry and sexy, a look of horror crept over my face as I realized I was flashing my dimpled thighs and black Spanx bodywear (bo-dy-wear, noun: a modern day girdle) for the entire brain trust of the Canadian financial district.

I recovered quickly enough but it got me thinking how far I've fallen from my fresh and frisky youth. It gave me a new appreciation for how hard the dating scene must be for my single, mid-life friends.

How, for example, is one expected to dance the night away in sexy, strappy heels when orthotics and bunions now rule the day?

In our youth, an aloof toss of the head used to scream seductress. Now it yells, "Help! I've put my back out."

Where before an enigmatic smile conveyed, "Will she let him get lucky tonight?", it now makes observers wonder, "Is she having difficulty remembering where she left her house keys again?"

And where once a rosy flush indicated interest and excitement, it now says hot flash.

It's so much easier when you've been married for a while. Expectations are so much less. My husband thinks I'm being romantic when I agree to sit and watch This Old House reruns with him.

If I were out on the prowl again, I don't know what I would do. Since my physical assets are in decline, I guess I'd have to rely on my mental agility. But given my perimenopause mind, that account is a little low these days too.

I guess the trick is to do the best with what you've got.

I admire the women who use the imperfections of age to their advantage. One friend who has been plagued off and on for year with muscle spasms in her right eye recently told me, "It gets me noticed by men at the bar. They think I'm winking at them."

So if I should ever find myself suddenly single, I'll sew lace on my Spanx, get out there and do what a girl's got to do.