We all know
that advertising is a craft designed to manipulate our desires, but every once
in a while it seems to say something else altogether.
I’m worried
about men.
If they see
a bunch of women laughing and they’re wearing purple, they know they are all
wetting themselves. But it’s ok – they’ve got Tena Lady or Always panty liners
on.
And if they
meet a hot chick in the lift and she giggles and she’s wearing purple – on no!
She’s just wet herself, too!
Worse still,
these women are barely 40
.
What are
they trying to tell us? That as we approach ‘the change’, we’ll also lose
bladder control in everyday situations? Great. And also- not true. I for one
would like to point out that if you catch me laughing my head off –relax –I’m
not leaking. Perhaps I have Pilates to thank for that.
Approaching ‘the
change’, perimenopause or menopause doesn’t have to be a bad thing. It’s like
your teens all over again – a time for reinvention or rediscovery.
I’ve been
talking with another author around the launch of her latest novel (Jane
McLoughlin and ‘The Unfriended’). Her novel begins with four young women
arriving at university and their ensuing growth – working out who they are and
what they want from the world. Much the same as my character Kate in …But I
love You. Some of us might look back at those years with a shudder: some
lessons were harder to learn than others. Some of us look back at those years
with joy at the freedom they offered, the freedom to grow into yourself.
Well, I intend
to take this period of change with that latter spirit. I’m going to grow into
my new self, possibly a little disgracefully, but for now, without the need for
Tena Lady.
I’m off to the
comedy club on Saturday – I think I’ll wear purple!
If you’re
local, join Jane and I in conversation at Brendon Books, Taunton on Thursday 19th
Nov at 6pm as part of Taunton Literary Festival.
