I’ve never considered myself particularly attractive, but every now and then growing up, I will receive an offhanded compliment. As I prepare to transition into my late 30s, I’m starting to feel very aware of a precipitous decline in my looks. This, coupled with my demanding career choice and my years of playing competitive tennis in the California sun, is definitely leading to the formation of wrinkles in key regions of my face. This is especially true when I wake up in the morning.
I’m not sure what to make of this. I’ve always admired individuals who are able to maintain their looks and health while juggling a demanding career, like being in academia or in medicine, and I’ve always wondered what their secret is? Is it just good genes? Are they really that much more disciplined and better than I am? Or is my standard just simply too high? In reality, it’s probably all of the above.
Even so, I’m sort of disappointed that I value looks as much as I seem to. I don’t know if this is a reflection of American culture, which I do feel is relatively more sexualized compared to that of the rest of the world. I wonder if aging in the US is just a bit more challenging than if I were a citizen anywhere else…
The Ivory Tower 
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