High Maintenance Woman

A dear friend of mine has always joked about me being a bit high maintenance. My first thought always is "No, not me!" But this time my mind quickly shifted to making a perfectly good blog out of this! Why pass the chance to find out a bit more about myself (like if I'm truly high maintenance or not) and blogging it for good reading material?!

Why exactly does "high maintenance" mean? I generally apply the term to women rather than automobiles, housekeeping, good health, upkeep of the computer and websites, or yard work. Right or wrong, I think of high maintenance women as those who think they need to look good on a daily basis, one who doesn't know how to kick back in a pair of jeans and a T with no makeup on, someone who has to have their nails done, tans and has routine Mani's and Pedi's, who spends more time grooming themselves than any other member of their family, one who is hard to please and needs extra time and effort put into her, and someone who is particular yet troublesome.

To be fair, I thought I'd get a man's opinion on what he views as high maintenance. Here is what my dearest had to say: a person who wants more things than can be provided, needs someone to take care of them, has to be the center of attention.

Next question for him was, "Do you think I'm high maintenance?" His answer was a simple, "no." I think he's getting bored with me now and doesn't really care about this subject. Truth be known, I don't find all his subjects of discussion all that entertaining, but I partake most times. Okay, sometimes. But I ALWAYS appear to be listening! (Oh dear, does that very thing make me high maintenance?!)

I digress, with honesty though!

So the questions is.... Am I high maintenance? Depends on who you ask I guess. I took the liberty of posting this very question on my Facebook page and received varying answers. A few people said they wouldn't exactly describe me as high maintenance but that I "do know what I want, when I want it and how it needs to get done" or that I "like things a certain way". A few friends said "YES!" while others completely disagreed. Which goes to show that the term high maintenance varies from one person's viewpoint to another.

Do I think I'm high maintenance by my definition? I don't really. But can I understand why others might view me as such? Heck ya! I'll start, nothing like a little more honesty huh!? I do like things the way I like them, I do know what I want and I do know how to accomplish them, I will call someone out when they are wrong, I do have high expectations of others, some even may find me hard to please, I can be fussy and particular, I do own quite a few pairs of shoes even if I don't wear them all, my closet does contain some items with tags on them still, and I could not possibly travel with just one piece of luggage.

What doesn't make me high maintenance - I don't get my nails done, I don't have Mani's and Pedi's, I don't tan, I spend little time on my hair and makeup, my clothing is not always that fashionable, and I don't particularly care for expensive things or showy items.

While googling, I found this funny quiz online and according to my answers, it calls me "low maintenance". This term is not near as fun as high maintenance but maybe we should use it more often.

Low maintenance - I'll take it! I actually like that term! Nobody really wants to be maintenance-free; that just makes you appear like a pushover who has no opinion or backbone. But low maintenance gives character. Those are the very things that make you special, they're the things your friends and family love about you. So after this time of soul-searching, I've come to learn I do have some high maintenance issues but I'm also very practical. I have likes and dislikes just like everyone else.

Love me or hate me - I am who I am, a little low maintenance and all =)