Dancing with Jake Ryan

So there I was, a fresh-faced budding young woman of 14. I was at the movies with some friends, and that’s when I first saw him. He became very important during my “formative years” and was often on my mind as I drifted off to sleep…Jake Ryan.

When Sixteen Candles came out in 1984, I thought the story was cute, the dress was awesome, but Jake was dreamy. Somewhere over the years his dialogue with Long Duk Dong got all mixed up in my head, and my friends and I started referring to Jake as the “oily bo-hunk.” (Molly Ringwald purists will remember that it was actually Samantha’s sister who was marrying the oily bo-hunk, not Jake. But after thirty years, I’ll blame my memory and not the wine.)

Fast forward almost 30 years and my life has changed. I used to think about Jake Ryan while I was in the shower. Now I think about him after I get out.

That’s right…I’m talking about moisturizing.

One of my ongoing STDs (Shit To Do, people…relax) is taking better care of my skin. Most of us wait until our hands feel like sandpaper or our heels could strike a match before we think about lotion. Moisturizing on demand is a little like flossing the night before a dentist appointment. Better late than never, but it’s not exactly a long-term strategy.

So here’s my new snake-skin-begone routine.

I take a shower and towel off, but not completely. I leave my skin just a little damp, then rub on a thin layer of good old organic coconut oil. I have some sensory issues, so I can’t get dressed if I still feel greasy. Thankfully the coconut oil soaks in pretty quickly, and before long I’m good to go.

I know some people moisturize every single day. Good for them.

I can’t.

I’m lucky if I have time to eat two meals some days, so I’m keeping this one realistic. Three or four times a week is something I can stick with, and I’d rather build a habit I can maintain than aim for perfection and quit after a week.

Like I always say, do what you can. If you can do it every day, fantastic. If you can only manage a couple of times a week, that’s still better than not doing it at all.

A couple of weeks after I started my new routine, my husband reached over while we were watching TV and rubbed my leg.

“What are you doing differently?”

“What do you mean?”

“Your skin feels really soft.”

I smiled.

“Dancing with Jake Ryan.”

He looked at me like I’d completely lost my mind.  Some jokes are just for me.  The important part was that he noticed.

So now every time I step out of the shower and reach for the coconut oil, I smile and think of my teenage crush from 1984.

Not a bad way to start the day.