Problem: Article: Grays are a dead giveaway to your age, even though they look good on a few people. If you're not one of them, don't hesitate to cover them up. Choose a natural color that's only a shade or two away from your own actual tresses. If you're seriously graying, you may wish to color eyebrows, too they may end up giving you away if they're also changing color. Just because you're not chewing on your hair in algebra class anymore doesn't mean you can't have long hair. Sure, it's a bit harder to fuss with, but your hair is beautiful! Keep it to layers and highlights and you can appear trendy and younger in one go. That is, if you want long hair. You may decide that after years of dealing with it, it's just not worth it anymore. Though long hair can be an indicator of youth, as long as your hair is taken care of, you'll look good. With age comes experience...experiences of smoking, drinking coffee, and teeth turning yellow or gray. Take initiative and get them whitened, either with a kit or at the dentist's office. They don't need to be blindingly white, just the natural ivory shade of 10 years ago. There are a number of kits out there you can do at home that range from a few days to a few weeks. Most involve somewhere around 30 minutes a day. And if that's not enough, there are often whitening toothpastes you can combine with the kits, too. When our hormones change as they do with age, it's natural for nails to get a bit brittle. Combat this by putting a strengthener on your nails, or using a strengthening colored nail polish. Keep them at a trim yet delicate length, too. Go in for regular manicures and pedicures for an excuse to relax as well. Clear, French, and pastels and lighter, neutral-tinted tones are best. That goes for just about any age if you want to appear sophisticated and professional.
Summary: Color your hair the right color. If you want, grow your hair long. Get your teeth whitened. Pay attention to your nails.

Problem: Article: Go shopping and stock up on soft, easy-to-chew foods before the surgery. Ideally, make them drinkable like yogurt and soups that don't have big chunks. Remember, your back teeth may hurt and you won't want to be chewing very much with your molars for the first few days and up to a week. Buy food like soup, yogurt, ice cream, applesauce, jello, and mashed potatoes. Don't buy anything that could leave residual food pieces in your mouth like cookies, nuts, rice, or pasta. Drink water and juice, but avoid drinks like soda and alcohol. Eat room temperature, very soft foods the first day after surgery. Try soup that's cooled down, yogurt, or puddings. Applesauce can be good too, just make sure there are no big chunks of apple. Try boiling vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, potatoes, onion and peppers and then smash them all together. Add a little vegetable stock to create a soup. Allow it to cool before you eat it. You can expect to not be able to open your mouth very wide soon after the surgery, so big spoons can cause problems. Make sure to have spoons that are the right size for you. It's important to maintain an exclusively soft diet for the first three days after surgery. Your mouth needs time to heal, so you need to help this process by avoiding foods that require chewing. After the first few days, you will likely be ready for foods that require a little chewing and don't have to be room temperature, like ice cream. An advantage to eating cold foods is that it can help numb your mouth, causing you to not feel any pain for a short while. The cool temperatures can also work to soothe your mouth after the surgery. When you're ready to start chewing food again, start with really small bites. Work your way up to normal-sized bites. It can take a while to get back to eating normally, but it will improve soon enough. You don't want to rush into eating regular foods again because it could cause your wounds to re-open, which can lead to pain and bleeding. Then you'll have to start the healing process all over again. Most people start eating normally again after five to seven days post-surgery. After any kind of surgery, it is crucial to follow your doctor's advice. But with oral surgery it is especially important because you can't simply leave the wound untouched. You must eat food during the recovery period. Make sure that you listen to everything your doctor tells you and follow their instructions to the letter.
Summary: Plan ahead. Start with soft, room temperature foods. Keep eating soft foods for the first three days or so. Begin with small bites. Follow your oral surgeon's instructions.

Problem: Article: This is one of the most common questions asked among people meeting for the first time. Since you're not a French speaker, the person you're talking to will probably be even more interested to learn your origins. Use one of the phrases below: J'habite a ______ (I live in ______): Zhah-beet ah (location) Je vis a ______ (I live in ______): Zhuh veez ah (location) Je suis de ______ (I'm from ______): Zhuh swee duh (location) Put the name of your city, state, or country in the blank. For example, if you're from the U.S. you might say, "Je suis des Etats-Unis." This isn't always a topic of conversation that will come up, but if you're a young person meeting people who are older than you, it's nice to know how to say. Use the easy phrase below: J'ai ___ ans (I'm ___ years old): Zheh (number) ahn. The final n is very delicate more or less silent. Put the number of years old you are in the blank. See our guide to counting in French for help. Being able to introduce other people is almost as important as being able to introduce yourself especially if they're not great French speakers. Use the phrases below to make introductions between people you know and people you don't: Je vous presente ______ (I present you ______): Zhuh voo preh-zont (name and/or title) Voici ______ (Here is ______): Vwuh-see (name and/or title) After you say someone's name, you may want to describe your relationship with this person in a few words. For instance, you might say "Voici Emma, ma femme" ("Here is Emma, my wife"). Once introductions are out of the way, the conversation itself can commence. Below are just a few basic questions you may want to have ready you don't need to be perfectly fluent to show you're interested in learning more about the person you're meeting. Comment vous appelez-vous? (What is your name?): Co-mahnt vooz ah-play-voo? D'ou etes-vous? (Where are you from?): Doo eht-voo? Quel est votre profession? (What do you do for a living?): Kell ay vote-ruh pro-fess-yone? Comment allez-vous? (How are you?): Co-mahnt ah-lay-voo?
Summary:
Mention where you're from. If appropriate, mention how old you are. Introduce other people with you. Ask a few basic questions.