About 20 years ago, I had absolutely no savings, but got a windfall when Disney acquired the company where I worked, Fairchild Publications. A few years before, I had been awarded stock (on paper) as incentive to stay at Fairchild. Normally, I would have had to wait five years to cash in, but the new owner, Disney, let us do it early.

When I learned the amount I’d get, I was ecstatic. The joy faded when I discovered it was subject to taxes. Despite my financial ineptitude, I don’t know what possessed me to think I wouldn’t have to pay taxes on this income. I’ll never forget asking Edgar, the man I was involved with back then, if there was any way I could avoid them, or pay less. He said “No!” I stewed about this a while, but it turned out, it didn’t matter since the company took the taxes out BEFORE they handed me a check.

Now here’s my point: I have never been greedy. I never pushed for raises since I believed I’d get them through my hard work; I never charge clients ridiculous fees for my company’s services, even those who normally spend inordinate amounts of money for the types of services we provide; I reward great employees before I reward myself.  I believe in the saying: “A day’s work for a day’s pay.  Nevertheless, the prospect of lots of quick money made me momentarily greedy.

I’ve been thinking about this after reading about the heaps of money that the owners of the New York Mets made from Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme. No one’s proven whether they knew they were stealing, but I’ve asked myself what I would have done if my investments were reaping far greater profits than most everyone else’s.  Would I have questioned my financial adviser or closed my eyes on the way to the bank?

Money isn’t necessarily at the root of all evil, but I guess it has the power to put a little bit of the devil in many of us.

Shelley received this email earlier today, along with the photo below, from Lauren Monahan, a new FOF member: “I just found this site, and I’m so glad I did. It’s about time the 50 something’s got their due! Thanks for this – I’m proud to be my age, 58 – in fact, I still try to strut around in a glam fashion when I get the chance.  I compete in beauty pageants with 30 year olds, and it ain’t easy! Thanks for a great looking site.”

We thought Lauren looked great, and (of course) we loved her praise, so we decided to find out more about her.

FOF: How do you stay in shape?

Lauren: “I try to walk and take the stairs whenever I can.  I also have light hand weights sitting by my chair, so when I see them, I stand up and use them.

I try to watch my weight by eating healthy, but I also don’t deny myself goodies when I want them.  It’s all about common sense (and trust me, I weighed 250 pounds seven years ago, so I know how to keep it off!)”

FOF: What pageants have you entered/won?

Lauren: “I’ve entered too many to list – it’s my hobby, but I have been Mrs. Tennessee United States, Mrs. Puerto Rico International, Mrs. All American, and many others.  I’ve traveled to Las Vegas, Mexico, California, New York and other glamorous locations. I started when I was 17 and entered the Miss Florida Pageant for scholarship reasons.  I am currently the Ambassador for the Ms. World International Pageant that will be held in Toronto, Canada in 2012.  The pageant is for women 35 and older, and will include competition in interview, swimsuit, haute couture fashion and evening gowns.”

FOF: Are you married?

Lauren: “Yes, and happily for 11 years.  My husband and I went to high school together in Puerto Rico, didn’t know each other well, but met again at our reunion in 1998.  He was captain of the football team and I was captain of the cheerleaders. We got married in 1999 in Las Vegas. It was the best thing that ever happened to both of us.

FOF: Do you have children?

Lauren: “None of my own, but I have three wonderful stepsons.”

FOF: Where do you live?

Lauren: “Knoxville, TN   I’m originally from Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

FOF: Do you work?

Lauren: “I’ve worked for 35 years in local government and was in the US Coast Guard for two years.

FOF: What are your passions?

Lauren: “I am the director of a 50+ senior citizens activity center in Knoxville, TN.  One of my passions is working to find programs, activities and wellness awareness for this group.  My center has over 18 fitness related classes, along with belly dancing, tap, line dancing and more.  I enjoy seeing everyone alive with activity and desire to stay fit, active and confident. I’m also an animal person.  I have complete empathy for any animal, and will do anything to comfort and support them.”

FOF: What is your favorite moisturizer?

Lauren: “I use Olay products for every day. I love the Regenerist line.”

FOF: To what do you attribute your overall good looks?

Lauren: “Besides being grateful for my mother’s genes, I attribute my looks to lots of sleep, no smoking or drinking, an athletic upbringing (I played college sports), knowing my body, and taking care of my skin.  Having lived in the Caribbean as a teen, it’s surprising that the damage to my skin wasn’t worse.

FOF: What do you do to relax?

Lauren: “Sit around with my five cats, working on a sparkly costume for my next pageant, or flying off to some exotic beach location.”

From iced martinis to cupcake icing

I stopped drinking alcohol and soda three years ago, and although I don’t miss them one bit, I eat sweets more than I ever did, but only late at night. I scrape icing off cupcakes. I break off bits of cookies. I might even devour a pint of ice cream while I watch David Letterman or a rerun of The Nanny, which I never watched in the first place. You have to eat ice cream when you watch The Nanny.

My doctor said my body is craving the sugar I used to get from alcohol, which makes sense. Of course, there are smarter foods to eat than cupcake icing to get some sugar, like a square of dark chocolate or blueberries. I’m not always so smart, however.

I really want to put an end to this awful habit, and I’m vowing right here, right now, that I will. My nephew, Adam, is getting married on May 22, so I’ll strive to stay away from the bad stuff, at least till then.  I’ll also make a concerted effort to use the spinner that sits idle in my apartment. I managed to spin for 12 minutes this morning, before I went to yoga.

The first week is the hardest.  I’ve done this before.

FOF longtime friend (I’ll call her Anita) recently heard from her high school boyfriend through Facebook.  She hadn’t seen him in 40 years. When they were together, as teens, Anita became pregnant and had an abortion.

This is not Anita and her high school beau

They met recently and reminisced into the wee hours of the morning. Anita learned her old high school flame was divorced and lived for many years in California with a male partner, who died recently. ”He remembered things about my mother and father that I didn’t recall,” Anita told me. “He could even imitate my father. When I told him there was one thing I especially remembered about our time together, he told me what it was before the words left my mouth. It was eerie.”

Like it or not, the influence of Facebook is unequivocal.

PS Anita is married, has a successful career and is the mother of a fantastic and accomplished daughter.