Field Guide to Americans

Field Guide to Americans

All This Useless Beauty

Do you see me?

When beauty fades, loneliness seems not far behind

Whitney McKnight's avatar
Whitney McKnight
Nov 27, 2024
∙ Paid

vol. 1 issue 2

‘Am I still beautiful?’

Dear Friends,

Last week, I was asked out on a date by a normal man (a triumph, right?) — also handsome, quite accomplished. He was older than I am, but not by a lot.

The surprise was delightful, and led to a rush of excitement that I struggled to contain, until a growing sense of dread dampened my glee. I realized I have become too scruffy for fancy people since leaving the Big City; I generally look unsophisticated anymore. I imagined myself on a date with someone not scruffy and I couldn’t make it synch up.

My doubts led me to conduct due diligence.

A few quick digs into the man’s social media and a spin through his business’s web page, and soon my heart burned, then sunk like a stone.

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