I sat in front of my computer grading essays and listening to NPR, a blanket wrapped around me because I couldn't warm up after my seven-mile morning run. I had showered and scrunched some gel into my hair. I'd bypassed the makeup and moisturizer, and my hair curled in spikes around my head when a screen popped up on the computer.
"Video Call" from Skype.
"Oh, crap," I thought.
I looked awful and I was about to have a screen conversation with my friend Sheila in Milan.
Now, I have no problem meeting Sheila to walk or have coffee before I shower, but sitting and staring at each other's face in a phone call is different.
I could have pushed the answer button and skipped the video, but I knew Sheila would give me a hard time about that. So I pushed the video button too, and there was Sheila in a Milan hotel room.
"Wow. You're curly," she said, being polite about my appearance.
The real problem with video calling is that, in addition to seeing the caller's face, I see my own the whole time too. Frankly, I looked haggard. I don't want to look at my face for a 15-minute phone call.
I enjoyed the chat with Sheila, and her daughter Bethany the international model, even added a few comments as we were talking about the Duomo, transportation, and the expensive gelato.
As soon as we hung up, I straightened my bangs and added a little makeup, just in case I get another Video Call and must look nice for the conversation.
I wonder if Bethany will have to be extra worried about how she looks before she answers a video call? Probably not, since she is captured on video and the internet in makeup and clothes like these:
