It's a pleasant thing to be young, and have ten toes.

~Robert Louis Stevenson

So I've been stressed. And if you ask me, the very best way to feel better is to have a pedicure. I have two places I love to go; NVogue and Mitchell's in West Chester. My favorite is Mitchell's, and I always ask for Carlie.

Carlie is young and beautiful. She has gorgeous naturally curly hair and a complexion that is so perfect it makes me want to kick the soapy water I am soaking my feet in right in her face. I'm kidding of course. Carlie is as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. If you are looking for someone to do your pedicure or manicure, give her a try.

From the minute you walk in the front door the tension starts to lift. I should stop here and add that pedicures are always best when done as a "girlfriend" activity and when a bottle of wine is involved. Yes, you can BYOB. If you prefer to remain sober they offer a variety of flavored coffees, lemon flavored water and soft drinks. Then there's the chair... The chair alone is worth the price of the pedicure. It heats and reclines and massages and allows you to sit up high with your feet immersed in a whirling pool of warm bubbles. I close my eyes and prefer to believe that it is, indeed, the throne for a well preserved beauty queen.

Pedicures are more than a simple matter of applying polish to the toenails. There's lots of trimming and filing and fluffing and buffing involved. The leg and feet massages are heavenly and then there's the choosing of the color. For some reason my friends can always choose a color (usually red) in less than 60 seconds. I am well into 30 or 40 minutes before I'm starting to narrow it down.

With colors like "Fishnet Stockings", "Barefoot in Barcelona", "Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees", "Skinny Dipping in Lake Michigan" and "Decadent Diva" who can choose so quickly???

I finally decided on "Scarlet O'Hara". When I got home, I asked Mark if he thought I had picked the right color. He simply looked at me and replied "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."