The difference between 14 and 40

  

A lot of things change between 14 and 40: jeans are no longer part of a dressy outfit – even with heels; socks and soap from your auntie for your birthday are 'handy' not 'lame'; and most of the time you spend on a computer is for actual work, not Face Waste .

The teen and I wrote a couple of lists separately and were delighted to find at least some common ground. Bring on the Baygon.

Fourteen:

5 things I can’t live without

1. phone (for texting)
2. iPod (music wherever you want)
3. hair straightener
4. Chocolate Teddy Bear biscuits
5. mirror

5 things I’d happily never set eyes on again:

1. broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower
2. a maths textbook (900 pages of misery)
3. dust pan and broom (sweeping is the worst chore)
4. Miss Boyd (grumpy teacher)
5. spiders

Forty:

5 things I can’t live without

1. iPhone (for everything)
2. car
3. L’Oreal (not because I'm worth it, more because I'm past it)
4. credit card
5. gym

5 things I’d happily never set eyes on again:

1. alarms and reminders
2. pantyhose
3. my reflection first thing in the morning in the magnifying mirror (maybe I shouldn't have had that laser surgery - soft focus was so much kinder)
4. credit card statement (did I really need those shoes?)
5. spiders