oompa loompa doom-pa-dee-do

Getting a tan was part of growing up in southern California. I never "won" the junior high ritual of putting forearms together and comparing. Instead, I burned and blistered almost every summer of my life. I've come to accept my fair skin for the most part, but every few years I try a self tanner. My first attempt was about 20 years ago and the result wasn't pretty. Neither were the comments. It took several days and a lot of St. Ives Apricot Scrub to get rid of the deep orange glow. But I'm still lured by all the self-tanners lining the shelves at the drugstore and think they must have improved over the years. Jergen's makes a lotion that really does give a nice, subtle color, but the smell is more than I can take. My latest try was a mousse by Neutrogena. I'm waiting for the stripes to fade.