rubyvelour.com

R.I.P Michael Jackson

June 27th, 2009

michael jackson

I was a HUGE fan of Michael Jackson growing up and have always believed in him, no matter how unpopular my opinions might have been. He was an insanely talented man who did so many amazing things. Not just with music but also with being a humanitarian. I never, ever believed he was anything but a gentle soul who never got the chance to have a normal life. He was famous before he was even a teenager and it affected him for the rest of his life. A life that ended too soon. I hope he is at peace, finally, because he deserves it.

ruby_sig

Posted in Life, Music Love | No Comments »

I’m shy, not a bitch!

June 23rd, 2009

eye coloured

I am horrendously, painfully shy. Always have been and always will. People who know me find this very hard to believe because I can very loud and even “in your face” at times. But that’s only to the people I know really well and even then it’s only an occasional thing as I can still get an attack of the “shy’s” even with people I know really well. With people I don’t know too well (ie. most of my workmates) I find it really hard to initiate conversations and in many cases, even say hello in the mornings. As a result I get accused of being a rude, stuck-up bitch all the time, which hurts because I know I’m not stuck-up or a bitch at all, it’s just really, really hard to talk to people I don’t know very well. Luckily I’ve been able to explain this to the workmates who’ve questioned me about it so no one takes being snubbed by me to heart, but there are all those times where I meet new people that I know I come across as really rude when in reality I’m terrified at the prospect at having to talk to a stranger!

I try not to let this rule my life, as many shy people tend to do. Life is too short to tremble in fear whenever someone I don’t know starts talking to me. I also have to talk to strangers on the phone all the time, it’s part of my job, so I can’t let it consume me. I do find it hard to chit-chat to my clients though as most of my co-workers do, but it apparently makes me seem very efficient so I use this to my advantage. I also hate knowing I give a bad first impression to people when I meet them for the first time which isn’t at all a true reflection of the person I really am.

So what do I do to get over this crippling shyness? To be honest, I try to suck it up for the most part. I know it’s a problem and I accept it and try to get over it to the best of my ability. I’m constantly talking to myself, reminding myself that this person doesn’t know how shy I am and therefore I don’t want them getting the wrong impression, so I do all I can to blast past the fear of talking to a stranger and be as polite as possible. I also remind myself that I don’t have anything to fear from talking to strangers – most of them are good people and it’s not like they’re going to shoot me for saying the wrong thing. The only problem with this though is that I’m usually so busy trying to pep myself up that I end up not being able to think of anything to say and so I look kind of dumb. But hey, looking a bit dumb is better than coming across as a bitch, right?

There’s nothing anyone can do if they’re excessively shy, except to just try to overcome it as much as possible and fool people into thinking you’re the aloof, mysterious type (I work this to my advantage all the time, though many people still tend to think I’m just being a stuck-up cow which kind of sucks). If someone’s first impression of you is that you’re stuck-up, hope that you’ll meet again and can prove otherwise. I have won over a lot of people by seeming rude after the first meeting but then turning out to be really quite nice after an actual conversation. And if you give the wrong impression to someone you never meet again, no sense stressing about it, instead just hope they were one of the smart few who took it as being aloof and mysterious!

ruby_sig

Posted in Body and Soul, Life | 3 Comments »

I am going to Japan!

June 5th, 2009

japan

This afternoon when I checked my email, I didn’t for one minute think I would end up booking a flight overseas by the end off the day. But I found an amazing deal for 2 for 1 flights that I couldn’t resist and it just took one email to A and withing an hour two flights were booked to Japan in September! And for so, so cheap!

I’ve wanted to go to Japan for ages. I’m not one of those Japan-crazed girls who thinks everything the Japanese do is the best thing ever and so only listen to Japanese music, watch Japanese films/TV and dress like a typical Japanese school girl or do that cos play thing. I mostly just like weird and random shit, which the Japanese seem to have pretty much perfected. I also think Japan looks like a beautiful country, and I have had many friends who have been there say very good things about the place. So, now it’s my turn!

It’s for eight days so a short trip, really. We’ll probably just stay in Tokyo as we’re going to be a bit pushed for money given such short notice and everything. But a week in a crazy city like Tokyo will be perfect, I daresay. Plus I’m not wanting to do all the touristy stuff per say, I just want to experience Tokyo as thoroughly as possible, which probably means lots of wandering around and getting lost (something I mastered in almost every major and minor city that I’ve ever been to). It is going to be AWESOME!

The only things I’m determined to see is Harajuku (I’m told Sunday is the day to go) and Tokyo Disney. Therefore I need suggestions for cool stuff to see and do around Tokyo. Cool shopping districts, interesting sights, famous landmarks, crazy multi-leveled sex-shops, entertainment districts etc. So please give me some ideas of what to see and do around Tokyo! Oh and an idea of how much things cost would be a really nice bonus too.

japan rocksruby_sig

Posted in Festivals and Gigs, My Life, Travel | 1 Comment »

I Love Links – 04/06/09

June 4th, 2009

ilovelinks

OK so I soon realised my internet presence is pretty weak (damn full times jobs and their limited access to the internet). So this will be more of a random thing, as opposed to a weekly thing as I’d hoped.

  • Not Quite Nigella is a wonderful blog by a Sydney girl who is obsessed with food. She bakes and cooks and posts pictures and recipes, as well as reviews food wherever she goes. It’s all so delicious.  I am the worst cook ever, so much so I stuffed up my first batch of these! Oh yeah, I am that bad! I just usually admire other peoples skills on the internet instead.
  • I was going to write my own blog about this very thing, but someone beat me to it: How to be supportive of someone on a diet. Non-dieters have no idea how hard it can be to diet. If you’re on a diet, show this to the people in your life who don’t quite “get it” because it’ll make a world of difference!
  • I rediscovered the Perry Bible Fellowship and spent the last week or so laughing about skub. Seriously, it cracks me up constantly. In fact I have that comic as my desktop at work and it makes me chuckle every morning. I also plan to get the Unicorn Power shirt one of these days.
  • This is what it would be like to swim with a blue whale. It breaks my heart to think these poor creatures are endangered.
  • When I first heard about the Eminem and Bruno stunt I was gullible enough to think Eminem had really been that pissed off. Then I was told it was all set up and was happy again. I love Eminem (shhh!) so it was a great relief!
  • Some sound advice about chick and lad mags. Every time I read something like Woman’s Day I want to throw it out a window in a fit of rage. Lad mags don’t worry me as much simply because 90% of their readers would never, ever have a chance in hell of pulling any of the hot girls in any of those magazines. Reading them does tend to make me feel like a big of a while though :/
  • I was told it was common but I never heard of anyone else being allergic to mangoes. But then I did some research and realised I’m not the only one! I don’t eat mangoes any more. Screw having to eat fruit with gloves after someone else removed the skin ffirst! No fruit is worth that much effort, even mangoes!
  • And lastly, Blueprint has a new website. His blog is great – go check it out!

And now we have the YouTube section of this post:

Posted in I love Links | 1 Comment »

Growing up is OPTIONAL!

May 28th, 2009

I was linked to this article the other day, which got me very, very angry. In fact I ranted about it for the next couple of hours to anyone who would listen. Luckily everyone who endured the rant ended up agreeing with me (and joining in on the ranting). It’s about having to grow up once you’re 25 years old. Not in the “you can’t have fun ever” way (though they’re not far off it, actually), more like a “you’re an adult now, so start acting like one”. I admit everyone around the age of 25 ought to smarten up a bit if they hope to survive in the real world, but according to the douchebag who wrote this article once you turn 25 you pretty much forfeit any of the fun stuff you did prior to turning 25.

Well I say balls to that! I am a firm believer in the saying “Growing old is inevitable. Growing up is optional“. There should not be a certain age where people have to grow up and start acting like a well-balanced, respectable adult. Some people choose to do this early in life, some choose to do it when they’re in their mid-twenties, and others don’t seem to do it at all. And it’s all good! Personally I am the latter, I haven’t “grown up” yet and I don’t plan to any time soon. I mean, I have a job, I pay rent and  bills, I have responsibilities, I look out for others instead of being a selfish teenager all the time and so on. But I take great offense to this particular article implying that doing the things they listed should kick into gear by the time you’re 25 years old.

The fact is, there is no deadline for when you have to become boring.

Let’s look at this article in more detail, shell we? The first example is Remember to write thank-you notes. Unless we’re talking about a wedding, there is no need to write thank you letters. If you’re  a letter-writing sort of person then fair enough, go nuts and write as many as your hand will let you, but most people aren’t and most people don’t care. One friend stated that if he got a thank you note for giving someone a present, he’d probably throw it out without even reading it. He didn’t give the gift for puncy little thank you notes, and so doesn’t expect people to give any to him.

The next one is Do not invite yourself to stay with friends when you travel anymore. Well excuse me! The reasoning is because you should have a job and can therefore get a hotel room. Well maybe I spent all my savings on the damn plane ticket and the hostel beds I used while being in places where I don’t know people. Perhaps a free stay with a friend would allow me to see something I wouldn’t have been able to afford, had I stayed in some hotel. This leads on to the next point Do not expect friends to help you move anymore which is pretty much the same thing. Moving house is expensive, getting removalists to move all your stuff when you’re only moving to the next suburb just adds an extra expense that many people can’t really afford. If your friends are too busy to help you move, then ask some other friends (and maybe think about ditching those scumbag ones who won’t lend a hand).

This one just made me really angry: Do not share the crazy dream you had last night with anyone but your mental wellness professional. If I want to tell my mates about this twisted dream I had that they were in briefly, then I will. We all know dreams aren’t as interesting to other people as they are to you, but if you want to tell people about it, then go ahead. There’s nothing childish about sharing a dream where you and your friend won a million dollars and bought a marshmallow and puppy factory and married famous rockstars.

Do as invitations ask you. OK so you’d be a totally shit friend if you took five friends to a party when the invitaion said +1 only. But that time thing is bollocks. Unless you’re having a dinner party (which is usually a very boring and lame thing to do, in my opinion) then people should be able to turn up whenever they can. Most people tend to have informal parties at their homes or out at bars so it’s not a case of having to be there on time or else miss out. The way people are these days (check out my Case of the Flake People article) you can’t set a specific start time and expect people to adhere to it. Most people can’t and won’t, and so we all suck it up because only arsehole friends care if you turn up late to a party. Your turned up, after all!

Then we have Drinking until you throw up is no longer properly a point of pride. Now, most reasonable people over the age of 19 know it’s not totally awesome to go out four nights a week and drink enought to spew everywhere every single time. But dammit, if I have a massive night out that ends in hilarity/masisve embarrassment/vomiting into someone’s front garden then I am going to recount it to my friends and have a good old laugh about it. Now I’m 26, I’m not going to suddenly stop all my binge drinking completely and start drinking fancy wines in sensible amounts, or start drinking cognac and swishing my glass around so I can smell the aroma. Fuck that! I like my big nights out like the next average, well-balanced person, and by god I will gloat about my misadventures the next day if I want to!

Then there’s Have a real trash receptacle, real Kleenex, and, if you smoke, a real ashtray and get your speakers off the floor which are some of the most boring statements I’ve ever read in my life. I use toilet paper to blow my nose all the time? That makes me immature does it? What-the-fuck-ever! I will use whatever paper-like substance I want to blow my nose, and there’s not a dman thing anyone can say to make me feel like a kid for doing so!And by the way, my speakers ARE on the floor becaue they look good there and I don’t have a proper unit to store them in – if anyone has an issue with that, they can bite me and get out of my house.

I could go into great detail on every single point this girl made, but I’ve already made myself exceptionally angry just by looking at that stupid article the few times I needed to refer to it. My point is, acting a certain way at a certain age doesn’t make you a grown up. Using a hankie, being able to walk in heels, keeping dreams to myself, learning to change a tyre, buying shelves for my speakers and taking my earphone out when talking to shopkeepers does NOT make me an adult. Being my own person and loving myself despite my flaws and bad habits does. Friend are there for you no matter what, a good friend will help you move houses or put you up for a few nights if you ask them nicely. Adhering to these dumb “guidelines” will just end up making you a boring loser and will not win you any new friends.It will probably also cause you to lose you more interesting friends too.

My bestie just summed it up nicely when I asked what he thought I should add to this blog: “They can go and suck my dick”. Very well put.

ruby_sig

Posted in Life, Rants | 4 Comments »

My first hypnotherapy session

May 26th, 2009

I had my first hypnotherapy session tonight. It wasn’t quite as I expected but still really good. I was surprised by how aware and focused I was throughout, I could hear everything the hypnotherapist was saying and yet I was in a deep state of relaxation. It was kind of uncanny actually, nothing like the movies or what you see on TV. It wasn’t a case of me nodding off to sleep when he clicked his fingers, and I didn’t snap out of it when he clapped his hands, wondering where the hell I was. I have a CD of this session which will help me hypnotise myself at home (as he explained it, hypnosis is self-done as it is you who listens to the “suggestions” the hypnotist makes and it’s up to you if you want to oblige).

Personally I am going because of my obsession with food. I could eat an eat until I explode, and then eat some more. I feel like I need to eat the moment I am doing certain things like watching TV, going to the movies, sitting at my computer (home or work) or whenever I’m not doing something with my hands. I also have this problem where my mind blocks out a lot of what I eat, especially the bad stuff. So at the end of the day I’ll think I ate really well and then I’ll suddenly remember all the fatty and sugary snacks I had during the day at work. Often I’ll start snacking regardless of a lack of hunger, and half way through or right after I will realise what I did and have the worst eaters remorse. If I was able to make myself throw up I’d surely have bulimia. If I didn’t go to the gym as often as I do, god knows how I would be. I’d be fat as a house, I guess.

It’s a psychological issue of mine, and willpower alone is not enough. My hypnotherapist actually said to me that willpower alone usually won’t cut it for most people – we have routines and habits stuck in our subconscious minds and they’re not biased, they do what they know and your conscious mind is virtually useless to stop it. Hypnotherapy is meant to teach your subconscious to stop its bad habits and learn new, better ones, the ones we have know consciously but struggle so much with because it goes against what we have ingrained in out subconsciousness.

I’m going back for a couple more sessions over the next few weeks, so I’ll keep you all posted. I have high hopes for this, so fingers crossed this changes my mentality about my eating habits!

ruby_sig

Posted in Body and Soul, My Life | 1 Comment »

Weekly Wrap 25/05/2009

May 25th, 2009

***

Given my appalling couple of weeks, I figured it’d be nice to wrap up my week – just the nice stuff that happened and have stuck in my mind.

Spending lots of time with my mum and getting stuff done / Doing a lot of exercise and feeling like a million dollars afterwards / Changing my eating habits and losing a few kg’s as a result / Seeing real-life macaws and hundreds of wild kangaroos on a unexpected bus trip home / An unplanned day off work that did me wonders / Fantastic news after a lot of bad / A bunch of flowers greeting me at work / Finding money while cleaning and having an amazing meal and seeing a film for FREE as a result / Excessive tea consumption / Silver platforms / Delicious perfume on sale / Finding amazing false lashes and nail decals for CHEAP / New Livejournal layouts that suit me far too well / Magners Cider / Singing bad pop music as loud as I can at work (without getting into trouble) / Anticipating my first ever hypnotherapy session…

This week is going to be so much better. I have a few interesting things to look forward to, like my first ever hypnotherapy sessions. I’m getting it to help my food-obsession, but I’m mostly excited about the whole idea of it, a friend got it done recently and said the experience was unbelievable, plus it worked! I’m going to something called a “Leadership Breakfast” through work on Thursday morning which sounds a little bit fancy and totally delicious. My mum got her loan approved which means she can move into her new house and not stress so much! This was what caused at least 40% of my stress lately so it’s a HUGE relief for us both.

I hope everyone else is having a good week too :)

ruby_sig

Posted in Body and Soul, Festivals and Gigs, Life, Weekly Wrap, Zombie Walk | No Comments »

One of the worst weeks ever

May 21st, 2009

sadness

This has honestly been a dreadful  week. Not just for me, but for a lot of people, particularly people very close to me. I don’t want to go into details, it’s all very complicated and going over it will probably only upset me more, but it’s just not been my week. I have to wonder if there’s some sort of supernatural or cosmic force behind this? In south-east Queensland we’ve had horrific weather and flooding, and have been declared a natural disaster zone for all the damage that’s been caused. Numerous friends of mine have had nothing but terrible luck and awful situations in their lives and it seems like everything is going to shit for a lot of people I know.

Personally I have been trying to combat the negativity in my life by just doing things for myself. I have been exercising relentlesly, because I feel so good after a hardcore workout and an extra dose of serotonin can’t be beat. I have also been taking my issues head on and trying to deal with them as they come, instead of bottling them up and feeling all the worse for it. It meant taking a  day off work to just chill out and work some things out, but it was necessary for my own well-being.

I can only hope this bad news week is almost over for everyone affected and things will start looking up soon. I wish I had advice for anyone else going through similar things to me, all I can suggest is taking on your problems as they arise and fix them as soon as possible, and not bottle them up or repress them. Hopefully you will pull through and be all that more stronger for it!

ruby_sig

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

I Love Links – 17/05/09

May 17th, 2009

  • ilovelinksLucie Boshier. I found this from another blog today and found it fascinating. A “contraversial” NZ fashion designer and sex blogger.
  • The Baseballs. This German bands covers modern pop songs but makes them into fabulous 50s songs. I am so in love with them!
  • Top 10: Subtle ways to tell her she’s getting fat. What a crock of shit. How about being supporting and honest, you stupid slimeballs?! And don’t for one minute think a woman is ever dumb enough not to see your hidden agenda’, especially when it comes to weight.
  • Fat Abuse… The last “acceptable” prejudice. Again in the weight department – this is something I feel very strongly about. I may be one of those people who obsesses over their weight and has never technically been more than a little bit overweight but it deeply offends me when people attack overweight/obese people.
  • Doe Deere talks sex. I’m not sure that Australia did ban lady Gaga’s new clip but otherwise this was a nice blog about the joys of sex.

  • You’re Haunting This House With Your Whiteness, Brian! Or, My Mom Is Unintentionally Hilarious. For some reason I also find the fact Stewie talks a lot creepier than how Brian talks.

  • Queen of the Trailer Park. She  makes cool shit, is a new mummy and is making trashy classy!

  • Geek Tyrant. For all your up and coming film trailer needs (and other geeky stuff). A Humpty Dumpty film? Oh dear god!

ruby_sig

Posted in I love Links | No Comments »

Ruby Talks Fashion

May 14th, 2009

Pig Hat

I’m not really someone you could call fashionable. I don’t wear the latest fashions and instead wear unusual items of clothing most people wouldn’t dare touch. I do actually really like fashion, even if I don’t follow it personally. I don’t have the figure or the personality for a lot of what you see on the catwalks or in the shops, plus I like to be as individual as possible (hopefully without looking too weird). So why am I here to talk about fashion? Clothes are a very big deal to me, as with most girls, and since I have a fairly unique style, I thought it would be nice to share a few of my style tips and secrets for those of  you who aren’t into wearing what everyone else is wearing right now.

Despite first impressions, my outfits tend to be pretty simple. In fact I tend to wear a fairly limited range of outfits. The reason for this is because I believe in picking a look for yourself and sticking with it. That’s not for everyone, but that’s how I manage myself and my zany styles. I also go for a certain fewcolours, mostly black, pink, purple and green. I do sometimes buy other colours but only if the item is to die for. I do this because I am obsessed with matching colours! I almost exclusively wear pink and black, which means I am always matching and I can combine most of my clothes with most of my shoes. Sometimes I wish I would delve into other bright colours and mix it up some more, but for now this is how I do things.

My ultimate favourite thing to wear are tutu’s! I cannot get enough of them and have quite a collection. It started with some cute black ones I got at Supre and then progressed into complete madness as I found them more readily available in stores. I’ve always been a skirt girl and I really do think tutu’s and I are clothing soul mates. Coupled with leggings (plain for day-to-day wear, fancy patterns for going out) and you have half of my perfect outfit. I usually wear a plan singlet top with the tutu/legging combination, often in a bold colour like fluro pink, to really set it off.

I also love dresses, especially 50’s style ones with big skirts you can twirl around in and have lots or tulle under-layers. Given my body shape, this style of dress tends to suit me the most as it accentuates my little waist and big boobs, while hiding my large rump. They can be dressed up and down so they work during the day and when going out at night. Leggings a ballerina flats make these dresses casual while staying excessively cute and girlie. Changing into stocking and heels dresses them up and makes them smoking hot at night. Dresses are one of my main exceptions to the pink/black rule because you don’t have to worry about colour-coordinating as much and if a dress is cute then it doesn’t matter what colour is, chances are you have to get it anyway (I’m always so excited when I find the perfect dress in pink though).

I used to wear jeans all the time, but don’t wear them very much any more as I kind of grew out of it. Not that I mean that in a negative way against jeans, it’s just that I wore them so much from when I was a teenager til my early 20s, that I got over them. I do still love black skinny-leg jeans, even if they don’t look too good on me. My latest pair are from London and feature white embroidered skeleton hands on the back pockets. Cute! With jeans I tend to wear just about any top, though I find it’s ideal to wear extra-sexy tops with jeans to tone them down a bit. I often buy lingerie to wear as tops but you can over-do it if you match them with skirts so I find jeans creates the perfect balance. Oh and if you haven’t worn a cami or corset as a regular top before – you don’t know what you’re missing out on!

As for accessories…well I’ve only recently gotten back into wearing them. I used to only wear a necklace, my rings and watch and nothing else. These days I now wear lots of brooches – I adore cameos, blingy spangles and big, gaudy flowers the most. I have also started wearing things in my hair (I love brooches that double as hair clips) and large, obnoxious earrings. I don’t believe in the theory you can’t wear big earrings and a necklace (and others like it) and tend to go for the “more is more” philosophy. As long as there’s some continuity in all you wear, then wear as much as you want! Loud and proud!

Shoes are the bane of my existence as I am hopeless with high heels. I love them so dearly but have weak little feet that blister easily and I am exceptionally clumsy so the higher the heel, the more dangerous they become. I wear a lot of ballet flats by day as they’re cute while staying comfortable. When going out I wear kitten-heels or wedge-heels the most as I can walk in them better than other heels. Any other shoe I have needs to be worn in thoroughly before I venture out of the house in it. Luckily I live within 500m of the best clubs and bars in Brisbane though, as I often have to run home to change shoes during the night!

Do you have a particular style that defines you? Do you obsess over matching colours like me, or are you mad for colour?

ruby_sig

Posted in Fashion and makeup, Nerds and Geeks | 1 Comment »

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