rockfotze | Entries tagged with my advice

I saw this in today’s newspaper and was relieved to see that I’m not the only person who feels this way. In fact I’d been planning to write an open letter to Brisbane City Council about the state of Fortitude Valley for some time, but never made the effort to sit down and write about it. But upon seeing this, I have been motivated to finally have my say:

Dear Brisbane City Council,

I live in Fortitude Valley and have done so for a number of years. I love the convenience and how close I am to everything in the inner-City. Plus I love the fact I can go out for a night on the town and it’s only a short stumble home afterwards. I don’t intend to move away from the Valley anytime soon, but there are days when I wonder why I live there when I am confronted with the worst this suburb has to offer, more often than not.

While I try to walk to work every morning, I sometimes have to catch a train which means taking the escalators from Wickham St up to Valley Metro and am constantly appalled by the state of things in such a small space. First of all, you have to avoid a close encounter with some of the Valley’s least desirable residents who take to sitting on the ground outside Cafe One, yelling at each other and in some cases, getting into fist fights and dealing drugs. Then you have to deal with the escalators which do not work 99% of the time and are caked in filth, only to be greeted with the disgusting mess that is the walkway between McWhirters building and the Metro food court. I have literally never seen it clean. There are inches of dust and grime coating old rubbish and fast food containers. I once saw a pie that has been smeared into the wall last about a month before it was cleaned (or most likely, fell off on its own accord). Considering Fortitude Valley station is the 3^rdbusiest in Queensland, this is appalling.

Imagine being a tourist, who has taken the train to the (in)famous Fortitude Valley and that is what they see. Or if they choose to enter the Valley via the main exit they get to witness another nasty side of the Valley which is Brunswick St between the five-ways and Wickham Street. This is another area that I’ve never seen clean and always has a range of dodgy looking people hovering around, asking for change and then abusing you if you refuse. On one side of the street you have dank old cheap shops that you can smell from a mile off and haven’t been updated since the building used to be a Walton’s, facing $1 peepshows, strip joints, nightclubs and the dingy Chopstix Arcade.

The rest of the Valley ain’t much better either. Footpath’s are in a terrible state (though some have been totally replaced near our unit which was a nice surprise), the Brunswick St Mall is ridiculously outdated and the TCB arcade that was probably meant to raise the mall’s profile echoes as it’s almost completely empty. The China Town mall has been updated and looks kind of cool (if not a bit barren) but otherwsie I haven’t seen anything in the public areas of the Valley updated since I’ve lived here. Most of China Town is revolting too. How most of those restaurants haven’t been shut down for health and safety violations is beyond me. Some mornings as I walk to work, I gag on the smell emanating out of the bins sitting out on the footpath and can only imagine what the kitchen’s look like if that’s what was taken out.

I’m not saying the entire Valley needs to be cleaned up, renovated and changed. All I’m asking for is a bit of a spruce up and disciplining the daggy shops for stinking up the place so badly. Fix the shitty footpaths’s, replace the devastated street furniture, jazz up the Brunswick St mall and make shop owners fix up their shit because seeing massive holes in the overhangs of shops, many of which still bear the names of shops from 25 years ago is nasty. The Valley should retain some of its slightly derelict charm, but overall it needs some serious updating, a good scrub down and if possible, PLEASE move the drunks and druggo’s elsewhere so I don’t have to fear for my safety anytime after 8pm. It’s shouldn’t just be about the nightlife on Friday and Saturday nights, it should be a place for people to visit at any time of the day, on any day of the week. After all, those Valley markets on Saturday’s aren’t even worth a second glance these days and every other retail outlet is having a closing down sale because no one wants to spend time in the Valley any more.

Thanks in advance,

Ruby Velour

Concerned Citizen

I have noticed an infuriating trend lately: inappropriate summer clothes being worn in winter. OK OK, Brisbane doesn’t exactly get to sub-zero temperatures during winter. In fact, on average we have crisp 13° which means it’s usually still quite warm in the sun. But it’s still winter, and when the seaon changes, it’s time to change with it and start wearing some season-appropriate clothing.

The main culprit? Denim hotpants. They are still being worn by so many girls and it is just not on. The other day I saw some teenagers wearing tiny denim hotpants (which I hate on principle, especially on underage kids) with jumpers and were very visibly freezing their arses off, because they were covered in goosebumps and hugging themselves in the cold wind. Girls, when it’s cold enough to put on a jumper an scarf, it’s cold enough to wear some real pants. Hot pants are to help you cool down in the heat by minimising how much skin is covered up. They are strictly a summer-only item of clothing. As I’ve already admitted, I am opposed to denim hot pants in general, I think they usually look tacky and are just fucking ugly a a whole. But I appeciate how good they must be to wear in summer whe I’m sweating half to death in my leggings/skirt combinations because I am too shy to show off much legs. But as soon as you decide to wear them out in public during the colder months, you’re basically shouting to the world “Hey, look at my nice legs, I am determined to show them off to everyone because I want attention at all times, even if it means dying of hypothermia for it”. T. A. C. K. Y. Don’t even get me started on the girls who war ugg boots with their shorts. if it’s cold enough or ugg boots, then it’s time to ditch the skimpy butt-coverings FOR GODSAKE.

Then there are those obnoxious tops that have long sleeves and random cut outs everywhere. Is anyone a bit done wth them? I am, especialy because it reminds me of the days of those dreadful one-sleeved shirts from my nightmares. Having a long sleeved top implies the wearer needs to cover up to maintain a certain level of body warmth. By removing random areas of fabric, you’re causing the long-sleeved shirt to lose effectiveness and basically render it useless. Also, what’s with the long sleeved, backless tops/body suits? What are you, a friggen ballarina? I know that’s a bit rich coming from a girl who almost exclusively wears tutu’s, but at least tutu’s serve a purpose (ie hiding my butt under layers of lovely tulle) whereas as backless body suits make your arms warm, you back cold and makes it impossible to wear a bra, which for most women is a necessity. There is no shame in wearing a long sleeved top that is whole and complete. Having random cut outs in your short-sleeved tops and body suits makes a lot of sense when the weather is hot and you need to expel as much heat as possible, but no sense at all when you’re trying to keep warm in the middle of winter.

Now this is one I’m a bit uncertain about: socks with strappy, open-toed heels. In theory it’s repulsive but when worn well it doesn’t look all that bad. But it’s a pretty hard look to get away with and most of the girls I’ve seen wearing socks and heels have gotten it completely wrong. But since I am on a roll with what not to wear in winter, I have to say that wearing airy, strappy high heels in winter is a bad idea. Adding socks to the equation is just about as bad as the hot-pants-and-ugg-boots wearers and should probably just be avoided. Let’s face it it, it’s just an updated version of one of the most elemental fashion faux pas out there and only about 2% of the people you encounter while wearing this will get that it’s a new trend and won’t snigger behind your back. If you must wear socks with heels, you’re better off going with an enclosed shoe in my opinion (the brighter the better, of course).

There’s nothing wrong with covering up a bit now and then. If you live in Australia, particularly up here in Brisbane, you don’t get a chance to wear winter fashion for long. There is no shame in wearing jackets, long pants and thick stockings for couple of months of the year. Save the tiny shorts and midriff tops for summer where they belong and embrace winter fashion while you can!

Of all of the terrible things to see printed on t-shirts in my lifetime, I would have to say the current trend of busty, pornstar-esque models holding guns, flipping the bird or in a bathtub full of milk and froot loops are by far the worst. Have you seen them? I saw one today at one of those trashy cheap shops of a girl who looked like a skinnier, bustier version of Snooki wearing a stupid flat-brimmed cap and making some sleazy face/hand gesture. It enraged me so much, I felt like going to the shop keeper and making a complaint.

I first noticed them at City Beach which really did sum up the quality of them perfectly (ie. kind of nasty and aimed at 18 year old idiots). Then I started noticing guys actually wearing them. Sometimes while with their girlfriends! I can understand there are guys out there who are stupid and sexist enough to think it’s cool to wear an over-sexualised, trashy t-shirt featuring the kind of girl who a) would never ever hook up with them and b) give wristies to security guards to get backstage at gigs. Basically, the kind of guy who reads magazines like Zoo Weekly, Nuts or Ralph and thinks the girls are hot as and can’t ever settle for a normal girl because her boobs aren’t the size of watermelons while she’s about a size 6 everywhere else and she doesn’t wear bejeweled matching bra’s and knickers at all times. They probably also wear Lynx deodorant and expect to pull chicks like the guys in the ad’s do.

UGH! Who would want that on a t-shirt, ever? If I was the model and they chose that picture

to put on clothing, I’d be suing their arses (but then again I ain’t that kind of girl).

So, while I “get” why a guy would wear a t-shirt that tacky, I just don’t get how any girl would let their boyfriend wear a shirt like that out in public. She either has very low self-esteem, has no say in anything to do with their relationship, is really fucking dumb, or aspires to do that sort of modelling. All reasons are really bloody sad. When I see those couples, I wonder if there was any sort of discussion about it before they left the house. Did she comment on how shit it was? Did he tell her to stop being such a bitch and wear it to spite her? I can’t even imagine.

So I beg you, if you know any guys who proudly wear shirts like these, don’t turn a blind eye. Tell him exactly how you feel about that shirt so that next time he goes to put it on, he stops and considers how many people he’s offending when they see him wearing it. Maybe he’s too big a douche to care, but there’s always the chance he’ll take your advice and he’ll throw away that eyesore. And then you will have done your good deed for the year and for that many women would applaud you!

Once again I have been angered by a news article found on news.com.au (I really don’t know why I read that damn website, it send me into a furious rage almost every time I do). Today it’s about the loss of “female” skills within Gen Y. I started typing this massive rant but when it started getting a bit tl;dr I decided to cut it down as much as possible. So without further ado, here is why I think the idea of Gen Y losing these so called “female skills” is a bit of bollocks.

Yes, a lot of Gen Y females do not know how to properly hem a skirt, whip up a roast or a batch of lamingtons and aren’t probably as good at ironing and scrubbing floors as their grandmothers were. In case you missed the memo, times have changed dramatically in the last couple of decades. Women aren’t expected to stay at home and watch the kids and do all the tedious house work while hubby brings home the bacon. In fact a lot of women, even those who have kids, have to go out and work to support their families. Suddenly the typical woman doesn’t have all this “free” time on her hands because she’s out working every day, just like her partner, in order to provide a comfortable life for herself and her family.

If you want to be good at anything, you need practice, and the life of the average female these days doesn’t allow for what this article seems to think are basic female skills. Sure, it’d be nice to not have to spend $30 on getting a hem done up by a tailor and it’d be great to be able to whip up a fancy dinner every night, but most women don’t have the time for that sort of thing any more. Not every woman has the need to grow plants from cuttings and because of how cars are these days, having a manual license is not that important any more. Even if we’re shown how to do this stuff (from parents or in high school Home Economics), our lack of need to utilise these skills means we soon forget how to do them. I mean, if you live in a unit in the City, why would you need to know how to operate a whipper snipper?

Look, I think everyone, not just female, should know a lot of these basic skills. Sewing and cooking will always be invaluable, knowing how to check the car if it’s low on oil or being able to start a mower are also equally good to know. But clearly the parents of these apparently “hopeless” Gen Y’s decided these skills weren’t important enough to hand down to many of the people of my generation and so a lot of this knowledge has disappeared. As a result there are plenty of ways we can overcome the fact we lack these skills and our lives really aren’t that badly affected by it.

As it turns out, the article itself wasn’t what angered me the most, but the comments by the douchebag chauvinists commenting on it. All I’m going to say is, if you expect your girlfriend/wife to come home after a long day at work and iron your goddamn shirts then you are a pig and deserve to have that iron shoved somewhere nasty. Women shouldn’t be confined to these old-fashioned chores if they don’t want to. If a women is happy to work all day then come home to cook dinner, do the laundry and clean the house then that’s her choice. But if you expect her to do it just because it’s a “female skill” then you need to check the date and realise it’s 2011, not 1955. Likewise, if you don’t like how your wife is a stay-at-home mum and doesn’t have the house spic and span when you come home from work, perhaps you should stay home and change shitty nappies and entertain your screaming, messy whirlwinds of destruction for once and see how you feel like doing the dishes or ironing!

Personally I was brought up to learn all of these skills, and my mum still teaches me new things constantly. I have a new sewing machine which she’s giving me lessons on, I mow her lawn all the time and have fixed her mower a couple of times and thanks to her teachings I am an OK cook, even though I don’t like cooking much at all. But that’s me, and given the fact I live where I live and have an extremely busy life, I don’t need to know these things. I just choose to and that’s my right, as it is to anyone who chooses not to learn these sometimes old-fashioned and unnecessary skills.

And to conclude this rant, here is Beyonce being the damn finest housewife ever (but not being very happy about it, which is damn well fair enough):

Originally published at rubyvelour.com
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I learned a very valuable lesson this week. While her suburb was flooded, my best friend had me look after her cat Seiko. Admittedly I was thrilled as she’s such a sweet little cat who I was very keen to cuddle as much as possible, plus I was helping out a friend in need. Getting her to my unit was tough as the nearest lift was broken so we had to go the long way to the other lifts, so by the time we got to my unit Seiko was petrified and managed to escape, which meant 10 minutes of chasing her around the building. OK so not a great start, but as my work was closed due to the floods, I had the chance to bond with the dear kitty. Except she refused to come out from under the TV cabinet until late that night when I manged to convince her to come out for a few pats. But she was back under the cabinet the whole next day and then under my bed for a bit too. Yup, definitely not off to a good start.

Every now and then I’d get her to come out and hang with me, I’d brush her lovely long fur and she’s talk to me with her squeaky little meow’s and would follow me around the kitchen begging for tasty treats. But as soon as one of the boy’s walked in she’s go and hide again. Two days later I had to go back to work and from then on I was so busy, I was barely home, which meant Seiko basically spent the whole time under my bed. She’d only ever really venture out at night and then would drive me mad meowing and following me around the place as I got ready for bed. One morning she was meowing so much I decided I’d sleep on the couch to keep her company (admittedly this was because I knew it’d take about 45 minutes to clear the clothes off my bed and I was way too tired for that crap). But she decided my face and chest were great places to curl up which didn’t suit me very well, so I was forced to clear my bed at 5am on a Saturday morning to give us both room to sleep, but she ended up going back under my bed anyway! Thanks Seiko, thanks a lot.

So after a week with a cat, I had to come to the sad conclusion that cat’s are not for me. I have grown up with dogs all my life and the last time my family had a cat was when I was about 7 years old. My lifestyle doesn’t suit that of a affection-hungry kitty and I just felt cruel for not being able to look after her properly when she’s such a dear little thing. Also, I could not get used to all the fur, I was constantly gagging and felt like I had a nose full of it, which really sucks when you just so happen to have a cold. Plus the fact she’s white and I wear mostly black was not a very attractive combination.

If you’re thinking of getting a pet of any kind (let alone a cat), please do your research and if possible, spend some hardcore one-on-one time with the animal type you want to get. As Seiko had been adopted and I had been very close to adopting her myself until my friend stepped in, I would have been stuck with an adorable but totally inappropriate pet. Don’t take pet ownership lightly, that’s a little life you’re taking into custody and they deserve all the love they can get. Plus there’s the vet bills, the grooming and/or exercise, the feeding and let’s not forget the pooping! I see people haphazardly getting new pets all the time and I wonder if they considered how big a deal it is to own a pet. That’s why I don’t have one, I love animals too much and know I am not yet ready to commit to one properly (also I rent a unit in the Valley which is no place for puppies to live). Please make sure you are full prepared when the time comes to get yourself a furry little family member.

All of these adorable comics are from Cat Versus Human.

Source

I know every blogger has done this before, but usually they’re boring and full of lame advice about wearing sunscreen and drinking lots of water which you should already know. I thought I’d mix it up a bit by explaining the Dos and DON’Ts through my recent experience at Summafieldayze which took place at the Gold Coast on January 2nd.

DO: Dress appropriately

Basically you can’t wear skinny jeans to a music festival in the middle of summer. I went to my first Summafieldayze in tight jeans and Chucks and almost died from overheating/sand in my shoes. I quickly learned you need to dress light and comfortably, though don’t be a massive dag about it if you can avoid it. As tacky as they are, those fluro kids had it right with their singlets and shorts and slip on shoes. Also, don’t wear thongs when you know there’s a good chance of rain/mud. You will lose them and have to risk walking through pee later in the evening.

DON’T: Wear new shoes

My friend did this and while they looked comfortable, they gave her such bad blisters she couldn’t walk for days afterwards. Wear shoes that are well-worn and comfortable while also being disposable should you lose them in a massive mud pit. If you know it will be raining and therefore muddy, gum boots are great but make sure they fit as those suckers can cause nasty blisters.

DO: Medicate Yourself

If you suffer from any medical conditions, take what you need with you in a safe compartment of your bag and don’t rely on the ambo’s there to help you. I get migraines and only took some weak-ass pain killers with me which did bugger all when I was hit with a killer migraine of doom at the end of the night. Sitting on a bus with drunk/high festival-goers when you have a migraine blows big time, so assume the worst and take extra precautions (especially if you have a life-threatening condition, naturally).

DON’T: Forget to plan

It seems obvious, but I made this mistake very mistake the other day at Sumamfieldayze. For some reason we couldn’t find the timetable on the website so didn’t know who was on when until we got a timetable from someone else on the bus on our way there. As a result we missed one of the main acts we wanted to see because we assumed they’d be on a lot later than they actually were. We also left an hour later than we originally wanted to, and because the Gold Coast is just hopeless with organising festivals 90% of the time, it took us THREE hours to get from Surfers Paradise to the Spit, which is really only a 5-10 minute drive on a regular day. If we’d spent more time working out the plan instead of buying and consuming booze, we would have made it there a lot earlier and not had to hang around screeching morons for three too may hours. On the upside though, we managed to find someone willing to take us to the festival gates by jetski which was hilariously awesome.

DO: Drink before you get there

If you’re planning to drink at a music festival like this one, make sure you have saved your pennies. For a crazy $10.50 you can get a can of a premixed drink that is only mid-strength. Oh yes. I suggest having a few drinks before hand to get the day started and then go easy at the festival because you will send yourself broke if you try and get wasted there. Other options included getting into the VIP area which usually sells full strength drinks for less or just take drugs. Seriously, anything over $8 for a mid-strength drink is highway robbery and only encourages people to take drugs. I’m not saying I am condoning drug use, I’m just saying that for a lot of people it’s more economical to have a pill for around $30 than try and get drunk at a festival. For another perspective on this, check out this article by Sam Cleveland on The Punch.

DON’T: Rely on your phone too much

By the end of the night it’s likely you won’t be able to get reception, or like me your phone will go flat because you used it to take photos/update Facebook. If you’re worried about losing your friends, agree on a meeting point and wait there at the end of the night, or else just make your own way home. I have notoriously poor luck with mobiles at festivals, namely because friends give me their to hold which is a right pain in the butt when you end up losing them!

DO: make sure you have the next day off

I have tried to go to work the day after a big festival and it sucks. If you can do it, take the next day off work and recuperate. No one likes a hungover asshole in the office so get over your misery in the privacy of your own home and then get back to your routine the day after.

DONT: Go to a festival if it’s not your thing

I’ve gone to festivals with friends who were only going for one artist, and generally hate the style of music that dominates the day. Man it’s a massive downer. They either end up getting watsed and acting like a crazy fool and missing that one artist they came to see anyway. Or they bitch and moan about all the “losers” there, how shit the music is and what a terrible day it’s been. Nip this in the bud with a friend who’s looking at going to the next festival because they like whoever’s headlining. Remind them of all of the other acts who they hate and show them photos of patrons from previous years. Or even better, tell ‘em to get a life and stop hating so much. Both are good.

http://www.summafieldayze.com/goldcoast-photos/4-summafieldayze–gold-coast-2010/detail/143-dsc2068.html

Originally published at rubyvelour.com

Well I had a light-hearted and entertaining post lined up for my big 2011 debut but after the series of events unfolding in Queensland (that’s the state I live in, for those who didn’t know) I thought I’d leave it for now.

I admit I was a bit blase about the floods happening up North but now they’ve demolished Toowoomba, a City that’s about two hours from Brisbane and where a lot of friends are from, I am extremely worried. There are flood warning out for the CDB and Valley (where I live) in the next few days so it’s no longer just bad news for other people, it could be bad news for me and my friends and family too.

Unfortunately I don’t have the funds available right now to make a donation, but if you do then I implore you to make a donation to help those affected by the floods. Unfortunately for most people, flood damage isn’t included in a lot of home insurance policies so these poor people will have lost everything and won’t get any compensation. Please donate whatever you can and hope that this ends soon.

Originally published at rubyvelour.com

Wow, I cannot believe 2010 is almost over! I know I’m not the only one who think this year went ridiculously fast. I remember going to the Good Vibrations festival in Sydney, having my 10 year high school reunion and moving into my awesome unit like it was last week (all happened in February) and I can’t believe I have had three, if not four, vastly different jobs in the last 12 months. I didn’t go overseas once this year while I managed to be overseas three separate time in 2009. That’s probably why the year flew by so quickly this year, as I didn’t have major holidays to look forward to, which tends to make time slow down drastically.

If I was going to be honest I’d tell you that 2010 hasn’t been my finest year. As I said, I’ve changed jobs a lot this year with some moves being great and others being not-so-great. Recently I lost my job, a job I loved, only to find myself staying within the company and into a position that I now also enjoy. It was tough but I try not to dwell too much and move on with my life. It did help me realise I am not content with where I am in life and have vowed to do something creative, most likely graphic design, next year. So now I am saving up to do a full-time course or at least a part time one sometime in 2011.

It’s not all been bad though of course. I’ve done some good things which I am proud of. I maintained this blog all year which is a pretty big deal for someone as vague and forgetful as me. I got into nail art and got over my fear of posting photos of me wearing clothes on the internet. I am also the fittest and healthiest (and therefor, slimmest) I have been in years which is an awesome accomplishment which I plan to continue. I’ve done some dumb diets and lost weight but this is the first time I just ate healthy and exercised a lot and I am really toned and so damn healthy, it’s sickening!

I managed to go to a heap of festivals, I didn’t even let the fact two of them were on the same day up here in QLD and went on a road trip down to Sydney for Good Vibes and then got to see one of my favourite bands, Faith No More, play up in Brisbane (and I also got to meet the band Anvil who I was briefly obsessed with thanks to their doco). I also saw Lady Gaga twice in one weekend and Calvin Harris twice this year, both of whom I love very much. I also managed to run one of the biggest events in Brisbane – the Brisbane Zombie Walk. 10,000 people and $13k raised in donations later, we officially run the larehst zombie walk anywhere in the world.

OK so maybe it wasn’t that bad after all. I didn’t travel and I am still without a bangin’ career but I am working on both of those things. In fact I am working on a lot of things already, including getting more crafty with the new sewing machine my mum bought me for Christmas as well as my new found love of scrapbooking. I also intend to totally overhaul my blog soon and so some excellent things with it which I haven’t had a chance to do yet.

I wish you all a fun New Years Eve and hope 2011 is all you want it to be. Don’t forget to keep safe and if you’re heading out, be responsible and look how while doing so! (Just remember to hide the tacky plastic cups when posing for photos, as I quickly learned today. Ooops!)

For my last few days of 2010, I plan to relax a whole heap, sleep in late, catch up with old friends and then head down to the Gold Coast for some trashy NYE fun before the first festival of the new year – Summafieldayze! Catch ya’ll on the flip side!

Originally published at rubyvelour.com
» Click here « to leave any comments.

What can I say, I liked the smaller and more refined rants that this format has to offer, so I thought I’d do it again!

DO THE SPEED LIMIT PAST SPEED TRAPS

My best friend had a rant to me about this the other day. People who slow down to 20km/h past police of speed traps are fucking retarded. You know you can go the speed limit, right? They ain’t gonna book you for going over 35 when the speed signs clearly say 60! It’s dumb and totally dangerous.

BE MORE AWARE OF THE PEOPLE WALKING BEHIND YOU

You might like to think you live in your own little bubble where you can do what you want without really affecting anyone. But you don’t, and stopping dead in the middle of the shopping center in front of someone who’s walking quickly is rude and totally obnoxious. This goes especially to the fools who do this while with large groups of people. Move to the side motherfuckers, I’m in a hurry!

CLEAN OUT YOUR WARDROBE

OK so this is hilarious if you know me well enough as I HATE doing this and so rarely do. But you need to get your wardrobe in order once in a while. While you may not be able to find a lot to get rid of (like me) you at least get rid of the absolute dregs and get things looking spic and span by folding everything up nicely and sorting them appropriately so you can actually start finding shit again.

BUY MORE CDs/DVDs

I know this is the age of downloading stuff but I feel way too guilty to download more than the occasional song. Sure I’ll watch it if it’s not worth going to the movies for or if it’s a new TV show that won’t be showing in Aus for ages (if ever) but overall I like buying CDs and DVDs because it gives you something to look through and shows off you unique taste when others take a squizz.

STOP LIKING EVERYTHING ON FACEBOOK

Who creates these ridiculous pages and how are there so many knobs out there who actually go and “like” them? They range from the lame, though to-the-point ones like “Chicks in glasses are sexy” right through to the plain fucking long-winded and pathetic ones like “If your makeup isn’t done your hair is a mess and your in your pjs and he still cant resist taking you into his arms, he’s a keeper”. THESE ARE ACTUALLY REAL PAGES WITH THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE ON THEM, GUYS! I hate the internet so much sometimes.

DON’T RUIN STATUS UPDATES WITH INANE CHATTER

Speaking of Facebook, nothing boils my blood like those dumbasses who somehow manage to miss the 28 other comments on a status update to either ask a question that got answered in the first or second comment or else just jumps on and ask the poster a totally irrelevant question. Like one I saw about a friend who won a basketball final, some chick comes on after 10 other people have commented and says “Hey hun, what’s up, it’s been a while, txt me”. FFS it’s called an email or at the very least a fucking wall post! Way to ruin the vibe with your stupidity! Fuck I hate Facebook sometimes (aka most of the time).

STOP WASTING ENERGY

I don’t give a damn if you don’t believe in global warming (though I personally consider all global warming cynics to be massive fuckwits, FYI), wasting energy is a big NO NO. Turn the lights off when the room is not in use and use the dryer when you need something dry now, not just coz. Planet earth is a pretty neat place, and just think, the hole in the ozone layer is almost gone now because of the ban on CFCs, imagine how much better off we’d be if everyone just conserved energy and recycled more.

GET SOME REAL SKILLS

Your mum won’t be around forever (sad face) so learn some of her skills, plus a few from your dad and practice them. Knowing how to sew up a hem or check the oil in your car are amazing skills that so few people have these days. One day the mechanic or tailor won’t be there to save your arse when hems start dropping and cars start explodin’, so impress your friends by fixing it yourself!

OK that’s me for now. Sorry about the lack of blog updates, the Brisbane Zombie Walk is less than a month away and I have some blood to make for our fundraiser party tomorrow night!

As you’re well aware by now, music is hugely important and very prominent in my life. And much of it is thanks to my most favourite person in the world, DJ and producer Radaza. He’s predominantly been a house DJ since 2006 but started producing breakbeat and drum & bass in 2009. He got signed to the prominent UK breakbeat label Subtek earlier this tear and his first EP “Enforcer” was released in June. I’ve been privy to listening to all of his tracks from conception, seeing as how we’re also housemates, and I can assure you he’s a damn hard worker and is a constant inspiration to me. As such I thought I’d ask him a few questions:

When did you know you wanted to dedicate your life to music?

Music has always played a major part in my life especially growing up in the Philippines for it is an integral part of their culture. There really wasn’t a special moment where I suddenly decided I was going to dedicate my life to it. My life was already influenced and dictated by music so it was just a natural progression.

What inspires you to make music?

Music itself inspires me. To be able to create something from scratch and have people connect to it is a great feeling. It’s also a great creative outlet.

When you’re a famous producer, will you still DJ? Why/Why not?

The two goes hand in hand so you will definitely still see me DJing for years to come. With all the digital downloading going on these days, producing doesn’t really pay the bills unless you have a ‘gem’ that skyrockets you to the mainstream. The music you make is a great way to be known and to share your sound with others. This in turn will create gigs, shows, tours and this is where artists nowadays make their money

What was the first tape/CD you ever bought?

First tape was Michael Jackson’s Thriller. I saved up my allowance for that and played it to the death. I played it so much that the cassette player would always chew it up but I always had my trusty pencil to untangle it.

First CD was Boyz II Men’s Cooley High Harmony and I played that to death as well. Now it’s all scratched up and skips a lot but I still have this CD at home.

What was the song that changed the way you thought about music?

Michael Jackson definitely changed the way I saw music. Music was always something you hear but with MJ , he made you see and feel music through his movements. He was a genius.

If you had never started making music, what career would you have chosen?

A Fisherman.

Three people who inspire you?

Michael Jordan, Batman and Wil E. Coyote (for his pro-activeness and no surrender attitude)

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

On an island fishing all day, with my trained monkey slaves fanning we with banana leaves and picking me coconuts and fruits for lunch.

If you had just one superpower, what would it be? Would you use it for good or would you be a super villain?

I would love to have wolverines healing powers. I’m clumsy and tend to hurt myself a lot so that would definitely come in handy.

Would I use it for good or evil. Well it’s really a fine line between hero and villain. Villains are just misunderstood heroes who feel that the ways things are now (government, healthcare, society etc etc) just isn’t working. They are actually very proactive in their beliefs and always have a scheme or plan to set things to what they believe is right.

Vampires or Zombies? Why?

It’s a tie. Vampires for their sexiness and Zombies for their goofiness.

What is your current obsession?

I don’t obsess about anything but I do love watching True Blood and Ghosthunters.

Someone gives you $2 million with no conditions. What do you spend it on?

Training monkeys to be my slaves.

You can download his new EP “Enforcer” from Beatport, Traxsource, Amazon, Play.com and of course iTunes.

You can also check out the rest of his tracks at Soundcloud.

(Image from here)

As all Aussies now know, we have a new Prime Minister. The first female PM our country has ever had after being our first ever female deputy PM. She wasn’t democratically elected and was made PM after Kevin Rudd was kicked out for not doing a good enough job, according to some factions within the Labour party. This has been met with both applause and outrage because one one hand it’s pretty neat that we do have a female PM finally, but also kind of shit how she got the job.

Look, I don’t know dick about politics. It’s not an interest of mine and there’s always so much going on that I just couldn’t keep up, even if I wanted to. I’m basically the kind of person who believes most politicians are all the same and doubt there’d ever be one who I’d be proud to call my Prime Minister (except maybe Obama but that’s because I have this dream that when the world is taken over by aliens he’d kick major arse and save the day and then latter hang out and shoot a few hoops while listening to Montell Jordan). I’ve done a little bit of reading up since all this went down and also spoken to people who know a bit more about how the politics of Australia works and so while I get it to an extent, I’m an amateur at best.

My only whinge is that people need to sit back and let her do her thing before getting all hyped up. Yes she’s a woman and that’s cool, but she’s from the same party as Rudd (who I never, ever trusted, might I add) and so I’m not going to agree with about 60% of the things she’ll say and do because I’m not a Labour supporter and their policies aren’t things I necessarily approve of (when I actually get what’s going on, of course). It’s also kind of neat that she’s openly atheist and refuses to pretend she believes in any faith to win over the Christian voters. But her being an unmarried, childless woman as well as an atheist doesn’t mean she’ll be some kick arse new feminist PM. I’m a female who’s unmarried and childless and is also very openly atheist but I sure as hell couldn’t run a country! I can barely get my shit together and get to work on time every morning! On the same token, she may have taken over the position of PM in a nasty sort of way (I seriously never did trust Rudd but man I felt for the poor guy when he stood down, he’s just lost the biggest job in Australia remember, that shit gotta hurt!) she may end up being a good leader who we decide to keep at the next election. Only time will tell and so people need to shut up, stop hypothesising and let the damn woman do her job for a little while before we start jumping for joy or complaining bitterly.

And just one last thing, YES she has red hair. My god, why is this such a big deal? I fucking hate it how people have such a big thing against red heads. That shit is whack and almost like racism in my opinion! Red hair doesn’t affect your personality and I am sure as hell will not be what makes Julia Gillard a good or bad Prime Minister. Get the fuck over it people, this ain’t primary school any more!

Anyway, that’s enough politics for this blog for one year.! I promise not to do this again any time soon!

Originally published at rubyvelour.com
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I got a link to an article called “Best Friends for Never” by my best friend today which, as I first started reading it, made me angry. I got my female-thang on instantly and was all “Oh NO he didn’t” but then I actually thought about it, stopped being such a girl and had a laugh and realised it was all pretty much true. I hate to admit it, but girls are such bitches! No matter how nice we are or how hard we try not to, we all love to bitch and gossip and there’s nothing we can do to stop ourselves from doing it. I try not to bitch too much, though as a female I still do it and will reluctantly admit it’s kind of fun to do.

I am absolutely hopeless at being a bitch. I may come off as one with my ranty blog posts and sarcastic tweets, but I am generally a really nice person in real life. I’m the kind of person who will stay friends with someone who may not be all that nice to me, just because I don’t want to hurt their feelings by ending the friendship. Problem with that though, is that I am a girl and so leaving those sorts of people around in my life result in the need to bitch. And since I am such a social networking whore, naturally things get out of hand and very recently I ended up bitching about a friend on twitter with another friend, which the person in question later discovered. Needless to say I had some explaining to do, which has now resulted in me losing a friend. This outcome was actually something I wanted but because I had to be a typical female, I’ve hurt someones feelings in a public forum and made myself look like a right cow.

So my advice to all girls is this: Learn not to bitch. I know how unfeasible that sounds given how it’s apparently ingrained in all of us (boys too!), but we need to get out of this trap where we deal with our problems with other people by bitching about them behind their back! We all need to face up to what’s bothering us, particularly when it comes to the company we keep and start being upfront and honest instead of sneaky and nasty. I can think of about 1000 things I’d rather do than tell a friend they piss me off and I don’t want to spend any time in their company any more, but in the long run you’re better off getting it out there and saying it to their face so you can clear your conscience and not look like a total twat when they find out the smack you’ve been talking behind their back.

I made a dumb mistake by venting online instead of getting the balls to confront my friend, something I’ve been dying to do for ages but just never found the confidence to say it. Once I’d been found out, I told them what I’d been meaning to say to them all along and while I know their feelings are hurt and they now hate my guts, I had to do it in order to stop the vicious cycle. Otherwise, had I lied and apologised for being mean and patched things up, things would have just stayed the same and I’d keep bitching behind their back and being friendly to their face before eventually slipping up once again. I’ve caused some hurt in the short-term but in the long-term I’ve made both our lives much better.

Think of someone who you like to bitch about all the time. Do you need them in your life? Or could you it them down and work things out? Bitching causes small issues to become massive dramas because you work yourself up and your friend/s encourage you by listening and participating until the little thing that annoyed you in the first place has become somethings you’d be likely to see on Days Of Our Lives. Confront the issue without the bitching and get rid of the problem ASAP. Negativity is unhealthy and the less you have in your life, the better you will feel.

There’s nothing much boring than a person who’s all gung-ho about health and fitness and works out five days a week and actually uses their gym membership on top of exercising at home or going for jogs after work. I say this as one of those people. I used to always sling off at fitness freaks, mutter about how they need to go get a life and think about how much I was looking forward to sitting on the couch, watching TV and eating dinner later that evening while they recovered from an exhausting workout and ate a salad. And then I started exercising to lose weight, realised exercise actually made you feel really, really good and kind of got into it at some stage.

The difference between me and most of the people I see at the gym or when I got for a run is that I don’t get all “fitness jerk” about it. You know the kind of person I mean, they’re obsessed with exercise and make you feel bad because you don’t think about working out every minute of the day. They strut around the gym like they’re gods gift to whatever and flirt with the opposite sex by flexing their enormous muscles or showing off their perky butts by doing squats in the middle of the weights area. God I hate them!

You can love exercise and not be one of those creeps and I highly recommend it. You don’t have to do it for weight loss (though that’s obviously the main reason why people exercise at all) because the other benefits are boundless. Just by adding regular exercise to your weekly routine will improve your health and well being dramatically. I’m not talking about going for a slow half hour walk once a week either, I mean a proper work out where you sweat a lot and hurt at least a little bit the next day. You don’t have to sign up at the gym or get a personal trainer to do this, though I find have a gym membership motivates me since I refuse to waste money so make myself go as often as possible in order to make the membership fee worth it. If you can afford it though, a PT is great to get the ball rolling on your fitness and also teaches you how to exercise the areas you want to target (and then you can just keep it up by yourself). You really just need motivation and and someone to do it with, as nothing kills motivation to exercise faster than having to do it on your own all the time.

If you’re new to the world of frequent exercise I have a few tips to get you started (don’t I always?!):

Get decent exercise gear, especially proper shoes to prevent leg and back pain/injury. Wear stuff that’s comfortable and breathable. For the ladies, you MUST get a decent sports bra. I went without one for years and then when I finally bought myself one I was SHOCKED by how much better I can exercise when my boobs aren’t bouncing around everywhere.

Mix it up. Doing the same exercise/s day after day will bore you to death and will probably cause you to give up really quickly. Instead of the treadmill, go for a walk or run outside, it’s better for your body and you get to see the great outdoors for an hour or so, as opposed to someone’s sweaty back. Take classes, gyms have heaps and they’re free when you are a member! Classes keep you far more motivated than if you just tried to do the same level or exercise by yourself on the gym floor. Also work out a simple routine and build it up, don’t go to every gym class in a week, exhaust yourself and have to take another week to recover before you go back (if you even decide to go back).

Start a sport. Nothing makes exercise more fun than team sport! It doesn’t have to be something traditional like soccer, after all pole dancing is now considered a sport and is a fantastic (and sexy) form of exercise. Martial arts gives you a cool skill (ie. kicking arse) while also being great exercise and can teach you a lot about self control and anger management. I personally started boxing a few months ago and my fitness is insane now, on top of my gaining strength and losing fat. I go to Brisbane Boxing in West End which I highly recommend if you’re in Brisbane and want to hurt like a bitch the day (sometimes days) after you go.

If you hurt really badly the day (or days) after an intense workout, don’t give up, keep it up and get your body used to the pain. I know that sounds terrible, but it’s all about building up a resistance to the pain and making your muscles stronger (see the wiki article about DOMS for more info). The pain is worth it, I promise!

So I realise I sound like a massive exercise-fanatic-douchebag after writing this BUT regardless, I think people need to get moving more often, if not to lose weight then to get healthy and make yourself live longer and stop being such a lazy jerk. Nothing grinds my goat more than people who whinge about feeling fat when I know they probably haven’t done any half decent exercise since PE in high school. It’s gonna hurt at first and you’ll feel like a massive wanker when you first put on your fancy new gym gear and sprain a muscle in front of fitter, healthier and better looking people than you, but the end will make it ALLLL worth it. Trust me. You can thank me later when you get kick someone’s arse in a race or you have to rescue a damsel in distress or next summer when you fit in your old bikini or favourite dress.

Pretty sure I need this fancy boxing get up ;)

Originally published at rubyvelour.com
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I hate to boast but when my housemates and I host a party, we do a damn good job. We don’t have many of them and usually reserve them for special occasions, and this one was no exception. We moved into this unit a couple of months ago after spending too much time in the unit from hell where we had thrown some excellent parties (such as “Superheroes on a Budget” and “Doomed Romance” as some of our themed ones) so we knew we could throw a killer housewarming in a unit where it was more spacious and far more classy. To suit our stylish new place, we decided not to choose a theme as such except a general sort of New York style (as the unit is very new York-ish) and encouraged everyone to dress up in the best cocktail wear and bring a bottle of alcohol of our choosing. We got a friend who is a professional cocktail mixologist to make cocktails for us for the first four hours of the night in order to avoid the nasty mess that inevitably comes when everyone at a party decides to mix their own drinks, particularly as the night wears on and people have consumed too many of their own crappy cocktails. We also had a magic show on during the night, incorporating a beatboxer. That’s right, a beatboxer. Our friends Pete and Jonny have an act called The Majik Box where Peter performs his amazing street magic and Jonny beatboxes like you wouldn’t even believe. On top of that a few of our party guests were some of the best DJs in Brisbane who all spun a few tunes for us all to enjoy as the night went on.

I can honestly say this is the best cocktail party have ever experienced and am proud that I was one of the people involved in making it happen! It took a decent amount of money and planning to get it to work, but the effort was truly worth it when we had all of the guests tell us how great a night they had for days afterwards. In an effort to spread the love, I thought I’d share a few tips so that you can throw an amazing cocktail party which you too will be able to gloat about or years to come!

Tell people what alcohol to bring. If you do not do this, people will just bring the standard range of drinks like vodka and rum, which are very important, but it’d be a very dull cocktail party if all you could make were vodka lime sodas. Make sure to get a few people to bring the basic ones like vodka though, because they will be used the most and if they run out then you will have a tough time coming up with drinks that utilise lychee liqueur and blue Curaçao. On that note though, give the more obscure liqueurs to good, reliable friend who you’re sure will turn up and have a reserve list of drinks for the people who decide to come last minute.

Get someone to make drinks for you! Unless you’re a bartender who knows how to make a mean cocktail and don’t mind being behind the “bar” making drinks for all your friends (and let’s face it, who would want that) then get someone to make the drinks for you. If it’s a friend, pay them for their time as opposed to promising them free drinks all night long, because they’re bound to get drunk and no one likes a drunk bar tender (though a few drinks wouldn’t hurt, of course).

Get some good cocktail glasses! We got some stylish ones from Target (most of them were even on sale!) and also borrowed some others from friends. You’d be amazed how much better a cocktail looks (and tastes) when served in a beautiful glass. Accept the fact some of them will get broken, so don’t lash out on some Royal Doulton crystal glassware when that $60 champagne flute glass may wind up in sixty pieces on the floor.

Provide some food. This is pretty basic but people seem to overlook it so often. Don’t just go for some chips either, get some nice cheeses and dips and make sure you present them nicely. If you have the time/energy/money do something a little bit fancy or, as we did, something to suit the theme/event, such as our mini hot dogs which complimented with the New York theme. The bonus of having decent food at your cocktail party is that it will help slow down how quickly people get drunk. While we all know the sole intention of everyone there is to get wasted, helping slow that down so people can enjoy their night for longer is appreciated by all.

Nominate a host. This sounds totally boring but will help ensure the success of the party. In this case, I was that person (sort of self nominated actually) which meant I was always keeping an eye out for spillages, collecting empty glasses and washing them so that the bar tender could concentrate on making drinks, serving food, taking photos, letting people into the building etc. It’s not glamorous but at the same time it’s so necessary. That’s not to say I didn’t have a lot to drink, dance a lot nor enjoy myself profusely. It just meant someone was always keeping an eye on things and making sure nothing got out of control. It’s also sometimes better to be that person instead of accidentally letting the clumsy person or the busy-body take charge. At least you know how you want things run and won’t have to try and sort out their mess later.

Make your place party-safe! Hide anything breakable, move furniture near walls to allow lingering/dancing space and designate a specific wet-area for the making of drinks. Also make sure you have a designated smoking area. People will want to smoke so you might as well make it convenient or them to do so, no matter how much you might hate it. Otherwise you might find people smoking in the bathrooms or just anywhere they damn well please.

Lastly, once your bartender is done for the night, don’t let it become a mad free-for-all to the booze where everyone makes whatever they want and generally makes a huge mess and wastes all the leftover alcohol. Get a couple of trusted people (this is where you, as the host, will probably be the best person for the job) behind the “bar” making drinks. They don’t have to know what they’re doing or even be any good at it, you just need to restore some order. My sister and I did most of the mixing after our bartender left, and while we weren’t that good at making drinks and definitely not very fast, we had control and managed to ensure the alcohol lasted for a lot longer than it might have otherwise.

If you do have a cocktail party and use any of my tips, let me know how it went! I’d love to think someone else could have a party as fantastic as ours was (though having a beatboxing magic show might be a hard act to beat *wink*).

Check out the other photos I took on the night (on my Holga camera, hence the changing qualities of each photo) on my flickr.

Originally published at rubyvelour.com
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I have had pink in my hair since I was 14 years old. My mum was scared I was going to dye my whole head blue because it had been a fleeting fancy of mine, so she got me pink streaks done at the front of my hair professionally. I never would have dyed my whole head blue as I was a total wuss as a kid and never defied my mum, so I won out big time! The same thing happened when she got my nose pierced or my 16th birthday as she was scared I was going to get my eyebrow done. Imagine a blue-haired teen with a eyebrow ring – ugh, so not me. Glad mum had her doubts about my wussiness and let me get these two things done tastefully.

Anyway, because of this I like to think myself quite knowledgeable about dying hair in non-natural, vibrant colours. Even before I got the pink streaks for the first time, I used to use this stuff called Magic Silver Rose which made my hair a vivid pinky-purple colour (it was a toner old ladies used as a rinse, bit like the ol’ blue rinse, but when used concentrated it was BRIGHT as fuck). As such I am a total pink-hair-snob and shudder when I see people walking around with bad dye jobs. Doesn’t matter what colour, badly done and poorly maintained colour looks nasty, though I am especially passionate when it comes to PINK.

That is why I thought I’d share my tips on dying hair vivid colours like pink so that if you’re thinking about getting your hair did BRIGHT then you won’t make the same fatal mistakes so many others have made! My advice needs to be triplicated for those who has all of their hair dyed a bold colour (or colours) as I can get away with a lot more as I have my pink strategically placed so regrowth takes quite a while to show.

Get it done properly. Either go to a hairdresser to get your hair light enough for bright colours to show or at least make sure the person helping you out knows what they’re doing. I let some friends who had NO idea what they were doing bleach my hair once which almost killed it. Luckily this was the under-part of my hair so the damage was hard to see. Having someone stuff up when they’re doing your whole head will only result in tears!

Pick your dyes carefully! The dyes you buy at the grocery store are OK for natural colours but if you’re going got a bright red or a plummy sort of colour, you might want to look elsewhere. These dyes are designed to go over your natural hair colour and will look nasty if done over bleached blonde hair. I must admit though, store-bought black is permanent as hell and extremely good value. For unnatural, bright colours pick the brand based on how bright and permanent you want the colour to be. In Australia we really only have Fudge Paintbox which is super bright but not at all permanent (therefore ideal if you plan to change the colour regularly). The most permanent of all bright dyes I’ve found as Special Effects, which is hard to come by in Australia, though very common in the USA. SFX is therefore the best value, as a bottle of the stuff lasts ages as you don’t need to retouch the colour nearly as often as Fudge. In between Fudge and SFX are brands like Manic Panic and LaRiche Directions. Directions is a little bit more permanent than Fudge but comes in big tubs that last ages so it’s really good value. Manic Panic comes in the same sort o tubs and is even more long-lasting than Fudge and Directions so also great value. It’s an American brand though can be found in Australia easily enough (likewise with Directions, though it’s from the UK).

DO YOUR REGROWTH! There’s nothing worse than seeing someone with a bright coloured hair with a big, nasty strip of dark regrowth ruining it. On that note KEEP YOUR COLOUR BRIGHT! You want to rock the bright coloured hair? Then keep it looking good but getting rid off regrowth and keeping the colour even and the colour you want it to be. Nothing I hate more than seeing girls with half-faded pink hair with an inch of regrowth. Not got the time to maintain the colour? THEN DON’T HAVE IT! I know some people have their days/weeks where they let their hair fade out and look crap (god knows I have) but I tend to only ever see people during this stage, and rarely see them with the colour looking awesome. It ain’t hard so don’t slack off!

Pick a colour that goes with the colours you wear. I cringe when I see people with pink hair wearing red (and vice versa). If you’re going to dye your hair a certain colour then make sure it’s not going to clash with half your wardrobe.

Care for your hair! Now you have bright colored hair, you need to treat it better than how you’d treat your natural hair colour. Using shampoos that are made specifically or coloured hair are a good start. Avoiding going under the water in the pool or at the beach is another big one as chlorine and salt water can strip colour out. Washing your hair less may have to be another option because you’ll find your colour feeds really quickly if you wash it everyday vs every other day. And most importantly, particularly or those who’ve had to bleach their hair to get the bright colour, treat your hair to a special conditioning treatment after bleaching. I’m lucky because I have pink and black hair because the conditioner I get with the store-bought black dye is AMAZING.

I actually remembered to take a few photos while my mum did my hair last weekend. Yep, my mum. She is a pro at dying my hair which means I know it gets done well AND it’s free (I dye hair in return). It usually takes the better part of a full day to complete but she does a top-notch job each time so well worth it. Click the pics or full-sized images and descriptions.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask! I’m always happy to help out with tips for keeping bright, unnatural hair colours looking good! Another great reference guide is this one by Gala Darling. Just remember though, everyone is different and practice makes perfect. What may work or me might not work for you so experiment and keep trying til you get it right!

ruby_sig

Originally published at rubyvelour.com
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There's not much that ticks me off more than people who constantly harp on about being bored or having nothing to do. I used to go crazy when people said it to me when I lived in London (seriously, if you cannot find something to do on any day of the week in London you're either the most boring person alive or the most exciting, because clearly you must have done everything already). Living in Brisbane is, of course, not quite as thrilling as life tends to be in London, but that doesn't mean you can ever say "there's nothing to do today" because there always is.

Take my weekend for instance. It was action-packed, fun-filled and exhaustingly amazing. On Friday night I took advantage of the free entertainment being provided by Brisbane City Council and went to the Silent Disco in King George Square. If you've never been to a Silent Disco before then you are missing out! They're becoming popular at music festivals and will probably be really popular after people got a free taste of one like we did in the City. As the name suggests, it's a disco where it's totally quiet, no music but lots of people dancing? You see, you get a headset on entry which has two channels tuned into the two DJs playing at the time which you can switch between at your leisure. That was you're able to dance away while anyone without a headset has no idea what you're listening to! It's a heap of fun and while it takes a bit of getting used to at first, you totally get into it within no time at all. We ended up dancing non-stop for almost two hours - quite a feat considering no alcohol was involved and we were surrounded by 17 year old kids (and I foolishly wore heels)!

If that wasn't enough for ya, I then spent my weekend at Supanova! For the unenlightened, Supanova is a pop culture convention held in Brisbane (and other cities in Australia) every year. It's basically a chance for all nerds and nerds-at-heart to get together, many in costume, and buy comic books, anime, maga, DVDs and other stuff they couldn't really buy anywhere else (well, without traveling all over the place, anyway) on top of meeting actors from cult TV shows and films, artists, authors etc. Personally I love the damn thing and go every year and spend literally hundreds of dollars on comics, figurines and various other cute crap I couldn't get anywhere else. I also enjoy checking out all of the costumes - some people go to so much effort for ellaborate costumes of characters I've never even heard of, cartoon classics and anything in between. This year was my first time dressing up - I actually just went as a slutty Hogwarts student which resulted in a lot of good feedback and lots of pictures being taken (mainly from geeky boys who have a thing for Hermione, I'm sure). Next year we are all planning to do a big group dress up theme (maybe two for the two days the convention runs) which is something I have been eager to do since I first went. Bring on the geekiness, baby!

So, as I said, there's never an excuse to be bored in Brisbane because there's always something to do, even if you're the biggest dork in town. If ever you feel that pesky boredom monster creeping in, check out what's going on (I recommend Our Brisbane's What's On guide or utilising your social networking pages for suggestions, Twitter works wonders for me!). There's always something going on to suit your budget, even if your budget doesn't exist at all (ie. you're broke).So stop your bitching and go get out there, fools!

ruby_sig

Originally published at rubyvelour.com.
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I hate money! OK so that's a damn bold-faced lie but I do hate what money does to people and how people act around it. It drives me insane how peoples lives can revolve around their pay cheques and how no one else seems bothered by this sort of mentality. I consider it a really unhealthy attitude to have towardsmoney and personally never let anyone but those nearest and dearest to me know if I am running low on funds and ameagerly anticipating my next pay(and then again, only on the rare occasion would I say anything about it to them at all). I honestly do believe your financial situation directly relates to your relationship with money, so that if you find yourself always thinking about your next pay then you'll always find yourself broke the day before and desperate for the money to land in your bank account so you can go buy some dinner. I also believe this sort of attitude means you place far too much importance (I don't think that's the word I'm looking for but it'll do) on moneyso that when you do get paid you go all kinds of crazy and end up over-spending which means you're going to wind up broke right before your next pay once again. And so continues the cycle.

Look, we all have those weeks where all out money disappeared on bills and god knows what. But we don't have them every week (no one could possibly have a bill every single week that wipes out all their pay unless they have some sort of shitty, low paying job or a bunch of kids). Get real and start prioritising you slack motherfucker. No one forced you go go piss away half your pay on the weekend after pay day, not did they encourage you to still go out the next weekend even though you know you can't really afford it. Taking your lunch to work was daggy as hell when we were all kids but no one gives a shit as adults so stop spending crazy amount of money a day on lunches when it costs you dick all to prepare your lunch the night before and take it to work with you. Stop being a snob and walk to work or catch the damn bus, driving your car or catching a cab is an expensive alternative when you know you're going to be lucky to have two $1 coins to rub together in a weeks time.

I know I talk about being a spendaholic but I rarely find myself broke or even with less than about $100 in my bank by the time my fortnightly pay rolls around. I have NO idea how I do it, since I tend to spend money on a lot of frivolous things all the time, but I guess it comes down to prioritising and being sensible with my money. I'll never buy something, no matter how badly I want it, if I know it could mean being broke for a day or two as a result. If I have a big bill due I will compromise by spending the weekend in and spending as little as possible. It works pretty well for me, and while I find myself sitting here broke and bored at home due to an unexpected and very large electricity bill coming our way this week, I know this is an uncommon occurrence and will make sure the electricity bill is never left til last minute ever again!

Whenever people I know (and there's a lot of them who fall into this category, I ain't targeting no one in particular) bitch and moan about how broke they are, I find it hard not to shake them and maybe even give them a few slaps around the head because I know they pissed most of their money away instead of being responsible and saving their money for once in their damn lives. PLUS some of these people earn MORE than me too, which makes me even angrier, especially consider I know how much more debt I have than them as well.

In summary, people need to learn some responsibility and how to damn well respect money. It's evil as hell but it's a necessary part of life that we all have to deal with. Unless you're a bum student or have the worst job in the word that pays dick all, you have NO excuse to wind up broke every damn week/fortnight. And if you choose to live the sort of life where partying hard and throwing your money way on useless luxuries is your thang, keep your fat trap shut about how broke you are the day before pay day because it's fucking pathetic.

ruby_sig

Originally published at rubyvelour.com.
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I am one of the lucky few who doesn't suffer from PMS, though apparently I was unlucky today (damn St Patrick's Day for lying to me!) and had it bad. Hence why we have another "Things That Pissed Me Off Today"!

That Time Of The Month. It sucks balls and all men should be eternally grateful that they do not have to go through with it. I really am pretty lucky where I don't get PMS or cramps (except for today when I randomly got both) though I do get nasty migraines and bloat up like a water-logged corpse. I also hate how all girls, as much as they hate their periods, breathe a sigh of relief when we do get our periods because hallelujah we're not pregnant! It's awful and totally unfair and justifies us to be mean as hell to all males at that time of the month without repercussion!

Grocery shopping. OK so sometimes I really enjoy it but not when I am in a foul mood. It's incredibly hard to try and buy practical things that will last you til your next shopping trip when you feeling like stabbing someone in the eye. You also find you're absent-minded so that when you get home you forgot to buy some of the main things that drove you to go shopping in the first place. Also, the stuff you want is NEVER on sale when you're in a bad mood and need to go shopping. INFURIATING!

The cow who made my lunch half the size it was last week. See, there's a Farmers market right in the middle of the City every Wednesday and I discovered one stall that sells the most delicious (and totally bizarre) food - avocado and mushroom floats. I got one last week and almost died from food-lust so went back today and got about half as much as I did last week. Sure, I could have complained, but I am not the complaining type so I ate it (and admittedly, enjoyed the hell out of it) and then sulked a lot and ate lots of St Patty's Day themed lollies to make up for it. Needless to see it wasn't a great combination :S

People being to cool to dress in theme for festive days. I was appalled by how many people I saw walking around the City who made no effort to wear green for St Patrick's Day today. Oh come on, it's St Patrick's Day, get over yourself and have some fun and get into the spirit of things like the dag you really are. I refuse to believe anyone when they say they have no green in their wardrobes whatsoever. Green is so common, and when its bright it looks fucking awesome, so everyone's got something green tucked away somewhere, you damn liars! On the other hand I thoroughly enjoyed noticing what levels of green people wore today, some of it was over the top and in-your-face, some of it was sneaky and subtle :)

And now for the big one! The thing that pissed me off in particular today, as it has for pretty much ever, are over-opinionated arseholes. I am so sick of how so many people I know find it necessary to inflict their opinions on the rest of the world and be damned if you don't agree. I consider myself a great person to be friends with because I don't really give a damn if you don't like all of the same things as me or want to do all of the things I enjoy doing. And yet all I ever see around me are people who have to open their fat traps about every damn thing like it's their god given right to bad mouth anything they don't like or agree with. Ya know what? No one gives a flying fuck! I don't mind it when friends have a bit of a rant about something (god knows I love doing it myself, clearly) but when it's constant and gets to the point where its like they have nothing good to say about anything (unless its one of the rare things that they happen to like), I could seriously start punching fists through skulls. Look here, if you're the kind of person who has to be like that, learn some goddamn tact and shut your mouth for once. You don't like that band or style of music I like? Hooray for you, but I don't want to hear about how much you hate it and why it suck and have you be all in my face about it. You don't like the things I happen to enjoy doing? Then don't do those things and get the hell over it! Far out, it's like it's become fashionable to become a self-righteous fuck these days and it's really gotten to me, as you can probably tell. There's nothing wrong with keeping opinions to yourself, or at least saving them for the people who you know will agree with you. It ain't your job to tell everyone how you think it is because a) you're wrong, b) no one cares and c) it's not funny or clever and it actually hurts/angers people. Next time, think about who you're about to bitch and moan to and decide if it's worth looking like an arsehole, because chances are that's how you're going to come across. And all for the sake of your over-inflated fucking ego.

OK well now I feel a bit better! Nothing like a bit of a whinge to get the chip off your shoulder, eh? Bare in mind, with that last one, I am referring to a broad range of people in my life, so if you're reading this and think it's about you, it is. But not just you, so suck it up and take my advice for once in your damn life and accept the fact you come across as an arsehole when you tell me the stuff I do, the things I like and the people I hang out with are all shit. That's right, I'm talkin' to YOU!

ruby_sig

Which night? ri or Sat? Standing or seated?

Originally published at rubyvelour.com.
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I just had my 10 year High School reunion this past Saturday night and I'm happy to say it went pretty well. I'd been looking forward to it for ages, since I am invariably a much more exciting and glamorous person since I graduated in 2000. But then as the date drew closer I got more and more nervous for no real reason that I could pin point. Maybe it was the fact I lost the job that made me sound super cool and so didn't have that to boost my ego. Maybe the fact the one friend I kept in contact with since high school couldn't make it which meant I was going to have to fly solo. Maybe it was just the fact I was going to have to spend a few hours with people I barely know and try and prove that I'm not that daggy tomboy they all remember (that is, if they even remembered me at all).

To prepare myself for the night I got myself a stunning new dress (an amazing pink party dress by Wayne Cooper) with nails to match, some sexy black patent leather heels, a spray tan, followed my eating plan strictly to ensure the maximum amount of weight dropped and also got my hair professionally styled to ensure it looked its best. Looking back at it all, it may have been a bit much, but I needed all the self confidence I could get - I'm such a shy girl and I just needed to look perfect so that I'd have that little extra boost to get me through the night. I was also COVERED in bruises from moving house all day Friday (13 fucking hours worth, what a drag) and most of Saturday so I needed to deflect the attention from the swollen black and blue marks all over my pathetic, weak body.

Despite initial nerves and a little bit of awkward "standing by myself wondering who I should go say hi to now", I loosened up and had a good time (though I'm sure all of those vodka lime soda's helped a helluva lot). I spent the first hour or so thinking I wasn't looking that special because no one said anything, but then as everyone else loosened up, I got lots of amazing compliments which made me feel like a million dollars. Seriously, this was a huge concern of mine, so I was glad I did end up looking great and impresing people with how much I've changed. Plus it proved everyone was a nervous and restrained as I was, we all just needed a few drinks to get going.

For anyone who will be having a reunion sometime soon, I have a few tidbits of advice to make it work for you:

Look as fabulous as you possibly can. Don't be half arsed about anything whatsoever. Most of these people don't know you beyond how you looked at the age of 17 so make sure to WOW them by looking like the best possible you.

Get over the fact you were unpopular, nerdy, got bullied, had no friends, don't speak to your high school friends any more, hated that "cool" girl who was mean to you that one time etc. It's been 10 years for godsake, we've all changed and if they're at the reunion then chances are they've grown up and have moved on also.

Know what you wnat to say. Don't lie, but feel free to only tell people what you want them to know. If your job sucks, don't bitch about it because that's boring. Just tell them what you do for a living and then move on to what you are passionate about or your plans to get a certain job in a better field. You have every right to be as vague as possible. Outright lying though will probably cause more problems for you, especially if you get caught out!

If you find out you were a total shit at school (as I did) then apologise to the person and then make light of it and show that you've grown up and are a much cooler person now. In my case I was part of an obnoxious group of weirdo's so we were able to laugh about it heartilly, you might have to work a bit harder if you were mean old bully but it'll be worth it.

If you're flying solo, do not fret because a lot of other people will be too. This actually gives you a great chance to talk to those people who you never/rarely spoke to at school and maybe find some new friends. I pesonally don't think taking your partner is a wise move, you'll spend most of the time worrying about them being bored and won't enjoy yourself as much.

If you're not sure about going for whatever reason - stop being a pussy and just go. What's the worst that could happen, really? I was shocked that a lot of my friends hadn't turned up, knowing most of them didn't have any excuse not to be there. It makes you look like a jerk, so just go and have fun already!

Originally published at rubyvelour.com.
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Wolf Whistling

Now I sure this may rouse up some debate with the menz, but I often wonder if guys, especially the really gross ones, actually think giving sleazy eyes and making loud (usually inappropriate) comments at pretty girls is endearing?

Let me paint you a picture so that you understand where I am coming from. At lunch yesterday afternoon I was riding an escalator behind a pretty blonde girl. Down the bottom was a morbidly obese man who wore an old, faded sleeveless t-shirt that had sweat stains around his armpits and had man boobs like none I've ever seen before. He was a cretin, just a gross individual who clearly did not care about his appearance one little bit. This slug was staring at the hapless girl as she descended the escalator with no subtlety whatsoever. It was disconcerting enough for me and I wasn't even the one being stared at. If that wasn't bad enough, he then he turns and says to his rat-like mate, loud enough for all to hear "Aww nah she's way too young" and continued undressing her with his beady, sweaty little eyes.

What would he have said if she wasn't in fact abut 18 years old? If he's going to be that vile and make loud comments about being too young for him, how would he have acted if she's been his target age? I shudder to think! And why he HELL does he think it's OK to say that sort of thing? Apart from the fact he was a total beast of man, how does he expect to attract someone by shouting exactly what he feels at his object of desire? Even if he'd been a good-looking, well-dressed young man I'm sure he would have gotten the same sort of reaction (though the girl might have felt a little bit flattered as opposed to totally repulsed, I guess).

Now this guy clearly doesn't represent all men, but a lot of guys out there seem to think yelling dumb stuff at pretty girls as they pass (ie. the old walking-past-the-construction-site stereotype) is a clever thing to do and will actually end well for them. I get it every time I walk past the deadshits who sit around the bus stop where I live, they holler "Hey gorgeous lady, I like yer tatts" as though that's going to impress me and I'll give them my phone number or a sneaky BJ. I refuse to believe this has ever actually worked for them, that there is a woman desperate enough out there to find that appealing and reciprocate. We can't stop them from having a look, but don't we have some sort of right to walk down the street without having stupidity thrust upon us just because we're easy on the eye?

If you're one of those guys who thinks it's attractive to yell "compliments" at a pretty lady as she walks past, think again. There are very few women who like this sort of thing (you can tell who they are) so you have two options. the preferred one is to shut up and just appreciate what you see quietly. The second one, if you simply cannot keep your big yap closed, is to approach the girl and say something to her one-on-one, though you better make it good and not along the lines of "You have sweet tits" because you may very well get a slap or an angry "fuck off" in reply. If you do it right, you may be one of those lucky few who actually gets the girls phone number!

Personally, I spend a lot of time getting ready every day to look nice. Not necessarily for guys, it's mostly for myself as I feel good when I look good. I don't mind the occasional look from random blokes, because it makes me feel like my hard work was worth it, but I feel objectified when I get things yelled at me and so retaliate by yelling back how I feel (usually "Get a life, ugly"). I am inclined to think most women feel the same way, but obviously I could be wrong, so I'd love some feedback!

Guys: have you ever whistled at or yelled a comment out at a girl and had her reciprocate? What did you say and how did she respond?
Girls: do you like having guys wolf whistle and yell compliments at you? If so, why?

ruby_sig

Originally published at rubyvelour.com.

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Cara Westworth

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Ruby Velour

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An Open Letter to Brisbane City Council about Fortitude Valley

Respect Winter, Cover Up!

The Worst t-shirts on Earth

UGH! Who would want that on a t-shirt, ever? If I was the model and they chose that picture

to put on clothing, I’d be suing their arses (but then again I ain’t that kind of girl).

Why “female skills” can bite my arse

Not a Cat person After All

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Interview with Radaza

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The Best Cocktail Party of all Times!

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Things That Pissed Me Off Today (Part 2)

Rule your High School Reunion

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UGH! Who would want that on a t-shirt, ever? If I was the model and they chose that pictureto put on clothing, I’d be suing their arses (but then again I ain’t that kind of girl).

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UGH! Who would want that on a t-shirt, ever? If I was the model and they chose that picture

to put on clothing, I’d be suing their arses (but then again I ain’t that kind of girl).