*SNEAKY* Airport SURPRISES!

Feb 14 2012
Marks the 2nd day this year that i have surprised friends at the airport on their Melbourne arrival!
Why do i do it? Because its FUN!
Its the unexpected. The thrill. The excitement of it all!
The first time, i was carrying an arm load of brightly coloured balloons.
The second time, i was wearing a big red bow tied around my body like i was a present.
I love surprises!
More importantly, i love it when i am the one giving the surprise.
In the lead up to the surprise day, you get to be all sneaky & be like a secret agent trying to find out much needed information so that it will all run smoothly on the day.
I started working this out about 2 weeks in advance.
Observe:
You need to put your friends off the trail completely before they are even on your trail.
'So, when do you get home? Cool story. Let's go get a beer.'
~seems random, but you found out the date they come home.
'So, what time do you get home? Cool story. Let's go get a beer.'
~seems random, but you found out the time they get home.
Next, you need to work out what airline they're flying with, if it's a domestic flight or international flight & where they are flying from. 
'So, is Jetstar taking you home via Perth again? yuk!'
~seems random to ask that specifically, but you still find out the needed information in your friends reply.
It seems everything is in place & ready to play out.
Excellent.
Oh! How could i forget to tell you this.. while all of this has been going on, you inform your friends on the day they are due to arrive that you 'don't want them back.'
Ofcourse you are only joking, but it does add a little more depth to the surprise i think...
The day has finally arrived.
At the airport with a carload of friends, sipping some beers, snacking, chatting & laughing away at how terrible we look wrapped in a big red bow.. you decide to go for a wander, thus separating yourself from your 3 friends.
'I'll meet you guys at the gate in 10 minutes!'

You check with airport staff about flights.
You go to the gate.
There is no one as far as the eye can see.
It's now 10 minutes after they supposedly landed.
You are alone, at the opposite end of the airport, wearing a big red bow & ignoring the strange looks you are getting as you walk through security.
cue *PANIC SWEAT*
Then.
THEN.
There's that heavy feeling in your gut.. no, not from what you just ate... 
Where the hell are they? Have i missed it completely?
No. Surely not.
Hell no. It was planned to a TEE.
It was PERFECT!
You decide to head back to where you left your other 3 friends.
On your way, you make a quick phone call & are told 'Yeah, we're here with them now. Where are YOU?!'
..and then there's that awkward moment when you realise you are at the wrong gate, you got told the wrong airline, which in turn makes you nearly burst into tears & you show up 5 minute's after everyone else has done your big SURPRISE!
FAIL.
No, you weren't there for the initial surprise.
But your friends were stoked to see you.
So i guess at the end of the day.. mission accomplished?!
xox

FACEBOOK - ERADICATION

I did it.
I actually did it.
After procrastinating for approximately 1 year & having the thought bubbling away in the back of my brain..
I got myself an injection of Dutch courage & did it.
Not a literal injection you crazies! It's a metaphor. Dutch courage comes from within oneself.
(All you need is 20 seconds of insane courage & something good will come of it. I promise. That goes for a lot of things actually... put yourself out there, take the chance & see where it leads you. Often you'll get pleasantly surprised & wonder why you never took the chance earlier.)
What the hell am i talking about?
Well.. if the heading didn't already give it away... *drum roll please
A little over a month ago, i deleted my Facebook account!
I've been dry for almost.. 6 weeks i think.
But who's counting?
The reasons i deleted it, you really want to know?
Let's get one thing clear straight up- it was nothing personal against anyone on there.
I definitely still love you.
This decision was purely because i wanted to remove myself from the equation & just have a bit of a break from the constant stream of information, sometimes useless information, which i was definitely guilty of time & time again!
I'm the first to admit this.
And also i much prefer receiving a text or a nice phone call instead of someone posting a comment on my wall or poking me. (Whether i wanted to be poked or not.. )
Then theres that whole scenario where you meet someone new for the first time & they exclaim 'OH! Nice to finally meet you, I see you on Facebook all the time!' (and what they don't tell you is '..and i have already prejudged you on what i have seen on Facebook.' Preconception. It's ok, don't give me a chance to give you a proper first impression in person. That's totally fine. You've clearly already made up your mind about me anyway.)
To the people who sent me a text asking 'OMG!! Did you delete your FB? Is everything ok?!'
Yes. I am totally fine, nothing bad happened. Thankyou.

***

My new addiction now that Facebook is out of my life?
I thought you'd never ask:
http://www.lookbook.nu/
*Gawk!
You didn't honestly think that after deleting Facebook i would be sitting here all day long just twirling my long blonde hair & sipping lattes now did you? As fun as that is!
Silly! You know me better than that.
Not even sure how i stumbled across Lookbook, but what i do know is that it was love at first sight.
Some of the outfits on there are out of this world! Gorgeous.
I'm only brand new to it & it's highly intimidating. Yes.
Did i just say that? I am intimidated.
Little old me who doesn't get intimidated by anyone or anything.
Or if i did, you would never actually know it because I'm too stubborn to let my guard down far enough for that to be revealed to you. A girls got to have some secrets!
Let me get something clear, it's not so much intimidated by peoples looks as such, although there are many beauties on there, it's more intimidation of their amazing style & creativity in putting outfits together.
Perhaps it's jealousy & intimidation mixed with awe & respect..
Check it out for yourselves.
Inspire me!

Having said all of that.... I'll probably be back on Facebook by the end of the month!

xox

L O V E~

Before you start snickering... I'll say it first...

I am definitely not an expert on this subject, that is for damn sure!
Constantly doing the wrong thing or saying the wrong thing & failing everytime = me!

(hey... atleast I'm consistent!)

Now that I've got that out of the way, you can stop laughing at me.

Today's blog isn't about my life/experiences.

It's about friends getting engaged :) being adorable & loved up.

In the last week, i have heard of 4 couples getting engaged.

FOUR COUPLES!

That's 8 people, 4 sparkly engagement rings, 4 nervous guys, 4 proposals, 4 ecstatic, amazing, beautiful women... & the guys are pretty good too!

To say that there is so much love in the air right now...

is a massive understatement.

It seems there is love in the air & the water & the food in Melbourne right now.

Everyone is getting an injection of it in their lives right now in one way or another.

Whether it's friends getting engaged & you're over the moon happy for them or if it is in fact YOU!

It's beautiful! There's an overflow of it.

I am seriously losing track of who's single, who's dating, who's engaged, who just got married & who's expecting their first kid!

It's actually ridiculous. Ridiculously good, ofcourse.

So this is a celebration for them!

To all the beautiful, gorgeous, loved up couples out there...

CONGRATULATIONS!

Huge hugs & kisses galore to you from the bottom of my heart.

Love. Love. Love. And happiness. To infinity.

xox

SYDNEY Vs 2x MELBOURNIAN WOMEN

What can 2 young, single women get up to with 5 nights in Sydney?
A lot. You would think.

Here are some short stories:

*After arriving in Sydney & turning on my phone, i noticed a friend had suggested cocktails.

I was off to a good start & i hadn't even collected my bags yet!

We went to Shady Pines Saloon~ it was cool.

Recommended is the Buffalo Trace bourbon, straight & shot, it will not disappoint. I promise. 

Follow it up with some Mexican & you've

had a brilliant night!*

~Upon leaving the Saloon, your friend informs you of a big celebratory night they recently had here & how they woke up with a mysterious permanent marker in their pocket the following morning. Random. But then a couple days later, you are reflecting on this conversation & realise that on this particular celebratory night, your friend sent you this picture:

'Get back in line' ...i can't help but wonder if this in fact was my friends handy work~

*I had very inconspicuously hidden a spare set of keys for my Smash friend, who was yet to arrive, under a sign post in the middle of the road outside our apartment. It was genius. Who would look in the shrubs for keys? Here is the link to our place, its fantastic: http://www.stayz.com.au/17128 ~this is our actual apartment. Totally gorgeous & i want to show it off to you!*

*If you check out that link, you'll notice there are windows in the bathroom.. all I've got to say is, it's a little bit awkward when you shower with the windows wide open to let out the steam & while you are conditioning your hair, you look out across the way & you spot a family sitting down to dinner. You think 'hmm, if i can see them this easily... there's probably a 100% chance they can see me & I don't want to put them off their dinner.' Windows closed.*

*We hit up a 3 day convention while we were in town which was very pleasant. On day 1, we got told we were 'Striking' & that we 'Stood out from the crowd because we looked different to everyone else.' As for the style in general, it wasn't exactly out of this world but to be honest, i would have to say people do know how to put an outfit together & look suave. Whether its a red leather tie or a pair of baby blue pants teamed with navy jacket,

it was nicely put together.*

*Then there were drinks at the Novotel. Being surrounded by the beautiful people & not knowing many there, definitely makes one feel insanely shy! Yes. That would be me I'm referring to. (As in, the shy one.. not the beautiful one) So instead of being all up in someone's grill, i chilled in the background sipping frangelico & lime while observing.*

*The Food: Mexican, Italian, Japanese. Win.

There is an amazing Japanese restaurant down the road from our place. In true Japanese style when you walk in, you are greeted with 'Irashimase!' (Welcome) & if you have ever been to Japan, you would know that when you walk into a shop, you are always greeted with that.

We found a nice Italian place called Love Supreme. And boy did we love it!

http://lovesupreme.com.au/

Get the YABASTA or ORECCHIETTE.*
~Although we didn't get it, apparently the Leone is also good~

*We ventured out into the glorious sunshine cruising around the city & Hyde Park. To our surprise, we got tan lines! We also hit up a pier right near the Opera House & Sydney Harbour Bridge. We soaked up the sunshine & were interrupted by an American guy asking us to take photos of himself holding up signs with mushy messages of love on them for his girlfriend! It was adorable! I wanted in on the cuteness so i jumped in a photo with him & made a love heart with my hands :) He then went on to tell us his name was Steadman & he was in a band who are playing a gig at Hisense Arena in Melbourne this weekend & he would get us free tickets.*

*Hitting up one of our favourite little spots- Gusto's at Fiveways- for breakfast/ brunch catch ups with a mate from Melbourne was lovely. It had been a long time between lattes.*

*How could i forget! The Lowenbrau. German Pub. German Beer. 2x Melbournian~European descendant women. Yes. It was as tasty as i rememebered. http://www.lowenbrau.com.au/

Sitting there minding our own business, a group of guys walked in. I took this poor quality, sneaky photo.. who needs pants? Seriously.*

*I think thats about it for now.

Thanks Sydney.

xox

SICK/TWISTED/MIND

....and that's just the inner workings of me!

So i was emailing a couple of friends earlier in the week & we were discussing how it is often beneficial to keep a diary if you're going through a hard time/good time/rad time/bad time/glad time/sad time etc.

That sort of thing.

Not so much a diary you write in daily.

'Dear diary, today i wanted to sleep in, but noooo, i have to get up for stupid boring school...'

No. *Yawn.

I was talking more of a diary you write in when you needed to get something off your chest. 

Theres' something therapeutic about writing down all your thoughts, feelings, emotions that can help you deal with it.

Whether its something good or bad that's happening in your life.

Personal experience has taught me this.

ie: loves, hates, annoyances, sorrows, secrets (whether they are yours or someone elses!) who you wish you could punch/slap/kick in the face, hilarious experiences you have with your friends, sketches of aforementioned scenarios, even keeping photos in there that no one else should ever see.

Uh Huh. 

In high school I had a diary that I'd write in when things like

that came up.  

It was so good at the time!

Yes yes yes.

You have to absolutely write down every single detail/thought/emotion, no matter how wild/dumb/stupid/hurtful/idiotic/it feels, otherwise it will linger in your brain forEVER & drive you insane!

Get it all out.

Who cares what you say- you are the only person who will

be reading it. 

For some, it's about being ok to let go of something & knowing we've done everything absolutely humanly possible & in our strength to fix it/change it/whatever it.

It's all fine & dandy to believe something but it's another thing to actually accept it for ourselves.

This can take weeks, months or even years.

Physically writing our thoughts down.. can be somewhat soothing.

It's raw & unpretentious.

Its almost like a confession of someone who is vulnerable.

It's you.

...did i get somewhat off track?!

Back to it. 

I'd write about all my crushes & dumb stuff like that.

ie: 'Today walking down the corridor at school, *insert name here* called me 'babe' WOW! I was so stoked, I didn't think

he knew i existed!'

 Blah etc etc blah.

Utterly dumb teenage trash like that.

It was actually quite embarrassing to read years later.

I definitely also wrote about deeper more important things than that. This was purely an example.

As for my high school diary... i ended up burning it in our open fire place one night.

I figured, it was safer to burn the evidence.

..except for those photos i mentioned earlier.. i kept those.

XOX

ps- It was quite exhilarating to burn that!

Girls are pieces of MEAT!

HA!

Just kidding.

No we definitely are not.

Surprise, surprise, we're actually people not just a nice piece of.... well, you get my drift.

Don't get me wrong, there is definitely something very nice, lovely & good about a guy who sees someone he likes & then
goes for her.

However easy or hard it may be.

Who knows where it could lead?

It could be the best gamble you ever make & if nothing works out, then atleast you've gained a friend from it.

In doing so, you'll gain her respect which I'm sure some of you guys don't care about just yet, but the select few who do care are the real gems out there.

Few & far between.

Before i go on, let me set something straight.

My dad is very traditional.

Man pursues woman.

The end.

Simple equation really.

That's what I have been brought up knowing.

Nothing makes you feel more desired than a guy who is confident enough to actually take that chance & pursue you & knows how to hold onto your attention once he's got it.

Oooh la la!

When you make her feel like this, she responds.

But.

It's when guys cross the line & feel they can treat you like a piece of meat & still win you over after doing so.

How dumb do you think we are?

(That's a rhetorical question by the way)

No thanks. Goodbye mate.

It's not the best feeling in the world.

Especially when random guys yell out obscene, rude things to you, wolf whistle at you (actually.. I must confess, I don't mind the old wolf whistle because it's nice to be appreciated when strutting down the street!)

Or when random guys grab you to dance with.

No thanks random grindy guy.

Get away from me. Yuck.

You want some love? Then don't treat me like trash.

I can hold out longer than you can.

Where has chivalry gone? Seriously.

When a guy is chivalrous towards me, it completely

blows my mind!

I never expect it. Ever.

So when it happens, it's always a lovely surprise & I feel like i owe him the world because he makes me feel that nice.
Actions always get a reaction ;)
Even if it's just something little like buying a drink for me, paying for a cab ride or bringing a bottle of wine to dinner.

Win Win Win.

It's just simple, nice & courteous.

For me, it really is the little things in life that count.

I don't need or want to be bought expensive things.

(Unless it's an engagement ring. Then, the bigger the better! Diamond. 9ct white gold please. You wont regret it.)

It makes you feel like a person, not just some piece of meat that can be used, abused & expected to still be there next time.

To my boy friends who just seem to 'get it,' you guys are champions.

xox

ps- You'd be surprised how far a little chivalry & respect 
will get you... yes. yes. yes.