Being Different

Hello My Lovelies :)

I usually try to keep my blog posts as positive as possible, but sometimes you come across an issue that touches your heart so greatly that you cannot but help make a statement about it.

Sophie Lancaster is one such person that I'm compelled to comment about. She is a teenage girl who was a Goth. Now I know a lot of people think that Goths, Punks & other members of sub-cultures are 'not right in the head' or 'just plain weird' but would you use that as a reason to beat someone to death???

I THINK NOT!

This lovely young lady gave up her life to save the life of her boyfriend [he was also a Goth], who was being attacked & she got in between him & his attackers to protect him; but instead of stopping their attack they started attacking her instead! They beat & kicked her into such a state that she was unable to be identified as either male or female when the paramedics arrived.

I mean how could ANYBODY do such a thing to another human being, just for being different ...

Check out this You Tube video about the foundation that has been created in Sophie's memory - if it doesn't bring you to tears then you need to check if your heart works.

You will also find other videos of how her mother is coping after the death of her daughter & after having the perpetrators caught & brought to justice - this lady works as a youth counselor, so she spends her time working with disadvantaged youth. Yet, if you listen to her speak you will hear that somewhere underneath her grief, there is still a belief in the basic goodness of humanity.

I saw the You Tube video several days ago & it has not left me since, it's really hard to understand why any person could feel such hatred for another, simply because they dressed/behaved/spoke differently to them.

This got me thinking about the various sub-cultures in society today. Where I live on the Gold Coast of Queensland the only real sub-cultures to speak of are; the gym junkies, surfies, night-clubbers, chicks who lurve shopping, yummy mummies & then everyone else! So basically, you need to be part of one of these groups to really fit in here - unfortunately I don't belong to any of them.

Yes, I go to the gym at least 4 times a week but I am still waiting for my body to catch up with all my hard work. Yes, I enjoy shopping but I certainly couldn't spend all day every Saturday trawling the shops. Yes, I enjoy the beach but you'll only find me walking along the edge of the water in spring & going in for a swim on a hot summers day. I was never a yummy mummy while I was pregnant but I did do a nice impersonation of a beached whale...

What I am, is a member of a sub-culture that exists in most capital cities around the world - I'm not going to reveal what group I belong to because my mother will refuse to talk to me. Yes Mum I do think of you :) xxx

But please understand that what I enjoy doing in my spare time is certainly different enough that I have to be careful about to whom I discuss it with & how I bring it up in conversation for the first time. My husband & I go to monthly 'club meetings' but they are always at night & the only way you can know about the meetings is to either; be invited by a member, be a member of an affiliated clubs website, or be known from one of the clubs in the other cities in Australia [Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne].

Now I know that if I 'came out' in public & wore my 'other' clothes on the train of a morning, I would certainly have the entire carriage looking at me & I'd also receive more than a few unwanted offers from members of the public who think that because I look different, I am available to be treated in a way that they would never do if I had my 'straight' clothes on [i.e. black suit, stockings, shirt, etc].

Believe me I have certainly thought about shocking the commuters of a morning & wearing SOME my 'alternate lifestyle' clothes in public - but after reading a recent blog post from Lolita Charm about how she was recently treated on the New York subway; I've certainly had second & third thoughts about such an idea.

But, maybe things here in Australia are different???

If you do an internet search you will find plenty of alternate lifestyle people who regularly blog about what they do, what they wear & the fun they have while they do it. For some people their alternate lifestyle has become so popular that they are paid for what they do. Check out Super Kawaii Mama & Violet LeBeaux - both ladies are based in capital cities [which the Gold Coast is not] & both ladies make some or all of their living from looking, dressing & behaving in a manner that is different from the rest of mainstream society.

Now, I adore both of these ladies & read their blogs on a daily basis. It was Super Kawaii Mama who inspired my new obsession for Vintage & Violet LeBeaux who has encouraged me to be more girlie :) Thank You Ladies :)

I love what they do so much, that I've started to find ways to incorporate small facets of their style in my daily life. It was great fun to add a twist of Ingenue into the outfit I wore last weekend when I had lunch with my handsome hubby [he certainly enjoyed my efforts] & it was even more fun to swing my work suit into something more 1940's inspired on Thursday & yes I got lots of comments for the effort too.

Just check out the 2010 Winter female outfits at Veronika Maine & you'll see that the 1940's & 1950's is making a comeback in a big way. Plus, where do you think the designers got their ideas for all the lacey skirts & tops that are the current must have pieces - from their local Ingenue of course!

Which just proves that if you keep true to yourself, regardless of which sub-culture you might belong to, eventually somewhere along the line it will become popular & you'll be the one making the fashions instead of following them!

Yes, I know that was not how you expected me to end this post - but after all it is Friday night & hubby & I will be attending a club meeting over the weekend & I'm too excited about a night out to be morbid & gloomy anymore ...

Until next time, take care & make sure you hug & kiss the ones you love.

Ciao
Mish :)
xxx

My New Obsession

Hello My Lovelies :)

I have a new obsession ... and no it's not my husband - as much as some people might say - he he he :)

My new obsession is Vintage!!!

I've been spending the past six of months reading the blog of Super Kawaii Mama - a Melbourne based lady who's obsession makes me look like an amateur.

If you have ever even been a bit curious about the hair, clothes, makeup & style of the 1940's, 1950's, etc; then her blog is the perfect place to peruse & learn lots & lots :)

I also just signed up for a workshop in October with the Lindy Charm School for Girls to learn how do my hair & makeup all by myself - without the assistance of a hairdresser or makeup artist. Those that know me will understand what a huge learning curve I am in for - my regular hairstyle is to style my NEW fringe & then let the rest dry naturally & my makeup is probably similar to what I wore ten years ago - sigh ...

So the workshop in October is certainly going to be an interesting afternoon for me & hopefully I will come away with enough information & skills & knowledge to start dressing more in the style that I love & admire.

Before I got my new fringe cut - my hairdressing routine was; wash / condition / towel dry / spread leave-in conditioner through hair / let dry naturally & take my chances with whatever style my hair decided it wanted to be in that day!


[Here's my hair on a good day!]

I'm not sure why I'm taking all these steps & making all these changes - maybe its because my son Nic has finally turned 18 [OMG!] & maybe this is my form of 'mid life crisis' & maybe it's because it's about time I did something for me ... but whatever 'this' is I'm certainly going to enjoy the ride!

You see I know I'm not the first woman on earth to stop & say 'its my turn' but perhaps what I am doing is a little different. So, tell me - what has prompted you to make a change in your life? Your last child leaving home? An unexpected long term illness? The death of a loved one/friend? Moving to live in a new city/country? I would love to know what inspired you to make the change & how you did it :)

Until next time, take care & make sure you hug & kiss the ones you love.

Ciao
Mish :)
xxx

Back Again!

Hello My Lovelies :)

I'm Back!!! Yes, I know I've been away a really, really long time - but unfortunately 'life' got in the way of my blog. Actually, truth be told I got so busy I couldn't find the time to blog :( how sad ...

Anyway, there is more than one reason why I have been away ...

I'm working on a little "project". You see, it's about time I take matters into my own hands & so I've been doing my due diligence & some of the ground work. The only problem is that I've come across a rather large road block!

I'm not sure in which direction I should take my little project; if I'm too conservative then I limit future potential, but if I'm too radical or retro then I could alienate some of the people I want to reach.

I've been working on this speed bump for nearly a month now & I'm no closer to finding an adequate solution.

So, tell me my Lovelies. What would you do? How would you decide which direction to take - retro or traditional???

To give you a hint, I'm going to talk to a graphic designer in the next few weeks & show her my idea book, to see if she can lead me in the right direction.

In case you haven't guessed what it is, I'm talking about designing a logo for a potential new business. Maybe that will help ...

Anyway, I must away - back to the internet to look through more sites to see if I can find something that will jump out at me. Wish me luck!

Until next time, take care & make sure you hug & kiss the ones you love.

Ciao
Mish :)
xxx

Chinese Kung Fu Graduation

At the beginning of October 2009 we celebrated the annual graduation for our martial arts school at the headquarters in Brisbane :)

It was a great night full of finger food, fun, awards & lots of dancing – the Mudgeeraba School was certainly the loudest & most vocal when any student from our school received an award.

We almost went through the floor when our Sifu [master] received his 3rd Degree Master Sash!

My son received his Blue Jacket for disciple level – which of course made me cry :)


The night was certainly full of surprises for more than a few of our students – Mary received the Student of the Year Award for the Mudgeeraba School & I received a photo for Tai Chi Instructor of the year; which was totally unexpected!

To end off the perfect evening our school had their photo taken with Sigung Henry Sue – don’t we all look simply wonderful!


I have to tell about the sweetest thing that my son Nic did on the way home – we stopped off at the service centre [large petrol station with food outlets] at Yatala [half way home] to visit the bathroom, get a drink & some chocolate. By the time we arrived I had long since taken off my four inch high stiletto’s & my feet were too swollen for me to walk on – so my son graciously offered to get me chocolate on one proviso ... that I locked all the doors in the car before he walked inside the service centre & he double checked they were still locked when he got back to the car & he’s only 17. How cute is that!

Until next time, take care & make sure you hug & kiss the ones you love.

Ciao
Mish :)
xxx

Mudgeeraba Street Party!

On the first weekend in November 2009 Mudgeeraba had a street party to celebrate getting the award for the Friendliest Town in Queensland!

The main street was closed for the Sunday & there were stalls from lots of local organisations; including, Mudgeeraba Special School, Lions Club, Bromeliad Club, Hinterland Museum & our martial arts school, just to name a few.

In the middle of the village green there was a petting zoo full of baby animals & they were all very cute; at the other end the Hinterland Band played & in the middle of both of these displays was our martial arts school!

Luckily we were able to take advantage of the closed street and presented four Chinese Lion Dances during the day – all of which received different reactions from the crowd. Some people absolutely loved the colours & the noise from the band & yet others were quite unsure what to expect. The kids certainly gave us the most feedback; some ran up to the Lions to touch them & other kids ran away crying!

It was a long but very enjoyable day & even the next night at training everyone agreed it was a great experience – even if we will still be suffering from sunburn & sore muscles for many days to come!

Several days later I spoke with people who had gone out to enjoy the day’s festivities & I received only positive feedback – which is always a good thing :)

Until next time, take care & make sure you hug & kiss the ones you love.

Ciao
Mish :)
xxx

Hubby's New Car!

My darling husband Michael has a new car :)

In early September he had an accident on the motorbike – he was perfectly fine but the insurance company decided to write off the bike; as it was almost impossible to fix the damage. Basically it was the fall after the accident that did most of the damage to the front of the bike & because this bike was an American import, there was no way to get a new faring without spending more money than what the motorbike was insured for :(

So, after almost nine weeks of waiting for paperwork to be processed & going hunting for a new car we finally have a vehicle to show for our efforts.

He bought a Land Rover Discovery 4WD – I know how incredible to go from a motorbike to a 4WD!




But as hubby explains things it makes perfect sense – you see, the accident was not his fault. The driver in front of him stopped at an empty roundabout & because hubby thought the other driver was just going straight through the roundabout [like you are suppose to do] he was still slowing down when the driver in front decided to slam his foot on the brakes. Now it was early morning & the sun was in hubby's face so he hit him in the back & then he hit the gutter which meant the bike got damaged on the right initially & then more damaged when he fell off after it hit the gutter.

The strange thing is that since the day of the accident the same thing has almost happened to both of us at different times & at different locations – all within the past eight weeks!

Which means that his reasoning for purchasing the 4WD makes perfect sense – he wants us to be safe & only get another motorbike when we have the time to ride in safety & from the way I see most people drive on the Gold Coast these days I totally agree with him!

I’m not trying to say that EVERY driver on the Gold Coast is a bad driver but there are so many people out there who have no idea how to use roundabouts – you should actually give WAY to traffic already ON the roundabout.

I mean who STOPS at an empty roundabout - sheesh!

I know, I know, I'm being mean & judgemental but we just lost our motorbike & I'm not happy Jan :( :( :(

Until next time, take care & make sure you hug & kiss the ones you love.

Ciao
Mish :)
xxx

They're Home!

It’s official – my Mum & Dad are home from Europe :)

I had to run off to Sydney to pick them up in their car – as they had SO much luggage that Virgin wanted to charge them over $400 in excess baggage charges to fly from Sydney to the Gold Coast – which is only a one hour flight!

The trip only took four days – so it was a quick one, but I got to spend some time with my Sydney family & it was probably a good thing that I was tired as it made it easier to remember how to speak & understand two languages at the same time!

My dad is from Malta & so his family speak a hybrid mix of English & Maltese – they’ve obviously forgotten that I married an Aussie & that we speak very little Maltese at home & so I’ve forgotten most of what I knew as a child; so being tired made remembering the words an easy thing to do. Don’t ask me why but it did!

My parents were staying with my Dad’s baby sister & husband, who they travelled around Europe with & so they made sure we visited their youngest daughter & her babies. I was amazed at how little Maltese [virtually none] my younger cousin actually speaks to her kids, when she speaks & understands better than I & she married another first generation Australian from a Maltese family like her – doesn’t make sense to me ...

So far, we haven’t seen any of the presents that Mum & Dad brought back as Mum cannot remember where she packed anything – the cases were that full!

Thankfully, my parents are all safe & back on the Gold Coast – only thing is we cannot say that the cat is particularly happy to have them back – she’s virtually ignored my Dad since they got home & let me tell you he is not happy about it at all. Somehow, I suspect he’s going to be sneaking her treats until she decides to “talk” to him again ...

Until next time, take care & make sure you hug & kiss the ones you love.

Ciao
Mish :)
xxx