Visualise This!

I’m in one of life’s lulls at the moment, things have come to a grinding halt and its time for me to reassess.

I’ve been reading a lot of new age “how to get what you want from life” books and I’ve come across a common theme VISUALISATION BOARDS!

The theory behind it goes something like this, if you want something out of life, promotion, relationship, more money etc you must first visualise it. You can write it down, cut out images from a magazine and make a collage of the life you want in the near future. The key then is to put it somewhere you can see it everyday where you can focus you energy on your goals.

The more I read about it the more I warmed to the idea and thought what the hell let’s make a visualisation board!

I went down to my local newsagent and bought up a whole heap of different magazines, found myself a hot pink cork board at Kmart and got stuck into making it.

But what should I ask the universe?

What is it that I need?

Ah ha! A job! and not just any old job! I want a job that pays at least double the shit wage I’ve been on for the last two years.

Now I’ve asked the universe for a big paying job, what shall I do with my new-found cash. A holiday prehaps, a big epic holiday overseas. I’ve always wanted to go to Europe and my secret dream has been to live and work in London.

But I don’t want to do this all by myself, and it would be a shame not have anybody to share it with, so what the hey, lets sick “future boyfriend” on the list.

By now my hot pink board was looking a little crowded and the last thing I want to ask the universe for is clutter so I thought 3 was a good number to settle on, well.. for now at least.

As I looked down at my board in sheer admiration I noticed something was missing, a muse, people who I admire and inspire me. I picked four amazing women who I think the world of to represent the person I would one day like to become.

Finally I ended with a quote, something I can look at and inspire me (even on those shitty days when you don’t want to get out of bed), which simply said “it’s your time to shine”.

Yes, cheesy I know, but fuck it, come what may, cheese and all….

Ring a Ding, Ding!

A funny thing happened today…

I awoke to find the ring finger on my right hand blistered and crusty, the same finger I’ve worn a single 18ct gold band for over 15 years, not once giving me an ounce of grief!

You see this ring is very special to me, it was once my grandmother’s wedding ring, who passed  it on to my mum who then passed it on to me.

Not once has it ever left my person, so naturally I placed it on the only other finger it would fit, my left ring finger, you know the one you leave bare for when your married.

My ring finger didn’t take kindly to my pseudo wedding band taking up residence, and broke out in very hostile rash.

Now I know it could have been some bacterial crap caught under the band making my skin react to it but I took it as a sign my body was rejecting my ring, a symbol of past commitment and matrimony.

It was only a couple of days ago one of my besties pulled me up on my band wondering why I would wear such a thing.

It hasn’t been the first time someone has quizzed me about my choice in jewellery, with some even assuming I was  married.

I discusses my theories with my mum and asked her why now? why would I have such a reaction to a ring I’ve worn over half my life?

She blamed it on my ovaries, told me it was probably my body’s way of telling me to find a partner and think about settling down. She even went as far as calling it a “cock block” and said maybe its a good thing I wont be wearing it for a while.

My finger has been bare for almost 24 hours and I feel a piece of me is missing, but if my mum and friends are right maybe, the time has come part ways with my ring and make room for something much more special to come my way.

The Pick Up Artist

A guy walks up to a girl at a bar and asks her if she would like to see a magic trick, what would your natural reaction be?

I was posed with this scenario last night, I was “game” to see what game (if any) this guy had.  If your going to pull out the big guns with a line like that I’m expecting you to deliver!

The click of a lighter, a flash of orange flame igniting a flammable piece of paper and voila, out popped a tiny flower. Yeh I must admit I was impressed and was curious to see more, all the while waging a secret bet with my self if this guy was a one trick pony?

Then..out came a 2/3 green and 1/3 white napkin and away he went making an impromptu white stem rose. Sure his act was covered in a thin layer of cheese but I found his attempts to try to chat up a girl at the bar quite endearing.

The next part, unfortunately, was where he lost points.

He asked me my name and I said it was Sarah.

“Oh My God” was his response “that is like my most favourite girls name in the world, wow your name is really Sarah?”

Ok sure, Sarah could be his favourite name in the entire world, but then I ordered a bourbon and coke  (for my brother who unfortunately had front row seats to ”my sister is being hit on” show).

“Oh My God are you seriously he replied, bourbon and coke  is like my favourite drink in the world.”

The whole meant to be, destiny spiel was making me want to run for the hills, and fast!

It then got me thinking, meeting someone at the bar shouldn’t be hard work, just keep it light, keep it breezy and make sure you be yourself.

In my opinion that’s the key to any good pick up.

Street Greet

You know that moment, where you’re walking down the street completely engrossed in your own thoughts, when suddenly out the corner of your eye you spot someone who you absolutely do not want to talk to. Swiftly you move to the left, so you can avoid their path. They move right, back into your new path. Oh crap they’ve spotted you.

You both give a polite smile and said hi and now you’re trapped talking about the weather and other superficial conversation starters, stalling the inevitable question so what’s new with you?

A ghost from my past crossed paths with me today and I just did not want to give him the time of day. I could tell he would have been just as happy to have kept on walking to his car before he spotted me, but there we stood for a good 5 minutes “catching up.”

Why do we do that? Pretend our day hasn’t been rudely interrupted while carrying on as BFF’s. Its strange behaviour to adopt yet we all fall into the role just like an actor would do for a part in a play or movie.

Then I remembered why Street Greets are always so great, you always have a place to go, someone to met, and appointment to make, and  of couse the other person understands, it just so happens they had the exact same excuse ready to use as their exit strategy.

Maybe next time our paths cross a good old smile and nod will be enough.

Flirt your way to a good day

For a long time now, longer than i care to truthfully tell you, I’ve been living the single gals life.

I was the girl who jumped straight into a career after uni and thrived on being a workaholic. I let my career define me and mould me to the point I didn’t know who I was with out it!

So now Im with out a job I’ve begun to sit back and have a look at my life and… it’s very beige!

Im at thst age where I get asked quite a lot, so Sarah have you thought about settling down? what about babies, how many would you like? and the one that never gets tired, why are you still single?

That’s a good question why am I still single?

Since I now have all the time in the world to think about it, I may as well give it a crack in trying to answer it.

I’ve developed what you could called a prickly disposition about my self, I met people, get to know a bit about them but, I don’t do the same in return. I thought I was playing hard to get, but really I was turning into an uppity bitch with a poll jammed so far up my arse I thought my shit didn’t stink.

Oh but what a smelly mess I was making for my self.

My act grew tiresome and my stick was replaced with a flashing neon light across my forehead screaming FUCK OFF!

OUCH!

I needed a break, a break from myself, and the best place I knew where to do that was come back to the source of where my workaholic monster was born, Melbourne!

On my first visit into the city last Friday , I had an interesting encounter with a shop assistant we’ll call surfer boy.

I was shopping up a storm in one of my favourite stretch of  retail stores, Burke Street Mall.

I walked into the store and was browsing around when surfer boy approached me and asked me if I needed any help?

My natural instincts kicked in, No I said, just looking i replied, hoping he would go away, but he didn’t.

He then asked me why I wasn’t at work on a Friday?

Oh wow I thought to myself, he thinks I have a job, that Im currently employed and that I work in Melbourne. It was the best thing I’ve heard since i lost my job.

What the hell I thought, you’re in a new city, he doesn’t know you’ve just been fired lets get to know one another.

So I started flirting with him and he started flirting with me. Tall, tanned, with sandy blond and big brown eyes surfer boy kept firing questions while at the same time corning me into a quite area of the shop. I knew what he was doing but I had no objections, I was giving back just as good as he gave.

After a good 15-20 minutes he was called away to another sale and I eventually moved onto another shop.

I never got his name, but it doesn’t matter.

I forgot how lovely it was to flirt with a stranger and for once it wasn’t all about me.

I can happily say after Friday’s chance encounter the neon lights on my forehead no longer flash FUCK OFF!

No, it say something much nicer now…

“Hi, my name is Sarah” should bring a welcome change.

Laid Off

REDUNDANCY:

It’s not a term I thought i’d ever be associated with, but this week when I came to work, the R bomb was dropped right on top of me.

I work in the media industry in Australia where new technology continues to streamline cheaper and more affordable ways to run businesses.

Really! I should have been more prepaird for the possibility that this could one day happen to me, but from where I’ve been sitting, up in Darwin in my ivory tower I felt immune from it all.

Naive you say, well I will have to agree with you on that one!

After I graduated from university in 2008 i moved back to my home town Darwin. It wasn’t my first choice, I had fallen in love with every thing in Melbourne while i studied there. Unfortunately for me and thousands of other graduates around Australia, the great Global Finacial crisis began to unleash it fury.

The media industry was hit hard, people were being laid off left right and center and businesses were offering few if none entry level positions and cadetships.

Unemployed and broke I made the decision to go home, and wouldn’t you guess it, with in a month I had a job, in Darwin, in the  media!

Their was little wonder on my part after having such luck in a new state why it could all possibly come to a screaming halt  several years down the track.

But this is where I am today,  unemployed and scratching my head about what to do next.

Let me tell you, being made redundant is a tough pill to swallow and  this industry can be one hell of a bitch at times,

but if  I was to do it all again I wouldn’t change a thing!

A friend of mine told me today not to take it personally, that I had done nothing wrong and proven that I am a very capable hard working journalist.

“Sarah” he told me “it’s just the nature of the industry”!

Secret Santa

It’s 4 weeks out from Christmas and I can already feel the mad rush is on to buy presents for your families and friends. But what if you had to buy a present for neither one, what if this person was a stranger, what if this person was your co-worker!

The annual work place Secret Santa has reared it dirty little head, tucked away for 12 months it has dusted its self off to create havoc and get people asking what the f**k do I get _____(insert name here).

So the challenge has been set, I must buy a gift to the value of no more than $20 and give it to my Secret Santa at the work Christmas Party.

So where do I start?

I must admit I had absolutely no intention to get involved in this years Secret Santa, I saw the office email go around and gave my self a mental note to avoid it like the plague.

But fate had other plans! Distracted with a pile of work I needed to do I found a little memo at the bottom asking me kindly if I could organize this years Secret Santa.

I had no choice, no one else in the office had the time or interest to organize it I was the last resort, palmed off like a hot potato, it landed square in my lap.

The reaction around the office was mixed some people were eager as all hell to pick a a good name while others let out a grunt in annoyance that it was that time of year again.

Since I had all the names in the palm of my hands I could have cheated a little and picked out who I wanted, but I thought I’d let fate (once again) decide for me.

I let everyone else choose first and the last name in the hat would be mine.

Looking back I should have cheated….

All week Ive racked my brain as what would qualify as a good Secret Santa gift ?

So I’m throwing it over to you, what would you get your Secret Santa?