Choosing What To Study at UNI

In Australia, students around are going through the process of deciding what they want to study at UNI and I am one of them. It is starting to freak me out because all of a sudden, I have to think about my future and what I want and seriously, I'm still unsure. If you are one of the many students freaking out because of UNI this year, trust me, you are not alone.

There are so many options. This sounds great on paper but in reality, it makes choosing subjects so hard. And if you're like me and the thought of going through the process of swapping subjects makes your skin crawl then this adds pressure and stress.

But guess what? All this pressure and stress is coming from one thing….me. I put so much pressure on myself to choose the 'right' subjects and it's ridiculous. If you are putting loads of pressure on yourself, take a moment and breathe. You are choosing subjects that could potentially result in a career, not choosing a career outright and guess what? It's totally fine not knowing what you want to do. In fact it's totally normal! I'm not an ambitious, career minded person so I am going to study subjects that I love and that I'm good at. I think thinking about a career is looking far to ahead in the future and is something we need to just let happen. I know I will have a great job in the future, I just need to be patient and have trust in myself that what I am doing is right.

I'm so nervous about starting UNI because I am starting school all over again. I won't know a whole lot of people, I don't know the campus at all, the teachers are strangers and subjects at UNI are so different to highschool. But I think this change and these new challenges are going to be good for me and help me grow up a bit.

If you are starting a new school this year; whether it be UNI or high school, remember that new changes and new faces may be totally scary and nerve racking but also a chance to really challenge yourself and change for the better. You may gain friends and confidence or a great new outlook on life. This is a scary beginning but it will be to ally worth it. Good luck!

Xxx

Christmas!

It's Christmas night and I have had a pretty great Christmas this year! My absolute favourite thing about this time of year is the fact that you get to spend the day with family that you hardly see throughout the year. It is such a magical time and only happens once a year which makes it special. Since I live in Australia, it is summer and today was a beautiful day (we even went swimming). There are however the really crap parts of Christmas too that we all have to put up with but you shouldn't dwell on those things because the great and magical aspects if Christmas outweigh the shitty parts. This is how my Christmas went….

My sister and I got out of bed at 5:15am (I will mention I am 19 years old) and opened all our presents. Is there any better feeling then receiving and giving presents? We then got ready and headed over to spend lunch with my mum's side of the family. It was outside, open, summery and really relaxed. I find it so easy to just chill and be myself around mum's side and we went swimming after lunch which was amazing. Although, you know how every single family has that one family member who you find really difficult or you just can't stand them? Well I have an aunt who is all this and then some. And guess who had to sit next to her during lunch? ME! But I took deep breaths, gritted my teeth and went to my happy place (by that, I mean start drinking). But never the less, when I spend Christmas with this side of the family, it is aways relaxed and embodies a traditional Australian summer Christmas which I love.

We then headed over to Dad's side of the family for dinner. Now, I've never really felt comfortable around this side of the family and I don't really know why. I think I'm just not as close to the family members as I am on Mum's side. For me, it's a very stereotypical Christmas that you hear people complain about all the time; feeling trapped in a room full of people you don't really want to be around, uncles cracking dirty jokes at the table, my aunt who did not shut up about herself for the whole time we were there and having the feeling like Christmas will never end.

But despite the bad parts of Christmas, it really is my favourite time of the year. When is there another time where having two servings of dessert acceptable, even expected? And the build up to Christmas is so exciting and magical and the best excuse to spend a day with family. Now, as I sit here bloated, lipstick smudged knotty hair from hairspray, I type this feeling drained, tired, and relieved it's over. I hope you all had an incredible Christmas and remember that the great experiences you have at Christmas will remain treasured memories all your life.

Xxx

Physical and emotional detox days.

You know when you wake up and just feel blah. For no real reason, you feel tired, sluggish, ugly and fat and are so not ready to take on the world. Maybe you have been working like crazy or have been pretty stressed and you feel tense and wound up.

This is when you need to do a physical and emotional detox and this is my little guide to refreshing your body and mind.



1. Food.
Today you need to keep your meals light, healthy but still super yummy. You need to get rid of the bloated feeling you have and feeling nice on the inside is the first step. Breakfast ideas include smoothies, bran and porridge. Also, drink plenty of water during the day to flush out toxins and add wedges of lemon to really cleanse your body. For lunch and dinner, stick to vegetables and foods that won't weigh you down and make you feel gross.

2. Exercise.
Get up and moving! Take a nice long walk to get plenty of oxygen to your organs as well as clearing your mind. Stretching, yoga and doing mini workouts feel amazing on days like these; plus you feel good about getting exercise which is aways a confidence boost!

3. Beauty.
There really is nothing like having a full bath or shower where you pamper yourself and do a thorough clean. Wash you hair using a clarifying shampoo, use a deep conditioner, shave your legs and under your arms (essential), cleanse your face, wash using a sweet smelling shower lotion and finish by moisturising your whole body. Voila! Clean, silky and smooth is the best feeling.

4. Environment
You can't possibly have a cleansing day if your house/bedroom is upside down and you feel trapped in mess! Tidy up, change your sheets on your bed, open all the windows for fresh air and even rearrange some furniture if you feel you need a change. If we are stuck in a boring routine or are living in the same boring space, you will feel bored on the inside too. Clean house equals a clean mind.

5. Entertainment
By this time, you are ready to settle down and have some serious YOU time. Pick up an all time favourite book, watch your classic movies (crappy chick flicks and rom-coms) and bunk down with your favourite TV show cast (mine are the girls from Sex and the City and the guys from Friends). I also suggest flipping through girly magazines or calling a friend and having good bitch about the world. All of these things allows you to really enjoy your time to yourself and if you have followed all the previous steps, you should be feeling cleansed and back to normal.

Let's face it, we all get to a stage where we feel tired, bloated, annoyed with life and generally sick of the normal routine we all fall into. Having a detox day is simply essential for survival. Not only do you need to detox your body, you have to cleanse your mind too. I know I'm in need of one of these days when I start to feel a bit self conscious and tense inside and my skin is breaking out. I also know If I need a detox if my tummy is bloated and I want go kill everyone at work!

Side note: the reason I posted this is obviously because I am need of one of these days!

Xxx

Why are we here?

So being a 19 year old girl, I think about life a lot.

Why are we here and what is it all for? What is the purpose of living? Are we wasting time? What time is there to waste?

Adults, right. They get up in the morning, go to work, come home, have dinner, go to bed and then do it all again the next day. Why? To earn money. But why? What will this lead to?

Happiness? No, plenty of millionaires suffer depression.
Fulfilment? No, otherwise why do we all want more than we have?

I clearly have a lot of questions. Sometimes, it's hard trying to work out what you want to do with your life when you really don't know why you are here in the first place. Being an atheist, I don't really believe in heaven and hell. Although I'm not completely ruling that out...

When we die, do we float up into the clouds and greet God at the gates? Are we dragged down into the fiery pits of hell? Are we re-incarnated into a goat or a fish or something? Or are we just reborn and the circle just continues and continues?

Are we here just to love? Everyone seeks a soul mate to spend their life with (well, most people do) and many want kids and grand kids etc. But is that what we are really here for? We have kids so then they can have kids so then they can too and it just continues?

I sometimes think about what happens when we die. But what I think about more is if I'll be remembered. That scares me more than anything; that I'll just become a grave stone that people walk past without giving a thought about who is under there. Compared to the amount of dead people on earth, the number of living people is so tiny. Yet we hardily know anything about our great-grandparents and their great-grandparents and our own personal history.

Scary stuff, hey? Maybe when we die, we discover what it is all for and that is the reward we get. And ghosts appear when the person isn't ready to be told.

Xxx

Beauty

Beauty. The one thing universally wished for. Most people in the western world wish for the stereotypical features that make someone "beautiful"; i.e. tall, slim, bright eyes, small nose, tan skin, big lips, beautiful luscious hair etc etc etc. But do these features really make someone beautiful?

Take Carrie from Sex and the City (Sarah Jessica Parker for all you non SATC fans). Her nose is huge, her eyes are too small, her face is long and skinny like a horse and her hair is crazy. Yet she is known for being so beautiful and stylish. And she is! I think she is stunning even though she possesses no typical features of beauty. So is beauty more than the bits and pieces we can see?

Of course it is. Beauty is so much more than the features you possess. It is the way you walk. The way you talk. Your presence, stride and the way you hold yourself. It's how you enhance your best features while accepting your flaws. And most importantly, its the person within that truly makes you beautiful.

Now when people say, "I never judge on appearances. Personality is the only thing I value", they are deluding themselves. It is natural for human beings to judge appearances as we do it sub-consciously all the time. And in order to be attracted to someone emotionally, you have to be attracted to them physically too. But when the physical attributes of a person outweighs their personality, then there is a problem.

I personally value beauty, both inside and out. Why not value both?! Both should be celebrated and cherished; especially since the inner beauty of someone can effect your perception of their outer beauty.

Xxx

What do I want to with my life?

I haven't posted in such a long time! What is happening? I got into the groove with blogging and then I just stopped, sorry!

So here's the deal. I am 19 years old and am about to embark on the terrifying world of university life and I haven't got a single clue what I want to do. This is me, confused and over thinking my future like a boss.

Ok, that's no exactly true. I have so many ideas of where I could be in the future and what I could end up doing but what path is the right one?

I like English and writing and I love the thought of one day working in a magazine. But then I think, am I really that ambitious?

I like creative things like design and art but is that really me?

I'm interested in psych and people's crazy minds but am I the right sort of person so be poking around there?

I love kids and being a children's teacher would be amazing but do I have the patience to be looking after a billion kids at once?

I love make up and beauty but would I be good at that?


Which path is right? Do we ever know? I want to be successful and happy but right now, the future looks like a blur!


Ruby xx

My birthday look!

So on the weekend I celebrated my 19th birthday! How weird. My 18th was a whole entire year ago; before I was compeltely aware of how much fun being over 18 was ;)

Anyways, on the Saturday night, I naturally went out to a concert and then went clubbing. I want to share how I wore my make up because clubbing make up is completley different to any other sort of make up look.

This is me! Let me take you through this look.

I decided to go for elegant simple eyes and a bold lip. For me, it's either strong eyes, neutral lips or simple eyes and a bright lip. This always means that the balance is right. 

To begin with, I applied my foundation (L'Oreal) and concealer (Revlon Photo Ready). On a daily basis, I use Rimmel Wake Me Up but for something heavier, I go for L'Oreal. I then used Rimmel bronzer and a gorgeous, natural looking rosé blush that I use for my everyday make up too. 

For my eyes, I applied some white eyeshadow across the lid as it makes your eyes pop and shimmer! I used a metallic silver in the crease to create definition. I also used a bit of white eyeliner in the inner corners as well as under the eye as well as a bit of black eye liner.  I then used Rimmel liquid eyeliner and created a thin cat flick. See, simple eyes. I love shimmery natural looking eyes cause then you can go crazy on the lips!

Naturally, I used a nude lip liner. For more natural looking lippies, I don't really bother but for bright colours I do. My lipstick was an amazing hot barbie pink (20) from Kate Moss' latest range.

I just love this colour. I am obsessed with lip sticks and nothing makes me happier then finding that one colour that you just adore.

So that was what I went for. I usually go for this sort of look for clubbing because its simple and is really flattering for your eyes while emphasizing your beautiful lips! 

Follow me on Instagram! 

http://instagram.com/#rubyyygrace

Xxx