Saturday 7 June 2014

Talking, walking and thoughts

Thank you to my friend for taking me for a walk today. The talk was much needed and very appreciated!
It's often the small things that mean a lot.  


My day started with a meeting (- oh the nerves! - meeting strangers) in a coffee shop to meet and discuss a neighbourhood meetup for the Wellington Host Lions. They set up a meeting, which is happening in a little over a week to get neighbours to meet up and help prepare in case of an emergency, or in case the "big one" hits *. The idea is to get to know our neighbours within our building, so we can help each other out. Even if it's like a Fire Drill - to know that the lady in 10B** has a small child is a good piece of information to have. That way - if we evacuate and see her without said child, we can respond appropriately. (IE By telling emergency services etc). Or if there's an elderly couple or someone with a disability...

Next up I guess would be setting up a Neighbourhood Watch/ Neighbourhood Support group within our building. We used to get newsletters of things happening - but we haven't had any in quite a while.
I wonder if I should / could write a new one, or if it is out of place for me to do so? I don't know who the Body Corp. of the building is for a start, and I don't want to step on their toes too much. Just hoping this initial meeting neighbours thing goes down well. At least I'll know who (from our building) is on board soon enough.

There are a lot of apartment buildings in Wellington's CBD I noticed today on my travels (both alone when I was going to and from the coffee shop, but also when walking with my friend)... a lot of new buildings being built too. I hope the market drops soon. If we want to buy an apartment it looks like we need to wait until the prices drop and they won't do that until some sell, or more are on the market!

It was crazy to think, today, that our apartment building with 60 apartments is considered "small" compared to most. I know it's only 5 stories worth, each with 12 apartments... but it's not that small, surely? SOHO just down the road has 350, it may be closer to 400. Insane! There's a new building going up that is rumoured to have close to 500 apartments. Each of those are also 1-2 bedrooms. (Which means 1-4 tenants... the same as we have here).

Dan is still away for another 8 days. Missing him lots. But can't do much about that.




NOTES:
* I live in the Capital city of New Zealand and we're right on top of a fault line, earthquakes are common here. Hence we're waiting for the 'big one'.

This of course has been the status quo for years, if it happens this year or next, who knows. Best to Be Prepared and have our things ready to Get Thru.
Get Ready & Get Thru
**10B is just an example, there is no 10B in our building.


Friday night music, parties, drinking, noise, peace, quiet

So it's Friday night, and I'm home alone for most of the evening. I don't mind. It's peaceful. I watch TV. I play some music. I'm drinking juice, and later green tea.
I've fallen - hard - for Peppermint & Lemon tea. It's freshening yet tangy.

The neighbours upstairs are a group of guys, they're playing music from around 4 in the afternoon. I swear at least one of them is home all day. Like me. I hear him walking around that's how I know.
Their music wafts through the floorboards above my head. It's hard to think.

It's much, much later now, after 10pm our flatmate is home - watching TV in his room. The guys above continue to (I assume) drink and party. Their music continues.

The flatmate goes to bed. I should be heading to bed too, but I stay up listening to the night noises. The hum of the fridge. The noises of people outside in the alleyway.

Even later, after midnight and the guys up stairs are now on their balcony, talking, laughing. They've been drinking and partying a while. You can tell by their topics of choice, their laughter wholehearted.

Tomorrow, well really later today, I have a big day planned so I should head off to sleep.



Thursday 5 June 2014

Growing out the Pixie Cut

This post features on the No Poo & low poo hair forum on facebook which can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/nopoo

In around May 2013 I had my hair cut into a pixie cut. I went for a long version. Sort of like: http://www.thehairstyler.com/hairstyles/casual/short/straight/carey-mulligan
My hairdresser didn't want to cut my hair that short, which is why the long version was good, I could work out exactly what the length was and how the hair reacted to it. (Some hair [types & colours] suits certain styles better, as do certain face shapes. I'm no expert on either.)
This is another image I used: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/164240717635351836/
This is the Long Pixie in a picture of me: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/164240717635351831/

Three months later it was growing out already so I went back to my hairdresser and asked for the 'short' version of the Pixie cut. [He was much happier to do the short version after I'd been rocking the long version for a few months.] 
So it transitioned to be like this: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/164240717635350419/ (Oh yeah, that is me in blue).

I waited for it to grow out, so 7 months later I needed urgent help for a "mullet problem". (Refer to the mullet photo in the link on instagram - below). It is hilarious. I actually didn't realise how bad it looked until after the haircut. I mean I knew it was bad... but wowsa. Haha. If you get more regular trims at around 3-4 months the Mullet won't become such a bad look. Trust me I barely left the house during this time.

I'm due for another trim in about 3 weeks time, so hopefully I can just get a little off the ends and although it sounds counter-productive to be trimming the ends, it is actually helping me ensure they're healthy. No split ends and stuff. It's a personal choice, but it also helps to ensure the haircut/style is looking good as it grows further out too. I try to stretch between trims as much as I can, which is why I go approximately every 3-4  months. When it's grown longer (to tie up) I'll go less often, and only get the ends done. 

If you have bangs you'll need to trim them more often I guess. I've decided to grow mine out, it's just getting to the annoying hair in the eyes length. So now it is an angled fringe and kind of swept off to one side. This is just how I'm dealing with it while it grows out. 
Bandannas or scarves can help with this. Same with hair bands... 
When the fringe/bangs are long enough you can also clip them back.  

** Another recommendation came from my hairdresser who said - it is good if you have some kind of vision board. pin board (or pinterest board in my case) to show where you've been and where you want your hair to go. Now bear in mind that the images you'll see of celebrities etc will be touched up with hair products containing silicones and sulfates, their shine looks addictive, but you can get shiny hair on the no/low poo journey so keep at it. Healthy hair shines too. Here is my board: http://www.pinterest.com/listay1/growing-out-the-pixie-ultimate-hair/

              I've got a bunch of photos of my hair growth and changes on Instagram...

Pre-Mullet - http://instagram.com/p/j54kUdNdyx/

Mullet Pride - http://instagram.com/p/j1m_1yNd5p/

Haircut - rid of the Mullet - http://instagram.com/p/kD270ZNdzP/ 
(This is a classic bob cut, not an inverted one. With bangs).
Hair changes - hair cut etc - http://instagram.com/p/kNu7pINd0B/
Length (about 3 months ago) - http://instagram.com/p/kivp5rNd9s/

Another collage collection to compare length - http://instagram.com/p/kqD2SmNd9s/

show night - (2 months ago) http://instagram.com/p/lAGNbGtd6u/

Australia trip - (3 weeks ago) http://instagram.com/p/mAIpwJtd-_/
Two weeks ago: fringe is getting grown out too- http://instagram.com/p/mUTZxMtd4B/


These photos are of my hair before I was doing this and before I'd cut off the really damaged hair: 
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/164240717635350422/ (Long hair, mid back).

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/164240717635350418/ (shoulder length hair, this is the length it was for the first pixie pre-cut).

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/164240717635350424/ (Really, really damaged hair. I was doing CO washing at this stage).


Here is a post about a quick up-do I did on June 1st, 2014. Excuse how messy it is, and the red face: sick at the moment.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/nopoo/permalink/294605010706011/ (You may need to join the group to access this link).


*** The links to Instagram and Pinterest are linked to my profiles - feel free to follow, like and share if you use these services. 
*** The journey is my own and no other, so I may be offering advice which counter-acts what your own hairdresser and research says, so do your homework and follow the advice of your hairdresser regarding how often you should get your hair cut or trim. 

"You're just an analogue guy in a digital world aren't you?"

So I haven't been blogging in a long time - apologies readers!

This post contains spoilers from Castle - read ahead if you've watched the latest season, if not, avoid the rest of this post after the jump. 

I started watching Californication. That show is crazy. Thankfully we have a new and awesome flatmate who has the entire set on his computer, so I started at Season One and I'm watching like mad. I know that TV is currently showing Season 7? So I have a lot to catch up on! The characters remind me of the show Castle a bit, like Hank has an ex whom with he has a daughter. Hank doesn't live with his mother though, so there is that.

I've come to realise just how much my own well being influences just 'everything' in my life; from how I'm dressing, acting, eating, just everything.

I realised that I've started having really bad problems with my mental health again, I thought this stuff was well and truly over, but it's back. So I have to start again - seeing a therapist and getting some help. I saw my doctor and she tells me it's mild. The past, I don't know, 6 months at least, I haven't been my most confident. I've been more introverted. Nervous. Shy. Scared of the world. Been more likely to stay home alone, rather than somewhere I know there will be other people. To the point I don't like going out, if I could help it. I'm not so bad. I can go places - alone or with Dan. I did. I do. I went to the mall a while ago. The mall. Where I'd been scared to go alone since 2009 when I first moved to Wellington. Queensgate, in Lower Hutt. I was meant to meet up with a girl friend but she had something pop up at the last minute and couldn't come with me, so I'd already had it in my head to go. So I did. And I'm happy I did. I bought myself new trousers. I went there and back, alone, on the bus.

I can do things. I just need to find my self confidence again. Say hi to that girl I knew who was friendly and smiled to strangers. Not this lady I am now.
Anxiety and Depression make me do things I wouldn't normally. Being scared of going on a bus 20 minutes out of town to a mall. To go shopping alone. That has confidence written all over it.

So why do I feel like I am not confident and happy now? I don't know. I am hoping I can find out; With the help of my therapist of course.

Thankful to have found support in Facebook groups from people going through this stuff too. Their stories, advice and wisdom have helped a lot so far. Without them, I don't think I would have been confident enough to admit to my doctor that yes, I need help. Yes I would like to talk to a therapist. Yes, I would like to learn some coping techniques.

Does that mean I'm completely bonkers and should be locked up in an asylum? No way. I just need a little guidance.
One step forward, two steps back.
Maybe writing more often on my blog will also get some thoughts to paper (so to speak) and help clear my mind.

 Time heals all wounds it seems. Although the past 7 years have taught me that time heals, just not as quickly as one would think.