Week Three - Hello World!

I'm SOOOOO excited right now, I just HAD to come and give you guys a really early "update" bloggy post - and let you in on one of the MOST FUN afternoons I've had in aaaaages!!!

So initially, when the Week Three "stop hiding" challenge came out, I was VERY nervous...  but you all pulled rank, told me I was being silly and that I could do this standing on my head.  Well, aside from the fact that I'm not THAT flexible (...yet...) I had ALOT of reservations about it all.  My anxiety levels certainly went up with the prospect of having to initiate conversations...

Off I trot on Monday to work - and first port of call was a quick stop at the petrol station to fill up the old jalopy.  Talking to the attendant there, a lovely middle-aged lady with bleached blonde hair...  she pulled a hair off her shoulder and our conversation re: hair loss and "malting" came about.  Us long-haired girls know how that one goes, so that was an easy one in the scheme of things...   But I did have a giggle to myself driving off, hair loss and hair colouring products.  Fab Monday conversational skills Aim... SO right up there with interesting topics!!!!

Gearing myself up for my Pump class last night, I got the tummy butterflies again... I was on the hunt for another victim!  (hehehehe).   Now, I don't really know what the go with the gym is just yet - but I hit a complete and utter FAIL.   Aside from the gorgeous instructor (who I technically already know, albeit in passing, so I guess she doesn't count entirely?!) - I couldn't get anyone to lock eyes and engage contact!!!   Running around the room after, and I'm like a crazy mosquito trying to lock onto someone.... flying around in circles and getting nowhere fast!!!!  ARGH!    I even stalked a lady and her daughter out the door on my way home, but then she took a phone call and my best efforts were thwarted...   FAIL.  Big dirty FAIL.  

So you can imagine my upset this morning, DAY TWO, off I run to the gym for a "take two" and my RPM class, thinking that'll bring about some new opportunities..  The instructor (also my PT) and I were merrily having a convo...  again, a non-counter for the challenge...  but do you think I could find anyone else?!!!    GAH!!!!!   (insert sad face here!)


I came home and plonked on my chair, vented my frustration to my 'support group' - who promptly gave me some pointers and advice!   Can always count on my girls for a pep-talk and cyber-cuddle!   xxx


SO picking myself up from that, I went off on my merry way for a client meeting - to discuss a design job for her...  and spent bulk of the next 1 1/2 hours talking about my weightloss, my challenges, my eating (and cooking!) and all things "Amy"...  !!!!    Oh, and then some stuff about the job she needed me to do, hahaha!    Now technically, I already know this gorgeous lady...  but

1. My weightloss mission has only just gone public for the wider community, so conversing about my weightloss in the past was a huge NO-NO....  least of all with a client, when it's supposed to be professional!!!
2.  My clients do NOT give me monster hugs when I arrive AND when I leave, and tell me repeatedly how gorgeous I am!! (bless!!) 
3. ... and she's reading this right now, so Yvonne, thank you for a FABULOUS chat today!!!   

Driving away from that, was feeling really quite confident and thought it was time to up the ante...  Oh yeah baby, bring it on!!!    So, where do you go when you want to mercilessly run into new people....

I WENT TO THE SHOPPING CENTRE!!!

I walked into one of the boutique women's stores...  snooped around....   Up to the counter I go, with two $5 singlets!!  (Score!  PS: these were REGULAR SIZING!  WIN number ONE!)  The gorgeous young sales girl on the counter looks at me (someone I'd ordinarily avoid - too pretty and intimidating!!!)...  I flash that grin (that you all think would win anyone over, hahaha!) and she smiles back - conversation initiated!    SUCCESS!!   Abridged version: "Have you been busy today" (says me)..  "Oh, not really - but it just picked up in the last half hour," she says.  "Ahhh good old Tuesday!" (I reply)...  "Yep, always a bit like that!  You have a lovely afternoon!"   

Feeling mighty chuffed, after fighting off the urge to dry-retch [over-thinking what you have to say or do is BAD BAD BAD!!! Only causes more anxiety!]  - I walk into the next shop!

These boots ARE made for walkin'!

Oh good lord, it's a shoe shop....   Well, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.... !   If I have to buy shoes, just so I can pass this challenge, then fine.... !!!!  BLC, look what you made me do!  

A GORGEOUS pair of boots and another pair of run-arounds later....    SUCCESS again, when I was talking to the lovely girl on the desk!    Talking about the "I love shoes" recycled bag she put my purchases in - which is rather fitting, given my latest design project was for a women's footwear company.... there was much conversing to be had! 

...moving on!!


I try this tactic out in two other boutique stores to follow - big flashy smile and much service at hand!   What shocks me the most with that is I had a bit of a Julia Roberts moment...   You know that scene in Pretty Woman, where the snobby sales girls won't serve her when she goes shopping down Rodeo Drive...  Then when she "transforms" later, she goes back in to rub it in, with her multi-purchased bags on her arms...  "Big mistake... HUGE!"...  Yeah, you got it?!!   WELL THAT WAS ME!!!!!   (minus the being a hooker part, bahaha).  

I gave up going into boutiques or 'normal' women's fashion stores YEARS ago - apart from the obvious where I couldn't find anything to fit, and would always leave depressed and broken... bulk of the time, I'd simply never get served!  They simply wouldn't acknowledge me!   So today's little mission into four boutiques, one after the other, and each one of them a resounding success - I AM JULIA ROBERTS!!!!!!   WIN TWO!!!!

Oh but wait...  I haven't even got to the good stuff yet.... !!!!

SO feeling rather elated at this point in time, I head off into ANOTHER women's boutique - and I've found IT!  The first two, the sizes were still really small "things to aim for"...  The next was regular but not my age group - "things to age into"  (haha)....   but then I found IT!

I walked into Crossroads - ohhhh it was "just right"....  Sizes 8-22. In the past, I'd have avoided this shop too, I still didn't fit into anything in there...    SO, pulling the gorgeous things off the rack, I'm spying them with a great big question mark hovering over my head.  Do I dare.... ?!   I don't really want to get myself upset here, after all, I really only intended on walking into the supermarket this afternoon... !!!

WHO DARES WINS!!!   I pulled a skirt, a trenchcoat and a top off the rack, and headed for the changerooms...  (another old NO-NO - absolutely LOATHED having to go try on clothes, refused to do it, would buy things in the hope they'd just fit)....  Given that these days I don't actually know what size I am, was kind of a necessity!  It's one thing to buy "cheap" at Kmart and then just grin and bear the fitting, it's a whole other thing going into a boutique retail shop!

WIN, WIN, WIN!!!!   Everything fit - everything!!!   I was wearing a standard size 18 trenchcoat, a size 22 small fitted skirt (non-stretch!!!), and the shirt was TOO BIG!    In utter disbelief, I head out for another round, and find myself in Medium tshirts and then I spotted the denim skirts....    I LOVE denim skirts - I live in them.  They've been my staple for YEARS - it's what I'm comfortable in.   As I've shrunk, I've progressively dropped in denim skirt sizes too - I have quite the collection now!!!

Happy happy happy!!

So the one I was wearing - it was a "miracle" fit when I found it on the rack at home on the weekend (put aside for "later"), this one I couldn't fit into a few months ago, and here it was barely sitting on my hips!  A brand label, size 20.   I picked up a new 20 in the shop...  tried it on.  Perfect fit, with room to move...   Dare I test it again?!    YES!!!!  

SIZE 18!!!!    I'm wearing a fitted size 18!!!!     Oh my gosh, I nearly let out a shout of joy, and had to contain myself behind the curtain when I was wearing a brand new size 18 denim skirt and a totally hot size M top!!!    Who the hell was the girl staring back at me in the mirror?!!!    She looked like she was about to have a seizure of some sort - the insanity look on her face was priceless!!! 

Trying not to cry - from freaking over-zealous JOY - I take my finds up to the counter.... and strike up ANOTHER conversation!    "You have some seriously gorgeous stuff in here!!"  (says me, with far too much enthusiasm, hahaha)...  "Ohhh yes, I spend way too much money on the clothes in here - we get a great discount for staff, but it's SO hard not to spend all my wage on clothes!!!"...  "I used to work in a shoe shop, I feel your pain!"   "OH, so glad someone else understands!"  (insert laughter here!).   SUCCESS!!!!!

Happy dance, happy dance, happy dance!!!   Shoes, skirt, top - NEW OUTFIT!!  WIN!!!

So off I pretty much sprint to the supermarket - total crazy joy right about now...   Barramundi fillets at $12.99 a kilo - another WIN!!   (laughing at my necessity to tell you that...)...  BUT it was yet ANOTHER conversation point - the lovely older lady at the counter says hello, and I flash that smile and ask her to wrap me up two fillets, individually please...   I say "my gosh that's great pricing, can I be a real pain and get you to wrap up another one for me!"...  she laughs and says "you sure you don't want the other one aswell?!"... "YES!"...   (insert more laughter here!)...   Super chuffed with my fishy purchase, I whip around the rest of the supermarket, smiling at anyone who even dares make eyecontact with this lunatic right about now....   SUCCESS SUCCESS SUCCESS!!!

Get to the check out - engage conversation with the teenager serving...  She starts off with a "how's your day been.."  "GREAT THANK YOU!"  (yes, I really WAS that insanely upbeat at that point in time - definitely calls for caps lock, hehehe!)  - and then hits me with her next question "how's the weather outside?"... and I reply that it's quite nice out there, and we further discuss weather and how winter isn't too far away, etc etc....    THEN I SPY THIS stuck to the register!!!

Talk about having to refrain myself from falling on the floor in a fit of laughter!!!!   SO SO SO funny - here I was trying out my best "talk tactics" with "all walks of life"....  and here she was with a sign in front of her with the starters!!!!!    I found this HILARIOUS, and asked her if I could take a photo - explaining that I was doing a challenge that revolved around social skills!    She just gave me a bit of a blank look, thought I was nuts (I mean really... who wouldn't at this point?!)..... so I paid up, and ran away, hahahaha!!!

On such an UBER HIGH right now...  I was SO sure I was going to fail miserably at this challenge - it's one of the hardest things for me to do, initiate conversations and talk so easily to people.  Definitely OUT of my comfort zone....  but I definitely don't give myself enough credit!   Now, technically all these wins today came about when I pulled out the purse and they're "supposed" to be so nice to you - but I think I've passed today's challenge with a resounding DING DING DING success, even if I do say so myself!!!

.....  Oh, and my other mini-moment.... realising I actually spent all that time going from shop to shop in the Centre: browsing, buying, talking, smiling... and NOT wanting to vomit from mild-anxiety.   I usually avoid them cuz I can't handle the crowds, always look at the floor, and quite often feel dizzy and ill because of it all...  That's a HUGE first for me to do all this with such JOY!!    WIN WIN WIN WIN WIN WIN WIN!!!!!    So very proud of myself right now!   

... as for my barramundi dinner... delicious!!    So overly excited, I've given myself a headache... hahaha!

Au revoir!!!   xxx