Blog Entries http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au Fri, 18 May 2012 14:46:26 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Review-of-Alvin-Aileys-American-Dance-Theater.html Held: March 23, 2012, University of Arizona Centennial Hall, 8 pm<p>Yesterday's performance by Alvin Ailey's American Dance Theater was a mixed metaphor for me, at times soaring to the heights of dance perfection and at other times leaving me wondering if I was really witnessing a world-renowned troupe. While I have echoes of Ratatouille echoing in my mind with the underlying message: &lsquo;those who cannot dance ... review', one performer in particular made me want to rush onto the stage to as [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Sat, 24 Mar 2012 00:00:00 +0100 University of Arizona Tucson dance contemporary dance Arizona Arizona Alvin Ailey's American Dance Theater http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Black-History-Month.html <p>There's nothing like Black History month to remind me how little I know about my people and heritage, but this month, I'm determined to learn more!</p><p>Here's a titbit I discovered in Jet:</p><p>The first African-American writer to publish a novel, Clotel, was William Wells Brown. The year was 1853.</p> renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Wed, 22 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0100 William Wells Brown publishing Clotel Black history month African-American 1853 http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Shoeboxes-of-Love.html <p>Every now and again, you find an organisation with heart and I definitely did that with Shoeboxes of Love Inc.</p><p>They are assisting victims of the floods in NSW and Queensland and they need our help. Shoeboxes of Love will be collecting shoeboxes until the close of business day on Friday, 17 February 2012. </p><p>For more information, visit them on Facebook. </p><p>Please click here to download the PDF and spread it to your networks.</p><p><img src="http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/ima [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Sat, 11 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0100 http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Letter-to-John.html I want to share with you a story that pinpoints exactly why I'm so passionate about creating tons of people (a million millionaires) who have a surfeit of money so they can help others. My vehicle is ACN.<br /><p>We were on the way to a style consultation/style modelling session when we saw a young boy cleaning the windows on the car next to us at a traffic light. With a big smile, he came over to us to ask to clean ours. We got to talking and it turns out that he's 13 years old and homeless.</p [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Thu, 11 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0100 hope homeless ACN a million millionaires http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Spam-I-Am-142.html <p>I suppose I should be grateful that spammers don't seem to be that keen to proofread their work, but I still find it insulting.</p><p>Take a look at this and see if you can spot the typos:</p><p><img src="http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/images/spam-i-am.jpg" alt="Spam I Am" title="Spam I Am" width="683" height="556" /></p><p>I stopped counting at thirty-five (35!) typos, not counting the fact that it doesn't use Australian spelling.</p><p>It really just puzzles me why these people bother. [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Mon, 18 Oct 2010 00:00:00 +0100 typos spelling spam Australian http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Creativity.html <p>One of my awesome clients (Thanks, Tina!) sent along this quote that inspired her. I love it!</p><p>Creativity is not something you wait for. <br />It is something that waits for you.<br /> <br />You must decide to be creative, not wait to be.<br />You must challenge yourself. </p><p>Pick up the brush. Grab hold of the camera. Turn on the computer. Start cooking the meal. </p><p>Get to the workplace early. <br />Propose the solution. <br />Advance the idea. <br />Become the answer.</p><p>I m [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Sun, 15 Aug 2010 00:00:00 +0100 quotes Neale Donald Walsh inspiration creativity http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Grammar-Super-Heroes.html <p>Who can turn a man into a mane? Who can turn a can into a cane? It's elementary; it's silent e!</p><p> Yep, even letters can be super heroes. *laugh*</p> <p>So, with that childhood song wandering through my mind, you're probably wondering what this post is about, yeah?</p> <p>Well, it's about one of the most common mistakes that lots (and lots and lots) of people make (yep, probably even me upon occasion).</p><p>The rules that will help you come down to possession and contractions, and no, [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Mon, 12 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0100 possessives its grammar errors English contractions apostrophe http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Confessions-of-a-Pack-Rat.html <p>So, first off, I am not a professional organiser, but I am a pack rat who is working on decluttering. I don't know if most professional organisers start out with a clutter problem to overcome, but I don't think I'd trust any that didn't for the same reason that I couldn't connect with a personal trainer or nutritionist that hadn't personally struggled with weight loss. Now, I know some people will say, &lsquo;You don't have to have had a brain tumour to be a brain surgeon' and that's prob [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Sun, 11 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0100 tips tidying sorting pack rats organisers clutter http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Impressed-with-WordPress.html <p>First of all, can I just say that I feel especially proud of my first WordPress CMS foray? Oh good!</p><p>For a while now, a friend and client, Violeta Edge, has been asking me to create a &lsquo;site she can change herself'. Now, I have to admit to a couple of control issue problems so I did take a little coaxing, but at the end of the day, what a client wants, a client gets (within reason and within moral codes! *smile*).</p><p>So ... I backed up the lovingly and painstakingly created [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Sun, 27 Jun 2010 00:00:00 +0100 WordPress posts plugins pages Open Source Joomla DIY website content management system CMS blogs http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Sipping-Sweet-Tea-and-Memories.html <p>&nbsp;<img src="/images/stories/sun-tea-small.jpg" alt="" width="354" height="694" align="right" />I'm drinking tea, but not the sort you'd guess, and listening to Sweet Tea by Datri Bean from her album Slow Down Summertime.</p><p>Having had the pleasure of not only seeing her in an intimate concert in Austin last month, I also got a chance to sit and have a chat with her later, under the stars, at her partner's birthday party. She's a lovely lady ... with so much talent.</p><p>This is probab [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Sat, 29 May 2010 00:00:00 +0100 sweet tea sun tea summer Southern Slow Down Summertime recipes nostalgia memories Datri Bean Arizona http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Dont-be-spineless.html <p>My title applies to life in general, but more specifically to designing book spines.</p><p>We all know the old saying, &lsquo;Don't judge a book by its cover', but we literally do that with books (and probably with people too). Basically, unless you're a known figure, it's challenging to get your book into a bookstore as it is so you will probably not have the luxury of having a huge display with your books on it, facing outwards and languishing on silk with a fresh vase of flowers next to th [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Thu, 27 May 2010 00:00:00 +0100 tips spines self-publishing books book design http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Fast-Fajitas.html As I sit here at 4.02 am in Melbourne, after preparing for a meeting I have in ... about six and a half hours, I've realised that I'm really hankering for some Mexican food. I've heard of a few places that I need to check out, but in the meantime, I know that I can make some pretty good interpretations of the food I had the pleasure of growing up with in Tucson, Arizona.<p>I decided to share one of my favourites: fajitas! This recipe will be a hit with your family as it's fast, yummy and a great [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Thu, 27 May 2010 00:00:00 +0100 Mexican family Fajitas dinner cooking http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Fontastic.html <p>Let's talk a bit about fonts since I'm working on another book design and ... also, I love talking about fonts!</p><p>If you ever decide to self-publish, you will have at least some say in the font of the book. It is what your reader will stare at for the entire time so remember that it has to be above all readable. Secondly, it should suit the tone and voice of your book.</p><p>If it's a serious topic, forget about those 'groovy' fonts we all tend to love. While serif (it has the little 'fee [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100 tips self-publishing fonts design book design http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Veggie-and-brown-lentil-curry.html <p><img src="http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/images/various-images/lentil-curry.jpg" border="1" alt="Veggie and brown lentil curry" title="Veggie and brown lentil curry" hspace="0" vspace="0" width="350" height="335" /> </p><p>Please note that the ingredient quantities have been &lsquo;fudged', especially in the spices department, as I rarely measure. Just be creative!</p><p>Ingredients</p>3 roughly chopped potatoes2 carrots cut into rounds1/2 cup diced sweet potatoes1 cup sliced green beans [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100 Veggie and brown lentil curry vegetarian recipe lentils http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Passages-from-my-favourite-books.html <p>from The Hobbit (which is quite possibly my favourite book) by the inestimable JRR Tolkien, p 1</p><p>In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor&nbsp; yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit hole, and that means comfort. </p><p>Parenting Advice from Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett, pp 92/93 </p><p>&nbsp;Nanny Ogg never used her washhouse, since all her washing [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100 Wyrd Sisters The Hobbit Terry Pratchett Relationship Advice Parenting Advice Nanny Ogg JRR Tolkien http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Things-I-learned-from-a-power-outage.html Always ...<br />have a pen and paper handy.keep your iPod charged.keep a light source handy: candles, flashlights and people who fill you with joy ... Oh and while we're at it, open those candles you've been saving for a &lsquo;rainy day'.<p>This reminds me of what Erma Bombeck wrote when she found out she had a fatal disease.</p><p>If I Had My Life To Live Over<br />by Erma Bombeck</p><p>If I had my life to live over, I would have talked less and listened more.</p><p>I would have invited friend [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100 lessons Erma Bombeck affirmations http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Chiron-the-Healing-Sign.html <p>I was really inspired by reading a Twitter post today by the lovely @jadecraven. In her guest blog post, she opened her &lsquo;wound'/soul to the world and I have to say I've rarely been as impressed as I was by her absolute bravery to share her struggle with depression and anxiety.</p><p>Her amazing story reminded me of Chiron in astrological terms. It's basically a wounded part of your psyche that you have to heal not only to lead a fully, happy life, but it also gives you the opportunity t [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Mon, 19 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100 The Wounded Healer The Healing Sign Ms Rising Star healing Chiron astrology readings astrology http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/What-kind-of-cook-are-you-.html <p>I was just in the kitchen 'making' (and I use the term loosely as I'm suffering from the flu) some soup by opening a can of Campbell's chicken noodle soup and adding black pepper and parsley to it. I dunno if it's my fevered state or divine inspiration, but I started thinking about what kinds of cooks there are.</p><p>What do I mean? </p><p>Well, canned soup aside, I consider myself to be a creative cook. Even if I'm having Maggi noodles (which I don't do often, mind you), I cannot rest with [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Sun, 18 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100 http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Real-poets.html <p>I doubt if I'll ever claim to be a poet, for that would be mere puffery since the passion to write does not wholly consume me. With that said, I find that when I'm reviewing poetry, I do read aloud so I wonder if 'real' poets do so as a matter of course.</p><p>For me, hearing the words helps me to follow the reason, the rhyme and the metre. When your voice falters, there is usually something there, a misstep, akin to a loose tooth when you bite into an apple. When this ... pause ... occurs, [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Sat, 17 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100 storytelling poets poetry music http://www.risingstardesigns.com.au/blog/Not-so-impartial-definitions.html <p>Now, first of all, I'm not picking on the Macquarie Dictionary per se, but the definition I just read for astrology both made me smile bemusedly and then laugh.</p><p>Here goes:</p><p>astrology<br />astrologer, astrologist, noun. astrological /astruh'lojikuhl/, astrologic, adjective. astrologically, adverb.<br /> /uhs'troluhjee/.<br /> noun<br /> 1. a study which assumes, and professes to interpret, the influence of the heavenly bodies on human affairs.<br /> 2. Obsolete astro [...] renee@risingstardesigns.com.au Thu, 15 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100