Are You Having A Laugh?

Are you having a laugh?

Come on admit it: there is nothing like a good belly laugh or laughing until there are tears streaming from your eyes and you can hardly breathe. In fact laughing hysterically is one of my favourite things and I indulge in it regularly. That is why I returned to writing children’s books because I can step into a world of wonder, where the most ridiculous scenarios have me shaking with laughter or force me to take a stroll around the room to get myself back in order. The thing is laughter is infectious. It lifts our energy and even on a cell level contributes to our health. So why aren’t we laughing more? Or laughing as much as possible?

There was a time when I was working for a large corporation and the head of the department, who appeared as though he had a smell under his nose, passed by while I was shaking with laughter. He paused by my desk and asked whether I was actually laughing. I replied that I was. He seemed bemused, as if he had not witnessed laughter in a long time.  Later that day I was called into an office and advised by my manger that I was to limit my conversation to ‘Good Morning and Good Night’ and certainly no laughter shenanigans. I asked him whether he realised that a happy team was a highly productive team. He avoided answering. I also questioned him - I said since people spend a huge amount of time at work – did they expect them to be robots? His response was ‘yes they wanted robots.’ They wanted the ‘robots’ to produce. Needless to say, I handed in my resignation. Within three months ninety percent of team left because the atmosphere had died and people did not want to spend their days doing a mundane job in misery. The remaining ten percent happened to be one person – the manager.

 

As the complete opposite to the above, my great friend is a laughter therapist and laughter yoga teacher. She uses laughter to break down internal barriers. She has developed quite a reputation and recently was asked to hold a speech for the police. So guess what she did? She got a huge hall of police people to laugh like the laughing policeman until everyone was shaking with laughter. The atmosphere in the room was so energised that everything she said was inspired. The room was united in laughter and each and every police officer who attended that talk left with such a positive experience that they would attend again.  The thing is laughter unites people and makes them more open. Don’t you gravitate to the person who is filled with laughter instead of the one who stands like a black-hole filled with doom?

With all the above in mind, I have taken some time out from writing my intensively researched books to having a bit of fun with some children’s books. Some of my colleagues at work asked me to put something together that would appeal to their children. So I came up with The Hairy-Legged Mystery, which went on sale last week, was snapped up for audio this week and the production is already complete and should be released next week. The same thing happened with Tingle Dingle and The Little Mischiefs. Both of these books were written for personal entertainment and friends and were not expected to be put out into the wider market. Instead I wrote them with the intention to create something that made me laugh out loud at the desk and would be fun for my friends to read to their children. I admit, I do do some rather bizarre things and crying at the desk could be considered one of them. The way that I see it is that I write for sheer enjoyment and creativity - that enjoyment involves belly laughter, general tears of laughter at the desk and titles like a ‘cucumber catastrophy.’

What I have realised through creating these books is that laughter is precious. Laughter lifts our spirits and illuminates our souls. The question ‘are you having a laugh?’ made me consider how can I bring more laughter to the world. There is so much doom and gloom around and endless fear being perpetuated that I came to the conclusion we need more laughter. Obviously the answer is not pointing at people and laughing because that would be unfair. This one thought actually was the catalyst for the current children’s book I am writing. I am not going to give details because it is not complete yet.  It does involved giggling, laughter and a baddy who is truly miserable. The thing is the world needs more laughter and unites people positively through laughter. So my question is not only are you have a laugh but how do we encourage more laughter to lift our energy? If you have any answers that would be wonderful!!! This is the reason I released Tingle Dingle and The Little Mischiefs along with The Hairy-Legged Mystery because it is my way of sharing the laughter.

Ruby Allure BOOKS ON AMAZON.COM - https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_ebooks_1?ie=UTF8&text=Ruby+Allure&search-alias=digital-text&field-author=Ruby+Allure&sort=relevancerank

Ruby Allure BOOKS ON AUDIBLE.COM
http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_mn_mt_ano_tseft__galileo?advsearchKeywords=Ruby+Allure&x=0&y=0 

NEW RELEASE: TINGLE DINGLE AND THE LITTLE MISCHIEFS

 https://www.amazon.com/Tingle-Dingle-Little-Mischiefs-Allure-ebook/dp/B01G9C0XC2?ie=UTF8&keywords=Ruby%20Allure&qid=1465049617&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1

NEW RELEASE: THE HAIRY-LEGGED MYSTERY

https://www.amazon.com/Hairy-Legged-Mystery-Ruby-Allure-ebook/dp/B01G2C0Y9Q?ie=UTF8&qid=1465049724&ref_=sr_1_2&s=digital-text&sr=1-2

The Grass isn't always Greener on the Other Side!

The grass isn’t always greener on the other side!

If the grass looks greener on the other side then start tending to your own grass until it is vibrant and filled with radiance!  Why are you looking at other people's grass anyway when your attention could be focused on making yours amazing!

This week has been quite a week for me. Two children’s books released and snapped up by audio producers, a return to work after being signed off with Deep Vein Thrombosis and being able to see the world with a new perspective. It is funny how when you are immersed in routine that you live on automatic pilot. How often do you stop to take in your surroundings? How often do you stop and say actually I am living the perfect life for me? I would guess that it isn’t that often. Don’t you find it amazing that all your choices and decisions in life have resulted in where you are now? Those decisions must have been made because you felt your situation would improve… Am I correct? So why do people look at other people’s lives and wish they were them? Or wish they had their life? Why do we assume that life is greener on the other side?

A good example of the grass being greener was when I was at a rowing championship. I was staying in a cottage with a group of mothers (who were there for their children). They said to me they wished they could live my life: a life of freedom, creativity and working in business. I had never considered that people would look at my lifestyle from the outside and consider my grass was greener. I pointed out that in my opinion they had it pretty good. They all had wonderful husbands who provided for them and they had a family, lovely homes and all they needed. They had not had to work up a corporate ladder or find ways to enable numerous incomes. Instead they had had the opportunity to focus on nurture, bringing life into the world and they had the opportunity to do that in comfort rather than struggle. I had struggled, seriously struggled and there were times where I would have gladly been saved by an opportune prince. Unfortunately there was no prince making that showy arrival, so instead I realised my life was my responsibility and rather than waste time admiring people’s grass and wishing it was mine, I thought well how do I make my grass the greenest it can be? Since each person’s life is their responsibility and their grass state is representational of their life, then tending to one’s own grass is the best thing a person can do.

At this point I would like you to ask how you make your grass as green as it can be?  The thing is it isn’t just about having more or earning more money, it can quite simply be a shift of mental perspective. Just think that there are people out there who aspire to have the life you have. I know… It is a strange thought. The way I see it is if you have access to the internet and have the opportunity to read this blog then you are rich. You have the capacity to purchase the technology to be able to access the world. You have the funds to buy the tools. You are not sitting in a hovel digging through shit.

Through doing this evaluation, I realised that my life was good and worked perfectly for me. As much as those images of people living in huge luxurious mansions bombard us, I realised that actually I would feel very lonely residing in such a huge space. I would be like a pea rattling around a warehouse. My little apartment is perfect for me. It is peaceful, cosy and filled with an air of femininity. In truth it is beautiful, has turrets and is minimalist. So you might wave a mansion at me and I would smile and know that in terms of where I live my grass is very green.

 

It was a few years ago now that I saw through the big illusion. That illusion is fascinating – we are fed images of ideals in films and adverts. They are not real. We are shown images of the ideal bodies, yet we are all different. So why not love the body you have and treat it well? Don’t starve it, treat it to great nutrition and it is worth shifting perspective to consider food as medicine and building blocks for the body.  Find an exercise you love so that your body radiates with health. Blood moving around the body stops it stagnating. Finally money – we all chase money to be rich because everyone else wants to be rich. Yes money is a decorated piece of paper to accumulate but what if all that effort to accumulate results in devaluation? It happened to Cyprus and Iceland. So with that in mind, you can realise that actually what you want is the feeling of being rich and that comes from appreciating what you have. It is so simple.

The moment I realised I was rich was quite out of the blue. I stood on my paddleboard on a beautiful expanse of water. It was close to sunset and the clouds were decorated with pink and the reflection made heaven and earth one. I stood there in that moment and thought I couldn’t pay for this. This endless chase for money is ridiculous because it is continuous. When will you ever have enough? You know the answer to that... For me - beauty and true wealth comes from being immersed in the experience.

That moment on the paddleboard was when I realised I had stopped to smell the roses and seen the beauty in life. That beauty had not cost a thing – it was nature working its daily miracles. What was it that made me rich? It was the recognition and the feeling of a great connection with the planet. A feeling of great wealth rose up inside me. I series of pictures connected, as if there was a thread throughout my life. I saw the sequence of great moments of inspiration. It was then that I realised that my grass was as green as I wished to make it. I just needed to focus on the feeling of being wealthy with what I have because I have access to that whenever I wish. I also realised that the grass is not necessarily greener on the other side. Instead it is far better to focus on my own grass, tend to my own grass and then take it with me in the form of radiant turf!

I hope this inspires

Ruby Allure BOOKS ON AMAZON.COM - https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_ebooks_1?ie=UTF8&text=Ruby+Allure&search-alias=digital-text&field-author=Ruby+Allure&sort=relevancerank

Ruby Allure BOOKS ON AUDIBLE.COM
http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_mn_mt_ano_tseft__galileo?advsearchKeywords=Ruby+Allure&x=0&y=0 

NEW RELEASE: TINGLE DINGLE AND THE LITTLE MISCHIEFS

 https://www.amazon.com/Tingle-Dingle-Little-Mischiefs-Allure-ebook/dp/B01G9C0XC2?ie=UTF8&keywords=Ruby%20Allure&qid=1465049617&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1

NEW RELEASE: THE HAIRY-LEGGED MYSTERY

https://www.amazon.com/Hairy-Legged-Mystery-Ruby-Allure-ebook/dp/B01G2C0Y9Q?ie=UTF8&qid=1465049724&ref_=sr_1_2&s=digital-text&sr=1-2

Synchronicity... Life Really Is Fascinating...

Have you ever had one of those moments where you literally step into the 'flow' of life? Where the strangest things happen in perfect timing. You say something and then a few seconds later what you have said appears before your eyes? The long weekend has been like that for me. A couple of my friends were literally astounded. I was walking along with two friends talking about Glasgow in Scotland, that is 456 miles from where I live. A second later a Glasweigen chap walked past and started playing the guitar as he walked backwards. He sang about being a Glasweigen, took a bow and then toddled off. There were no other people around my friends and I at the time. We could not believe it and laughed so hard because it was so surreal.

Well the weekend continued in this manner: I mentioned to my brother that I wondered whether my bestfriend was back from holiday and a second later she text. He just looked bemused because I had just mention the synchronicity conversation too. I also have a chap at work who I have a laugh with. We think we are living in the Truman show. He works in a different department and basically no matter what time I decide to go for a break or lunch I will physically collide with him. We find it bizarre and hilarious. We have decided we have psychic bladders. Well I was telling my two friends about this situation and one of them said well next you will see him out of work... After I left my friends I was on the way back to my car and stopped off at a coffee shop. As I left the coffee shop - yes you guessed it - I collided with him. We could not believe it and found it astounding. I said I am going to have to check behind me all the time from now on.






Of course these situations got me thinking because a lot of years ago I wrote a book (Labyrinthine) about synchronicity and timings. An androgenous being called a 'Connector' linked timings for people's lives and their fate. Unfortunately people started using their will to defy death, which caused tremors in the field. Those death defying people created numerous repercussions for other people's lives. This book came out on audio this year and one reviewer gave it a 1 star rating which did not do much for sales, as you can imagine.  After that I accepted that maybe people were not into synchronicity and that synchronicity itself did not want the world to read about it. I accepted defeat, did not take it personally and carried on writing my next books. Over the last year I did not think that much about synchronicity. Instead I had been heavily involved in work and 'making' things happen with my books. I was 'forcing' and 'willing'. I don't know about you but I am impatient and want everything now. This whole allowing things to unfold actually bored me... I know - naughty. I just don't see the point of waiting around for things to take place. Instead I prefer to go out there and get them.

HERE IS THE LINK TO LABYRINTHINE ON AUDIO. If you want to read a really rubbish review then please enjoy it: http://www.audible.com/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/Labyrinthine-Audiobook/B011MZKFF6/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1459194665&sr=1-1#publisher-summary  

 

The above all ties in with a conversation I had with one of my friends on Friday. She is quite wafty and very 'connected' to life. She is amazing at creating things without even trying. She said to me that I was constantly planting seeds and digging them back up to see if they were growing. Admittedly she is right. She said it is time to just leave the seeds to germinate and allow life to show you when you are in the flow.... And guess what? This weekend was filled with all the lovely things that she talked about. However, the question arises then if these things just come to you - then why do you need to do anything?

If you have any answers I will be interested to hear your perspective:)

You can find my books at the following link: Ruby Allure books on Audible:

http://www.audible.com/search/ref=a_hp_tseft?advsearchKeywords=Ruby+allure&filterby=field-keywords&x=0&y=0

AUDIBLE BOOK AVAILABLE HERE:

LINK TO BUY ON AUDIBLE:

http://www.audible.com/pd/Self-Development/A-Short-Course-In-Creative-Writing-Audiobook/B012OVUKE8/ref=a_search_c4_1_1_srTtl?qid=1443260320&sr=1-1

LINK TO PAPERBACK ON AMAZON.COM

A Short Course in Creative Writing
by Ms Ruby Allure
Link: http://amzn.com/1517234832

THE LINK TO THE OCEAN CALLINGS: http://www.audible.com/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/The-Ocean-Callings-Audiobook/B01C4OOOEW/

Labyrinthine Chapters 7-9

Labyrinthine

TO LISTEN ON AUDIBLE: http://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/Labyrinthine-Audiobook/B011N0QVN0/ref=a_search_c4_1_3_srTtl?qid=1445681627&sr=1-3#publisher-summary

 

 

CHAPTER 7 

The answerphone beeped. Olivia listened to the message and glanced at the intruder; it stood with its arms folded shaking its head. “Don’t trust him. His tone reveals he’s a liar.”

Olivia ignored the comment as she grappled to sit upright. “You know what? I don’t get this... What are you doing here? What do you want from me? If it’s money...”

“Why does it always have to be about money? Do I look as though I have the slightest interest in shiny pieces of metal?”

What did that mean? “Then…?”

“As I said... I’m waiting.” The person in black paused and glanced out of the window and back to the hourglass in front of it.

“Are you some kind of weird stalker of ex-child prodigies?” asked Olivia.

“God, no!” The intruder leant against the wall and sighed. “Do you understand the concept of timing?”  

“In relation to what?” asked Olivia glancing at the door.

“Don’t bother thinking about escape. There isn’t time... And the timing is in relation to the universe,” it responded.

What did it mean? How could she get out? She squinted and touched the back of her head. It was still painful. Olivia frowned; the intruder was real, wasn’t it?

 

 

CHAPTER 8

 

The art agent clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. “She’s done it again! How many times do I have to endure this behaviour?”

Richard, the agent, attacked his mobile phone and pressed re-dial.

“She’d better be on her way! Or... or I’ll...” he muttered. Unconsciously he stamped on the black and white patterned marble floor of the gallery. The phone rang.

“This is Olivia, please leave a message,” said the answering machine clicking on.

“Where the bloody hell are you? Get your pathetic arse over here now! I will not take this shit anymore! You will get here and put this exhibition together or we both lose everything!” he yelled. When he was finished, he snapped the phone shut. Smack! It collided with the floor. The agent loosened his collar; beads of sweat caressed his forehead and dribbled down his nose. Clasping his chest, he groaned and swayed.

 

CHAPTER 9

 

Olivia’s instinctive response was to recoil while the verbal darts flew from the answer machine.

The intruder appeared entertained by her response.

Silence.

Smiling, the intruder watched the last few golden grains trickle through the timer.

“That’s it, my timing’s done,” it said calmly. 

“No! What? You held me at gunpoint so my bloody arsehole of an agent could have a go at me? What kind of weirdo are you?” she demanded.

The intruder turned its back on her and shook the hourglass.

“Yep, the timing is perfect. Time to go. We did well. Er… Thank you.”

She flushed red. “Wait! What are you and who are you working for? Why did you do this?” 

With its back to her, the intruder removed its dark glasses. For a moment, it paused and blinked a couple of times.

Olivia recoiled, “What the...?” She dug her fingers into the carpet and jammed her feet into the floor. Her instinct was to escape but all she could manage was to shake her head.

“I work for someone higher. I am known as the Connector and the timing is falling out,” it said casually. “It’s all got a bit chaotic, usually I wouldn’t take such measures…”

“You’re mad!”

The Connector’s thin lips curled. “Believe what you wish.”

Olivia shifted to kneeling. “What on earth are you?” asked Olivia, tears trickling down her cheeks.

The Connector waited, it expected the inevitable.

Urgently, she grabbed her stomach and suppressed a wave of nausea. Goosebumps prickled all over her body.

It glanced back at the hourglass, “I have overstayed my ‘time’ and witnessing my eyes will help you in the future - we will meet again.”

“But I don’t want to meet again!”

“The conscious choice is not yours and it will be a much nicer experience next time. I won’t bring the weapon.”

Olivia hugged herself; the Connector’s eyes were large and clear. They were so beautiful, so turquoise. Yet there was something missing.

The Connector gestured, “By seeing my eyes you will know what you are looking for - what is extra in you and what I am missing. You are now on a search for Retina Blue: it will be the genius behind your work. Think of it as a divine gift.”

It paused and gazed into her eyes, “You are very lucky - if luck exists,” it smirked.

“Retina Blue? What on earth does that mean?” she asked in a dazed tone.

“I said our time is up! The rest is up to you.” The Connector turned towards the window, paused for a second and glanced back.

“Olivia, consider the people you have in your life. A lot of them are arseholes. Time to clear them out! Transformation is coming!” It grinned, waved, ran and then jumped.

Olivia scrambled urgently to standing and sprinted towards the window. Her glance navigated one hundred and eighty degrees. Nothing. It had disappeared... How was that possible?

The space between the ground and the window was empty. There was no evidence and nowhere for it to go. Nothing. The only other visible living entity was a squawking raven perched on a chimney of the apartment block across the street.

“Go to routine Olivia,” she whispered to herself.

 

To listen to Labyrinthine on audible:

http://www.audible.co.uk/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/Labyrinthine-Audiobook/B011N0QVN0/ref=a_search_c4_1_3_srTtl?qid=1445681627&sr=1-3#publisher-summary