Forget the Digital Divide, The Digital Bulldozer is coming

May 6, 2013 in Celebrity, Current Affairs, Entertainment, Music, News, Politics, Technology

I am worried about radio in the country. Not the WHOLE country, mind you, just the parts of it politicians don’t visit unless something is wet, burnt or wind blown, i.e. “the country”. What worries me is digital radio. In cities digital radio may be a wonderful thing, more choices, better quality, I hear you may even be able to pause a live broadcast. Wonderful things. What I am worried about is the thing that radio was meant to be for – getting across information. A few years ago, a lot of “regional” stations were bought up by radio networks. [...]

Why Are There No Boys Named Sue?

April 26, 2013 in Body Image, Celebrity, Children, Entertainment, Gender, Parenting, Pregnancy & Birth, Society

In the last few years it’s become acceptable and even cool to give kids gender neutral names. That’s hardly news. However with this trend, I’m seeing a lot of girls with traditionally ‘male’ names, and very few boys with traditionally ‘female’ names. As a teacher I’ve seen some pretty out there names and interpretations of names. Calling the roll for the first time with a new class can be tricky: Me: “Elliot? Is Elliot here? Has anyone seen him?” Student: “ Um, Elliot is a GIRL, Miss!” (Rolls eyes at my apparent stupidity) Me: “Oh. Has anyone seen HER?” I’ve [...]

This Week: Heart Health, Anniversary & New Jeans

April 20, 2013 in Anecdotes, Comedy, Fashion, Food & Recipes, Health, Humour, Marriage, Nutrition, Stories, Style, Wedding

This week has been, and will continue to be, a busy one. After pulling on my jeans last Thursday morning only to discover they were ripped right in the crotch (stylish, no?) I began my search for the ‘right’ jeans. I had pretty specific ideas of what I wanted in this pair of jeans. They had to be tight, stretchy enough that I could move comfortably, long enough to scrunch a little at the ankle, dark blue in colour, super skinny and high waisted. Not a long list of requirements at all! It took 3 different shopping trips with the [...]

In Defence Of Kim Kardashian

April 17, 2013 in Body Image, Celebrity, Entertainment, Pregnancy & Birth

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged about entertainment and celebrities and I know you’re all probably wondering what gives. I’ve decided to step back from the gossip cycle as it is vicious and really, these people, while famous, are just people. But I could not stand back and say nothing about this. I have kept my mouth shut for a while but I can’t anymore. What has brought me out of my celebrity silence? I want people to leave Kim Kardashian alone. Given that she’s made a name for herself by having a reality television show which offers a window into [...]

Young, Famous, Rich…and Happy?

April 16, 2013 in Body Image, Celebrity, Entertainment, Film & TV, Gender, Health, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Music, Work

As a little girl I wanted to be famous. I wanted to be a singer, a rock star. I’d have loads of cash, I’d help out those I loved, it would be glamorous and life would be easy. It turns out the path to achieving fame and success at a young age seems to have a nasty aftertaste. The teenage years are awkward for everyone. I’d hate to have mine played out in the public eye, being scrutinized and torn apart by the media and lurking paparazzi. Maybe that’s what has sent so many young ‘starlets’ over the edge. Possibly [...]

My Mother, Margaret Thatcher and Me

April 11, 2013 in Celebrity, Current Affairs, Human Rights, News, Politics

My mother has this irritating habit of always seeing the good in people. I suppose it’s an admirable quality too – but sometimes I want to have a rant about some in-justice without having to see it from a different (and empathetic) perspective. There are a two exceptions to this… the ex-boyfriend who cheated on me and Margaret Thatcher. I won’t pretend to understand all the politics of the time. My family enjoyed a relatively comfortable lifestyle; we had overseas holidays, two cars. We didn’t experience financial suffering the way thousands of others in our country did. Perhaps it was my mother’s [...]

Video: Dove’s Sneaky Action Against Photoshop

March 27, 2013 in Body, Body Image, Celebrity, Entertainment, Fashion, Health, Style, Technology

As part of the Dove “Real Beauty” campaign, they devised a clever way to sneak the message directly into the hands of those who can change our retouching culture. In case you can’t watch the video, Dove used a popular Photoshop plugin site to put up their free “Beautify” plugin that appeared to make the model’s skin glow. Instead what it did was undo all the photoshopping done to revert the image to the original and add the message “Don’t manipulate our image of real beauty”. What do you think of this campaign?

My Body, My Choice. Our Community, Our Choice.

March 11, 2013 in Celebrity, Current Affairs, Health, Lifestyle

Since the onset of social media, and especially from the advent of blogging, I have learnt many new things. My outlook on life has been changed in many ways, some subtle, some not so.  I’ve discovered new ways of seeing the world and have been exposed to new ideas. One of those ideas being My Body, My Choice. I totally get it now. Eat what you want, smoke what you want, drink what you want, dress how you want, man-scape how you want, tattoo what you want, pierce what you want, botox what you want. There would have been a time when I [...]

My Favourite Podcasts

February 21, 2013 in Books, Celebrity, Entertainment, Film & TV, Stories, Technology

When travelling on public transport now it’s common to see more people with headphones than without. While I’m sure most are listening to their favourite tunes, I suspect a few, like me, would be indulging in podcasts. For those who are not familiar, a podcast is generally a series audio or video files you subscribe to and can download to a mobile phone, tablet, iPod or computer. You can find a podcast on almost topic and many TV and radio programs now release their show as a podcast. Since discovering them I have become addicted. I probably listen to podcasts [...]

Why Matthew Johns is an Alpha Male – and Shouldn’t Be

February 15, 2013 in Celebrity, Current Affairs, Film & TV, News, People, Sex, Society, Sport

“Man up, Sydney!” So a billboard advertisement for Triple M’s The Grill Team admonishes, glaring down from atop the Pacific Highway, Roseville at us pathetic, feminine Sydney motorists. I must confess I’ve never quite understood the phrase ‘man up’. Particularly after watching my pregnant boss carry around an energy-sapping bowling ball in her stomach for the last nine months and deal with the unique hell that is working in retail over Christmas, I can’t perceive how there is anything quite so tough as a woman. And that’s to say nothing of how the bowling ball is expelled into the world. Confusion [...]