'La Vista Da Qui' is Italian for 'The View From Here'.
This blog is intended to be a messageboard for my views and opinions. Feel free to agree or disagree. Enjoy...







Tuesday, November 16, 2010

The Social Network

After arriving home from the movies last night I checked into Facebook on my iPhone. There's nothing unusual about that, it's normal for me to look at Facebook several times a day. Actually, I'll be honest, since getting an iPhone it's more likely that I'll check into Facebook a whole heap of times a day.

What made it a bit different last night was the fact that I was hesitant to log in. I'd just been to see The Social Network and felt like not logging in just to say a big fuck you to Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg.

Zuckerberg, played brilliantly by Jesse Eisenberg, is not portrayed in the most positive light in the film.  A genius outsider, desperate to fit in, Zuckerberg alienates the few people who actually like him in his quest to be 'cool'.

The guy is smart and he knows it, and that's his problem. His intelligence comes with an arrogance. He isn't shy in hiding the fact that he thinks he is above others who aren't as blessed as he in the brain department.

This arrogance makes him so unlikeable. It makes you think, 'why the hell am I using his website and helping to generate billions of dollars for him?'.

But money isn't even it. In the film Zuckerberg isn't motivated by money. His motivation, pure and simple, is having people accept him and appearing cool.

The reason I wanted not to log onto Facebook was so I wouldn't give his arrogance validation. The more popular and successful he and Facebook become, the more he continues treating others like shit. Let's face it, it's worked well for him so far hasn't it?

I guess it's debatable how much of the movie is fact and fiction. As the old quote goes 'Never let the truth get in the way of a good story', and to be honest it hasn't really damaged the Facebook brand has it?

No, because I did log onto Facebook last night. And I have again since then. You see, as much as the film makes you despise Mark Zuckerberg, he has changed the way the world communicates. Facebook gives me the opportunity to stay easily in touch with friends who I may have been unable to. I'm instantly aware of upcoming events of friends. I can track a friend's pregnancy, see pics of family and friends interstate and overseas, and so on.  Facebook gives you so much info that you want to keep using it.

That's where you can see Zuckerberg's genius. He's made it so that people still want to use his product despite them wanting to give him the middle finger and you've got to give the guy credit for that.

Friday, November 12, 2010

Carbs - The Devil In Our Diet?

Australia is getting fatter. Apparently we're even fatter than the Americans these days. So it's not surprising that food and diet is a hot topic of conversation.

Most adults with half a brain know that to eat healthily you just need to follow the food pyramid. Eat lots of fruit, veg and wholegrains, a moderate amount of proteins and dairy and small amounts of fats and sugars.

The food pyramid has been around forever and has always been the accepted basis for healthy eating.

So how did limiting carbohydrates become part of our mainstream diet?

Back in the early Naughties Hollywood was all over an eating plan called The Atkins Diet. Once Hollywood was on board, the rest of the world soon followed.

Created in the 70's by Robert Atkins, the Atkins Diet requires you to restrict your carbohydrate intake so that the body burns fat rather than using energy from carbs.  Sounds great huh? No wonder so many people are on board with this.

The problem is this diet completely contradicts the food pyramid. Carbohydrates are found in fuit, veg and wholegrains - the things we're meant to be eating the most. So I have to ask myself who is wrong, the health authorities of the last 50 years or Mr Atkins, whose diet took 30 years to take off?

The high selling point of a low carb diet is the fact that there is usually a big weight loss in the first few weeks. No wonder personal trainers the world over are spruiking it to their clients.

What they don't tell you is that this inital weight loss is loss of fluid in the body and in the muscle. They also don't mention that by limiting carbohydrates you're actually causing damage to your muscles and at the end of the day, if your muscles are dodgy, you're going to burn calories at a slower rate than you would with strong muscles.  And wouldn't that hinder weight loss in the long run?

It sounds complicated huh? And I haven't even mentioned anything about the nutrients your body won't get or the health problems that low fibre or high protein can cause.

1000 years ago we were eating in a simple fashion and we evolved quite fine. I see people today who won't eat an apple because of the carbohydrate content but happily chow down 3 cans of tuna a day as a snack and we have more health problems than ever before.

Low carb diets just complicate things for us. It complicates the inner workings of our bodies and it confuses our minds. Our diets are meant to be simple, like the humble food pyramid. We need to stop over-analysing everything and realise that everything in moderation can be good for us even (and God forbid) so called 'evil' carbs.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a nutritionist. I don't claim to be the 'know all' of healthy eating. I'm a normal person, struggling to be healthy with all the food choices out there. This post is my opinion based on the information I have found on my search to find balance in my life.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Death of a Rafter. Has Oz Lost the Plot?

It's come to my attention that I must be the only person in Australia who doesn't watch 'Packed to the Rafters'.

The outpouring of grief over Facebook last week over a characters death had me thinking that a real life mutual friend had died.

And apparantly Channel 7 News included the on-screen death as part of their bulletin.

So obviously this is a very popular show. However I was still taken aback by the commotion this caused. It truely was as if a prominent Australian had died tragically.

Now today, just to ramp things up to a new level, News website http://www.news.com.au/ has an article where a top psychologist is handing out a depression warning brought on by the death of the Rafters character.

I had to read the opening paragraph of the article again just to make sure I wasn't going crazy.

Dr Jan Hall is recommending that viewers remind themselves it's only a tv show (really?) and to go out and get some exercise to promote endorphins or watch a soppy DVD to release pent up emotions. (I wonder how long she studied at uni to give out that advice?)

Has Australia gone crazy?

Now I'm the first to admit I have a cry at just about anything even slightly emotional on tv. And no matter how many times I see Buffy send Angel into Hell I still bawl my eyes out every time.

But come on! I know it's only a show! They've got to be kidding themselves right? I don't know anyone who would slip into a depression over the death of a tv character. And to be quite honest, if I did then I'd seriously be worried about their well being!

Surely this article is a joke? Maybe some good PR work by Channel 7? That's the only explanation I have. I mean a show that barely registered on my radar before last week has been thrown into my face just about everyday now. It's gotta be the PR machine.... or Australia really has gone bonkers.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Knock To The Head? Seek Help!

Reading news reports today of the death of 17 year old Cameron Lowe made me shudder.

Cameron was out with some friends when they got into an altercation with some other kids. Cameron was punched in the head and he fell and hit his head on the road. A few hours later he was dead.

About 18 months ago I was woken in the middle of the night to a phone call telling me my boyfriend had been put in hospital due to a head injury.

He was king hit out of nowhere. It came out of the blue, so with no warning to defend himself he fell and hit his head on the road and was knocked unconscious.

Thankfully he was taken to hospital and kept for observation. He received the proper medical care he needed. My story could have been alot different. Cameron was at home, complaining of the pain on his facebook page. He should have been in hospital. If he had been it's more than likely he'd still be alive.

Head injuries are difficult to diagnose but are so serious and need proper immediate attention. Hopefully Cameron's death will not be in vain and will promote awareness for anyone who is in doubt to see a doctor.

I'm grateful everyday that Aaron has no serious lasting injuries but even moreso when I hear stories like this one today.

RIP Cameron

My Biggest Critic

Walking into a big, open room full of women undressing, I quickly scan around to find the quietest, most discreet area where I can try on a pair of jeans and a dress.

I hate this part, I remember from last time. It's not like I'm overly worried about other girls seeing me in my undies, I've done it countless times before,  I'd just be more comfortable in the privacy of my own change room. When there's a door no one can see if you tried to squeeze on a too small item of clothing that you talked yourself into trying just in case.

I walk over to an emptyish corner and put down my things. Shit! Did I wear good undies today? I really should have shaved my legs. Maybe my stomach would be flatter if I had skipped breakfast?

I try to be like Superman. Can I whip of my skirt and put those jeans on faster than a speeding bullet? Probably not, but I'll sure as hell try.

Undies are good and the new jeans are on. They fit like a glove. Now I've gotta do it all again for the dress.

I start to switch clothes and from the middle of the room I hear a young, skinny, pretty thing remark ''Oh, we all just look the same with no clothes on don't we?'' and I stop.

It hits me. Why am I being so silly about trying to get changed so quick? Nobody is looking at me. Nobody is judging me. Everybody is too busy looking at and judging themselves.

It's true. We all have things we don't like about ourselves. Some of us hate our thighs, some our tummies, some a whole bunch of stuff but at the end of the day we all are the same.

Whether we are fat, thin, average, whatever! Stop worrying about what others think because nobody is more critical of us than ourselves.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Oh My Yuck! I Just Ate A Pig!

I'm writing this feeling a little bit sick and a little bit upset. Somehow the place where I got my lunch put bacon on my roast vegie wrap. Do you think I bothered to check before I took a huge bite? Of course not.  I was starving!

I bit into what is my current fave lunch and my first thought was 'Wow, someone's done a real bad job of this today'. As I gulped it down I hoped the next bite would taste as it's usual self does. While I was chewing through the next bite I realised something was wrong, this tasted disgusting. I looked down into the wrap and quicker than you can say Babe the chewed up contents were spilling out of my mouth and onto my desk!

I was horrified, mortified, disgusted! I almost vomited all over my keyboard! I got myself together but haven't felt quite right since. I don't know if it's all in my head or it really is my stomach that's having the bad reaction. I'm guessing (and hoping) that since it was such a small amount I consumed I should be ok.

I haven't eaten red meat of any kind for about 12 years. I never really enjoyed red meat much at all. Eating a big steak wasn't my idea of a great dinner and when I was 14 I made a decision to stop eating it altogether. I can't really remember what my inspiration was but at that age I was becoming aware of how animals were treated in the quest to fill our plates, so part of my decision came down to that although it obviously wasn't the defining factor as I still ate chicken and fish.

Sometime over the next year though I remember seeing a truck on the freeway full of chickens in tiny little cages that made me sad. Not long after there was a newspaper article about the treatment of chickens and I made a 'bet' with someone to see who could go the longest without eating chicken. That person piked out that afternoon. I abstained from chicken for the next 7 years.

I don't know what it was that made me eat a piece of chicken 4 years ago. My body was craving it and I wanted it. I absolutely enjoyed that first piece of chicken and slowly over the next year I included chicken into my diet until it just became something I ate just about everyday.

I've always wondered if it were the same if I ate a piece of red meat. Would I enjoy it? I assumed not because I never really liked it much anyway but now after eating that little bit of bacon today I know for sure that I could never go back to eating it and although I feel sick to the stomach because of it, it is a little comforting to know.

So I'd like to apologise to my future pet pig for eating a little of one of his kind today. It wasn't intentional and I promise it won't happen again. I've learnt my lesson and will remember to check my food before I begin to inhale it like a.... well pig

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Will Your Government Stand Up For You?

Last night I tuned into the ABC to see John Howard be grilled by the Q&A audience. He looked relaxed and confident during Tony Jones' introduction, although I did notice his slight squirm when Tony mentioned the dreaded words Work Choices.  Not surprsing as I would assume this ludicris policy is one of his biggest regrets, and judging by his answers to the questions thrown at him, probably his only regret as he firmly stood by everything he did as PM.

During the program Mr Howard bullshitted the way he did back when he was leader of our country, but I couldn't help but notice that at least he appeared much more confident and less rehearsed in his convictions than Julia Gillard or even Kevin Rudd do today.

The highlight of the show for me came via a video question from fomer Guantanamo Bay resident David Hicks.

Mr Hicks put to Mr Howard

"Hi, I'm David Hicks. When you were Prime Minister you left me in Guantanamo Bay for five and half years. During that time I was detained without charge for a long time, I was denied a fair trial, I was tortured. Do you believe that I was treated humanely and that the Military Commission was a fair system ? Thank you."

The former PM then went into spin mode

"Isn't it a great country that allows this sort of exchange to occur,"  he responded.

He then went on to defend what his government did in relation to David Hicks' situation and went on to remind the viewers that Hicks pleaded guilty to serious charges and the Howard government played a role in brokering a deal to bring him back to Australia to serve the remainder of his sentence. He also reminded us that David Hicks trained with the Taliban and shouldn't be held as a national hero.

This spin that came out of Mr Howard's mouth allowed him to avoid the question 'Do you believe I was treated humanely...?'

The answer to the question I believe should have been 'No'.

Now I don't know anybody who would hold David Hicks up to be a hero. Far from it. The guy was an idiot who trained with the Taliban. I don't know anybody who likes him very much at all.

However, this doesn't excuse the fact that an Australian citizen was detained for 5 years without a trial with no intervention from our government. This doesn't hide the fact that part of the deal to bring him home meant that he had to plead guilty. This doesn't hide the fact that this deal was only brokered when the public pressure was on in an election year! The entire situation was handled in an awful way.

Mr Howard avoided the question at hand, a very important question I believe. All Australian citizens should have the comfort of knowing that their government will help them out in all situations.

While our former PM defends and stands by his actions I hope that future governments, whatever party may be in power, learns from the mistakes of the Howard government in this situation.

Mr Howard was right in saying that it's a great country that allows these exchanges, but shouldn't a great country that allows these freedoms stand up for it's people?

Monday, October 18, 2010

A Saint for Everybody

Last night Australia's first Saint, Mary Mackillop was canonised in Rome. Not being religious this was something that I hadn't paid too much attention to in the weeks leading up. Of course I had noticed the posters up all over North Sydney and the works going on at Gore Hill Cemetery, the site of Mary's original resting place, but the day really didn't have any significance for me until yesterday afternoon.

Walking past the Cemetery, an old man stopped to ask for directions to the entrance. This sweet old man had all his Sunday papers marking the event and he had a Mary Mackillop balloon which he had got from the celebrations at North Sydney at the Mary Mackillop church. While he was talking to us about Mary Mackillop I couldn't get over how happy he was. The joy in his voice as he spoke of our new Saint was so uplifting and made me realise that it didn't matter that I wasn't a catholoic or even religious. Yesterday was a great day for all Australians who just want to be better people and who want to bring happiness to others.

While Mary Mackillop was recognised formally for her miracles, I think the canonisation yesterday can still have meaning for those of us who don't necessarily believe. We can recognise that a woman was selfless in her pursuit to help others and she was a woman who is still bringing joy to people over 100 years after her death.

Regardless of your religious beliefs we should all strive to be just as half as giving as this woman was.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Has Channel V become the new XXX Channel?

God I'm glad I don't have young children. It must must a nightmare trying to shield them from inappropriate music videos that play constantly on Channel V.

I am by no means a prude. I'm quite happy for Beyonce, Gaga, Britney and the like to dance around in bikinis, underwear or even naked. I've got no problem with any of that.

What I dislike is the suggestive sexual simualtion that some of these pop singers have in their videos.

I was shocked when I saw Christina Aguilera's latest video. I had to question if I was watching soft core porn. Sure she's got a little clothing on but all the grinding and dry humping made me want to bring back up my lunch.

The latest one that made think 'What the?' was Katy Perry.

Poor Katy has been in a bit of trouble of late for appearing on Seasame Street wearing a low cut dress. I saw that video and  I couldn't see what the fuss was about. She was covered and let's be honest, the target audience there wasn't really thinking about Katy's boobs.

I do, however see a problem with Katy's new video, "Teenage Dream". The target audience for that song and her video are young girls, pre and post teens who are very impressionable.

In one scene Katy takes a boy up to a bedroom at a party and he proceeds to throw her on the bed and take off her jeans leaving her in her underwear. Cut to the next scene where Katy is sitting on the end of her bed in her underwear. All impying that Katy has just had sex with this guy at the party.

Is that really what we want pre-teen girls to be thinking is the cool thing to do?

I question the thought process of these singers and their managers who very well know that alot of their audience are young impressionable girls. While alot of them go on and say that they don't ask to be role models the fact of the matter is that they are. When you decide you want to be a famous singer, actor or whatever you have to accept responsibility for being a role model to young impressionable people.

I guess with all these pop stars trying to out-do each other with the sexy and shock factor I shouldn't be surprised to see videos become more and more distasteful. I just wonder what it will be like in 10 years when I have a young child I have to try to shield from it.

Friday, October 8, 2010

Lost: Motivation. Have you seen it?

Hello?! Motivation? Where are you?

My motivation levels this week have been at a big fat zero.

A few weeks ago I was absolutely killing it with my exercise regime and today I realised that my run this afternoon was the first bit of exercise I have done in 6 days!

The funny thing is I enjoy exercising. I feel shitty if I don't get in some form of daily energy expenditure. So what's the problem?

I have a feeling that daylight savings has something to do with it. Losing an hour ruins me for at least a week usually. That coupled with the fact that we just had a long weekend, really makes me feel like just chilling out!

It appears that I'm not the only one. A scroll down of my facebook page shows alot of friends are also missing their motivation.

I guess we are at that time of year where we are all busting for a holiday. Although the year has flown by, it seems like my European White Christmas was a million years ago.

Hopefully today's run is a sign that my motivation is slowly making a comeback. I am in desperate need of it to return. I'd be interested In hearing any tips for tracking down my motivation and making it stick around

Friday, October 1, 2010

Broken Man

Last night as I watched Phil Gould interview Manly footballer Brett Stewart and his girlfriend Jamie Baker I had to hold back the tears for a young man who has lost almost 18 months of his life.

Exactly 2 years ago this weekend Stewart was an important part of the Premiership winning Manly team. He was a fantastic league player and was chosen to be the face of rugby league. It looked like Brett Stewart had the world at his feet.

All of that changed just 6 months later when a young girl accused him of sexual assault. He was immediately given a 4 match suspension by the NRL, no questions asked, and his name was in tatters.

For 18 months Stewart, with Baker by his side, had to fight to clear his name. On Wednesday he won that fight but last nights gripping interview on the Footy Show showed that it had not come without a price.

Stewart looked shattered and broken. His voice was timid and his words came out slowly, like he had not one ounce of confidence left in him.

The Brett Stewart case highlights the point that these days, especially if your a man - and a footballer at that, you are more likely to be guilty until proven innocent. Even the NRL didn't ask him for his side of the story and disgustingly, the NRL haven't contacted him to apologise.

The accuser in this case was a young girl that we don't know much about. From what can be released she suffers from a mental illness where her memory isn't in the best shape. From other details released it would appear that her family were the ones that pushed this to trial.

What this girl and her family have done is not only ruin the life of one man and his family, they have also perhaps made it harder for genuine victims of assault to come forward. There will be victims out there who will now think that they may not be believed because of this girl crying wolf.

I assume the motivation of this family was money and to take Stewart for everything, although if reports are true there is nothing left. To clear his name Stewart had to spend his life savings and last nights interview was a paid one to recoup some of his costs. It would be nice if the NRL stepped forward and provided some compensation for unfairly suspending him from his matches.

Next year Stewart will be injury free and his life will start to get back on track. I look forward to seeing him play some of the brilliant football he is known for. However if last nights demeanour is anything to go by he has a long way to go to build up his confidence and trust in people.

Hopefully the public put their full support behind him and help fix the broken man we saw on television.

Thursday, September 30, 2010

BDO 2011 Line Up

The Big Day Out for me was once a tradition. The best festival with the best bands. A must do for the summer. These days though the tradition is broken and it doesn't look like being re-instated.

When I was 14 years old the BDO was coming back from a 2 year hiatus. The 1999 line up was more than a 14 year old girl could imagine. I begged and begged my mum to let me go. The headline acts in themselves were enough to make you want to pee your pants with excitement! Korn, Hole and Marilyn Manson. Then you had amazing local talent like The Living End, the Superjesus, Jebediah and Regurgitator. Powderfinger were also there and had only just released their most commercial album to that date 'Internationalist'. The band played at about 4pm if I remember correctly. I often laughed in years to come when they ended up headlining.

Following years line-ups were just as exciting and in later years when it started selling out in a few short hours the line up made your heart race in the hope you could snag tickets to see all these amazing bands in one place.

Year after year I was pumped at the announcement of the line-ups. I went to 10 BDOs and loved every single one of them. I have amazing memories from the bands, the people, the atmosphere. A trip to the Lilypad is an adventure in itself.

A few years ago the line up came out for the 2009 BDO and I was unimpressed. So unimpressed that I made the decision not to go. This is despite me once saying 'I'll always come no matter who is playing'. The day rolled around and I felt weird not being there. I felt sad that my tradition had been broken but I knew that it would be ok and next year I'd be back there at Olympic Park.

When the 2010 line up was about to be announced I felt excited again. There was a rumour the fabulous Mr David Bowie would be headlining. Instead when the announcement came we were given Muse.

Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE Muse, but they headlined just 3 years prior, so I was quite let down. Again I decided not to buy a ticket.

This year I was a little more wary of how the line up would look. I'd heard rumours of Soundgarden and Stone Temple Pilots. I didn't want to get my hopes up.

When the announcement was made I was very let down. Great bands, amazing bands! Tool, Rammstein and Iggy Pop are the headliners. But they've all done it before! I got the feeling that the BDO organisers were just giving us punters recycled goods. Why would I pay $150.00 to see bands I've already seen! When I was 14 I paid $70.00 to see one of the best, freshest line ups ever in Australia.

This will now be the 3rd BDO I've missed since I started going and I've come to the realisation that my tradition is over. Good bye BDO, it's been fun!

*Disclaimer: Should the 2012 line-up be an improvement my tradition may need to be re-instated

Monday, September 27, 2010

Me Running? A Complete 180!

If you had told me 6 months ago that I could run for almost 10km in under an hour I would have not only laughed at you but bet you $1000.00 that it was impossible.

So how the hell did I end up doing just that the other weekend?

What started off as a small personal challenge has turned into a normal part of my exercise routine.

It was hard, oh my God it was hard. I began running 5 minutes down the road with the stop watch and walking back. I slowly built up to also running the 5 minutes back.

As I started to gain confidence in running just for 10 short minutes I began to tell myself that I could run further. I slowly started running for longer and longer distances, setting myself routes I would try to complete. The challenge was to run as much of the route as possible before having to walk and next time try to beat it.

Over and over in my head I would remember what my former trainer Chris at Active Aussies would tell me. He had the confidence that I could run. He pushed me to run and sprint short distances. If he believed that I could do it then why shouldn't I?

I also took onboard advice I had read in Michelle Bridges 'Crunch Time' book. Michelle says not to stop. Even if you have to shuffle along slower than you would walk, do not stop. Stopping loses momentum and she is 100% right. Once I stopped to catch my breathe it was 100 times harder to start running again.

Motivation is hard when you're on your own. I needed some extra motivation (and still do).

I started by signing up to do the Bridge Run as part of the Sydney Running Festival. The course was an approximate 9-10km and was definitely much further than I would ever have imagined I could run.

Secondly I enlisted some running buddies. I got my boyfriend Aaron to sign up for the Bridge Run too and also began running a few afternoons a week with Lisa and Amanda from work. Having someone to go with you is the best motivation.  When one of you feels like piking out that day the other will drag them along.

And last but not least I downloaded the Map My Run app for my iphone. It tracks your GPS as you run so you can see the route and actual distance you have run. It's such a fantastic (and free) app to use.

With all this help I started getting into a regular pattern of going for a run 3-4 times a week. My area is very hilly and while the inclines really do suck, they are amazing for training for flat distance and I credit them with making my time as fast as it was.

Completing the Bridge Run last Sunday in 55:52 was one of my proudest moments. Especially considering I'm not a fast runner and my goal was 90 minutes! As an unco-ordinated ex-smoker with big boobs I honestly believed that it was not part of me to run. I proved myself wrong.

I've also proved that anybody can run. You just have to start small and not expect it to happen right away. Don't expect to be winning races. My pace is still very average but at least I'm running!

I've now set myself a goal to run 1000km in a year, just under 20km a week which is much more than I have been. It will be hard and certainly a challenge but I have complete faith that I will be able to reach that goal.

Friday, September 17, 2010

Underwear As Outerwear

Blame Lady Gaga!

Ever since Gaga burst onto the scene wearing little more than undies and a bra, underwear as outwear has become increasingly popular for everyday girls. Walk into just about any store in a Westfield at the moment and you'll find an assortment of leotards, corsets and lace dresses that leave little to the imagination.

And not to be outdone by Gaga, an assortment of celebs are also popping up sans pants. I have trouble remembering the last time I saw a picture of Rihanna wearing much of anything and even Sienna Miller has jumped on the bandwagon.

Bonds are even in on this fashion fad by bringing out the Tube Bra. The ad states that it's made to 'Be Seen', giving girls everywhere permission to flash her underwear.

But while celebs, who's job description involves looking super hot and trim, are getting away with this trend, what happens when an everyday girl from the suburbs, who sits on her butt for 8 hours a day in office starts losing her clothes?

Is it really a great look for an average sized girl to be strutting around in her undies? Do we really want to see half a butt cheek hanging out of a tight fitting pair of high waisted nanna knickers while we're picking up milk from the servo?

Not many people can pull off the underwear as outerwear look. Even Sienna looked odd.  It requires a big personality and a very clever stylist to make it work. Personally I'd rather the whole look went back to 80's and stayed there.

My advice - Leave the leotards to Lady Gaga or risk looking like your on your way to perform in a high school dance production.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Nastiness Is The New Black

When I was growing up my parents taught me to treat others the way I want to be treated. I have the saying 'If you don't have anything nice to say...' ingranied on my brain.

So why is it these days that bitchy is in fashion? It seems that everywhere you go someone is being rude or nasty to someone else. You can't read an open comments section on a news website without seeing some display of uncalled for meanness. Just today I clicked a link on the Daily Telegraph website for a new Lady Gaga song. There was only one comment that went something along the lines of "It would be better if she got a new head reconstruction'. It just made me think why bother being nasty? There was no need for it. Obviously some people get off on negitivity.

In the past few weeks I've been on two different buses changing drivers and had passengers on the bus yell at the driver to hurry up! Yes, it is annoying when they change drivers but these are scheduled into the timetable. These are people who are just doing their job. Where has the understanding in our society gone?

Why is being a bitch acceptable these days? Are we so used to living in a world where you can get everything in an instant that we have become so self-obsessed that we forget common courtesy to others? Are we taking examples from trashy reality tv like The Real Housewives of whatever city they are in that week, thinking that they are rich and on tv I want to be like them?

If everybody went back to their childhood lessons of getting along and sharing with others we might not be so stressed as a society. If everybody took the time to take a breath before telling someone off problems might get resolved better and quicker. If everybody just took a chill pill and relaxed for 2 minutes rather than flaring up we all might be happier.

I'm hoping that as with all trends, this fashion will fade. I want understanding back in fashion. I want a simple smile to be the new black.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

He Beat Up His Girlfriend... So We're Wishing Him a Speedy Recovery????

Much has been said over the past week about Matthew Newton. Alot of this talk has been focused on his problems, his issues with drug and alcohol and his mental health. Sure, this guy has problems. He has pleaded guilty to assulting one girlfriend and has now allegedly assulted another.

The focus here shouldn't be on Newton and his problems. Newton should go away and disappear. Go to rehab, therapy whatever. Just get out of the public eye.

We should be focusing on the victim in this case. We need to focus on the fact that there is no excuse for hitting a woman. Drugs, alcohol and mental health problems are not an excuse and Rachael Taylor (and Newton's former girlfriend Brooke Satchwell) should be applauded for not putting up with it.

On last night's 7pm Project, one of the stand in hosts Gorgi Coghlan finished up a segment about Newton's issues by saying 'We wish him a speedy recovery'.

Now sorry, but WTF? Why are we wishing Matthew Newton a speedy recovery? Shouldn't we be wishing Rachael Taylor a speedy recovery? Where was her mention of well wishes? I'm sure this was just a poor choice of words from Coghlan on live television but it doesn't hide the fact that so much attention has been put onto Newton's problems that people are sympathising with him.

The sympathy should be laying with the victim in this case. Matthew Newton is well aware of what he is capable of, he knows he has these problems. He has been through it before. I have no sympathy for someone who has stuffed up countless chances.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Pakistan Flooding

Approximately 20 million people in Pakistan have been affected by flooding. That is almost the entire population of Australia!
This natural disaster is worse than the Boxing Day tsunami, Kashmir earthquake and Haiti earthquake COMBINED!

Despite the scale of this crisis, donations of help are very low and are very slow. One of the reasons for this is people's concern that money will not reach those affected. Donating to a reputable Australian Aid Agency will ensure that any donations you make will end up on the ground where needed in Pakistan and not in the hands of extremists.

Donations are desperately needed to combat health problems that the floods have caused. Diarrhea and vomiting are rampant from the dirty water.

About 80% of the affected area is farm-land therefore long-term support will be needed in Pakistan to help their already struggling economy.

I'm participating the Bridge Run taking place on 19th September. It's a 9-10km run over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, around the city and ending up at the Opera House. I've decided to fundraise for this run and the money that is donated will go to help flood affected victims in Pakistan. The donations go directly to Oxfam - a reputable aid agency. Please help the Pakistanis (and me get some training motivation) by donating "http://www.everydayhero.com.au/lauren_and_aaron"