Would You Go On A Date With Lady Gaga?

I absolutely love Mia Freedman's writing - I'd love to be able to write like that! She wrote this hilarious (abbreviated) account of early relationship angst in yesterday's Sun Herald;

I love you, now change. Your clothes. Ever had a relationship like that?

Years ago, I worked with a girl I’ll call Jane. Jane had been dating this new guy for about a month and everything about him was delightful. He was good-looking, kind, funny, employed. Not too much visible baggage. Better still, he ‘got’ her. Obviously then, there had to be a problem.

You see, Jane’s new boyfriend liked to tuck his shirts and t-shirts into his pants. All the time. Everything tucked. In fact, we immediately christened him Tucker behind his back and to this day I can’t recall his actual name.

As co-workers, we were nothing if not helpful, offering endless suggestions to Jane. My angle was positive re-inforcement. “Compliment him every time he’s un-tucked” I suggested. Except he never was. Finally, someone came up with a decent idea. “Buy him some clothes that can’t be tucked in. Like shortish t-shirts. And jumpers. He’ll think you’re giving him a gift and the gift for you will be a visual one every time you see him. It’s win-win.” And so that’s what Jane did. And Tucker wore his new tops untucked. And she praised him. And they still broke up a year later but not because of the tucking.

Dating Lady Gaga would be difficult. On so many levels. This is the American recording artist whose signature look is to wear no pants. Not in a Britney and her ladygarden way, more of a Solid Gold Dancer way (Solid Gold was an 80s TV show, kids – ask your parents about it).
On a normal day, Lady Gaga wears shiny leotards with flesh-coloured tights, ridiculous shoes and a long platinum wig. This is not even her onstage look, not even a costume. This is just how she hangs out.

In a radio interview last week with Merrick and Rosso, they commented on how she always makes a supreme effort with her clothes and never seems to let herself go.

“No, I never do” she agreed earnestly. “It can be a problem when I’m dating because a guy will say to me ‘Let’s go out to dinner and will you just wear something low key so we don’t get all that attention’ And you know what? I’m really offended by that. I’m not going to change who I am just so you can have a quiet dinner.” I wonder if Lady Gaga goes on many dates?

Check out Mia Freedman's full article.

How Ironic!

This news piece gave me a chuckle, hopefully it will do the same for you.

Environmental activists Raoul Surcouf and Richard Spink set sail from Bristol, England, in May on a 40-foot boat outfitted with solar panels and a wind turbine to attempt the first carbon-neutral crossing of Greenland's polar ice cap (a journey being monitored eagerly online in Bristol by 25,000 schoolchildren). However, 400 miles off the coast of Ireland, hurricane-force winds destroyed the boat, and the crew was lucky to be rescued by a nearby ship, which was a tanker carrying 680,000 barrels of crude oil.

Image courtesy of www.Richard-Seaman.com

[The Guardian (London), 5-6-09]

Mr or Mrs Mum?

Whether to have a full-time career or stay home with the children is a decision women are able to make these days. Women are continually celebrating the fact that during the last few decades portrayal of our role has changed, giving us the freedom to choose whether we work, stay home or both. Though liberating this choice can cause confusion, frustration and sometimes even anguish, especially when the question of childcare is raised.

I spoke to two of my beautiful friends who've both carved a life for themselves in which they're able to be doing exactly what they want with their lives. Leanne is a full-time accountant and Susan is a full-time at home mum. They've both explained how they make their lifestyle choices work, why they chose the life they have and what makes it work and sometimes difficult.

Full-time accountant - Leanne

“We decided that Hayden would be the main care giver mainly for economic reasons. I always thought I’d be a stay at home mum, because that’s how I grew up. However, that changed once I started working.

“It works well for us; the kids get real hands-on time with Hayden, which they love and having more money isn’t everything but it certainly gives us more options. I love it too because I come home to cooked meals and clean washing! I’m very fortunate that my employer is quite flexible; sometimes I meet Hayden at appointments for the kids (eg. Will’s kinder orientation) and make the time up later.

“I can get very tired though, especially when I was breastfeeding and I’ve found that friendships can suffer because I like to spend all my ‘after-hours’ time with the kids.

“The last three years have been a steep learning curve and I’ve had to learn to let Hayden do things his way. I’ve also found that it’s very important to take time out and to make the effort to socialise, especially for Hayden’s sake.

“Socially it can be tough. My husband has been laughed at for being a Mr. Mum and someone commented to me, “He must be lazy”. These comments upset me because I believe that my husband is more of a man for putting his family first by choosing what works best for all of us rather than simply conforming to the norm. Some assume that I’m working only because I have to, not because I want to and they feel sorry for me which can be frustrating, yet some people think it’s fantastic. In the end, who cares what people think? As long as our family is happy.”

Full-time stay at home mum - Susan

“Ever since I was a little girl, I really wanted to be a wife and mother. I’ve always loved taking care of children and although I didn’t have any younger siblings, I was looking after other peoples kids from my early teens onwards.

“One of the biggest benefits of staying at home is the time I have with my kids, where they can ask questions like, “what is time?” (try answering that one!). I see it as a privilege to have this time with my kids and don’t think I’ll ever have the opportunity to make such an impact on a life so I want to do the best I can.

“At first it was tough getting used to putting all my time and effort into working at home and not getting paid for it. It was quite humbling to be dependent on Steve as the breadwinner. Now I feel like Steve and I are a team doing our different parts for the family and I don’t see it as ‘Steve’s money’ anymore.

“I plan to stay at home until Archie is at school because I think that’s what’s best for us as a family. Because Steve’s job requires long hours, I feel it’s important for the children to have a parent consistently in the home and I’m in the best position to be able to do that.

“I’m really glad I haven’t had to put my children in day care but believe that having the luxury of having Grandparents caring for your children would be a great option.

I’ll probably study at home for a couple of years and then work part-time within school hours once he’s started school. I’m a big believer in taking things as they come though and don’t spend a lot of time planning it out.”

A Healthy Imagination - Debbie O'Connor

Author and Graphic Designer, Debbie O'Connor, cured her son’s dislike of vegetables by writing a book!

When Debbie's son, Joel, decided he wasn't going to eat vegetables, Debbie, who was on a weightloss journey herself, decided to find a solution. The solution came in the form of meal time guest, Andrew Potato Face, and developed into a colourful children's book.

“The book follows the story of Andrew Potato Face, who gets eaten, little by little throughout the meal," Debbie explained. "The aim of the book is to make mealtimes fun and to encourage children to experiment. Eating an ‘eyeball’ is surprisingly fun when you are a little person!"

It all started at a Mother's Group meeting. Debbie expressed her worries and some of the womens suggested she make a 'vegetable face' on Joel's plate. Debbie gave it a go and asked him; “Would you like to eat his eyeballs?” He was so excited that he grabbed a handful of peas and ate them.

Debbie made an Andrew Potato Face book for Joel to enjoy but after she took the copy to Mother's Group and everyone wanted a lend, Debbie realised she was onto something.

“When I lent the original book to other mums in our Mothers Group, they all came back with positive feedback," she sais. "One of the mothers had a premmie daughter who’d never eaten a plate of food in her life. She borrowed the book and she said it was the first time her daughter had eaten a complete meal." After seeing how much it had helped other mums, Debbie decided to have it published. The bright, fun illustrations were created by Leonie Windle and Debbie had it designed and printed through her graphic design company, White River Design.

The books are sold online at http://www.andrewpotatoface.com.au/ and Debbie visits preschools to read to the children and discuss healthy eating. The book is also available for sale as a fundraiser.

Images courtesy of WhiteRiverDesign.com.au

Darren Pead - From Bakery to Blokey Bounty

A few years ago, retail enthusiast Darren Pead noticed a gap in the retail market and realised he could fill it. Two years, and approximately $1.35 million worth of sales later, it seems that he may have been right.

The market Darren identified was men’s gifts and the solution was Guy Stuff, a classy men’s gift and collectables business. With two stores now open in Sydney and another two being planned for 2009, Guy Stuff is also a thriving online store which sold 10 000 items in its first year alone.

Darren, who also has a passion for collecables believes there is a huge demand for shops specialising in men's gifts. "My main attraction is to retail, it just turned out that it was gifts and collectables, it was almost going to be bakeries.”

At Guy Stuff a customer is sure to find a suitable gift for any man. The stores sell everything from cuff links to bar accessories, model cars and planes to collectable pins and coins and much more. Stores are clean, bright and well set-out, appealing to men, women and children.

Setting him apart from many Australian retailers, Darren puts equal emphasis on his online store and retail shops, placing him in the 'Clicks and Mortar' category. Both online and in store are huge markets for Guy Stuff and both have their strengths and weaknesses. "Our retail shops are enjoyable to shop in and our products fun to buy, so I believe that over the next five to 10 years the retail shops are where the biggest opportunity exists," Darren explains.

Another thing setting the up-and-coming retailer apart is the lack of professional market research. Darren doesn't pay for 'market research' but instead, opts to listen to customers comments and suggestions; "Just about every decision we have made in Guy Stuff has been the direct result of talking to customers," he says.

The current financial crisis is making it hard for Darren to find investors for his growing business but, despite this, has bright plans for the future. "We hope to have a store within 20 minutes of the entire populations of Sydney, Newcastle, Wollongong, Melbourne, Geelong, Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast," Darren says. "I want Guy Stuff to be known as the best retail destination for men’s gifts and collectables in the country."

If all these plans come to fruition, a Guy Stuff store will be within 20 minutes drive of 80% of the entire Australian population.

http://www.guystuff.com.au/