For as long as I can recall, I’ve never had the urge to drive. Sure, as the years went by I did like all the new features which newer models of cars possessed. Though it never really persuaded me to go out and get a license, or to save up and buy the car of my dreams. A few times I have given into pestering from family, friends or boyfriends and have tried to learn (don’t think I did too badly either), but I never really thought to myself ‘Wow. This is the most amazing thing ever. Why didn’t I accomplish this years ago!’
Unlike most people, since I do work in the CBD I actually do love catching public transport wherever I go. Sure, I’ll admit there are a few pet hates about catching public transport, but never have I had an experience so bad that I reached boiling point and thought to myself, “That’s it! I’m going to start driving wherever I go!”
Because of this choice that I’ve made, it has amazed me how many people do not like this choice. They feel it absolutely necessary to voice their opinions very loud and very clear to me, that the choice that I’ve made on not learning to drive is the most absurd thing that they’ve heard.
I’ve been told countless of times over the years that driving is a necessity. It’s not something you want to do; it’s something that you need to do. If this is really the case, then please explain to me why I am not – nor have I ever - stood in the middle of a shopping centre with a trolley filled with purchases wishing that I knew how to drive as it would be a bugger to get all these home.
Another reason that people give me is that it’s the ultimate freedom. That if I was ever bored at home or with whatever situation I am current in, that I could just grabs my car keys and drive to any place your heart – and the road- can take you. The funny thing about this is that it usually comes from people who most likely have never left the state let alone the country. Whereas I have travelled almost all over the world and even had the opportunity to not only see but touch the amazing pyramids of Egypt!
My usual response though, is that my multipass ticket of allows me to catch whichever bus, train and ferry that I desire and go wherever I want to go. The even amazing thing about this wonderful ticket of mine is that not only do I not have to stop for petrol, but I also do not have to worry about traffic, idiots on the road who do not know how to drive and also many other countless things drivers complain about.
It is almost as if that learning and being able to drive or have a licence is part of a cult, which they quickly want to add more members to, so that everyone else can join in and complain about. Petrol prices, cost of insurance, registration, toll prices, bank repayments, and mechanic fees which it seems that a majority of people do not really know what they are being charged for, but will not only happily pay their mechanic (with a bit of a grumble), but feel it part of some invisible terms and condition clause that they must moan about for the next several weeks.
While they do all this, I am more than happy to catch public transport. The only real worry that I have is making sure that I am at the bus stop/train station a little early, finding a seat (which honestly doesn’t concern me), and what is going to be my entertainment for the 45 minute train ride to the CBD. A book to read? MP3 or MP4 player? Or what I love to call ‘entertainment’ within the train itself (though honestly that’s more for the evening journey home).
When I was confronted with the question “Why don’t you drive?” I’d try many excuses that I could think of. It’s environmentally friendly. I get to meet a lot of people on the train. It gives me time to unwind after a very long day at work. I have no need for it right now. None of these reasons were ever good. I have now simply decided to say the truth. That I don’t drive, because I choose not to.
I have always had the usual response that I will regret it when I am older. I am now in my 30s and my response still is, “Well when I start complaining about the whole driving matter, feel free to tell me ‘I told you so.’ Until then, leave me be.”
The usual misconception from everyone is that I either hate or fear driving. This is the furthest thing from the truth. I do not hate driving, nor do I hate people who do drive. Though I will admit that I do dislike seeing people who drink and drive and have total disregard for their fellow man. But honestly, you confront these type of behaviour no matter where you go, and whether it is behind the wheel of a car or within public transport you cannot escape people who do not think about the consequences of their actions.
I also do not fear driving, as I had been learning for almost a year. I just didn’t like that fact that I was trapped in metal box, alone with only the radio for company. Whereas on public transport, I am completely surround by everyday people, and my on the rare chance will bump into someone I know and start a conversation with them in the journey.
I can honestly say the one thing that I will not be doing on my journey to work, is be in the bumper to bumper traffic, yelling at someone who has just cut me off, be a victim of road rage, or be rear ended by some idiot who didn’t look where they were going. This would mean that I would have to pull over and exchange insurance details, to only find out they don’t have insurance.
So while all your drivers out there give me that little smirk about the fact that I do not know how to drive, I will also most likely be the one who will be at the shopping centre or concert on time, because you’re all too busy looking for a parking space.
Now if you excuse me I wrote this on the train home, and would like to go back to reading my book.
Tuesday, 19 June 2012
Thursday, 8 March 2012
Beware of Hackers!
I’m sure all of us at one point or another purchased something with our savings or credit card, and before the words APPROVED flashed up on our screen have said a little prayer to ourselves (or crossed our fingers) in hopes that it all went through OK. This usually happens because we hope that there are funds within the account. For some people this is usually because we have over spent, or for some unfortunate people, because they have been a victim of hacking. If you haven’t been a victim of hacking, then we all know someone who has.
We can be careful all we want, but the reality is that it is real, and that you won’t be aware of when it happens as it could happen to anyone of us any day. Unfortunately for most people that this happens to, don’t realise how major this issue is until it does happen. Not only do you lose whatever funds are left within your account, but they can continue taking that money until your account is frozen. They can also steal other details from you – personal details – like your driver’s licence and then you will also become a victim of identity theft. Honestly, as scary as this may all seem, it is really only the tip of the iceberg. Stolen identity, loss of funds, anything that you use your computer for hacked into. Even your Facebook page, and your email will be view and maybe even your password changed so the humour and entertainment of hackers.
There are many ways that these types of thieves or hackers and access this type of information first. The most common is an email. They will pretend to be your bank, your internet provider, phone companies and many other companies saying that they need to upgrade their information for ‘security purposes’. They will even make everything look authentic. Big logos, signature at the bottom, official stamps... the list goes on. If you receive an email asking for anything personal, do not reply to it. If you think it actually may be your bank trying to contact you, the best advice I can give you is to call your bank, phone company etc directly and ask them about the email that you received. It is better to double check, then to regret it all later.
The other most common way people hack into your computer, is through pop up screens. If you do not know what a pop up screen is, it is just simple a screen that pops up when you click on a link. It will usually mention something like you are the 100th visitor today and you have won an iPad. I’m sure we all had drilled into our brains, if it is too good to be true it usually is. This is one of those examples. I can guarantee you, with any advertisement, pop up, or email that you receive (sometimes a phone call or a text message too) saying you have won something and you know for a fact you’ve never entered any competition, you haven’t won anything. This is just another way some people will try and get information from you. And you don’t even have to provide them with information, all these emails etc will do is give the hackers access to your computer and that’s all that they need to gain information of you.
The third most common way is through a phone call. Usually mentioning that they are from a marketing company trying to find out some information. Lately I have heard of people being contacted saying that they are from a telco company or even a PC expert claiming that they are aware that you have a virus on your own computer, and if you just give them your credit card information of even give them access to computer they will be able to fix this for you. Unless you have someone within your house or someone that you know who repairs computers, just hang up the phone when you receive one of these calls.
And the last example I can give you of people trying to gain your personally information are from door knockers themselves. Now I’m not saying that all sales people who door knock are frauds, but some of them are. I personally have had twice someone knock on my door claiming to be part of the electricity company and all they want me to do is sign a form. When I question the man more about this form he was very vague. When I asked which electricity company he represented, he said all of them. He tried to explain to me that the government had just passed a law that everyone can receive a high discount off their electricity bill but in order for the government to give this discount everyone had to sign a form. Strange huh? In the end I ended up finding out he was from a competing electricity company trying to get me to switch.
I can give you all the advice in the world, but the only one major advice that I can give to everyone is that if you have a bad feeling about it, don’t go through with it. If it looks like a dodgy email or the person on the phone doesn’t sound all that truthful, delete the email or hang up the phone. It’s OK to have bad manners sometimes, especially when you are trying to protect yourself and also your family. If you’ve also have had the unfortunate experience of being a victim of hacking, warn your friends, and let people know. The more we are all aware of the different types of dangers out there, the more we can all be prepared.
We can be careful all we want, but the reality is that it is real, and that you won’t be aware of when it happens as it could happen to anyone of us any day. Unfortunately for most people that this happens to, don’t realise how major this issue is until it does happen. Not only do you lose whatever funds are left within your account, but they can continue taking that money until your account is frozen. They can also steal other details from you – personal details – like your driver’s licence and then you will also become a victim of identity theft. Honestly, as scary as this may all seem, it is really only the tip of the iceberg. Stolen identity, loss of funds, anything that you use your computer for hacked into. Even your Facebook page, and your email will be view and maybe even your password changed so the humour and entertainment of hackers.
There are many ways that these types of thieves or hackers and access this type of information first. The most common is an email. They will pretend to be your bank, your internet provider, phone companies and many other companies saying that they need to upgrade their information for ‘security purposes’. They will even make everything look authentic. Big logos, signature at the bottom, official stamps... the list goes on. If you receive an email asking for anything personal, do not reply to it. If you think it actually may be your bank trying to contact you, the best advice I can give you is to call your bank, phone company etc directly and ask them about the email that you received. It is better to double check, then to regret it all later.
The other most common way people hack into your computer, is through pop up screens. If you do not know what a pop up screen is, it is just simple a screen that pops up when you click on a link. It will usually mention something like you are the 100th visitor today and you have won an iPad. I’m sure we all had drilled into our brains, if it is too good to be true it usually is. This is one of those examples. I can guarantee you, with any advertisement, pop up, or email that you receive (sometimes a phone call or a text message too) saying you have won something and you know for a fact you’ve never entered any competition, you haven’t won anything. This is just another way some people will try and get information from you. And you don’t even have to provide them with information, all these emails etc will do is give the hackers access to your computer and that’s all that they need to gain information of you.
The third most common way is through a phone call. Usually mentioning that they are from a marketing company trying to find out some information. Lately I have heard of people being contacted saying that they are from a telco company or even a PC expert claiming that they are aware that you have a virus on your own computer, and if you just give them your credit card information of even give them access to computer they will be able to fix this for you. Unless you have someone within your house or someone that you know who repairs computers, just hang up the phone when you receive one of these calls.
And the last example I can give you of people trying to gain your personally information are from door knockers themselves. Now I’m not saying that all sales people who door knock are frauds, but some of them are. I personally have had twice someone knock on my door claiming to be part of the electricity company and all they want me to do is sign a form. When I question the man more about this form he was very vague. When I asked which electricity company he represented, he said all of them. He tried to explain to me that the government had just passed a law that everyone can receive a high discount off their electricity bill but in order for the government to give this discount everyone had to sign a form. Strange huh? In the end I ended up finding out he was from a competing electricity company trying to get me to switch.
I can give you all the advice in the world, but the only one major advice that I can give to everyone is that if you have a bad feeling about it, don’t go through with it. If it looks like a dodgy email or the person on the phone doesn’t sound all that truthful, delete the email or hang up the phone. It’s OK to have bad manners sometimes, especially when you are trying to protect yourself and also your family. If you’ve also have had the unfortunate experience of being a victim of hacking, warn your friends, and let people know. The more we are all aware of the different types of dangers out there, the more we can all be prepared.
Saturday, 25 February 2012
Politics - Why is it such a headache!
Back in November 2007, when Australia had a Federal election. It was between John Howard and Kevin Rudd. I’m not really in to politics, and to be honest half of the time I really do not know what they are going on about. In my opinion no matter who you vote for, they are all no good liars and really not worth my time.
Now personally, the vibe that I was getting during that time is that a lot of people were just sick and tired of all the false promises that John Howard from the Liberal party were telling us for years. I cannot recall all the promises at the time John Howard were making, but I do recall that when it was time to vote Kevin Rudd would be getting mine, as I thought Australia needed a change for the better. It also seemed at the time that this wasn’t just my opinion either. A lot of people really wanted a changed and just felt that Liberal had been in power for way too long and we needed a Labor government.
For years John Howard seem to me that kid in school who didn’t really have any friends but wanted to hang around the cool kids and be their lap dog. I always use to find it funny every time that John Howard was next to George W. Bush; he always seemed really giddy that here he was getting media attention next to the ‘cool kid’. Until both stood next to Tony Blair, and it would seem to me that Tony would give a shake of his head and roll his eyes every time he would see them two together.
Not long after Kevin Rudd was elected, all the promises he had made during his campaign didn’t seem as though they were going to happen. The fibre optics internet network which he had promised during his campaign? Well he had approached Telstra about it and told them that they would have the governments support, they basically shut the door in his face and said no. So it seemed as though not matter how hard he was trying he didn’t seem to be getting anywhere.
People who had seemed to have voted for Kevin Rudd where now stating that they had voted for John Howard and telling people off for electing him in the first place. I still remember Facebook lit up by various comments from people bad mouthing Kevin Rudd and I sat there thinking, ‘I’m pretty sure we I scroll through the older posts I would find a “Hooray Kevin 07!” in there somewhere.’
In August 2010 things started to hit the fan. I wasn’t in the country at the time, but all I remember is an election happening while I was overseas, and next thing we knew Australia had a female Prime Minister. There was talk at the time that Julia Gilard had stabbed Kevin Rudd in the back and basically took the seat from him. Australia was proud once again to have their first female Prime Minister and we were all ready for a change once more.
Time and time against since that August day, Julia was either saying or doing something wrong. Commenting on how she doesn’t like kids during a speech for education, or going on about not believing in god despite growing up in the Baptist Church. She even gave a grant to schools to build new halls when a large majority either didn’t have the room for the new building or their old halls were fine as it is. Now I’m not going to list all the major flaws that Julia has done, but just like Kevin Rudd things all seem to be going from bad to worse.
When Julia became Prime Minister, she made Kevin Rudd foreign minister. Not something that I would see Kevin Rudd doing, but even with a knife in his back he seem to be doing an OK job. Mostly due to Julia constantly stuff up; nobody wanted to know about poor Rudd anymore. He has now resigned as Foreign Minister which apparently means he can now go for the Prime Minister seat.
I do not know the whole mechanics of it, and frankly I do not want to. Now this is the part that completely amazes me. Since it now seems with all of Julia’s stuff ups, Kevin Rudd may be back in the big seat as Prime Minister. After everything he has gone through, it seems as though that Kevin Rudd is getting the popularity vote.
Have people finally lost it? Has the world really gone mad? I mean, back in 2007 everyone wanted him, when he stuff up a lot of people were cursing the name Rudd. Now that we’ve had Julia for just over a year they now want him back? Like I said before, all politicians lie and it’s really hard to choose the lesser of the two evils when choosing Labor or Liberal. But do we all really want Kevin Rudd back in power? Will Julia steal his seat once again when he does become Prime Minister? Who knows? This is one of the many reasons why I do not like politics; no one ever is honest with anyone.
So I finally had my little vent, as I’m sure it’s driving a lot of people in Australia a bit mental as well. What does everyone else think of this? Is this whole feud between Gilard and Rudd completely nonsense, or do you think that it’s about time that Rudd have the spotlight once again?
Now personally, the vibe that I was getting during that time is that a lot of people were just sick and tired of all the false promises that John Howard from the Liberal party were telling us for years. I cannot recall all the promises at the time John Howard were making, but I do recall that when it was time to vote Kevin Rudd would be getting mine, as I thought Australia needed a change for the better. It also seemed at the time that this wasn’t just my opinion either. A lot of people really wanted a changed and just felt that Liberal had been in power for way too long and we needed a Labor government.
For years John Howard seem to me that kid in school who didn’t really have any friends but wanted to hang around the cool kids and be their lap dog. I always use to find it funny every time that John Howard was next to George W. Bush; he always seemed really giddy that here he was getting media attention next to the ‘cool kid’. Until both stood next to Tony Blair, and it would seem to me that Tony would give a shake of his head and roll his eyes every time he would see them two together.
Not long after Kevin Rudd was elected, all the promises he had made during his campaign didn’t seem as though they were going to happen. The fibre optics internet network which he had promised during his campaign? Well he had approached Telstra about it and told them that they would have the governments support, they basically shut the door in his face and said no. So it seemed as though not matter how hard he was trying he didn’t seem to be getting anywhere.
People who had seemed to have voted for Kevin Rudd where now stating that they had voted for John Howard and telling people off for electing him in the first place. I still remember Facebook lit up by various comments from people bad mouthing Kevin Rudd and I sat there thinking, ‘I’m pretty sure we I scroll through the older posts I would find a “Hooray Kevin 07!” in there somewhere.’
In August 2010 things started to hit the fan. I wasn’t in the country at the time, but all I remember is an election happening while I was overseas, and next thing we knew Australia had a female Prime Minister. There was talk at the time that Julia Gilard had stabbed Kevin Rudd in the back and basically took the seat from him. Australia was proud once again to have their first female Prime Minister and we were all ready for a change once more.
Time and time against since that August day, Julia was either saying or doing something wrong. Commenting on how she doesn’t like kids during a speech for education, or going on about not believing in god despite growing up in the Baptist Church. She even gave a grant to schools to build new halls when a large majority either didn’t have the room for the new building or their old halls were fine as it is. Now I’m not going to list all the major flaws that Julia has done, but just like Kevin Rudd things all seem to be going from bad to worse.
When Julia became Prime Minister, she made Kevin Rudd foreign minister. Not something that I would see Kevin Rudd doing, but even with a knife in his back he seem to be doing an OK job. Mostly due to Julia constantly stuff up; nobody wanted to know about poor Rudd anymore. He has now resigned as Foreign Minister which apparently means he can now go for the Prime Minister seat.
I do not know the whole mechanics of it, and frankly I do not want to. Now this is the part that completely amazes me. Since it now seems with all of Julia’s stuff ups, Kevin Rudd may be back in the big seat as Prime Minister. After everything he has gone through, it seems as though that Kevin Rudd is getting the popularity vote.
Have people finally lost it? Has the world really gone mad? I mean, back in 2007 everyone wanted him, when he stuff up a lot of people were cursing the name Rudd. Now that we’ve had Julia for just over a year they now want him back? Like I said before, all politicians lie and it’s really hard to choose the lesser of the two evils when choosing Labor or Liberal. But do we all really want Kevin Rudd back in power? Will Julia steal his seat once again when he does become Prime Minister? Who knows? This is one of the many reasons why I do not like politics; no one ever is honest with anyone.
So I finally had my little vent, as I’m sure it’s driving a lot of people in Australia a bit mental as well. What does everyone else think of this? Is this whole feud between Gilard and Rudd completely nonsense, or do you think that it’s about time that Rudd have the spotlight once again?
Monday, 12 December 2011
Smell The Roses
In January 2007, the world famous violin player Joshua Bell played as a street musician in front of morning commuters within a metro station in Washington DC. He played wonderful and very complex pieces on his violin which is worth over $3.5 million, and hardly anyone noticed. Even though just a few days prior he had performed within a Boston theatre, where the average selling price was about $100. He only made $32 from his performance within the subway.
Only a few people stopped to have a quick listen before quickly rushing away, many others completely ignore the man entirely. Some stopped to listen for a few minutes and gave a tip; others just threw in a tip without even stopping. This is a man who sells out theatre so people can go for a couple of hours to listen to his music paying at least $100, yet no one really had the time to stop and listen to this wonderful music while everyone was rushing to work or wherever they were headed that day.
I’m not sure if many of you are aware of this but on Saturday night (Sunday morning) at about 2:30am there was a lunar eclipse. A lunar eclipse is when the moon passes behind the earth so that the earth blocks the sun rays from striking the moon. All three have to be perfectly aligned. When this happened the moon turns red, and can be viewed perfectly with the naked eye without any harm. It was an event that I’m always excited to see. Within the weather we’ve been having all week, I was also very optimistic that I will get to view it. Which I did. I stayed up all night watching this fantastic show that nature had to offer.
The next morning I went to buy the paper thinking since most of the east coast of Australia had a fantastic view that it would at least made the front page. I was completely wrong. The major news the next day was about a Home and Away star that was arrested for domestic violence. The even funnier thing? I check the whole newspaper and it didn’t even get a mention, let alone a photo of the event.
Nature has amazing and beautiful scenes to offer us each and every day, how many of us actually take the time to notice it? I recall the first week that I worked within the CBD. Since it was darker a lot sooner I would take my time walking back to the station within the city, and just looking up and seeing all the lights and tall buildings would take my breath away. Even now in summer when I get home (and it isn’t overcast), the sun setting is such a wonderful sight.
Have you walk around your neighbourhood lately? The other day I got to see a bunch of wild birds all having a bath within a puddle. There were at least 20 of them washing themselves. There’s a bunch of people fighting to preserve nature. They are out there every day trying to find donations and at the moment against the whale killers. We’ve now been taught to recycle everyday, cut down on our use on electricity, and to use more biodegradable items. Why are we doing all of this for if we can’t even take the time to appreciate it all? I can guarantee you that if you stopped for a moment just one day and really paid attention to your surroundings, you’ll find something around you that is amazing. Even if it is as simple as a rainbow after the rain or a bird flying through the air on a clear day.
Only a few people stopped to have a quick listen before quickly rushing away, many others completely ignore the man entirely. Some stopped to listen for a few minutes and gave a tip; others just threw in a tip without even stopping. This is a man who sells out theatre so people can go for a couple of hours to listen to his music paying at least $100, yet no one really had the time to stop and listen to this wonderful music while everyone was rushing to work or wherever they were headed that day.
I’m not sure if many of you are aware of this but on Saturday night (Sunday morning) at about 2:30am there was a lunar eclipse. A lunar eclipse is when the moon passes behind the earth so that the earth blocks the sun rays from striking the moon. All three have to be perfectly aligned. When this happened the moon turns red, and can be viewed perfectly with the naked eye without any harm. It was an event that I’m always excited to see. Within the weather we’ve been having all week, I was also very optimistic that I will get to view it. Which I did. I stayed up all night watching this fantastic show that nature had to offer.
The next morning I went to buy the paper thinking since most of the east coast of Australia had a fantastic view that it would at least made the front page. I was completely wrong. The major news the next day was about a Home and Away star that was arrested for domestic violence. The even funnier thing? I check the whole newspaper and it didn’t even get a mention, let alone a photo of the event.
Nature has amazing and beautiful scenes to offer us each and every day, how many of us actually take the time to notice it? I recall the first week that I worked within the CBD. Since it was darker a lot sooner I would take my time walking back to the station within the city, and just looking up and seeing all the lights and tall buildings would take my breath away. Even now in summer when I get home (and it isn’t overcast), the sun setting is such a wonderful sight.
Have you walk around your neighbourhood lately? The other day I got to see a bunch of wild birds all having a bath within a puddle. There were at least 20 of them washing themselves. There’s a bunch of people fighting to preserve nature. They are out there every day trying to find donations and at the moment against the whale killers. We’ve now been taught to recycle everyday, cut down on our use on electricity, and to use more biodegradable items. Why are we doing all of this for if we can’t even take the time to appreciate it all? I can guarantee you that if you stopped for a moment just one day and really paid attention to your surroundings, you’ll find something around you that is amazing. Even if it is as simple as a rainbow after the rain or a bird flying through the air on a clear day.
Monday, 5 December 2011
Say No To Bullying
Bullying. Wikipedia mentions that “bullying is an act of repeated aggressive behavior in order to intentionally hurt another person, physically or mentally. Bullying is characterized by an individual behaving in a certain way to gain power over another person.” So basically no matter which way you look at it, bullying is a type assault. Whether that is verbal or psychical.
Throughout our lifetimes, each one of us will experience different types of bullying. Whether it will be at school, at home, work or in public. Some not as extreme as others, but still bullying nonetheless.
The past decade, it seems as though bullying is on the rise. Whether that is because a lot more people are speaking out about it, or because it is actually on the increase is hard to say. A lot of close friends of mine admit that they have been bullied as a child and if they were ever to run to their teachers or parents about being bullied, they were told to fight back especially if they were male.
The one thing that a lot of people seem to forget, that bullying doesn’t end when you finish school. It continues throughout your adulthood as well. So if you’re just waiting and praying for that day when you finish school so it will end. It doesn’t. It’s now your bosses, your co-workers, people you meet on the street and sometimes even family members. It happens everywhere. Whether face to face, or through emails, text messages, phone calls, you name it.
Now I’m not mentioning this to give people a scare. I just want to point out that this is life. Bad things happen, we move on and things become great. Until another bad thing happens. It will seem like it is the end of the world and that you cannot live any longer. But it will get better, it always does. Moving on when something bad happens, can only make us strong people.
I learnt from a young age that the reason why most people bully other people is because they feel threatened by someone’s accomplishments, they don’t understand another person’s difference, or that they are in fact being bullied. So just to appear stronger, they will pick on another person to make themselves feel better and tough. So it really has nothing to do with you at all. There is nothing about you that the bully doesn’t like or hate. It is in fact the bullies hate themselves and take it out on other people.
To me bullying isn’t the worst thing that can happen. The worst is when you actually start to believe what the bully tells you. If they tell you that you’re worthless, or ugly, and other insults and you start to believe the lies, then to me the bully has won. If you walk away, voice your opinion and stand tall, then no one can harm you. I’m not asking people to fight back with their fists, just be more confident in who you are as a person, stand up for yourself, and you’re already ten steps ahead of everyone else. Violence of any kind if never the answer.
If you know of a person that is being picked on and bullied, the worst thing you can do as a human being is to stand by and let it happen. Bullying, wherever it may happen needs to end. We need to stand up for one another and report it when it happens. Just because you may see someone picking on one person, doesn’t mean it stops there. A person who bullies people within the work place may even go home and bully their family. It’s a never ending cycle. This is why we have to stop the cycle continuing.
If you are being severely picked on, always remember that there will be people who you can talk to about it. It can be your neighbour, a friend, a family member, a teacher or a work colleague. There will always be someone who you can talk to about it. Everyone at some point in their lifetime has been picked on, so anyone who says that they haven’t is lying. Even celebrities get it all the time, except their verbal bullying is a little more public than others. Remember Elton John and Lilly Allen at the GQ awards? Rosie O’Donnell and Donald Trump never miss an opportunity to call out abuse at the other person.
Doing nothing about the whole situation, makes the problem even worse. So remember, there will always people you can talk to about what is happening. The best websites to visit to find out more information is http://au.reachout.com/. This website contains blogs of actual people about their experiences and who you can contact. It is even for people who are being bullied within the workplace. http://www.bullyingnoway.com.au/talkout/faqs/default.shtml is another website you can visit, though this is more aimed at children who are being bullied at school.
I’ll leave you with a link to a YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdkNn3Ei-Lg&feature=share video that I was show the other day. I won’t go into too much detail about this video, but it is about a young boy who has been picked on all his life. He doesn’t understand why he has been singled out or what he can do about it. It’s a very heartbreak yet very powerful clip that I suggest everyone who has a couple of minutes to please watch and take note.
Throughout our lifetimes, each one of us will experience different types of bullying. Whether it will be at school, at home, work or in public. Some not as extreme as others, but still bullying nonetheless.
The past decade, it seems as though bullying is on the rise. Whether that is because a lot more people are speaking out about it, or because it is actually on the increase is hard to say. A lot of close friends of mine admit that they have been bullied as a child and if they were ever to run to their teachers or parents about being bullied, they were told to fight back especially if they were male.
The one thing that a lot of people seem to forget, that bullying doesn’t end when you finish school. It continues throughout your adulthood as well. So if you’re just waiting and praying for that day when you finish school so it will end. It doesn’t. It’s now your bosses, your co-workers, people you meet on the street and sometimes even family members. It happens everywhere. Whether face to face, or through emails, text messages, phone calls, you name it.
Now I’m not mentioning this to give people a scare. I just want to point out that this is life. Bad things happen, we move on and things become great. Until another bad thing happens. It will seem like it is the end of the world and that you cannot live any longer. But it will get better, it always does. Moving on when something bad happens, can only make us strong people.
I learnt from a young age that the reason why most people bully other people is because they feel threatened by someone’s accomplishments, they don’t understand another person’s difference, or that they are in fact being bullied. So just to appear stronger, they will pick on another person to make themselves feel better and tough. So it really has nothing to do with you at all. There is nothing about you that the bully doesn’t like or hate. It is in fact the bullies hate themselves and take it out on other people.
To me bullying isn’t the worst thing that can happen. The worst is when you actually start to believe what the bully tells you. If they tell you that you’re worthless, or ugly, and other insults and you start to believe the lies, then to me the bully has won. If you walk away, voice your opinion and stand tall, then no one can harm you. I’m not asking people to fight back with their fists, just be more confident in who you are as a person, stand up for yourself, and you’re already ten steps ahead of everyone else. Violence of any kind if never the answer.
If you know of a person that is being picked on and bullied, the worst thing you can do as a human being is to stand by and let it happen. Bullying, wherever it may happen needs to end. We need to stand up for one another and report it when it happens. Just because you may see someone picking on one person, doesn’t mean it stops there. A person who bullies people within the work place may even go home and bully their family. It’s a never ending cycle. This is why we have to stop the cycle continuing.
If you are being severely picked on, always remember that there will be people who you can talk to about it. It can be your neighbour, a friend, a family member, a teacher or a work colleague. There will always be someone who you can talk to about it. Everyone at some point in their lifetime has been picked on, so anyone who says that they haven’t is lying. Even celebrities get it all the time, except their verbal bullying is a little more public than others. Remember Elton John and Lilly Allen at the GQ awards? Rosie O’Donnell and Donald Trump never miss an opportunity to call out abuse at the other person.
Doing nothing about the whole situation, makes the problem even worse. So remember, there will always people you can talk to about what is happening. The best websites to visit to find out more information is http://au.reachout.com/. This website contains blogs of actual people about their experiences and who you can contact. It is even for people who are being bullied within the workplace. http://www.bullyingnoway.com.au/talkout/faqs/default.shtml is another website you can visit, though this is more aimed at children who are being bullied at school.
I’ll leave you with a link to a YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdkNn3Ei-Lg&feature=share video that I was show the other day. I won’t go into too much detail about this video, but it is about a young boy who has been picked on all his life. He doesn’t understand why he has been singled out or what he can do about it. It’s a very heartbreak yet very powerful clip that I suggest everyone who has a couple of minutes to please watch and take note.
Saturday, 26 November 2011
How do you like those Apples?
My closest friends and family will always know one thing about me. I don’t like Apple products. Well... maybe more like despise Apple products. I’m tired of people who do love Apple products showing me what the latest Apple product can do. Especially since most people who will approach me about what the latest Apple product can do think it’s actually new, when in fact it is only new to an Apple product.
Since I haven’t liked Apple products for many years (mostly when the first iPod was released), that I need to explain myself. As a lot of people do not understand why I do not like these products. So for everyone today, I will explain the reasons why I do not like Apple.
The Fans: These fans of Apple are the craziest people I have ever met. To me they come close to Twilight fans. They live and breathe Apple products and will always buy Apple products. Every little thing that their new Apple product can do, they seem as though it is the best thing in the world.
Intangible: New movie coming out? Don’t worry about buying the DVD; let’s buy it from the Apple Store. New album released from your favourite band? Let’s buy it from the Apple store. It makes me sick. When I buy a movie or an album, I like holding the item which I’ve just purchased. So basically I like the product which I’ve just bought to be tangible. The product I just bought is faulty? Let me grab that receipt and go back to the store where I purchased it and get a refund or exchange.
Product placements: It seems as though every movie, music video or TV show that is released will always have that perfect shot of an Apple product. It’s not subtle either. It’s a close up view of the item with the logo in plain view, and it will always be the main item. Music video? The apple product will be controlling the music within that video. Movie? It’s what saves the day. I’m pretty sure if the iPhone or iPad was invented back in 1996, it would have been an Apple product that saved the world in the movie Independence Day, not a laptop.
Just give us all your money: I understand that Apple products have their own design which everyone is so very proud of (even though when it is re-released the design never changes). But do you really have to charge an arm and a leg for all your items? They even charge more for Microsoft Office for Macs even more then what Microsoft is charging for it.
Ever been inside an Apple store lately? I’ll guarantee you everything within that store is more expensive than other stores are selling the exact same item. Seriously, paying around $30.00 for a movie, when all you get is the data which you’ve downloaded? If your PC dies, gets stolen, or just get old, that movie or song which you downloaded cannot be sold within a garage sale or through eBay. If you don’t want that movie anymore, you just have to delete it to make room for the other items on your computer.
Image: The image that Apple likes to portray about their items is that when you purchase their items your whole social life will explode, and you’ll be such a socialite that you can’t ever remember life ever been boring and dull. I do release that a lot of products do this, so I won’t be too harsh on Apple for this reason.
No competition: With the image that Apple portrays itself with its ‘exciting and revolutionary’ products, a lot of consumers believe in this hype and do in fact buy a lot of their products. Funnily enough even if the new product which was released just has one new feature that the older product.
But because of all this hype, with a lot of consumers actually buying their products it makes it all bad for all the little companies who unfortunately have to compete in this market. With everyone buying iPods, iPod shuffle, and the iPod Touch, all other multimedia players out there get shifted to the back shelf and don’t have a chance at all.
The best example that I can give you of this, is for a while now I've been thinking of purchasing a tablet computer. Mostly due to the 2 hour train ride I do every day, there is only certain amount of books I can read when I decide I need a bit of a change. Then I realized that a tablet computer was probably a bit too much just to watch a movie or a TV show on the way to or from work, and that a multimedia player would not only save me a lot of money, it is technically what I was looking for anyways.
Every store that I went to asking for the item, pointed me in the direction of the iPad or the iPod touch. They didn’t have any item out there. Not even for a simple MP3 player or an MP4 player. If I just wanted an MP3 player, then I would have to buy an Apple product, especially for an MP4 player. Mind you I did find one store which sells the item which I’m looking for and I will be going back to purchase that item. Isn’t it very sad that there is no range at all?
Ok I’ve had my rant. Keep in mind that I am not jumping up and down and saying Microsoft is better. I know that there is a whole variety of items out there which one type of product is a lot better than another, but I love having that choice. When you have a large freedom of selection to choose from, it is up to you – the consumer – to decide which item is more suited to your needs. When that selection comes down to either one or two items or nil, you really don’t have a freedom of choice. Unless you’re stuck with the illusion of choice. This just means you think you have a selection, when in fact it is one Apple product or another.
If I had just one favour I could ask people who do go out and buy these products, it’s just to take a moment and think before you purchase that next Apple product. Are you only purchasing it because it has what you need, or are you only purchasing the item because it is what everyone else is buying, and it’s just another fashion accessory.
Since I haven’t liked Apple products for many years (mostly when the first iPod was released), that I need to explain myself. As a lot of people do not understand why I do not like these products. So for everyone today, I will explain the reasons why I do not like Apple.
The Fans: These fans of Apple are the craziest people I have ever met. To me they come close to Twilight fans. They live and breathe Apple products and will always buy Apple products. Every little thing that their new Apple product can do, they seem as though it is the best thing in the world.
Intangible: New movie coming out? Don’t worry about buying the DVD; let’s buy it from the Apple Store. New album released from your favourite band? Let’s buy it from the Apple store. It makes me sick. When I buy a movie or an album, I like holding the item which I’ve just purchased. So basically I like the product which I’ve just bought to be tangible. The product I just bought is faulty? Let me grab that receipt and go back to the store where I purchased it and get a refund or exchange.
Product placements: It seems as though every movie, music video or TV show that is released will always have that perfect shot of an Apple product. It’s not subtle either. It’s a close up view of the item with the logo in plain view, and it will always be the main item. Music video? The apple product will be controlling the music within that video. Movie? It’s what saves the day. I’m pretty sure if the iPhone or iPad was invented back in 1996, it would have been an Apple product that saved the world in the movie Independence Day, not a laptop.
Just give us all your money: I understand that Apple products have their own design which everyone is so very proud of (even though when it is re-released the design never changes). But do you really have to charge an arm and a leg for all your items? They even charge more for Microsoft Office for Macs even more then what Microsoft is charging for it.
Ever been inside an Apple store lately? I’ll guarantee you everything within that store is more expensive than other stores are selling the exact same item. Seriously, paying around $30.00 for a movie, when all you get is the data which you’ve downloaded? If your PC dies, gets stolen, or just get old, that movie or song which you downloaded cannot be sold within a garage sale or through eBay. If you don’t want that movie anymore, you just have to delete it to make room for the other items on your computer.
Image: The image that Apple likes to portray about their items is that when you purchase their items your whole social life will explode, and you’ll be such a socialite that you can’t ever remember life ever been boring and dull. I do release that a lot of products do this, so I won’t be too harsh on Apple for this reason.
No competition: With the image that Apple portrays itself with its ‘exciting and revolutionary’ products, a lot of consumers believe in this hype and do in fact buy a lot of their products. Funnily enough even if the new product which was released just has one new feature that the older product.
But because of all this hype, with a lot of consumers actually buying their products it makes it all bad for all the little companies who unfortunately have to compete in this market. With everyone buying iPods, iPod shuffle, and the iPod Touch, all other multimedia players out there get shifted to the back shelf and don’t have a chance at all.
The best example that I can give you of this, is for a while now I've been thinking of purchasing a tablet computer. Mostly due to the 2 hour train ride I do every day, there is only certain amount of books I can read when I decide I need a bit of a change. Then I realized that a tablet computer was probably a bit too much just to watch a movie or a TV show on the way to or from work, and that a multimedia player would not only save me a lot of money, it is technically what I was looking for anyways.
Every store that I went to asking for the item, pointed me in the direction of the iPad or the iPod touch. They didn’t have any item out there. Not even for a simple MP3 player or an MP4 player. If I just wanted an MP3 player, then I would have to buy an Apple product, especially for an MP4 player. Mind you I did find one store which sells the item which I’m looking for and I will be going back to purchase that item. Isn’t it very sad that there is no range at all?
Ok I’ve had my rant. Keep in mind that I am not jumping up and down and saying Microsoft is better. I know that there is a whole variety of items out there which one type of product is a lot better than another, but I love having that choice. When you have a large freedom of selection to choose from, it is up to you – the consumer – to decide which item is more suited to your needs. When that selection comes down to either one or two items or nil, you really don’t have a freedom of choice. Unless you’re stuck with the illusion of choice. This just means you think you have a selection, when in fact it is one Apple product or another.
If I had just one favour I could ask people who do go out and buy these products, it’s just to take a moment and think before you purchase that next Apple product. Are you only purchasing it because it has what you need, or are you only purchasing the item because it is what everyone else is buying, and it’s just another fashion accessory.
Thursday, 24 November 2011
Give Kyle the kick!
Well who'd a thunk it? Everybody in the whole wide universe is the answer. Kyle is in the media once again and this time it hasn’t even been two months since the last time he was appearing everywhere within the media. This time it’s for his comments against news.com.au reporter Alison Stephenson. She wrote an article about Kyle and Jackie’s new show called ‘A night with the stars.’She mentioned that within minutes of the anticipated program it all fell apart. Despite mainly focusing on just the bad twitter comments about this show, she did have something good to add about it. That as bad as the show was, maybe this type of entertainment is exactly what the fans of the Kyle and Jackie O show actually wanted to see. And above all that, she praised how they have the ability to pull in top major stars.
Kyle’s reaction to the news article? “Some fat slag on the Telegraph website, sorry, news.com.au, has already branded it a disaster. You can tell by reading the article she just hates us. What a fat bitter thing you are. You’ve got a nothing job anyway. You’re a piece of shit." What a very mature thing to say. Not. Many famous people have been back lashed within the media over decades and have just ignored a lot of the comments they hear about them. But Kyle has to come out swinging, saying that it his right as an Australian to defend comments made about himself. If he isn’t stirring up trouble all on his own, it’s his reaction to something someone has said about him.
The amazing thing is that the media and many people call him a shock jock. Maybe they should look up the definition of the word. The dictionary has the definition of shock jock as: “A disc jockey on a talk-radio show who expresses opinions in a deliberately offensive or provocative way.” Expresses opinions! If that is what Kyle is doing, then a lot of men and women who are dragged to courts for verbal abuse due to domestic violence can get off scot free because all they did was expressed their opinion. Face it Kyle. You got ticked off that someone had the guts to write about how they didn’t like your show and it made you mad.
When is the media going to learn that this guy is nothing but a hypocrite and kick him off the air for good? I don’t see him doing any good. He was brought into Big Brother because it was losing ratings in hopes to pick up more viewers, and it made the show worse. He was brought in to Australian Idol and the same thing happen. So the media decides to give him his own show? Very clever people working behind that train of thought there.
Because of his comments live on air, a lot of the top sponsors are coming out of the woodworks and withdrawing from sponsoring not only the TV show, but also the radio show as well. Basically to cover their own arse. Holden released a statement not long after Kyle’s rant on air saying, "Recent comments made on the Kyle and Jackie O Breakfast Show do not in any way reflect the views or opinions of Holden and we are very disappointed to hear Kyle's personal attack on a journalist. We believe the show is no longer in line with Holden's core values and as a result we have taken action to withdraw our sponsorship of the program, effective immediately."
Now a lot of his fans are coming out saying this is just another way for the media to get back at him, and that this whole thing is blown out of proportion. One fan even suggested that “It’s funny how everything is one sided with the media,” and that news reporter Alison, “obviously just wanted to make a good story and didn’t care about, at what cost.” What a complete joke. I’m guessing this poor fan didn’t read the article that Alison wrote, and only got his facts from Kyle’s radio. If this fan of his had any sense at all, they really should have read the article and notice that the only feedback that Alison wrote are from the twitter fans who were watching the show.
As usual, Jackie is taking Kyle’s side and defending him. Saying that “you treat women here, with nothing but the most respect.” Come on Jackie. This isn’t the first time that Kyle treated women like crap. Remember the incident where he strapped a 14 year old to a lie detector to ask her questions about her sexuality to only find out that she was raped? And they still needed a producer to whisper into Jackie’s air that maybe they should stop asking questions!
Face it Kyle. You’re not a has-been, you were nothing to begin with. You’re just an attention seeker trying anything and everything to get their name in the paper. Well guess what, this time it has come back to bite you, and this time the wounds haven’t healed before you’ve decided to get your name in the press once more. Hopefully this time you’re actually kicked off for good, and will actually learn to grow up and act mature for once and take responsibility for your own actions.
Article about the so called love child:
http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/kyle-sandilands-and-jackie-o-discuss-his-secret-love-child-on-air/story-fn907478-1226159961642
Article the Alison Stephenson wrote:
http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/television/kyle-sandilands-and-jackie-os-television-show-a-disaster/story-e6frfmyi-1226201928254.
Kyle’s reaction to the news article? “Some fat slag on the Telegraph website, sorry, news.com.au, has already branded it a disaster. You can tell by reading the article she just hates us. What a fat bitter thing you are. You’ve got a nothing job anyway. You’re a piece of shit." What a very mature thing to say. Not. Many famous people have been back lashed within the media over decades and have just ignored a lot of the comments they hear about them. But Kyle has to come out swinging, saying that it his right as an Australian to defend comments made about himself. If he isn’t stirring up trouble all on his own, it’s his reaction to something someone has said about him.
The amazing thing is that the media and many people call him a shock jock. Maybe they should look up the definition of the word. The dictionary has the definition of shock jock as: “A disc jockey on a talk-radio show who expresses opinions in a deliberately offensive or provocative way.” Expresses opinions! If that is what Kyle is doing, then a lot of men and women who are dragged to courts for verbal abuse due to domestic violence can get off scot free because all they did was expressed their opinion. Face it Kyle. You got ticked off that someone had the guts to write about how they didn’t like your show and it made you mad.
When is the media going to learn that this guy is nothing but a hypocrite and kick him off the air for good? I don’t see him doing any good. He was brought into Big Brother because it was losing ratings in hopes to pick up more viewers, and it made the show worse. He was brought in to Australian Idol and the same thing happen. So the media decides to give him his own show? Very clever people working behind that train of thought there.
Because of his comments live on air, a lot of the top sponsors are coming out of the woodworks and withdrawing from sponsoring not only the TV show, but also the radio show as well. Basically to cover their own arse. Holden released a statement not long after Kyle’s rant on air saying, "Recent comments made on the Kyle and Jackie O Breakfast Show do not in any way reflect the views or opinions of Holden and we are very disappointed to hear Kyle's personal attack on a journalist. We believe the show is no longer in line with Holden's core values and as a result we have taken action to withdraw our sponsorship of the program, effective immediately."
Now a lot of his fans are coming out saying this is just another way for the media to get back at him, and that this whole thing is blown out of proportion. One fan even suggested that “It’s funny how everything is one sided with the media,” and that news reporter Alison, “obviously just wanted to make a good story and didn’t care about, at what cost.” What a complete joke. I’m guessing this poor fan didn’t read the article that Alison wrote, and only got his facts from Kyle’s radio. If this fan of his had any sense at all, they really should have read the article and notice that the only feedback that Alison wrote are from the twitter fans who were watching the show.
As usual, Jackie is taking Kyle’s side and defending him. Saying that “you treat women here, with nothing but the most respect.” Come on Jackie. This isn’t the first time that Kyle treated women like crap. Remember the incident where he strapped a 14 year old to a lie detector to ask her questions about her sexuality to only find out that she was raped? And they still needed a producer to whisper into Jackie’s air that maybe they should stop asking questions!
Face it Kyle. You’re not a has-been, you were nothing to begin with. You’re just an attention seeker trying anything and everything to get their name in the paper. Well guess what, this time it has come back to bite you, and this time the wounds haven’t healed before you’ve decided to get your name in the press once more. Hopefully this time you’re actually kicked off for good, and will actually learn to grow up and act mature for once and take responsibility for your own actions.
Article about the so called love child:
http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/kyle-sandilands-and-jackie-o-discuss-his-secret-love-child-on-air/story-fn907478-1226159961642
Article the Alison Stephenson wrote:
http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/television/kyle-sandilands-and-jackie-os-television-show-a-disaster/story-e6frfmyi-1226201928254.
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