Fame, money and true ambition

Sometimes, it is assumed that when you have money, you live the ultimate life. I think if you ask for the life ambitions of many people popular answers would be: to achieve fame and with it extreme amounts of money.

Over a year ago, I longed and longed for this expensive necklace and I was so excited when there finally was a chance for me to have it. Then I got it and it wasn't such a big deal any more: I had it and it wasn't just out of reach like I felt it was before. Strangely, I sort of liked the sensation of being close enough to touch but too far to grab. If I'm being honest, I haven't worn it yet. I'm too scared of loosing it or damaging it. This sort of takes the fun away from owning it; it's only admired privately by few sets of eyes.
 With money you can have almost anything, you could have everything one could own. But is having everything really that fantastic? What then is there to strive for? To be less greedy?

I wonder if those who will do anything for fame realise what it really might be like. Sure, you might be able to afford a massive house and live in luxury but think of things you couldn't do. You couldn't walk through a city street and you couldn't go grocery shopping without the incessant cries of paparazzi, following and documenting your every move. You'd have to start to thoroughly think about everything you say because you know those people who takes anything out of context? You'd have about a million of those to deal with too! I'm not sure if I'm the only one who likes to escape for some time to myself but can you imagine how hard it would be to evade the invasive media? In this way - I understand why some celebrities are often brought to breaking point. The tremendous pressure and the persistent invasion of life would be truly infuriating.

So I ask you to reconsider your ambitions because it can be so easy to be blinded by bias feelings. Would they really lead to the life you would like? I urge you to think about each side and about the effects on everyone you know. Have you ever chosen goals and then realised that when you thought them through rationally, they really don't suit you at all?

Homelessness - what can be done?

I haven't really seen much homelessness before because I rarely go into the city or bigger suburbs but the experiences I have had really stick in my head, despite it being quite a few years ago.

When I was quite a bit younger, I was confronted with homelessness for the first time and was sickened by it.

I still remember the day, my family and I were on the road and we drove into a street with a line of shops and offices and a church. We saw him on the ground, in a sleeping bag, lying outside of the veterans counselling office - which was closed at the time. He lay on the ground with a couple of frames positioned near him, all by himself. Sadly, also near him was a bottle of turpentine and a Coca Cola, both of which he'd been drinking. 

As we witnessed this man, we saw people coming out of the church, walking right by him. Not one of them stopped. No one asked him how they could help. My mother and father went to talk to him and my mother called the police, who got the ambulance. I cannot say whether he survived because I don't know, the police didn't say when my mother rung them up later on.

Imagine having to find a place to sleep every night...

Another time, when I was about 10 or so, I saw a  homeless man kneeling on the pavement in a busy Sydney street. His head was down and he was holding a small cardboard box with a sign above it explaining his situation. He had kids which he couldn't feed. My Mum gave my brother a two dollar coin, which he tossed into the box. Mum still feels dreadful about the situation. What really upset me is that though there were many people walking by no one seemed to stop.

                                                                            
105, 000 people are homeless each night in Australia. 23% of these people are children. In Victoria, 6400 12-25 year olds are homeless every night. About 51% of homeless young people in Victoria manage to stay in education. What causes people to become homeless? Causes can include: the large drop in affordable accommodation, domestic violence, financial difficulties, family problems, relationship breakdown, drug or alcohol addiction and mental illnesses.  

But what can be done?
Charities have done a great deal to help the homeless people in Australia but they don't have enough money or places to rehouse everyone. Of course, it is more easier said than done but I think their should be much, much more accommodation available. It would be great if there were more places that could rehouse whole families, rather than having to split them up which would be very traumatic, especially for children.
What do you think about homelessness? What do you think should be done about it? 

Success, failure and expectations

Have you ever met one of those people who seems to succeed and achieve wherever they go in life?
It might be that they seem to have a perfect job or maybe they have flawless relationships.
You might begin to wonder why they are so lucky or maybe attempt to find their secret key to success.
The media often seems to do this, with headlines like: 'She's 50 and has the body of a 20 year old, what is her secret?' Probably intense physical training and an incredibly healthy diet. Maybe an amazing set of genes. Possibly both. Although we know that nobody is perfect, we can assume that someone is because of the way they appear. Every now and again we are reminded that no matter how smart or pretty someone is, everyone has failures and things that hold them up in life. Sometimes we can see a glimpse of the struggles which even the most successful can suffer. This sometimes shocks us because of the high expectations that we place on people, which in reality are often completely unreasonable.

The thing is, I used to think I knew someone who had a 'flawless' life, they believed in themselves and had a lovely family and loyal friends - what more could you ask for? But after a while, she came out of her shell and instead of being the confident happy girl she seemed, I saw a different side. A girl who had insecurities and a lot of anger bottled up inside of her, a more human side. I was shocked as I'd only seen her in robot form, functioning merely in a state which appealed to others. Although I didn't really like her, I understood her more. I valued the fact that I could see where she was coming from instead of seeing this strange 'perfect' girl.

To some failure and seeing flaws cause much pain and suffering but for me they are just a part of life which we can learn from. Not a great part, I admit, but an important part because something can be drawn from almost any failure. Do you ever feel that you have to be a 'perfect' human? Do you feel more comfortable around those showing themselves more fully?

The milk price cut - who really benefits?

In January 2011, Coles supermarket lowered the price of home brand milk to a dollar per litre.
When I first heard this I thought that perhaps this was a good thing, after all living prices are expensive so if this helps make it cost less, why not?

The chief executive for Aussie Farmers Direct, Braeden Lord has said, 'they can't denigrate the product by reducing the price without some knock-on effects in the milk supply chain.'
By bringing the prices down, the dairy industry will be severely effected.
Many farmers were affected by the recent flooding, they are trying to keep up financially and some fear that this will be a strong blow to them. A large dairy farm co-operative have said that in some parts of NSW and QLD, those in the dairy industry earned 54.11 cents per litre, only 4 cents more than the break even price in 2009-10. Coles has said that they would absorb the price cuts but some have thought that if the price cut stays for a lengthened time it would have to impact the farmers.

Apart from this, quality could be effected.
Aussie Farmers Direct have said that the generic milk sold in supermarkets is often diluted with byproducts from the cheese industry.
Aussie Farmers Direct milk does not contain any extra permeate which is a natural byproduct that many large milk companies add a lot of to help level the amount of fat in each bottle.
Braeden Lord has said that his company do not add it to their milk as they believe it takes away the real taste of the milk

The Tasmanian milk processor, Betta Milk have discouraged customers from buying 'inferior quality dairy products from mainland producers.'

I know that for many this price cut will come as a blessing but for the farmers it seems to be a curse. I encourage you, that if your budget it can take it, support farmers and don't buy Coles brand milk.
Will you be buying Coles brand milk? Why? Why not?

                                    

What is beauty to you?

Often, the media seems to try to define what beauty is.
One day it proclaims, 'curves are in,’ and the next it declares a woman who is of a healthy weight 'frumpy.' Sometimes, it attacks thinner women and tells them to gain weight.
 A lot of a time 'beauty' seems to change on a minute to minute basis. So much emphasis is put on being 'pretty' today that sadly, some go to huge extremes to change themselves but what is pretty? I'm not sure if I'm the only one who finds the idea of 'perfection' a little scary. 
Honestly, I don't think prettiness is something which you can follow a guide to, as my mother sometimes says, 'beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.'

Some people have tried to set standards for beauty but in my opinion; this is impossible. Beauty isn't really something you can define and beauty isn't always appearance. To me, to be beautiful you have to have a beautiful personality and this is what really matters the most.
What is beauty to you? Is it important?

What is life like for a gay teenager?

As I sat on the bus the other day, I heard a disturbing message on the radio: a large amount of teenagers aren’t accepting of those who are gay and even go so far as to bully and attack them.

Of course, I didn’t really need to be told this. I go to school. I know how some people act.

I guess it was sadness which has made me think of it as I write. I’m sad that many people of my age can’t accept their gay peers. I’m sad that in 2011, gays can’t marry. I’m sad that almost every gay person experiences or has experienced homophobia. I’m sad about the lack of equality.

In 2010, one of my good friends, Lee* came out as lesbian. She pulled me aside and told me one day and though I’d only really just got to know her, we were beginning to form a good friendship. I was touched that she trusted me; I knew that it was something that Lee had to tell others herself – when she was ready and from the minute she told me, my lips were sealed.

She told some people, little by little and soon it was out: there was a lesbian in our year.

It spread like wildfire. Strangers began to hiss, ‘dyke,’ at Lee when she walked through the corridors.

Soon, girls were rushing out of the change rooms when Lee walked in, assuming that because she was gay, she was also a pervert.

Here are some American statistics:

- 80% of gay, lesbian and bisexual young people said that they have felt severely isolated.

- A study found that gay young people are 2 – 3 times more likely to commit suicide in comparison to other youth.

- 53% of gay students have heard homophobic comments made by members of staff.

During part of this time, Lee fell into a deep depression – which unfortunately is the reality for many teens that identify as GLBTIQ. She faced nasty comments from members of the class and for months, people talked about, ‘that lesbian chick,’ when they obviously had nothing more interesting to discuss.

Luckily, the situation has calmed down a lot. It is almost normal at school for Lee now but had she not had the support which she received at that time, things could have ended in a much, much worse way. 

I urge you to be kind and accepting of gay teens as this is often a really difficult time for them.

I’d be grateful to hear your thoughts on the matter and whether you'd like to read a post from Lee...

* Name was changed for security reasons.

Thank you to http://www.gayfamilysupport.com/gay-statistics.html for the statistics.

A sweet treat leaves a sour taste

I think it would be fair to say that most people love chocolate.
But many do not know the sickening truth behind cocoa production...

The leading countries for the cocoa bean industry are in West Africa. In Côte d’Ivoire alone, there are more than half a million cocoa farms.

This country along with Ghana provides 

about 60 - 80% of cocoa beans in the 

world industry.

Cocoa beans

However, on each farm, it is estimated that there are around 12-15 thousand children working as slaves in dreadful conditions. But how did they get there?
Although child slavery is illegal in both Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, a study shows that each year 200,000 children are trafficked
in these countries.

Slave traffickers look for boys who are by themselves and take them in, only to sell them to Cocoa farmers who need cheap workers. Sometimes they look for families with boys in them and collaborate with a family member to force the job of a cocoa bean picker on a poor child.

Often, a child slave is paid nothing for their work. The money instead goes to those involved in trafficking the child and the boss of the farm on which the child works. 
These children cannot get to school.
These poor children not only are not paid but also are often not fed properly. 
It seems almost impossible to escape from this exploitative trade.

So what can be done?
Please let others know the truth of what is behind the chocolate industry. Buying Fair Trade chocolate brands such as: Green & Blacks (which is also organic), Cadbury Milk Chocolate (please note: only the plain dairy milk is Fair trade) and Whittakers Creamy Milk Block. Buying Fair Trade and not supporting child slave labour may force farmers to change the way they act.  


Thank you to all the websites which provided helpful information and pictures for this article.