I was having dinner in a cosy, welcoming pub with my family when a loud voice, belonging to the burly man seated behind us, interrupted our conversation. He was with a young couple, aged about 30, and their two young boys who had long hair and looked around the ages of eight and six. Each…
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Social media is a battlefield crawling with landmines: people can post offensive and triggering things while using the defence ‘It’s just my opinion’; posts can go viral in mere minutes; activists who use online platforms are criticised for being ‘social justice warriors’ taking things too seriously; and don’t get me started on 4chan. Social media…
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On the May 8, 2013, at 8:48 pm, Paul Rossington leapt from his cabin balcony on the Carnival Spirit cruise liner into the Tasman sea, 19 metres below. He did not survive. Just hours before the fatal fall, Mr Rossington was seen arguing with fiancée, Ms Kristen Schroder, with whom he reportedly had a ‘volatile…
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When Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie told graduates at Wellesley College to forget likeability, it made headlines. Not only because when Adichie, a prolific novelist and feminist, speaks people tend to listen, but also because this is not something young women hear often. ‘All over the world, girls are raised to be make themselves likeable, to twist…
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Meet Harnaam Kaur, a 24 year old British teacher’s aide and anti-bullying activist who happens to have a whopping great beard. The self-proclaimed “Bearded Dame” was diagnosed with a hormonal disorder called Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) at age 11. This relatively common disorder – affecting 12-18% of women of reproductive age – is diagnosed based…
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The nature of being a woman in the 21st Century means that easy access to beauty therapists, hair salons, instructive magazines and fashion outlets warrants little or no excuse for dropping the ball in the personal maintenance department. While men were once the Knights, Gladiators and Vikings with courage and balls, it is the modern…
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It is a truth universally acknowledged that grammar trolls are extremely popular people. Picking on someone’s spelling and punctuation rather than their arguments and ideas is clearly taking the high road, and being nitpicky is definitely something that shouldn’t be associated with pince-nez and monkeys grooming each other for fleas. Or maybe I’ve got that…
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Taking a step back from my usual etiquette column, I have come across something that I feel warrants some discussion. I was watching TV last night when the Australian network I was tuned in to showed an advertisement for an upcoming program which left me quite stunned. An overly excited commentator suddenly shouted out ‘Lingerie…
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Australian cinema in 2011 was dominated by Snowtown; the controversial cinematic depiction of the ‘Bodies in the Barrel’ case that is known as Australia’s worst and most infamous serial killings. Having only recently viewed the film, all I can say is that it’s the most disturbing film I have ever seen… and I’ve seen some…
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There was a recent article on Xo Jane that talked about women, makeup and men’s perceptions of women and makeup. It reminded me a lot of this comic I’d seen circulating around on tumblr (see featured image). I laughed, but also felt annoyed. It’s true; I’ve experienced this before from the men in my life…
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I recently realised I am still hyper aware of my body and how it can be perceived. I don’t know if this will ever change. If I am going out anywhere, I make sure I ‘dress to impress’, because I want to create some sort of impression on people. I still care about what strangers…
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Do you wear makeup every day? I do, and I’m definitely not alone. A survey for Bobbi Brown Cosmetics of over 1800 young women aged 16 to 19 showed that two-thirds of respondents wore makeup five or more days a week — and just 7 per cent said they wore makeup only on special occasions. To…
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I attended my good friend’s wedding last Saturday. In fact, I was a part of the bridal party. It was an extremely long day which turned into an extremely long night. The bride wanted us to be comfortable the entire day and I mostly was – our bridesmaid dresses were very comfortable (with POCKETS) and…
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