horse meat anyone?

just came across this article in perthnow – check it out! what do you think?

meat free mondays! – show your support!

meat-free-monday is an environmental campaign that i only recent came across, which naturally caught my eye. one of my new years resolutions was to reduce meat intake dramatically by june 2010. although i have been red-meat free for almost 2 years, i have still been eating chicken and occasionally pork as well, not to mention seafood. having grown up eating meat, it is not as simple as just saying no to meat and eliminating it completely from my diet. so i’m trying to be as realistic as possible, but still aiming to achieve this somehow. i don’t wish to change the world – if only that was even possible. all i can aim for, is to change myself.

june 2010 has come and gone, and its beginning to scare me just how quickly time flies passes us by… eek! where is that time travel machine when you need it huh?

so how did meat-free-mondays come about? it all started when it was identified that there was a need to raise awareness of the climate-changing impact of meat production and consumption. By now, many of you would have heard of the impact livestock production has on global greenhouse gas emissions – from what i gather from the website, there is more damage done here even compared to whats caused in transport sector! crazy!

now, this blog post is to ask for your support, but i am not here to preach! that’s why this campaign is a pretty good one to start off with.. because it is not asking you to eliminate meat completely, it is simply encouraging us all to have ONE meat-free day in the week.. not a big ask right?

if there is any chance that this might interest you, go visit the meat-free-mondays website. they have some useful information and even some yummy meat-free recipes.

make a difference in the world, and go meat-free.. just for one day a week! you’d be surprised just how easy it really is!

endless coldplay love…

nothing ever moves me as much as the sweet sounds of chris martin’s voice.. with amazing songs like ‘the scientist‘, ‘fix you‘, and many, many more.. i can’t help but get welled-up, or feel goosebumps down my spine when these songs are played. chris martin is an absolute genius. he writes lyrics that are so incredibly strong and powerful, they could move mountains. coldplay is my absolutely dream band, and i fall in love with them over and over again.

chris martin, fair trade advocate

apart from their music, coldplay are also strong supporters of oxfam’s fair trade campaign, and have wisely used their celebrity status to promote a good cause. what i like about them is that they are strong advocates, yet do not preach and misuse their celebrity power. chris martin has the oxfam campaign’s twin-striped logo tattooed onto his left hand.

coldplay, my endless love… thank you for being such inspirational songwriters and musicians.

our kids, our future!

its amazing how much television can influence kids.. there was this random unknown cartoon on tv the other morning, and they were teaching kids about recycling, wastage etc. once the segment was over, my nephew turned to my sister and said ‘lets try and not use plastic as much ok?’.. just amazing.  this is the age we need to drum into kids the importance of looking after our planet. we adults, some of us anyway, are so far gone with our usual habits and ignorance, that simple tasks such as recycling is a chore.

our kids, our future!

i heart keepcups

i came across keepcups.com recently, and i am very excited about blogging about them. from what i gather, they have been out for at least a year, but i have only just discovered them! the people behind keepcups have produce these amazing new eco-friendly reusable take-away coffee cups, designed specifically for drinks on the go..  coffee, tea, juice, soups, whatever!

you can choose your colours - cup, band, plug, lid

its such a simple concept. so simple that it made me think ‘doh! why didn’t i think of this?’.. ha! they even have a simple product slogan: ‘hot coffee. cool planet.’ –  this just encompasses all it stands for.

for those of you who’s lifestyles normally involves a caffeine-hit on the go.. these keepcups are great – both for yourselves, and the environment! it’s really a great and simple way we can reduce wastage!

do you need more convincing? here goes..

• they are designed and manufactured in australia
• they can last for 4 years – so there is no need to repeatedly purchase cups to feed your coffee lifestyle.
• they are very well made. if you go to their website, have a look at how these cups are designed. just as an example, the cup has a lid and plug which is designed to prevents spills, when you are on the go. we all know how awful it is to spill hot coffee all over you.. ouch!
• they come in 3 different sizes, as normal disposable coffee cups do – small, medium and large
• they fit nicely under the barista’s coffee machine – wow! smart!
• using a permanent marker, you can also highlight your coffee preference (eg. latte) so there is no confusion with other cups

latte anyone?

these people have really thought about the design very well!

how much you ask? the smalls are $12, the mediums are $14 and the large are $16. these are non inclusive of shipping and handling. i am yet to find out which retail outlets sell these, but i will be sure to let you know when i do. if you’re looking for a gift idea – these keepcups also come in a very pretty gift box – here, check it out for yourself. what do you think?

keepcup gift box - for only $1.10

people, lets not add to the billions of disposable take-away coffee cups dumped in the landmines. do what i am about to do, and get yourself a keepcup today!

world vision ‘gifts’

so.. if you were living in a 3rd world country (where finding food for yourself and your family is a struggle) and you were presented a piglet to ‘fertilise’ your farm for better crops.. would you:

a) use the piglet for just that

b) kill the pig for a nice meal?

i am guessing the second option??

piglet gift

well, world vision have this new campaign specifically for mother’s day, ‘smiles‘ gift catalogue, where you can actually purchase a piglet for $50 (among other living animals, plants and things) as a mother’s day gift to mothers living in difficult conditions.

piglet for $50

it’s almost like promoting taking the life of an innocent living animal, for the sake of letting one or a few survive! i am sure they mean well, and did not mean to bring harm to the poor animal.. but i was a little disturbed when i came past this. food for thought anyway.. no pun intended! 😦

RIP road-side doggy

its sad you know, that after driving past a dead dog on a main road late last night (who had obviously been hit by a car), i didn’t have the heart to stop the car, run to it, to move the body. instead, i burst into tears hysterically, praying to god, and begging him/ her/ whoever you believe in, to protect the poor dog’s body from  other cars from running it over again and again.

i sped back home, which was only a short 5 minutes away from the hit and run, with my bloodshot eyes, and endless tears rolling down my face, rushing to the phone, to call whoever out there who might be of assistance. i called rspca, who were closed the day (i did know this, however, wanted to try my luck.. just in case!).  whilst listening to their voice mail recording, i took down the number for the police – as stated on their message – for emergency situations, contact the police.

before calling the police, i thought i should maybe contact a 24-hour veterinary clinic which might be open and might be so kind as to drive down to move the body. i was wrong. i got another voice mail recording. i then called the police.

much to my suprise, the police picked up my call almost imemdiately, and was extremely sensitive and kind. i guess she fed off the sounds of my whimpering and my struggle with the situation. she initially asked me where the dog was exactly, and  i struggled to even remember exactly where i saw the dog’s body. after a few minutes of trying to remember, i could roughly give her an idea of where it might have been. she then went on asking if the dog was alive and injured, or dead. before i could say anything, she interrupted me by saying if the dog was injured, there was nothing more the police could do but to shoot it to stop its suffering. i was mortified at this!

i did say however that i did think the dog wad dead, because when i drove past it, it didnt move, not even slightly. she said if that was the case, she would call main roads to remove the body. sigh..

so what i got was this, if an animal is dead, so be it. someone will take care of it. who knows.. just maybe someone will be emotionally strong enough, and kind enough to move its body, and do the right thing by its owners. if the animal is injured,.. kill it. pretty damn irresponsible and disheartening to think this is what people do, even in an animal loving country like australia.

rest in peace road-side doggy..

rest in peace

sign the anti-whaling petition now!

so.. i received this email from a friend today reporting that there is a proposal floating about which would make commercial whaling legal in some countries…w..t..f..!!!

this is my plea to you, to take immediate action and sign this petition against this inhumane (funny i use this word, as it is us disgusting humans who are doing this) act. the fate of the proposal will be determined largely by the world’s immediate actions.

where can you find the petition you ask? – all you have to do is click here.. they need your help now! 😦

please sign the anti-whaling petition

thom’s style

one of my favourite celebrity interior designer thom felicia (ex queer eye for the straight guy) has this simplistic yet amazing home design show on the style network, that has got me hooked.

thom felicia

i admit it.. i am addicted to most home renovation, interior design, property buying and selling shows on tv… what can i say.. cable is evil 🙂

this show however is pretty awesome, because not only does it feature my lovely thom (love him!), but his make over work on clients’ home spaces based on their favourite clothing or items of inspiration (such as  shells picked up from beach-side honeymoons… you get the idea) is absolutely genius!.. how can you go wrong with combining fashion with home make-overs? its a pretty smart way of approaching interior design!

before

after

unfortunately, the photos of thom’s work simply do not pay him the justice he deserves. you really need to watch the show to follow and to be part of the whole process of getting to know the client, identifying the client’s items of clothing which will act as inspiration points for the make-over etc, for you to appreciate his approach.

before

after

thom really gets what his clients want and despite being restricted to meeting their inspiration points, he still goes out of his way, takes risks, trusts his gutt instincts on what will work and look absolutely incredible. the choice of furniture, colour, lighting, trinkets, flooring… oh the man is a genius!

before

after

to back up my love for thom, are his amazing accolades – he has been rated america’s top 100 interior designers, among others, and he has even scored an emmy for his amazing work as art director for the queer eye for a straight guy. he has also written a book called ‘thom felicia style’.

so all you interior design lovers out there, if you have not caught thom in action, i suggest you do so! for those in perth, dress my nest is shown on foxtel’s style network (channel 122) on: fridays @ 5pm, saturdays @ 6.20am, sundays @ 6.45am. for those of you who are thinking i am nuts to be up watching tele at that time of the morning… hey.. nobody said i wasn’t crazy! :p

in-som-ni-a

argh, there is nothing worse that not being able to get a proper good nights rest!

my usual routine is pretty rubbish.. having my dinner on the couch whilst watching tv – (hmm.. you’re shaking your head already arent you?).. and then once dishes are done, back on the couch.. the cushions behind my back are then poofed nicely into comfy airbags and are then placed nicely against the arm of the couch… i gently move myself down the couch in a cleopatra manner, resting my head on the cushions.. i then proceed to wrap my grandma-self in a nice warm blanky. sounds pretty comfortable doesn’t it? it is really..

sleepy eyes

… whilst watching the tele, i feel my eyelids droop down. i drift deep in a sleep trance, and there is no turning back. i find myself getting the best sleep on the couch then i do in bed. i dont get it, especially since the tv is on whilst on the couch, yet the noise does not bother me.

… the clock strikes around midnight, and i then automatically wake up, to move from the couch to my bed for some proper sleep.  i turn the lights off, same with the tele, and… uh oh.. i am wide awake! i can’t seem to fall asleep! and even if i do, the night’s sleep is interrupte. whats a girl to so?

i have tried lavendar oil, herbal sleeping pills, reading books.. but nothing has successfully worked. anyone out there has an answer for me?