Young entrepreneur Clint Salter was born and raised in Camden (Sydney’s Western Suburbs) where his relationship with the world of entrepreneurship began at an early age. At age 16 Clint opened up a dance studio where he taught after school while completing his Year 10 Certificate. Continue Reading

Professor Finlay McCrae, has successfully completed the first ever endoscopy procedures using a dual high definition, endomicroscopy endoscope at Cabrini Hospital, Melbourne. Continue Reading

Westin Heavenly Travel Blanket AUD$60

Cosy, snug and compact for napping on the go, the Westin Heavenly Travel Blanket is a lust item for any traveller. Open, it’s a full sized, soft blanket, fold and tuck into a hidden pocket and it’s a beautiful plush pillow. With a strengthening commitment to guest wellness, the Westin Heavenly Travel Blanket offers the comfort and luxury synonomous with first class travel. Continue Reading

With over 110 million hits for ‘exercise’ and ‘weight loss’ on Google every year, it’s no surprise that many are confused by the multitude of options available and cant decide what will work best for them. Do you join a big gym and sweat it out with the masses? Do you get a personal trainer? Do you buy a pushbike and go riding every day? You could even buy one of those exercise machines that are available at your local shopping centre. Continue Reading

One of the unpleasant side effects of internet dating is attracting losers. Sorry but this is the truth. Over the years I started to catagorise some of these people – the stalker, the talker, the time waster and what I affectionately call the moron.

Let’s start with the stalker. This is the person that cannot let it go. There are a couple of different types of stalkers – the one that wants desperately for you to talk to them; the one that you DO talk to then decide that was a bad idea try and break it off but they just won’t get the message; and the one whom you actually meet, decide they’re not for you but again just won’t leave you alone.

Stalker 1 – Listen… I didn’t smile, kiss, etc back at you because I’m simply not interested. I read your bio and I’m sure you mother loves you, but you’re just not my type. Just let it go. Stop smiling, kissing, etc at me and move on to the next person. Also… don’t ask me why I didn’t reply, just move on…

The second type of stalker are those that follow you around electronically. You chatted to them online… once. All I can say is “thank god for blocking mechanisms”. But they hunt you down. Wherever you go – Facebook, MSN, Twitter, they’re there! Lying in wait to pounce on your unsuspecting keyboard. “Why are you ignoring me, what have I done to deserve this?” Ooookaayy, creepy. I’ve never met you, I don’t even know you and now we have some fantasy relationship where I’m your best friend who isn’t speaking to you after knowing you for 100 years (10 mins on the internet). There’s only one thing to do with this person – block, block, and keep blocking. Whatever you do, don’t ever give them your private email address, you’ll never hear the end of it. I love hotmail. I can be whoever I want to be at the drop of a keystroke – hotlips2000; shedevil500; and tomorrow I can simply shut it down and be someone else.

And then there’s the ones you meet. This could be a whole article in itself. How do you stop them from calling. There’s only one thing for it – be honest. Simply say “Thanks, but I’m not feeling it. Have a nice life”. Whatever you do don’t say the magic words “I had a great time”. If you do you have opened the door to a whole set of questions – “Then why don’t you want to see me again”; “You said you had a good time so what’s the problem”. Just turn and walk away. If you meet them online say “Hi” but don’t overly encourage them, otherwise they think you are now soul mates, destined to be together forever. Whatever…

I once chatted to this guy online for roughly 5 minutes, he said some stuff that really made me uneasy. How he meets women in public places for a little bit of gratification, or a lot of gratification in his case, I’m not so sure about hers…. At first I was fascinated, you really do this? Do people really do this? I thought that only happened in porn movies. I soon found out I was wrong. He was an interesting character to say the least. Would I meet up with him? Ahhhh no thanks, not my style. Boy did he go nuts. How dare I lead him on, why wouldn’t I meet him, and on it went. But it didn’t stop there. Everytime I was online he was there. Stalking me. Creep. So when in doubt – block. And if this doesn’t work… I contacted one of the websites and asked them to make sure he couldn’t access me anymore. It must have worked because I never heard from him again. It was a toss up between stalker and moron, but I have to put him into the first category because I didn’t actually meet him.

More next week…

Guest contribution by Julie Allen @ www.thefullpretzel.com.au

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Spending a little here and a little there can really add up leaving you wondering where all your money has gone! Get control of your spending with the free online budgeting tool, ANZ MoneyManager, which gives you a snapshot of your expenses in one simple and secure website.

ANZ MoneyManager automatically groups transactions into categories such as groceries, entertainment, ATM withdrawals and more, providing you with a clear picture of where your money is being spent. Continue Reading

Feature image taken by Yegor Korzh @ www.yktravelphoto.com Continue Reading

Experiencing the art of happiness is as close as your next visit to Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast.

As part of the Sunshine Coast Art Prize, Caloundra is hosting Art in the Park from 8am to 1pm, on Sunday 4 October 2009. The event in Felicity Park links the prestigious Sunshine Coast Art Prize exhibition at Caloundra Regional Gallery with the popular Bulcock Street markets with over 100 stalls. Continue Reading

Today, Sydney based pizza chain, Pizzacutters will launch a range of six new pizzas, which have earned the Heart Foundation Tick of Approval. From tantalising Beef Bearnaise to Vege Delight, the pizza chain hopes to excite Australian taste buds by offering healthier options for the much loved meal. Continue Reading

Twenty years is a long time in the food world.

In 1989 Atlantic salmon had only been farmed in Tasmania for a few years and aquaculture (then confined to a very few species) was just starting to be heralded as the way of the future. Although Sydney-siders were becoming more interested in food, the average palate was still at best quite uneducated and at worst quite staid. Continue Reading

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Good news for the housing market: a survey by Australia’s largest independently-owned mortgage broker, Mortgage Choice, found over one third of Generation Ys planning to buy an investment property by June 2011 also aimed to purchase a home during that time. Almost one quarter wanted to create an investment property portfolio of ‘as many properties as possible’. Continue Reading

Following on from my last posting, I thought I would share some of the crazy, wonderful and bad experiences of my online dating. One of the first things I learned and have never forgotten is Rule Number 1 – don’t lie…

If you lie, you will get caught. Now I’m not saying that I lied on my profile but I did opt to leave out some things, for the sake of my privacy of course. I wasn’t lying… I just wasn’t telling. But it seems that some others have taken this to the extreme. Continue Reading

Now there’s no excuse not to get inked, as the world’s first permanent, yet more easily removable, tattoo ink has hit Australian shores! Continue Reading

Businesses are paying the price, as almost half of Australians (44.2%) confess to wasting hours of company time surfing the net for a new job, with 38% of workers admitting they’ve applied for a new role during work time, according to new research*. Continue Reading

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Even though we’re celebrating the start of Spring and all the extra sunlight that the warmer months offer, we’re all working harder and longer at work. Many workplaces have cut back on the number off staff or resources but still expect more from you as an employee. Continue Reading