Friends - Spice of Life

For Chantelle

Life is like a great big juicy meal; you can nibble around the edges, and blow on it tentatively just in case it's too hot. Or you can throw caution to the wind and attack it with gusto, taking your fill and not worrying too much if you get burnt in the process. Life can be pretty bland, so to spice it up a bit, you throw in some friends... Friends can be very flavoursome, sweet, sour, hot, cold. The point is, they are there to enhance your life, and enrich it - not to be your life - for that has substance on it's own. As with herbs and spices in your meals, you often have different friends for different situations; life long friends from childhood; school friends; work friends; sporting friends; friends of friends; online friends; and acquaintances with whom you are friendly.

The key to having many different friends is acceptance... Accept that they may not agree with everything that you do or say, yet know that they will respect you and support you if needed. How do you know that your friends will do this for you? Because that is exactly what you will do for them - and they know it. Seriously, do you agree with everything that all of your friends say and do? I doubt it, and if you pretend to, then you aren't really a good friend, as that is lying by omission, and not showing them your true self or being honest with them.

My real friends don't expect their friends to follow them blindly, nor do they try to manipulate support for the actions they take and the choices they make. My wonderful friends don't use emotional blackmail to try and get you to support their point of view. They know, that even if I disagree with them publicly, I do so because I must follow my own conscience, make my own informed decisions as an adult, and travel my own path. I would be very disappointed if they themselves did anything less, and we are all confident in the knowledge that we will always be there when it really counts.

My friends know that I will say what I think always, and that I am honest in my expression of my opinion and fair - I treat everyone the same way - no exceptions. When I do something that is totally out of line, I listen to them, as I value their opinion. I take pleasure that someone cares enough to tell me if I am making a fool of myself, or heading for trouble - someone who cared less, and was merely a 'yes' friend, or as I like to call them a 'sheep' would not risk the aggravation. I will do the same for a friend, rather than stand by and watch them do something to the detriment of themselves or others.

Like spices, certain friends are better suited to specific foods. They come in varying flavours and strengths, and they make that slice of life taste delicious. You can spit them out and regurgitate them, however I find that it is best to grin and bear it when they don't taste so good, for you can't have too many real friends who accept you for what you are - can you? Imagine how boring your meal would be if you added spice to it that just blended in? Above all friends should enhance your life and be FUN! If they leave a funny taste in your mouth all the time, and make you feel uncomfortable - you can avoid that particular taste - by removing them from your menu. Or, you can store them away, for when your taste buds change, or they mature in flavour.

You need friends so that you can see different points of view, learn from their experiences, and strive to be achieve the attributes you admire in them. Follow your heart, make decisions based on what you know is right - I do, and I am proud of it. I am also very proud of all my friends that do it, and I respect them very much, especially when we have differing opinions, for what would be the point in having 'sheep' for friends. I don't need people to validate the choices and decisions I make, for I make them all with a clear conscience and the best intentions - I prefer my friends that do the same.

Cheers - Lui

Truth - A Vixen's Version

Tabloid Television...

What is it with those so-called current affairs type reporters? Do they really talk like that all the time? Is it some sort of pseudo sexy serious cross breed sort of monotone that they must pretend to have? That pout, punctuating every supposedly serious sentence is meant to convey what exactly?

Do they risk cracking their steel-plated make up or being fired if they exhibit a mere facial expression or hint of personality?

Seriously - these stories are aimed at those who can't think for themselves. Sensational, hair-raising, headlines; terrible, tawdry tattle telling; carefully edited to be characteristically out of context; and carefully plotted to portray poor victims of circumstance as outlandishly as possible.

As I switch off the latest torrid tirade of tall stories, I wonder what else goes on behind those soul less eyes and that haughty facade of the presenter...

Journal Of A PrimeTimePrincess

Date: 29 August 2006

Mirror mirror on the wall, who's the prettiest poutiest most pretentious presenter of all??? Well I am of course! Not only that, I am the best, and my succession to the throne again for the season of 2007 has now been released by the media. Eat my dust you breeders in NSW and Qld who's jobs I 'covered' in the past, it's all mine. Next the rest of Australia, after that, the world! Well maybe not the 3rd world, I'm not sure they will be able to see me through all the dust there. Why don't they water their gardens, what is with them?

It would seem my rivals and critics can whinge about me until the cows come home - where have they gone anyway?. I love it, any attention is good, as long as it's focused on ME! All they do is feed the fury about me and raise my ratings. It is well known that the Australian public habitually cut down tall poppies... They should be more concerned that people are cutting down the poppies needed for people like my ex - that stuff doesn't grow on trees you know! Oh, well, accidents happen, I had no idea that I would get caught dating him on the sly, how was I to know he wasn't just skiing on the snow? However, my public apology has redeemed me, and I shine like an angel in the limelight... Well, at least my hair does, oooh look at it, it's divine.

I really am deeply hurt and distressed by the crude comments and criticism I have received after traipsing over to the wilds of West Papua only to be refused entry to save that poor little boy from cannibis... Or was it cannibals? Anyway, it was really annoying not to get that story, I really wanted to swipe it out from under that fat arses of those Channel 19 swines. Not to mention the fact that I have heard that a great alternative to botox is to inject a potion that can be harvested from live children - preferably wild ones.

I am still chasing that story, I am not giving up on it, Channel 19 can kiss my fit firm, personally trained, diva's derrier. I missed out on those gold miners who decided the best time to surface, was after I had gone to the Logies... The hide of them, after all the effort I put in, prancing about and mixing it with the mere minions. Channel 17 even made me pretend to sleep in that Winnebago, that Channel 19 accused of being my hairdressing trailer. As if - that is where my crew slept, and I certainly did not sleep there. Whom I do or do not or have slept with in my crew is up to me and if I did (not that I am saying I did) it would not be there! Anyway, I suppose I got my own back, I put the public straight on that one... Well it was the version my execs advised me to give, poor hard done by me, trailer park trash for the day. That should get some empathy from my fans, they think I slummed it for some time, just like they do.

Well, I better go and practice my serious stare, and pretentious pout, for I believe the next batch of stories those little field reporters have me presenting tonight aren't particularly believable. As long as they have chosen the poorest, least educated, oddest looking persons in the scary streets that they cruise looking for dodgy types with cagey stories. My field crew and and I are like vampires, hounding the hordes for weird and whacky stories - and Australia watch them avidly. With my intelligence, integrity and integral insights at the end of each segment, the world won't notice that there is no proof, expert opinion, or research involved. All I need do as add creative comments (whether in context or not), and get some well known clergy type fellow to give it credence. If all else fails, I'll just state the bleeding obvious, then add, 'mmm I'm not touching that one.'

PS. For all those snobby intellectuals, like you 'Chaser' crew, who say I am not a journalist, or a reporter... This is a journal and I am reporting my thoughts in it, so stick that in your #$(%^!@#, thank you.


Reality Check

Then I think to myself, why are you wasting thought on this at all? Oh that's right, using my imagination to excercise my brain, before it becomes mush from watching tripe like current tabloid news shows. I quickly down a glass of medicinal red wine to render me immune to what I infected my brain with before switching off the 'idiot box.' For the record, this is the only article that makes any sense in regard to poor Wa Wa the Western Papuan Boy, who seems to have disappeared into obscurity.

Cheers - Lui