It’s always amusing – and facepalmy – when a song with stupid lyrics makes it to the Top 40. What’s worse is when the lyrics are in equal parts stupid and disrespectful. It’s as if the lyricists don’t have two braincells to rub together. What if we swapped...

This holiday, I went on a social media fast. No Twitter. No Facebook. I wasn’t allowing myself to see anything remotely work-related. I was having a Proper Break. Sounded good in theory, but I didn’t realise just how much I used Twitter to keep up with news, and find alternative...

A year ago today I wrote:   Words just seem so futile at a time like this. The entire dictionary - even every word ever uttered - can’t describe what’s going on right now. A nation sits in shock. This isn’t our burden, surely? This isn’t our event? This is what...

Reading the weekly Postsecret offerings is a bit of a ritual in my world. As I think about each one – sometimes in passing, sometimes at length – I often see reflections of myself. I found one particularly touching: As I read it, I felt really sad. For a period of my life, I lived...

If you’ve ever studied a tree stump you’ll know all about the rings. Looking over them is like caressing a lifetime. You can see exactly how different events in the tree’s life affected it. The grafting, the pruning, the good years, and the bad years – they are all...

The thing about baggage is that it falls into one of two categories: You’re carrying it because you’re going somewhere, or because you’ve been somewhere. If you’re like me, carrying baggage because you’re off somewhere is great. Your suitcase is tidy, full of...

Casually asking Twitter anything is a dangerous sport – none moreso than when discussing the September 11 terror attacks. Without ado, or too much editing, here are the responses I recieved when I asked Twitter users where they were when they heard the news. Some woke up directly to the...

It seems that there’s a few things we do that we don’t realize annoy other people. So when I put the offer out on Twitter – to get a few “I wish my partner didn’t…” off the collective chests of New Zealand – I was inundated. So here’s a few...

There’s an old saying: Don’t judge till you’ve walked a mile in someone else’s shoes. It’s true. And we often forget it. Today I spent a little bit of time with a friend who is in a rough place. Her work, home, and love life aren’t quite going to plan, and she’s struggling to...

After watching a few “It Gets Better” clips, and seeing “Dear 16-year-old Me” I’ve been inspired to share my own list of things I think teenagers should know. You are young, so enjoy it: Make mistakes. Work hard. Party hard. Have fun. Study. You’re probably...

“You need a lot of passion for what you’re doing because it’s so hard. Without passion, any rational person would give up.” – Steve Jobs, Apple CEO I’ve been thinking a lot lately about passion. It’s probably an overused word, much like ‘hero’,...

Today a friend and I went to Mission Bay for a swim – we were in the water at 10am and had enough by about 10.30. She was content to lay on the beach but I wanted an ice cream, so I left her to search one out. Ice cream store: Closed. What? It’s summer, and the shop was closed? I...

Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity. W. Clement Stone One of my pet peeves is broken promises. I don’t like breaking them and I don’t like having them...