UniLife Magazine 1706

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MAGAZINE

November / December 2009 UNILIFE MAGAZINE . ISSUE 1706 . November – December 2009

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November / December 2009

Executive / Creative Director: Gjoko Muratovski Guest Editor: Alicia Melville-Smith Editorial Committee: Kelly L. Graham-Sutton, Matthew J. Harbinson, Kristine Thomson, Riki Owens-Bennett Graphic Design Consultant: Stuart Gluth Illustration Consultant: David Blaiklock Photography and Artwork Contributors: Lisa Jack, Giacomo Cosua, Paperhorse Studios Cover: Andrew Smart Published By: UniLife Inc. Brokered via: UniSA Document Services

THE MAGAZINE IS PRINTED WITH ENVIRONMENTAL CREDENTIALS AND IS DISTRIBUTED FREE OF CHARGE ON SELECTED LOCATIONS. We are always excited to hear what you have to say. Email us on unilifemagazine@unisa.edu.au to do so. For marketing enquiries, use the same address. View UniLife Magazine in digital form or download a PDF, from the UniLife website: www.UniLife.edu.au Disclaimer: UniLife Magazine recognizes the wide and diverse range of viewpoints and beliefs on religious, political, social and moral issues. Equally, however, we feel that the notion that we need tiptoe around these beliefs for fear of offending is in short, ridiculous. Nevertheless, we warn that reader discretion is advised.

Contents:

GOOD BYE

by Gjoko Muratovski THE CULT OF THE LEADER

by Gjoko Muratovski OSAMA

by Gjoko Muratovski OBAMA: THE STUDENT

by Lisa Jack MONKEY GOES APE...

by David Pierce A RAINY DAY

by Mandy Koay THE LIFE YOU CAN SAVE

by Alicia Melville-Smith LAMBS’ TALE

by Anna West (PETA) MISERY LITERATURE RULES

by Patrick George Smith FIVE THINGS I LEARNT IN LATIN AMERICA

by Marko Strinic THE KINDNESS OF STRANEGERS

by Marko Strinic

6 8 12 14 16 26 28 30 32 26 40

44 RANDOM

by Giacomo Cosua 48 PINK

by Stacey Canavan 60 LISTEN TO THIS

by Alicia Melville-Smith 62 NETWORKING

by Craig Pickering 66 MOON

by Ekaterina Loy 68 KING AND WITHEY

by Ekaterina Loy 70 HOW TO:

by Alicia Melville-Smith 72 PUPPETRY: THE SECOND COMING

by Samuel Jozeps (Greenroom) 74 EXAM STRESS

by Tim Nolan 76 NEW LOOK STUDENT PORTAL

by Michelle Kavanagh 78 UNILIFE ELECTIONS: OCTOBER 20-27, 2009

by Keith Rudkin

November / December 2009

written by Gjoko Muratovski

Good bye ...but first, welcome to the 1706 issue of UniLife Magazine.

DEAR READER, Considering this is the last issue of the magazine I will be doing, I will say a few more words than usual. With mixed feelings, I have to say that my work is done. I am currently completing my doctorate, which is a big milestone for me, and I am heading back to Europe.... at least for now.

While I am sad to leave Australia, I am also excited to venture into new projects, and finally to put that Doctor title next to my name.

Since I took over the Creative Direction of this magazine last year (it was called Entropy Magazine back then) and the managing role of Executive Director this year, the magazine generated some 300.000 new readers from around the world (Thank you ISSUU for your online publishing). Not too bad, if you don’t mind me saying, considering I have done just 10 issues of this magazine. I am also glad to say that more people started to collect the printed version of the magazine. For me, there is no greater reward than that.

I can’t say it was easy to run this publication, but it wasn’t too bad either. For example, it was because of this publication I had the pleasure to meet and work with some of the best graphic artists in this part of the world, such as the incredibly talented Daniel Withey and Lisa King from the Paperhorse Studio. It was great working with Jasha Bowe and Ekaterina Loy, and I would also like to use this opportunity to thank them for their substantial contributions to this magazine. And I would also like to thank Stuart Gluth and David Blaiklock from the School of Art, Design and Architecture, for their support.

In this issue, I have a special Guest Editor to introduce to you. Her name is Alicia MelvilleSmith, and she was a great help in putting this issue together. We also have a new photography contributor - Giacomo Cosua, coming from Venice, Italy. He is a photo reporter working for the newspaper “La Nuova Venezia”, but he has a flair for art photography. His photography reflects his deep interest in youth culture, and we are really glad to be able to present you with some of his works.

And now, I have to say Thank You, and Good Bye.

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Written by Gjoko Muratovski

the cult of the leader The phenomenon of leadership, especially political leadership, has long been a focus of interest for students of the social sciences. Why some people emerge as leaders rather than others has always been a puzzling question.

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March / April 2009

IN THE PAST, the ‘great man’ [sic.] theory of leadership meant those who became leaders did so by virtue of their possession, of a superior degree of stamina, decisiveness, composure, and other similar personal traits. These characteristics rendered them destined to reach leadership positions in their societies or organisations—especially when such societies and cultures remained close to regimes modelled upon personal capacities for physical coercion. To this extent the ‘myth’ of the warrior-king has remained close to the surface, colouring understandings of the ‘power’ to be expressed in leaders, even in circumstances in which the physical expression of that power is not only not required, but circumscribed by the rule of law. Both Franklin Delano Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy worked to conceal their physical disabilities and injuries, in order to maintain myths of Presidential potency, while in contemporary Australia, a heroic sporting past is a major credential in the battle for pre-selection to political candidacy.

Robert C. Tucker elaborates a different approach related to ‘situationism’. According to this theory, the nature of a group’s situation, or the set of circumstances at a given time, predetermines what traits are likely to be included for selection of a certain individual for the position of leader, and what traits will impede such an outcome in others. Although different leadership skills and traits are required in different situations and within different societies or structures of organisations, there are certain general qualities such as charisma, courage, fortitude, and conviction that appear to be common characteristics for all leaders.

If one is to analyse the characteristic representations of the most prominent autocratic leaders of the twentieth century, then one common characteristic will be seen to distinguish them.

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Many had a highly recognisable personal style that was carefully maintained throughout their rule. Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Vladimir Ilich—Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Josip Broz Tito, Fidel Castro, Ernesto Che Guevara, Mao Zedong, Yasser Arafat, Saddam Hussein and Kim Jong-Il, are some of the leaders who have shared a ‘signature style’ which they rarely altered and seldom abandoned in public. Hitler had his ‘toothbrush’ moustache and distinctive hairstyle. Mussolini frequently posed for photographs bare-chested and his baldness was a distinctive part of his image, but never publicly discussed the fact he was a grandfather, as that could disrupt the potent masculine image he aimed to create. Lenin had his distinctive goatee beard, and, although he was a revolutionary, he never wore a military uniform. Instead, he was usually portrayed wearing an ill-fitted civilian suit and a cap. Stalin on the other hand, had his distinctive moustache and wore an authoritative military uniform. All personal defects were carefully airbrushed from his photographs, so the wider public saw none of his flaws or handicaps.

Yugoslavia’s lifetime president Tito knew to leave a long lasting impression with his lavish and heavily medalled Marshal uniforms. Castro’s signature look was the beard, green fatigues, and a cigar. Che Guevara’s reputation was kept true to his rugged guerrilla fighter look, famously immortalised in a photograph by Alberto Korda. Mao was known as the Chinese ‘Mona Lisa’ because of his inscrutable hint of a smile. He always wore modest- looking uniforms, without any medals or regalia of any kind—but he too sought to maintain a reputation for war-fit physicality, reproducing his iconic Long March swim in the Yangzi River, into advanced old age.

The Palestinian leader Arafat never publicly appeared without his chequered headscarf. Saddam had his distinctive moustaches and, more often than not, wore a military uniform and strove to present himself in a strong and masculine manner. Kim Jong-Il seems always wears a simple, greyish-looking military jumpsuit and maintains a modest public presence, which comes in contrast to the lavishly elaborate public parades in North Korea.

Mnemonic elements such as an invariable style of appearance or deliberate emphasis on certain personal characteristics are commonly used in commercial branding campaigns as well. ‘Trade characters’, such as Mr. Clean, Joe Camel, Ronald McDonald, or Colonel Sanders, are often used for the purpose of installing the brand in the mass consciousness. These characters can be based on real or imagined people or things, and their purpose is to imbue products with (likable) human characteristics, by projecting a friendly face on what otherwise might be seen as an inanimate or impersonal product. The same principle lies behind the development of the ‘personality cult’ of many autocratic leaders. It can be said that figures such as The Führer, Il Duce, Comrade Lenin and Chairman Mao are nothing more than ideological trade characters, while in the case of a religious movement; the same principle applies to Jesus, Buddha and Mohammed (with a distinction in the case of Mohammed, who according to Muslim custom, should not be visually portrayed).

The next step is the attainment of omnipresence. From monuments to postage stamps— whether the person in question (the leader) is depicted in action or response, meeting and greeting their subjects, standing heroically tall above them, or simply being omniscient—the leader’s image serves the same purpose, as the instantly recognisable face of the regime, in the same way any commercial character is the recognisable face of the brand it represents.

November / December 2009

Written by gjoko muratovski

osama Many of the elements considered as essential components of sacred offices and orders have continued to be used for propaganda purposes throughout history, and even in contemporary propaganda, where they produce a form of secular veneration of the individual within the modern cult of personality.

THE CONCEPT OF religious or sacred personage, founded on a mythical archetype, can also be used as a foundation on which a personality cult can be created. In ancient societies, and in some communities even today, worship has been seen as a principal daily activity, affecting all aspects of the life of the community. It is no coincidence that ideological leaders (as well as some business leaders of today) are treated in the same manner as religious leaders of the past, or that the founders of an ideology play the same key role as the founders of religion for each group of supporters. In today’s terms, with exceptions of Kim Jong-Il who still remains in power in North Korea and Gaddafi in Libya, the only person on the world stage maintaing a quasi-religious look is the infamous leader of Al Qaeda—Osama bin Laden.

As described in O’Shaughnessy’s book Politics and propaganda, bin Laden’s body language is ‘gentle and controlled’; he moves only his right hand when he speaks, and only slightly away from his body. He rarely shakes his fist (a common feature of many political propaganda videos), and when he does, it is with weary anger, as if suggesting his cause is so self-evident that it does not need an indignant mime show. According to O’Shaughnessy, bin Laden with his characteristic facial mask, otherworldly pose and pseudo-mysticism represents a ‘dramaturgical synthesis’ of an actor and a ‘holy man’. Accordingly, he has an assortment of serial roles and semiritual enactments articulated by stage props. In one role he appears as a soldier—a guerrilla freedom fighter, dressed in green fatigues with white Muslim headscarf and a Kalashnikov next to him—representing both believer and fighter. In another, he is a Saracen sheikh, mounted in flowing robes, on a white horse, acting as a desert warrior prince. Sometimes he appears as a scholar, staring at the camera against a rich backdrop of religious texts. He also appears as a holy warrior-priest citing Islamic scripture, with his AK-47 leaning against a rock beside him.

Regardless of the role in which he wishes to appear to the public—tall and slim as he is, and always with a characteristic beard and Muslim headscarf—bin Laden radiates an almost sacrosanct appearance, which has made him an instantly recognisable figure all around the world.

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November / December 2009

obama: the student

by Lisa Jack

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November / December 2009

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November / December 2009

Written By David Pierce

Monkey Goes Ape‌ (No monkeys were harmed during the construction of this story.)

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THE WHITENED HOSPITAL walls were dimly lit by the hazy glow of the fluorescent lights.

All light previously felt from sunlight now absent from the building, created a chilly and lifeless atmosphere. Within the hospital, the media flocked together like a group of hungry seagulls, desperately seeking a story as if they hadn’t eaten in weeks. The focus of importance was directed at a small, female golden ape-like critter bundled up in a blanket and cradled by a nurse in a chair.

With the pushing and shoving of the surrounding crowd, one journalist made his way to the front, asking anxiously “can I take a picture?”. Without any wait for a response the snap is taken, the flash from the camera startling the previously content monkey.

Within an instant, the monkey’s mouth latches onto the nurse’s wrist and then pounces from the blankets onto the journalist’s torso, taking a ravenous chomp at his throat. The display of blood is seen gushing rapidly, accompanied by the piercing sound of the journalist’s fearful scream.

Everyone fumbles from the scene in a panicked frenzy as the monkey shuffles up the wall like a spider, screaming down at the crowd below with a blood-filled mouth. People run through the hospital corridors fearfully as if there had just been a bomb threat.

In a primal rage the monkey continues in its frenzy with many sheltering themselves from this small ape as mass amounts of strength are shown with the tossing and tumbling of tables and chairs through anger. Fear rose in distant rooms as the sound of breaking glass merged with a high pitched monkey cry. With the smashing of a chair, a table leg appears amidst the smashed glass presenting itself to the traumatised monkey. Numbered by curiosity, the monkey picks up the table leg holding it in the air, staring at it with her dark, beady little eyes. Amazed at her own power, the monkey continues destroying her surroundings, leaping and pouncing like a wounding hurricane. Papers and shards of plastic flew everywhere as the monkey moves from room to room, pouncing on and pounding into hospital staff laying curled on the ground, frozen in shock using their arms as shields in full effort to protect themselves. The sound of the monkey’s cry disturbingly sings in harmony to the scream of an older man being beaten excessively.

The chaos concludes to the rescuing sound of glass smashing as a small grey canister hits the ground spinning, filling the room gradually with a thick and heavy white cloud of gushing smoke.

The monkey drops the stick instantly in excruciating pain, covering her eyes trying to scratch them out in effort to ease the pain. The tear gas leaves her whimpering, blinded by smoke, as the shadowy army of the Star force enter the room. The subtle sound of a tranquilizer cuts the air shooting across the room piercing the monkey in the back. As the tempo of the monkey’s squirm gradually diminishes, she finally falls under the spell of sleep.

When asking Police Commissioner Darryl Braithweight about the incident, Braithweight indicated that it was a ‘horrendous incident’ being ‘very brutal in nature’. He then continued informing that the monkey was free from the harm, safe and secure in captivity.

November / December 2009

Written by mandy koay

a rainy day A smell lurked in the still air of the quiet afternoon. Birds started warbling convulsively, taking flight, flooding the sky. Dogs scooted off quickly and cats scampered out of sight. The atmosphere was tense. Then, a gust of wind agitated the breathless air and leaves began to rustle vigorously.

An ominous dark shadow drew over the sky.

A STORM was brewing. Blustery wind invited more black clouds into the sky. Flashes of silver lightning streaked the sky and ferocious thunder roared viciously. People hurried into buildings while pedestrians quickened their pace at these tell tale signs of rain. The streets were in disarray as people tried to rush home. The rhythm of the rustling leaves and swaying branches created a trance- like effect of harmony and peace.

The first droplet fell with a patter on the pavement and more followed. In seconds, it poured heavily and continuously. Lines of water penciled down the mouldering walls of buildings and houses. Rivulets streamed down driveways and the air was very damp.

The wind howled mournfully while lighting and thunder came at shorter intervals. This combination became a loud, disturbing drone, drowning out every other sound. Stray dogs, in the corridors of shop houses, cowered helplessly while children screamed at these horrifying sounds.

Meanwhile, in the heart of the city, traffic was rampant and impatient honks blared everywhere.

On top of this chaotic atmosphere, the drains were filling up rapidly. Soon a deluge began. Litter floated around in murky water and drivers abandoned their vehicles to seek shelter. There was no escape from this awful blizzard.

After a few torturous hours, the gloomy scene brightened as the rain gently subsided. The warm, welcoming sun peeked through the dark blanket in the sky and drank up the moisture in the air. Clear blue skies and cotton white clouds came into view. Birds started chirping merrily and the traffic havoc slowly cleared. The pavements and tarred driveways glistened in the sun.

Children came out to play on the damp grass with high spirits, instantly forgetting their frightful experience just moments ago.

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November / December 2009

Written by Alicia Melville-Smith

The Life You Can Save Peter Singer saves African lives and thinks you should to.

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A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO I picked up Peter Singers new book ‘The Life You Can Save’ and he informed me that according to current World Bank figures 1.4 billion people live on less than US $1.25 a day. I knew about poverty, we all know about poverty, but to have it explained in a clear, concise and portable manner turned all of my preconceived ideas about poverty upside down and then stomped on them just a little bit.

Over the last five decades affluent nations have given 2.3 trillion dollars in foreign aid. Now most of us would look at that figure and see a huge sum of money but most of us wouldn’t bother to do the math. Singer does and the results aren’t pretty, 2.3 trillion dollars over 50 years is $60 per person per year or 30 cents per every $100 dollars earned.

Shocking isn’t it? All the people in all the affluent nations in the world only give 30 cents for every $100 dollars and 1.4 billion people still live in extreme poverty and die of completely preventable diseases.

After reading ‘The Life You Can Save’ Singer’s ethical solutions to ending world poverty in this lifetime seem within reach. Singer argues that by not donating to the worlds impoverished we are behaving unethical. He is in fact so convincing that I have begun to give a percentage of my own income to Oxfam Australia.

Singer calls for people earning over US $100,000 annually to donate five percent of their income to helping the world’s poor. For those of us, like myself, who are fulltime students what Singer asks for is much less extreme; one percent of your annual income with the aim of moving to five percent. I only earn $20,000 a year and one percent of that amount is less than $20 a month.

So saving a life might cost you $20 a month, you might have to go without seeing the latest new release at the cinemas or one less night spent binge drinking in town with your friends. You might not be able to afford that new dress or go out to dinner each week. So ask yourself, is it worth it?

Could you go without all these things if it meant a child in Africa lived to adulthood? I urge you to read Peter Singer’s ‘The Life You Can Save’ and not come away from the experience changed, with a different view on global poverty. Ghandi once urged people ‘to be the change you want to see in the world’ and I want to see a world where 1.4 billion people don’t live in extreme life threatening poverty. Do you? Visit www.thelifeyoucansave.com

November / December 2009

written by Anna West (PETA)

Lambs’ Tales Australia has about 70 million sheep. That’s nearly four times the number of humans in the country, so we’re fortunate that sheep are benevolent animals. (They symbolise the Christian Prince of Peace, for crying out loud!) But if they had sharper teeth and a thirst for revenge, there’d be hell to pay. Sheep are not only the quintessential symbol of divine purity but also among the most abused animals in Australia.

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THE LIVES of Australian sheep start when they are born as lambs to protective mothers. You know the image … wobbly legs, soft pink noses … but what follows is better suited to a horror film than to a children’s book. It’s worth considering the lives of sheep before you buy your next woolly jumper.

When those little lambs with the wobbly legs are just a few weeks old, holes are punched into their ears and they’re placed in a metal restraint that awkwardly holds their rumps in the air. Now it’s time for a grisly practice called “mulesing”, in which a farmer clutches chunks of flesh on the

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lambs’ rumps and carves them off with modified scissors, also slicing off their tails. (If the lambs are male, they have the ghoulish experience of having their testicles cut off as well.) When the procedure is finished, the lambs are released from the contraption and fall to the dirt with a thud.

And this is all done without painkillers.

(See for yourself – check out the video at PETAAsiaPacific.com.)

Why do farmers feel the need to mutilate these bleating bundles of fuzz? Merino sheep – the most common in Australia – are intentionally bred to have wrinkled skin, which yields more wool per animal. Those wrinkles attract flies, which leads to maggot infestations. To prevent this, farmers carve off some flesh in order to create scarred, smooth skin. Some farmers use more humane alternatives, but change has been painfully slow.

What happens to sheep when they no longer produce large amounts of wool brings us to one of the most controversial agricultural practices in Australia: live export. Packed into multi-tiered ships, many animals die of disease and dehydration. When the boat pulls into port, the sheep are herded into a market where hardened workers do the dirty business of slitting throat after throat.

A terrifying end to a hard life. All this for scarves and kebabs?

It’s not only sheep who are suffering in Australia’s agricultural arena. As factory farms predominate, animals are churned out by the billions, boxed up and treated more like manufactured goods than sentient beings. Chickens are crowded into cages so small they can’t spread even one wing. Female pigs spend most of their lives in tight stalls designed to keep them from moving in any direction. And cattle suffer castration and other gruesome practices, with no painkillers. Regardless of the species, if you’re unfortunate enough to be seen as “livestock”, you have a bleak and painful life ahead of you.

Enough! Where’s the Silver Lining?

Despite the fact that animals in agriculture are treated abysmally, there is much to celebrate.

Individuals, lawmakers and businesses are stepping up to help the underdogs – or sheep, as the case may be. Hugo Boss is one of several clothing companies refusing to sell clothes made from mulesed sheep. Some people avoid buying wool altogether. With modern advances in the textile industry, wool is being replaced with high-quality fabrics that didn’t cost animals their skin.

In restaurants and grocery stores, you’ll find far more vegetarian options today than there were just three years ago. That’s because many people are switching to a flesh-free diet. As more people choose a compassionate lifestyle, animal abuse on the industrial level will become less profitable, which is good news for billions of animals. But there’s a long way to go. How many more sheep will lose their skin for our winter wear? That’s for us to decide – one sweater, scarf or sock at a time.

November / December 2009

Written by Patrick George Smith

misery literature rules In the publishing industry misery literature is a growth area, a genre that started up only in the late 90s. Full of tales of childhood so dreadful, they sell quickly and take almost no skill to write. Several enterprising individuals have been exposed faking abusive childhoods to make a quick buck. If you want to get in on the action before it all runs out of steam, here’s how in ten simple steps:

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November / December 2009

1) Must have come from a comfortable financial background.

2) Reasons for abuser’s behaviour must never be explained.

3) Innocent photo on cover.

4) Be passive.

5) Purple prose! Always exaggerate.

6) Do something no child abuser (or author) has thought before.

7) Hint that no matter how far you go, the memories will always haunt you.

8) Will this get on Oprah?

9) Have a sequel more explicit than the first.

10) Make up the whole thing from start to finish.

1) Must have come from a comfortable financial background.

A comfortable financial background is essential. It allows the abuser(s) to waste lots of money and also permits the appearance of a few “delightfully eccentric” relatives. If the abused child was from a poor home, so what? Isn’t that what always happens anyway?

2) Reasons for abuser’s behaviour must never be explained.

The abuser may have had mental problems, or been abused themselves, but the reasons must never be explained or even mentioned. Why would the motivations of an abuser be important in a story about child abuse? They’re taking the story away from the child and the awful abuse they suffered.

3) Innocent photo on cover.

An innocent child, gazing wistfully past the camera, set on a white background… perfect. If you can give a slight halo of light around the child’s head, all the better. Having a bird clawing into the child’s scalp is also acceptable. Any normal photos of a six year old – posing proudly in an oversized football jumper, running in the park and so on – are unacceptable.

4) Be passive.

In writing, the active voice is when the subject of the sentence is doing something. In the passive voice, the subject of the sentence is having something done to it. So the child must be passive.

Everything was done to them, they never did anything. Their entire childhood is defined by the

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actions of malevolent agents. If anything nice was done for the child it must be followed by an act of such horror that it can only be described with…

5) Purple prose! Always exaggerate.

Purple prose! The enemy of most writers is the saviour of the child abuse writer. The father didn’t go down to the pub to drink. Instead: “my father, the man who nature decided must nurture, love and protect me, left his son in that empty home so he could drink away his demons at the pub. He bathed himself in alcohol; I bathed myself in the tears of my hopeless former years.”

See? Doesn’t that tug on the heart? Everything happens “suddenly” and must be the most awful experience a child can experience… until next time, of course.

6) Do something no child abuser (or author) has thought before.

The child’s mother made him sleep in a rat infested cupboard when he was ten? Please, this isn’t 2004. Child abuse recollections are getting far, far worse. Throw in heroin addictions and brandings with heated steel rods. Was there a bath of acid in the bottom for the cupboard? Why not? Make it all happen before breakfast… and… it happened when the child was six. Seriously, this stuff writes itself.

7) Hint that no matter how far you go, the memories will always haunt you.

Oh yes, the memories will be with you forever. You’ve married a woman who loves you and you’ve got three wonderful kids, but those memories are with you everyday. Mention the hours you spend sitting at the park, staring wistfully at the ducks in the pond; the long walks you take; the fact that you can’t help but sigh sometimes, even when everyone else is having fun. Leave out the fact you downloaded 4.7 GB of hentai last month.

8) Will this get on Oprah?

By now, you should have something that would make most people run for cover. But you don’t care about them, no, you need the Oprah crowd. Get Oprah to promote your book and you’re home.

9) Have a sequel more explicit than the first.

When the royalties are being delivered to your door in gold bullion, write a sequel. Retell your childhood, as you did in the first; but this time you must a) add in things you “forgot” (or left out because they were too shocking) and b) make it twice as bad. The heroin addictions? My mother cut the heroin with cyanide crystals. The heated steel rods? 2000C! The acid bath? Pure hydrochloric acid. And so on. It’ll write itself… again.

10) Make up the whole thing from start to finish.

If you’ve been following my advice from the start, you’ve done this already.

Now get out there and write! Make misery literature readers cry tears they never thought they could cry.

November / December 2009

written by Marko Strinic

Five Things I learnt In Latin America Over the last seven months I have travelled around Latin America to avoid going to Uni and making decisions about my impending future. I may not have figured that part out yet but I have learnt that‌

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March / April 2009

1. Human Beings Are Capable Of Doing Anything If you’ve ever heard the domestic situations that unfold when my dad and I undertake a home improvement project or the disdain with which tech studies teacher Mr Pamula looked over my year 8 woodwork project, you would know the good Lord did not bless me with the ability to make things with my hands.

As such, the idea of me helping to build a stove (think backyard barbecue pit) for an impoverished Nicaraguan family is about as preposterous as me teaching children grammatical rules in a language I’m not fluent in. However, for a week I helped mixed cement, carried cinder blocks, laid bricks and smoothed concrete until a fully functioning stove was complete and ready to make its first meal.

2. “Don’t Think, Do.” So there I stood, on a platform 122 metres above creation, looking out over Cuzco and its surrounds willing myself to jump. No friends, seven months in Latin America hasn’t driven me to suicide just yet. I did in fact have a bungee chord strapped to my ankles.

If I had let my mind wander to think of the safety standards of adventure sports in Peru, or the mess I would have made had the rope snapped or any of the other myriad of things that could have gone wrong I would have never jumped. By keeping my mind clear I had nothing to hold me back and as such I launched myself into the void and had an experience that was... indescribable. In short, always trust your first instinct for the more time you have to think about things, the more time you have to think yourself out of things.

3. Give Teachers Whatever The Hell They Want A teacher’s strike will erupt and the general public will become outraged that their own children have been dumped on them and will form the same arguments every time: “They’re just glorified babysitters.”

“They get half a year’s worth of bloody holidays. Why should they get more money?”

“Head down, bum up and get back to work. If you don’t like it, change jobs.”

Have any of these people tried not only to control 20 insane 8 year olds but also tried to teach them something meaningful? I have. And what I can say is this: “I’ve come home from a 10-hour shift at the convenience store physically exhausted.”

“I’ve come home from a day of uni mentally exhausted.”

When I come home from a day of teaching I’m physically AND mentally exhausted. And what’s

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worse I have to try and make another interesting lesson plan that they won’t pay attention to anyway. And if I don’t have any incentive (i.e. money) to keep at it, who the hell is going to teach your kids?

4. No Matter How Much You Think You Hate Your Family, You Don’t.

“Family isn’t a word...it’s a sentence.”

A life sentence to be precise. Sure you’re jail time may end when you’re old enough to move out of the prison but the antiquated values and character flaws you’ve been instilled with since day one will never leave you. So how do you deal with it? You hate.

Fucking parents. If I had good ones maybe I wouldn’t think it necessary to (insert antiquated value here). Stupid sisters. If they had treated me normal maybe I wouldn’t be such a (insert character flaw here). All it takes is some time apart and you realise how much you love them and how difficult it is to live without the support they’ve always given you. Flaws be damned.

5. There Are No Life Changing Moments A couple of weeks before I embarked on this adventure I was on Hindley Street enjoying the November warmth and a grape flavoured shisha pipe with my dear friend Jordan Stagg.

Jordan took a drag of the hookah, exhaled and asked, “Could you do me a favour?”

“Yeah, what is it?”

“Can you try not to have any `life changing moments´ while you’re in Latin America?”

“How do you mean?”

“I really don’t want you to come home and tell me a story about how you were on top of a mountain looking down over God’s creation as it started raining and at this precise moment you realised exactly what you want to do with your life. That would be lame, mate.”

“I promise I will not have any life changing moments” I replied even though that’s exactly what I wanted to happen.

I came on this trip partially to break through the confusion of where I want my life to go. After seven months travelling and standing on more than one mountain summit I’m still no closer to achieving that goal.

But I’m ok with that.

November / December 2009

Written by Marko Strinic

The Kindness of Strangers Before I came to Latin America I set myself three goals: To see and do some cool shit; Try my best to make a difference in the lives of the ni単os; Have a great big, fuck off puss and blood filled abscess cut out of my throat.

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March / April 2009

AND NOW MY FRIENDS, with great pride I can say mission accomplished.

My first week in Ecuador was marred only by the fact that I had, what I thought, was a nasty ear infection. Rather than see a doctor, I decided to take advantage of the fact chemists here dole out antibiotics without a script. After a few days there was no improvement and off to the doctor I went.

While examining the bulge in my throat the kind hearted doctor gave me the biggest fright of my short life thus far: “Es casi un tumor.”

Stop.

Ever crossed the road and looked the wrong way? And hey presto a car’s nearly on you, so what do you do? You freeze. And your life doesn’t flash before your eyes, because you’re too fucking scared to think - you just freeze, and pull a stupid face. The doctor didn’t seem too concerned, though. Why? It’s because the word “casi” in Spanish means “almost” or “kind of”. So, instead of saying “It’s a tumour” like I thought he did, what he actually said was “It’s almost like a tumour.”

Though grave if left untreated, an abscess in nowhere near as serious as it’s more malignant cousin.

So, when my balls retreated from their hiding place, it was off to the specialist, where with a minimum of anaesthetic, the doctor there cut the fucker out releasing a healthy dose of puss and blood into my mouth.

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I know what you’re thinking: What does the inside of an abscess taste like? Well, my friends it tastes like a hard boiled Easter egg left on the kitchen table until about Wednesday that you ill advisedly eat when you find that nothing else is available. ¡Que delicioso!

The unpleasantness didn’t end there.

To ensure the infection didn’t reappear or worse still, spread to other parts of my body, I was prescribed a whole pharmacy’s worth of antibiotics, painkillers, gargling salts and penicillin injections. But I was soon to find out, that due to legal reasons neither the chemist nor the hospital was willing to inject me.

Then my host father, Jaime, suggested I go see their neighbour Monica who is a trained nurse.

When a Jehovah’s Witness knocks on someone’s door, what he essentially says to the occupier is; “Hello, I’m a complete stranger and I was just wondering if I could convince you to change your entire belief system.”

It’s quite preposterous when you think about it.

Not nearly as preposterous as what I had to say to Monica—“Hello, I’m a complete stranger and I was just wondering if you could put this great big needle in my arse.”

Had this situation taken place in a Hollywood script writer’s head, the following scene probably would have gone down something like this: Monica would have cocked her head to one side, folded her arms and yelled—“Yo, Alberto! Yo, Alberto! Come take a look what this white boy just asked me.”

Alberto, a Latino man with a shaved head, goatee and gang tattoos would have come out the house and said—“Yo, you steppin´on my territory, homes. Why don’t you back up and quit disrespectin`my old lady, esè!”

Alberto´s fellow gangsters would have then appeared and pistol whipped me into submission and then celebrated their behaviour with a fat line of cocaine.

Thankfully, in reality Latinos are a different breed.

Their kindness and willingness to help in whatever situation is almost unfathomable to me. A far cry from the Hollywood stereotype of the drug dealing, violent Latino gangster.

It is thanks to this kind-heartedness I can now say I am footloose and abscess free (casi).

November / December 2009

random

by Giacomo Cosua

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November / December 2009

Written by Stacey Canavan

p!nk She’s going to be a Bad Influence on you

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PINK IS A pop star sensation with her three month long funhouse tour, with over 30 Australian shows booked in Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane and Newcastle. Not to mention this is the fourth time this singer has toured. We all know Pink’s an individual in everything she does, and her concert was nothing short of incredible. I was lucky enough to attend her August 5th concert in Adelaide and found it an enjoyable experience. Pink let us in on a little information while we were there that night. She said that her concert the night before didn’t go so well which a lot of people probably heard about as it was in the papers. She had tripped in Bad Influence and forgot the words to Family Portrait but that didn’t influence her at all that night, and it really paid off as she made no mistakes. She really engaged with the audience letting us all know the special treatment stars get behind the stage with her dinner consisting of two ravioli balls and some strippers to go with it. She also made one lucky fans night by jumping into the audience and hugging a girl, while another made her a dream catcher which she willingly accepted with smiles.

Pink’s concert started with style with a video clip before breaking into song with her opening hit Bad Influence. Some of Pink’s other songs that made it to the tour set list were old classics Just Like A Pill, Don’t Let Me Get Me and Who Knew, but it wasn’t just her voice that wowed the audience but her exquisite costume choice throughout the show. Pink performed her well known chart hits Please Don’t Leave Me, You And Your Hand, Leave Me Alone, Sober and So What with the audience dancing and clapping along. As if that wasn’t enough she incorporated Highway To Hell (ACDC) Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen), Crazy (Gnarls Barkley) and I Touch Myself (Divinyls). I Touch Myself got a great response from the audience with her laying on a couch with people putting their hands through it touching her, the men in the audience seemed very impressed. Pink never disappoints and even surprised me by coming out and playing a few songs both with co-singers and alone while playing her guitar. She’s one in a million.

Pink’s concert was amazing and a big part of the ‘funhouse’ part of her tour, because she made it just like a circus dressing her dancers as clowns. Especially when she sang her heart stopping single Funhouse in a costume herself, with her clowns dancing around her, a man on stilts and big blown up balloons of giant clowns. The song was pretty impressive with the way it all went together, but wasn’t as impressive as her encore act. Just when we all thought it was over she came back and sang ‘Get the party started’ and ‘Glitter in the air’. She hung from what looked like a chandelier of three girls above her and twirled upside down while she sang. Her song Sober was also impressive, singing while swinging on a trapeze way up high with a male co-star who would hold her while she did tricks on a swing just like a circus star. She is definitely an individual and wouldn’t have expected anything less from her unique and crazy style. An amazing experience. She rocks.

November / December 2009

written by Alicia Melville-Smith

listen to this Music you probably haven’t listened to but really should.

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THIS ARTICLE is really just an excuse for me to make a list. I just love lists. So here it is kids: my top five albums of 2009. I’ll admit now that my musical leanings are decidedly indie and unknown, there will be no Beyonce or Lady GaGa in this list so if that is where your musical tastes lay, you might want to turn the page. Now we have to be aware there are a number of months left so this list is in no way definitive. Oh and in no particular order, that would just be too cruel.

1. Passion Pit – Manners / Standout song: Sleepyhead.

These boys are genius. The five of them combine psychodelic electronica with dark lyrics and quiet introspection in a concise 11-track album. If Manners were a colour it would be every single one. There are so many facets to this record; it showcases something new upon every single listen.

2. Lisa Mitchell – Wonder / Standout song: Coin Laundry This ex-idol indie songstress took a long time to release a full-length album. As cliqued at it is, the wait was definitely worth it. Lisa’s voice is quiet and understated, reminiscent of warm spring mornings and the associated excitement you feel at that first bloom. Only 19, this young folk singer takes her listener on a whimsical journey to a land where love is still sweet and life still full of childlike wonder.

3. Arctic Monkeys – Humbug / Standout song: Pretty Visitors It’s like the Arctic Monkeys went on a very long hiatus, discovered that life isn’t all candy, parties and one night stands, and then returned to the real world and wrote this album. Don’t get me wrong the classic Arctic Monkey’s sound is still evident on this record, they just got moody and cynical and the result is the dark, eclectic and entirely alluring Humbug.

4. La Roux – La Roux / Standout song: I’m Not Your Toy A lot of people really hate this dense, highly worked indie dance release. I am not one of them.

La Roux’s Elly Jackson has a very distinct vocal range that, along with the high-energy electro synthpop, creates a dance party in one very accessible and fun album.

5. Metric – Fantasies / Standout song: Gimme Sympathy This Canadian indie rock band really excels on this record. Honest and passionate Metric displays a depth of self-awareness on this album that is refreshing and rare. Their lyrics are heart wrenching at times and amusing at others, their sound is crisp and invokes images of lost love and dark overly emotional eras in their listener.

November / December 2009

Written by Craig Pickering

networking “It’s not what you know but who you know!”

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March / April 2009

HOW OFTEN have you heard that phrase? Well, who do you know? More importantly, who do you know who can assist you in graduating, finding work, entering your career path or introducing you to others who can? If no one comes to mind then you need to get networking!

Set Your Objectives Before you begin you need to decide what sort of people you want, and need, to meet. Business leaders yes, but in what industry and at what level?

For example, if you are studying accountancy then ask the local CPA office when they hold networking events. If you are studying Marketing or Management then contact either the Institute of Marketing or the Australian Institute of Management. Most of these organisations list their events online so your task is an easy one.

There are also general networking events held by organisations such as in-business and Business SA where people from any industry can, and do, attend. These events are excellent for broadening your contacts, as you never know where future opportunities may come from!

Choose your events wisely. Attending an event of the ‘Impoverished Students Getting Drunk Association’ (the well known ISGDA) may be enjoyable, but is extremely unlikely to be of any use to your career.

Types of Networking Events There are business breakfasts, networking lunches, industry functions and even ‘speed networking’.

When you are new to networking ‘speed networking’ is an excellent way to start. Everyone at such an event is there specifically to meet people, and like you they are as nervous as hell.

The idea behind speed networking comes from speed dating, and involves a facilitator organising attendees into groups of usually 2-4 people who do not know each other. Each person then has one minute to tell the other three people in the group who they are and what they do. After 5-10 minutes a bell is rung and everyone must find other people they do not know, and so on.

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These events normally last for around 40 minutes, in which time you can easily collect a dozen business cards and several useful contacts.

Before attending such a function it is critical that you have your own ‘30 second elevator speech’ ready. Something like “Hi my name is Craig, and I am an undergraduate student at UniSA in Management and Marketing, looking to connect with people I can learn from and who can possibly provide me with some work experience.”

I also recommend that you take plenty of business cards with you. Business cards? For a student?

Absolutely!

Something simple with your name, phone number, email address and “Undergraduate in Management (Marketing) at UniSA” or whatever is relevant to you. You must have cards, for in order to receive you must first give! And besides, how are they going to contact you with that brilliant job offer?

You can get around 200 business cards for around $60, so they are not too expensive.

Follow-up After every networking event go through all of the business cards you collected and send every one of them a follow-up letter or email, whether you think they are a useful contact or a complete waste of time. Again, you never know who they may be able to introduce you to!

An example would be; “Hi Craig. We met at the networking event yesterday at Business SA, and I would like to take this opportunity to remind you of the services/products/skills/job I can provide/am looking for.”

After listing these, sign off with “I enjoyed meeting you and hope to see you at another event soon.”

After you have attended several such events, it will no longer be a case of “Who do you know?” but “Who don’t you know!”

Happy networking!

Craig Pickering, the Managing Director of 3C’s Consulting, has over twenty years experience in sales and senior management, mostly in facilitating change, successfully implementing business plans and building productive teams. Craig can be contacted at craigp@3csconsulting.com.au or on 0438 030 008.

November / December 2009

Written by Ekaterina Loy

moon Sadly for Duncan Jones, the chances of finding the review of his debut movie, Moon, without the mention of his father are close to the odds of finding intelligent life on the said Moon.

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“This classy and thoughtful low-key sci-fi tale marks the directorial debut of Duncan Jones (David Bowie’s son... but no room for Starman or Space Oddity gags here), and it is a top-notch film that is engrossing, intriguing and intelligent.”

The Mirror “For a first time writer and director Duncan Jones (his father is rock legend David Bowie) excels on every level.”

The Daily Record “A superb first feature directed by Duncan Jones (David Bowie’s son) and starring an impressive Sam Rockwell, is an intelligent, evocative and deceptively low-key sci-fi adventure.”

USA Today BORN DUNCAN JONES, the kid grew up under the name Zowie Bowie (you do not expect the son of Ziggy Stardust to be called some boring name, do you?) At the age of 12, Zowie decided to stop exercising such appalling decadence and changed his name to - drum roll – Joey. Later on he was known as Joe, until the age of 18 or so, when he reverted to his birth name, Duncan Jones.

Under that name he was registered at the College of Wooster, where he conducted a philosophical study titled How to Kill Your Computer Friend: An Investigation of the Mind/Body Problem and How It Relates to the Hypothetical Creation of a Thinking Machine. Probably sounded rather rad in 90s, but you would think a person would get over ‘thinking machines’ and ‘evil computers’ complex by the end of first decade of the 21st century. Unfortunately, the only talking character in Moon, besides Sam Bell, is a computer, Gerty, and he is up to no good. Quite a drawback for the whole futuristic concept.

Despite the above mentioned IT hiccups, the main focus of the movie is on the person in isolation and the unbearableness of oneself. An astronaut serving a three-year contract at the lunar space station and, literally, losing himself by the end of his voluntary detention.

Even though the most obvious inspiration for Moon is 2001: A Space Odyssey, quite a number of reviews tag it to David Bowie’s 1969 song Space Oddity instead, bringing that legendary parent factor back in the picture. Does good old Zowie like it or not, the fact is the following: both Sofia Coppola getting her Oscar and Kelly Osbourne crawling home after a couple of bevvies would get some extra media coverage thanks to their folks. And as the saying goes, any publicity is good publicity.

Moon is screening at Palace Nova from October 8

November / December 2009

WRITTEN By Ekaterina Loy

king and withey I assume that by now all the decent folk of A-town know the way to the Paperhorse studios, so let’s not go again into details of which lane at which mall do you have to turn to find yourself in the abovementioned creative hub. The members of the Paperhorse collective are numerous, so let’s just profile a couple of them for now.

LISA KING is a founder of the Paperhorse studios, which means that, besides producing artworks, she is managing the Paperhorse residencies, curating the exhibitions, writing media releases, and basically doing lots of other quote exciting unquote administrative stuff. In a year since its opening the Paperhorse held such exhibitions as Black & White Exhibition, Object, Days in the Making, and Portraits of the Forest.

The style of artworks by this petite lady is pretty edgy. Monochromatic clashes mixed with elaborate patterns in colours of oxidised metal palette make Lisa’s works instantly recognisable, and has brought her appearances in a number of publications, including the Unilife Magazine.

Another Paperhorse resident frequently featured in the Unilife Mag and other nice street press is Dan Withey. In 2007, while studying Illustration Design at UniSA, Dan scored First Prize in the Graphic Design category of Student of the Year Awards by the Design Institute of Australia. Later on, as a part of the Step 2010 Experiential Learning Project at UniSA, he designed last years’ student diary cover and O-Ball poster.

Dan’s work is mostly referenced directly from his own life experiences and influenced by Picasso, comic books and Mexican art. There has been lots of things going on in Withey’s life this year, since his work seem to be proliferating in numerous exhibitions at the Paperhorse, as well as at 5000 Gallery, tape deck Razorblade, Queen’s Theatre, the Electric Light Hotel, Dragonfly bar, and later in the year, at the Monster Children Gallery in Melbourne.

To know more about the Paperhorse studios, see the artworks and read the latest news, head to http://paperhorsestudios.wordpress.com

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November / December 2009

Written By Alicia Melville-Smith

How To: Create a Blog

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EVERYONE LOVES a good old rant; it makes a person feel self important and everyone loves to feel self-important now and then. In this day and age, a person no longer has to find a willing participant to which they can rant. Instead they create a Blog and rant away into cyberspace, imagining that untold millions are tuning in when in reality it’s just your Facebook friends who feels sorry for you after you posted yet another ‘new Blog post XD!!!’ in your status.

Yes that’s right kids. I am in fact being self-deprecating because … I Blog. And as a blogger I feel I am well equipped to help you achieve your blogging dreams in a concise three-step process.

Step one: Find a site to host your Blog. Wordpress.com and blogger.com are a couple of well-known hosts but there are many others. Sign up but when you do make sure you come up with a really pretentious username such as ‘living surrendered’ or ‘love collage’* because no one likes a humble blogger.

Step two: Name you Blog. Remember what I said earlier about being pretentious? Carry on with this theme.

Now customise your Blog. If you are an upbeat blogger who likes to write about the beauty of life I would suggest something in the pink or yellow range, flowers and rainbows are also good. For the angry emo blogger intent on exposing the evils of society, stick with black. It works for all the other miserable, cynical bloggers out there and it will work for you.

Step three: Post away. I would suggest beginning with the obligatory ‘about me’ but make it interesting; no one wants to read about your cats or your high school formal. If you don’t have an interesting life, make it up, its cyberspace and no one will know the difference. I would also suggest the favourite ‘what I hate about life’ post. It is a good, general place to begin and future rants will follow on from here.

It really is a very simple process. Stay pretentious, aim to be funny and you are already a Blog star.

Good luck. *Oh yes these are the usernames of real bloggers, unfortunately.

November / December 2009

written by Samuel Jozeps

Puppetry: The Second Coming Has anybody noticed a slight resurrection of what has been (until recent times) a seemingly long lost art-form?

DATING AS FAR BACK as 30,000BC, puppetry has been central to theatre, art, and story-telling, giving life to inanimate objects which take their own character and personality, and are able to perform in ways that human actors traditionally cannot. Besides possessing reverse-bending joints and being able to fly, puppets can portray real people in society as a caricature, pushing the limits of political and social correctness and playing a provocative devil’s advocate which (if played by real actors) can cause outrage among audiences. By virtue of their harmless and endearing nature, puppets are more likely to be received with a grain of salt than their humanactor counterparts. “Through puppetry we accept the outrageous, the absurd or even the impossible, and will permit puppets to say and do things no human could...” (Puppeteer Anita Sinclair, 1995) What’s this got to do with art today? We’re lucky enough to live in a society in which everyone has the right to express their thoughts and opinions in the public realm, thus there has been less of a need for puppets and over the years this art has somewhat dissipated. However, recently a new market for puppetry has evolved in response to pop-culture with an emphasis on society in the profane: consumerism, indulgence, sex, racism, unemployment, binge drinking and drug taking are all at the fore-front of new puppetry productions, and audiences are lapping them up.

The Adelaide Festival Centre has included three puppet plays for adults in 2009. Earlier this year its development program inSPACE hosted ‘Sexerella: Queen of the Galaxy’, a production loosely based on the 60’s sexploitation film Barbarella. Members of the Adelaide Festival Centre’s youth membership program GreenRoom participated in a week long course in puppetry and physical theatre with this show’s creators. Later, comedian Sammy J’s production ‘Sammy J in the Forest of Dreams’ will perform in the Space Theatre, and we are all looking forward to the hit broadway musical ‘Avenue Q’ at Her Majesty’s Theatre starting on New Year’s Day. Real-life puppet sex, dole-bludging, pornography, and substance abuse feature in these plays, and one cannot help but ashamedly chuckle at the sight of little funky monster puppets performing for all to see. So, perhaps after 30,000 years we’ve found ourselves full circle, and gone back to ancient times where puppetry thrives and acts as a mirror to society, represented in caricature form.

Visit www.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au/greenroom for more info

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March / April 2009

written by Tim Novak

exam stress?

If there is one thing that I hate the most when it comes to studying, that would be preparing for an exam. How did I managed to do a PhD degree is beyond my understanding. I believe it has to be some form of self-torture...

A pure masochism – if you will. Luckily, I bumped into one book that is called – Exam Stress? No worries! by Su Dorland.

AS THOUSANDS of students gear up to do their exams, the pressure they face is often unbearable and many struggle to cope. For parents this can be a trying time in their relationship with their child. For couples this can be a beginning of an end of a relationship. What are the warning signs to look for? How can a person cope with this stress and anxiety?

In Exam Stress? No worries! author Su Dorland provides background information on exam stress – why it happens, signs to look for, and quick-fix techniques for immediate stress relief and longterm solutions for dealing with anxiety. Also included is an audio CD with centering exercises to calm nerves, a visualization technique to guide students through stressful situations and a relaxation track to aid with sleep issues – something which I found to be of great help.

Whether you’re a student looking for ways to beat exam stress, or a concerned parent looking to support their child through this stressful time, Exam Stress? No Worries! is the perfect companion to help erase anxiety and achieve better results. The book is published through Wiley publishers, and can be found in local bookstores and the UniSA library.

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July / August 2009

Article by Michelle Kavanagh

new look student portal Finding the information you need, when you need it, isn’t always easy.

That’s why we decided it was time for a change. The new look myUniSA student portal has been designed to ensure the most frequently accessed information is at your fingertips, taking the guesswork out of the online navigation and ultimately helping you manage your study life.

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SO WHAT’S CHANGED? Hopefully by now you’ve logged into myUniSA and taken note of the new look. If you didn’t notice the difference, it’s safe to say you’re letting down your side of the bargain and not checking the UniSA communication systems as often as you should! It’s important that you do, and with the newly customisable homepage, tailoring the portal to your individual needs is practical, easy and convenient.

Maybe you found it frustrating in the past: countless announcements, none of which were identified as new or old postings. The new Announcements section on the homepage separates ‘Current’ and ‘Previous’ announcements ensuring you have the opportunity to read what’s new without having to scan through messages you’ve already read (unless you want to of course!)

In addition, you now have the ability to search for previous announcements, so if you forget to note down a name or an email address, don’t worry. Anything posted in the last six months is searchable by date or keyword.

But it’s not just the organisation of Announcements that’s been improved. I’m sure you’ve noticed that your assignment and course details are now visibly displayed on the homepage and online access to key student service units including the Library, Learning and Teaching Unit, Career Services, Campus Central and IT Help Desk are just a click away. Not to mention the Alert section. Managing the numerous student housekeeping tasks you’re responsible for just got that much easier. The Alert section notifies you of important student admin issues, for example when your email limit has been reached, when your print or internet quota is about to run out, or when you have library items available or overdue. Keep your eye on the listings and you’re sure to save yourself the headaches (or fines!) associated with overdue library items or a full inbox.

So if you haven’t taken the time to familiarise yourself with the new features yet, I highly recommend that you do. If you have any feedback, comments or concerns about the new look myUniSA student portal, we’d love to hear from you. To complete the short feedback survey visit http://www.unisanet.unisa.edu.au/TellUS2/SurveyForm.asp?ID=6752 or send an email to studentportal@unisa.edu.au

November / December 2009

written by KEITH RUDKIN

unilife elections: October 20-27, 2009 Vote in the UniLife election Oct 20th to 27th and you and a friend can win two tickets to the Australian Capital City of your choice and $1000 cash.

How to vote? Watch your student email on 20th October; but make sure your student email account has space to accept incoming emails or you will not get the invitation to vote.

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EVERY UNISA STUDENT in Australia is entitled to vote for the Board that decides how to allocate UniLife funds to deliver student VOICE, useful ADVICE and help you PLAY. UniLife is the body owned and managed by the students of UniSA. The students who are Board of UniLife decide, after taking the advice of the UniLife staff, how the budget for 2010 is spent.

From 9am on Tuesday the 20th Oct, each UniSA student in Australian will be emailed a unique link to the independent, confidential and secure electronic voting systems “BigPulse”. If you want to be able to vote make sure your student email account has space for this incoming email. On the voting site there will be a description of what each candidate seeks the collective Board of UniLife to do. To make sure UniLife does truly represent your view you are able (if you want) to vote for a number of people in order of preference; that means if your first preference did not get elected then your second or third may. That way your opinion gets to be one of 12 students who are the UniLife Board.

These 12 students comprise two from each metro campus, one each from Whyalla and Mt Gambier plus a Postgraduate and the Board President. Each of you gets to vote for your campus representatives and both the Postgraduate and President positions.

In addition, the voting process has been extended to include a process to select the students that want to participate in the National Union of Students (NUS), an organisation addressing political processes impacting on students throughout Australia.

Secondly, the voting process has also been extended to a few UniSA Schools where the number of students wanting to be on the joint Staff and Student School Committees exceed the numbers of seats available as set out by UniSA School and Division policy.

Finally, in Commonwealth elections there is encouragement for you to vote, a fine if you don’t. At UniLife we are encouraging you to vote by offering one voter selected randomly by the software, two return flight tickets to the Australian Capital city of their choice and $1000 cash.

For any questions contact the returning officer on UniLifeNominations@unisa.edu.au. The ability to voting ceases at 5pm on Tuesday 27th October 2009.

November / December 2009

2009 Annual Hawke Lecture Climate Change: The Public Interest and Private Interests in Australian Policy.

The Garnaut Climate Change Review advised that it was in Australia’s national interest to seek an ambitious international agreement on climate change mitigation, with Australia playing its full proportionate part. The 2009 Hawke Lecture discusses the elements of an international agreement in Copenhagen in December 2009 that would meet Australia’s national interest. It discusses the difficulties of governments pursuing policies in the national interest when these are in conflict with powerful private interests.

Comparisons are made between the history of Australian trade policy in the twentieth century and climate change policy now.

Wednesday 4 November 2009 5.30pm for 5.45pm start Auditorium, Adelaide Town Hall 128 King William Street, Adelaide

Registration FREE via RSVP phone line on 8302 0215 or online at www.hawkecentre.unisa.edu.au

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JAM USA/0574/06 CRICOS PROVIDER NO 00121B

To be delivered by Professor Ross Garnaut AO.

VALUED AT

the most

CONVENIENT

$143 PER YEAR

Collect your copy from the following locations:

So you’ve already signed up for UniLife’s membership which includes The Advertiser every Monday to Friday. Pick up your copy every day to find the latest local and international news, what’s hot (and not), cheap cars, rental accommodation and second hand goods under $500.

City East: Reid building; Café; UniLife office; Aroma; Centenary building vending machine City West: Café; UniLife office; Aroma; Indigenous Student Services vending machine Magill: Café; UniLife office; Aroma; ‘H’ foyer Mawson Lakes: Café; UniLife office; Aroma; Mawson building; Sir Charles Todd foyer; GP building Mt Gambier: UniLife office Whyalla: UniLife office; Aroma

November / December 2009

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Subscribe and save $279.

Student-rate subscriptions to The Economist available at Magazines4Students.com.au November / December 2009

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YOU COULD HAVE AN STI WITHOUT EVEN KNOWING You might think your partner is safe, but with many sexually transmissible infections the symptoms don’t show for months or even years. If you have had unprotected sex, see your doctor about getting tested. Using a condom is the best way to avoid getting or spreading infections like chlamydia, syphilis, gonorrhoea and HIV.

w w w. a u s t r a l i a . g o v. a u / S T I November / December 2009

UNILIFE CLUBS SPORT CLUBS: Adelaide Harriers-UniSA Contingent Australian Football for Southern Uni Games July 2009 Badminton Club Ballroom Dance Club Canoe Club City to Bay Club Cricket Club Fencing Club Freestyle Futsal Club - The Union Hockey Uni Games 2009 Indoor Volley Ball Inline Hockey Club Judo - City East Judo Club Karate Club Lacrosse Club Lawn Bowls for Southern Uni Games Melb July 2009 Lawn Bowls for Uni Games 2009 Mixed Netball Southern and AUS Gold Coast Games 2009 Pilates club Rockclimbing Club Shodokan Aikido Snow Ski Trip 09 Taekwondo Club Tennis for Southern Uni Games Melb July 2009 The Boardriders Touch Football Touch for Southern Uni Games Melb July 2009 Ultimate Frisbee Club UniSA Adelaide Phoenix’s Tournament - Men’s Soccer.

UniSA Basketball Unisa Cycle UniSA Kendo Club UniSA Lions Hockey Club UniSA Magill Karate Club UniSA Motorsport UniSA Rowing Club UniSA Social Futsal Club UniSA Table Tennis UniSA Tennis Club UniSA Womens Soccer Club- Infernos University Games 2009 University Games Beach Volleyball 09 - Gold Coast Waterpolo for Southern Uni Games Melb July 2009 Waterski Club Womens Nettball for Southern Uni Games Melb July 2009

SOCIAL CLUBS: 1 S.O.M.E Society Of Mechanical Engineers ACES Adelaide Festival Centre - GreenRoom Adelaide Flash Mob UniSA Group Adelaide Japanese Animation Society AIESEC BanglaSA BEEST BOSS Chinese Student Association - UniSA Chapture Co - workers in Christ Drama Club Economics and Commerce Students Association EMU - Environmental Management Unit Evangelical Students Eventful - Unisa Events Association Indonesia Students Association - PPIA UniSA International students association iPhone Club Italian Language and culture Club Laboratory Medicine Students Association Malaysian Students Association Mawson Student Network MED RADical Club Media Arts and Associates Metro On Campus Mt Gambier UniSA Students Social Club Music and Fashion Association. UniSA Chapter OOPS Overseas Christian Fellowship UniSA OXYGEN PakSA Pi Club ROUSTAH RuShi Buddhist Youth Group Student Exchange Society Student Screen Association Taylor’s University College Business School The University Journalism and Photography Association Uni SA Writers’ Club UniLife Magazine Contributors Club UniLife Socal Events UniSA Gamers Association UniSA Labor Club UniSA Law Students Association UniSA Pilots Club UniSA Travel Club UniSA United Nations University of South Australia Hellenic Association Whyalla Activities Club Whyalla Social Work Club Yearbook Club Young Achievement Australia Network

kickstart your carEer in JournalIsm! Are you a journalist student that wants to get published? You think you are pretty good, but no one wants’ to give you a chance? How would you like to be published in a youth culture magazine with 170,000 readers worldwide and over 40,000 readers in Australia? Yes. You got this right. We would like to give you that chance. Join UniLife Magazine’s “Step 2010” experiential learning initiative now!

Contact us with your expression of interest at unilifemagazine@unisa.edu.au

UniLife Magazine is a university based publication under the domain of UniLife Inc and CityLife and it is distributed at selected locations in hard copy, and is also available online. The “Step 2010” experiential learning initiative is supported by the University of South Australia.

November / December 2009

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