WEEKEND | 21-05-2016

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Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

w PE OPL E w EA SY EATI NG w B OOKS w D IY w G A R DE NS w T R AV E L w E NT E RTA I NM E NT w FASH I ON w H OM E

Weekend

READ: Meet the music composer who lost her sight suddenly, and found her vision for life.

Inside

Judging Nigella Why the domestic goddess loves bold Aussie tucker

Travel

Home

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Why is Gen Y heading overseas to tie the knot?

Twelve genius uses for apple cider vinegar

What is celebrity chef Matt Golinski up to now?

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frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

Nigella weaves seductive spell W E E KE ND E DI T OR K i r i t e n D o ll e

N

IGELLA Lawson’s wholehearted vivacity for food is enough to propel even the most reluctant cooks into the kitchen.

The way she uses lavish language to talk about food in a voice that could melt chocolate while she stylishly moves around the kitchen, it’s not hard to see why the UK television star earned the nickname of “domestic goddess”.

From tomorrow, prepare to be seduced by the velvet tones of Nigella as MasterChef Australia devotes an entire week to the cookbook queen.

What I love most about Nigella is she represents the quintessence of home cooking. She’s untrained with no cooking qualifications. She doesn’t slave over a recipes. Nor does she have any care for calories.

So what does Nigella make of Australian cuisine? Turn over to read our interview inside.

This week, we also chat with chef Matt Golinski, whose plate is full of exciting adventures. Find out what he’s up to now.

And with all this food talk, why not try a recipe or two from our Easy Eating pages?

Have a great weekend.

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EASY EATING

SCREEN LIFE

inside today NIGELLA FEASTS: The cookbook queen returns to MasterChef as a judge tomorrow night.

read //

Meet the music composer who lost her sight suddenly, and found her vision for life in the process. She’s now writing music for the world stage.

read // Find out what celebrity chef Matt Golinski is up to now – and why he initially declined to cook for the Prime Minister.

How to navigate your weekend: We’ve colour-coded your magazine for easy reference. Each section listed on the index page is coloured accordingly throughout. If you’d like to skip to Easy Eating look for the yellow at the top of the page, or magenta to skip to Home.

easy eating // Why gnocchi is not as hard to make as you think.

travel // Find out why more Gen Yers are heading overseas to tie the knot.

home // Twelve genius uses for apple cider vinegar. make // How to make a pallet-inspired coffee table. closet // The black and white of choker necklines. you // Why dinner dates show a potential suitor’s true colours.

screen life //

What kiwi film has smashed New Zealand box office records and received a 100% "fresh" rating on critic aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes?

w COVER: Nigella Lawson. PHOTO: Channel 10. CREATIVE: Jen Gourley and Kiri ten Dolle. CONTRIBUTORS: Seanna Cronin, Alexia Purcell, Chris Calcino, Tracey Hordern, Maggie Cooper, Regan Drew, Steph Mulheron, Angie Thomas, Maree Curran, Peter Chapman, Ann Rickard, Helen Hawkes, Greg Bray, Jody Allen, Roy O’Reilly and Nick Bennett. CONTACT US: weekend@apn.com.au CONTRIBUTE: contributors@apn.com.au ADVERTISING: Visit apnarm.com.au or contact your local sales consultant.

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Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

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w i th S e an n a C r on i n

Kiss and tell taken to new level

Y

OU know when there’s a kiss in a movie and it’s a bit awkward to watch?

That’s what Seven’s new dating show Kiss Bang Love is like, except that awkward kiss is repeated a dozen times.

The blindfolded kissing experiment is designed to prove that a good first kiss is the “chemical pathway to love”.

Each participant kisses a dozen strangers in an experiment that supposedly reveals true chemistry through the four other heightened senses. But there are a few awkward things about Kiss Bang Love aside from the actual kissing.

The first participant Lisa has two best mates watching all the pashes from a nearby room, sipping champagne like they’re watching the Oscars.

But even more awkwardly, all of the guys Lisa is going to kiss have to sit in the same waiting room together and then stand in a police suspect-style line-up to be judged on their kissing abilities. She chooses five people to kiss again, this time without the blindfold.

Two finalists are chosen to go on overnight dates, with one selected for a romantic holiday.

This show oozes talkability and the first episode is sure to generate plenty of social media buzz, but it feels like the producers have cast a bunch of good-looking people whom the participants would have been initially attracted to anyway.

Like Seven’s recent show First Dates, this is disposable entertainment you can watch occasionally without having to invest your time or energy into storylines or character arcs.

It’s kind of like The Bachelorette on speed, moving from a first kiss to an overnight date to a holiday in just one episode.

One issue with that breakneck pace is that viewers can’t get invested in any of the people in just one hour like they do over the course of a whole series on The Bachelor, Married At First Sight or The Seven Year Switch.

And, I can’t believe I’m writing this, Kiss Bang Love’s overnight dates – where the participants have the option to sleep either in the same or separate beds in a hotel suite – make The Bachelor Australia, which has opted out of the overnight dates featured on the US version, seem almost (gasp!) classy.

Kiss Bang Love debuts Tuesday at 8.45pm on Channel 7.

w A scene from the TV series Kiss Bang Love.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

App of the week

Go on, have a good Winj anywhere, any time, any day NEED to vent? Now you can Winj anywhere, any time. Winja is a free app dedicated solely to social media complaining. Not fond of Arnott’s new Shapes varieties? Have a Winj. If you have a legitimate complaint against a business, product or service, developers say Winja makes it easy to connect you to those businesses. You can garner support of other like-minded Winjas and then amplify it on Twitter and Facebook.

Winja is available for free download from Google Play and the App Store.

PHOTO: DIGITALLY ALTERED

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Strange Politics w i t h C h ri s Ca l ci n o

Peter Dutton’s multiverse theory

Q

UANTUM politics has arrived, thanks to one Peter Dutton, Minister for the Utterance of Compassionate Statements.

Let me explain, using my beloved tabby Cindy Clawford as a prop. Schrodinger’s cat is a thought experiment whereby some Austrian sadist pops his kitty in a box alongside a radioactive substance and a flask of poison and considers it both dead and alive until he opens the potential coffin to see whether there is a fuzzy little cadaver or a happy cat.

It is a very basic illustration of the quantum mechanics theory of superposition that the physicist and the RSPCA’s most

‘‘

Tony Abbott is still Prime Minister and Peter Dutton was just crowned humanitarian of the year ... wanted man Erwin Schrodinger cooked up in 1935.

This all boils down to the multiverse theory – an idea that every possible reality exists across an infinite number of alternate universes, and that those parallel worlds interact with each other.

A gross over-simplification, no doubt, but presumably another universe exists in which I actually understand quantum physics, am considered the greatest breakdancer this side of Dubbo and did not eat baked beans for dinner last night.

Applying this multiverse concept, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton’s comments about refugees this week begin to make sense. The Liberal Party’s resident comedian (remember that side-splitter about rising sea levels drowning Pacific Island land masses?) took to the telly to claim lazy asylum seekers would pinch all our jobs while simultaneously filling Centrelink queues.

“They won’t be numerate or literate in their own language, let

alone English,” he told Sky News. “These people would be taking Australian jobs, there’s no question about that. For many of them that would be unemployed, they would languish in unemployment queues and on Medicare and the rest of it so there would be huge cost and there’s no sense in sugar-coating that, that’s the scenario.”

Unsurprisingly when you consider how mortifyingly unschooled in basic quantum mechanics most of us are, a few people were upset. The term “racist” was bandied around by nongs who failed to comprehend that on another astral plane, we are all hive-minded purple blobs with no concept of race whatsoever. And in an overlapping dimension, Tony Abbott is still Prime Minister and Peter Dutton was just crowned humanitarian of the year by a centenarian Harold Holt, fresh from a dip at Bondi Beach. Absolutely nothing matters.

We cannot even blame Labor frontbencher David Feeney for “forgetting” to declare to parliament he owns a $2.3 million home in the trendy inner-Melbourne suburb of Northcote. One day after the revelation, we learned his wife had another $745,000 undeclared apartment next to Parliament House in Canberra.

The ALP powerbroker has apologised for his first memory slip and even admitted the property was negatively geared. He need not have done either. Clearly, this was one of those multi-dimensional overlaps, a juncture with an interacting world where Feeney had severe dementia and, it seems, not all super-rich Labor MPs were entirely sold on scrapping negative gearing. Adding insult to injury, Feeney’s tenants have now staked a Greens campaign corflute into their pricy front lawn.

Now if you will excuse me, I need to check on the health of my cat.

Strange Politics is a satirical column. Follow Chris Calcino on Twitter: @ChrisCalcino

At the water cooler w i t h A l ex ia P u rc e l l

What’s trending on social media this week SHOULD Australian pedophiles be castrated and microchipped?

We asked that question on our Facebook pages this week after it was reported pedophiles in Indonesia could be under tough new laws.

And, unsurprisingly, everyone who commented said yes.

“Yes most definitely but also something that the public can see also would be good then we know who is living with in reach of our children,” one Facebook user wrote.

“Tattoo a number on their forehead! That way normal people in society can see them for who they are! I cannot see a microchip or if they are castrated. I want to be able to see who is living with us!” another said.

“How about no rights. Like a name register and photos

w

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

available to public…” wrote another.

“I’d rather see them get a bullet. You cannot rehabilitate someone who doesn’t think they are doing anything wrong,” said another commenter. What do you think?

Alexia Purcell is APN Australian Regional Media’s social media editor.

Follow Alexia on Twitter: @alexia_purcell.

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frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

Former academic now writing music for the world stage

Donna lost her sight and found her vision Through music, she found a renewed sense of place in the world B y V I RG I NI A L A MB E RT

F

ROM behind a side-swept bob of blonde hair, snazzy black-rimmed glasses and a flashing smile, music composer Donna Dyson is in her realm.

Before her, a group of aspiring student choristers from Toowoomba’s The Glennie School assemble to rehearse a repertoire they’ve spent the past year working on.

Primed and poised for their July singing debut at the prestigious Summa Cum Laude International Youth Music Festival in Vienna, Austria, they are set to deliver what they hope will be the best choral performances of their young lives.

And cheering them on from the sidelines will be Donna, one of their ardent supporters, who has composed a rousing anthem for the occasion, titled Spirit of Australia.

The piece, co-written with 2006 Australian Idol winner Damien Leith, will feature on the chamber choir’s Europe tour.

To think of Donna as a kind of performing arts emissary wouldn’t be too far off the mark. She is also blind.

Donna’s good friend and mentor, singer songwriter Rick Price, describes her as “…a very talented and diverse Australian songwriter and choral composer”.

Rick says once you make a connection with her, “it’s a very infectious energy that comes up”.

Donna’s natural affinity with music, poetry and dance started when she was a young girl. Around the age of six and seven she was besotted with words – although ballet was actually her first love.

She would have chosen it as her lifetime path if not for her father’s sound advice around the importance of having something to “fall back on”.

As it turned out, she was compliant and her dad’s wisdom and universal guidance proved right. The world of academia became hers to chassé around. In her words, it “pushed her”.

Teaching, university lecturing, education consulting, literary and literacy board appointments, writing books and leading an active role on a strategic learning state advisory team for the Queensland Museum all made for a rewarding professional life.

Then, as the vagaries of life so often determine, an event happened that would signify a tumultuous epoch in Donna’s personal story.

It was 2012 when her life changed. Irreversibly. Without

Want

YOur Brand on EvEryonE’s Lips?

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SEEING CLEARLY: Donna Dyson has made a success of her situation after losing her eyesight.

w Blind music composer Donna Dyson has produced a prolific catalogue for choirs and individuals.

warning, she lost her sight.

While she doesn’t linger on the reasons why, she assures that, in her darkness, she found her light.

“Within the re-purposing time of my life, I had an amazing team with Vision Australia and they encouraged me to just keep up the things I could still do,” she says.

“So I went over to my guitar and picked it up and realised there was absolutely nothing stopping me from still enjoying music and creating music – except for the fact that scoring would now be very difficult.

PHOTOS: CONTRIBUTED

“But I have enough people in the industry and friends who are able to be my arms and feet in some of the parts that I can no longer do.

“That’s how I started doing what I’m doing now. I may have lost my sight, but I gained my vision.”

Nominated by Vision Australia to be a Federal fellowship recipient, Donna had the opportunity to study an area of particular interest to her.

She chose music. It was the beginning of a new career that would win her accolades and industry awards. But, most of all,

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‘‘

It’s been an incredible gift to be able to walk in today and to hear it. I was in tears... it gave her a renewed sense of her place in the world.

Collaborations with well-known artists would follow, resulting in the creation of a prolific catalogue for choirs and individuals.

“I won a song at the Brisbane Sings competition when it first began and, since then, I’ve been a composer in residence for Brisbane Sings, which is an incredible privilege,” Donna enthuses.

“This past award season, I was also named Songwriter of Australia, along with my co-writer Damien Leith.

“In three years, it’s been an incredible whirlwind of re-establishing a career.”

As rendition of Spirit of Australia was ready to play out live in the music room, Donna reveals her grandmother had been one of the school’s very early students.

“I have a book of Lord Tennyson’s poetry which was her academic prize in the early 1900s,” she says.

“So it was an incredible gift to return to a school where her footprints were laid. Spirit of Australia was written specifically for this choir, originally. I had the brief of these young people going over (to Vienna) and I was thinking about them being an ambassador and telling the story of our country.

“I found great inspiration at the time because of some consultancy work I was doing up north.

“Within a space of about six days I had many flights and was crossing a lot of country. But, because I’m legally blind, my memory of looking out the plane window is something that I’ve lost. I say my memory but I’ve lost my sight to now see that.

“I had this lovely fellow sitting beside me on the plane and I asked him to take photos of the landscape as we were passing.

“After the flight, I took out my pen and, on the back of a napkin on the plane, I wrote Spirit of Australia from the collected pictures on my phone that he had gathered for me.

“So the song was pretty much complete.

“I needed the bridge to work a little more effectively than I was hearing, so I flew down to Sydney to meet with Damien and we workshopped it and moulded it until we could make sure that the part fitted perfectly.”

Brisbane Sings musical director and Queensland Orchestra cellist Craig Allister Young added some finishing touches to the arrangement for which Donna is very grateful.

“It’s been an incredible gift to be able to walk in today and to hear it. I was in tears. It was wonderful,” she says.

We could all learn from Donna when she chimes that it’s all about, “Doing the best with what you’ve got”.

While losing her sight is still “chronically painful”, Donna says the transition has miraculously proven to be a “brilliant synthesis of who I am”.

“The reality is, I finally get to close off the shutters to all the distractions to really focus on what beats my heart.”

And with that special moment on an international stage edging closer, one song will surely beat the loudest for Donna Dyson in what could be her best heart performance yet.

Donna Dyson can compose for your school or community choir, write school songs or offer song writing workshops with your community for special events. Her catalogue is available for solo artists to perform.

Contact via www.donnadyson.com or info@donnadyson.com

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frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

Matt Golinski

A full plate at hectic pace Celebrity chef keeps up with his busy life, running from one assignment to the next B Y An n R i c ka rd

NEW CHAPTER: A great deal of Matt’s happiness comes from his new life with partner Erin on their quarter-acre property in Pomona.

T

rying to pin down chef Matt Golinski for an interview is like trying to corral a dozen frisky puppies. He doesn’t stand still for a minute, rushing from one assignment to another. His commitments are as varied as they are exciting: celebrity chef appearances at festivals, filming for British television crews, cooking for the Prime Minister, attending to his many ambassador duties, consulting to restaurants.

The flood of daily invitations and work assignments into his email box surprises even Matt.

“Things keep on coming up,” he laughed. “It’s great. I get to do a huge variety of things.”

That variety includes preparing for a guest appearance at the upcoming Noosa Food & Wine Festival (May 20–22) where he will present a dinner at Peppers Noosa Resort with Peppers executive chef Andreas Nielsen and guest chef Alistair McLeod.

Few people could have envisaged Matt Golinksi making such an astonishing recovery after the terrible tragedy of the 2011 Boxing Day house fire, that took the life of his wife and three daughters, left Matt terribly injured and the entire Sunshine Coast reeling with shock and compassion.

Although Matt’s recovery means he now lives a busy and happy life with partner Erin Yarwood, he is reluctant to take any praise for his remarkable story of healing, courage and resurgence as inspiration to others.

“If people feel that way, that’s nice,” was all he said and changed the subject to one of his passions in life, apart from food: running and training for marathons.

“I like running. Running is like my yoga, it is my time. I don’t do it because I think I’d better go and run, I do it because my brain stays happy. Running, and exercise in general, keeps happy endorphins running through my brain. It is like meditation: One foot after the other. You are in your own head, thinking about your day, what you’ve done what you will do tomorrow. It gives you time alone without the phone or email.”

And Matt needs a clear head just to keep up with all the appointments in his diary, especially the entry to cook for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull at a private event in Brisbane.

“That came up because somebody who knew me rang and asked would I do a VIP lunch in Brisbane,” Matt said.

“I said no because I was too busy and then they said: ‘it’s Malcolm Turnbull’ so I made an exception. I was crazy busy that week, in Townsville for two days, Airlie Beach for another two, then Port Macquarie. I was to do three flights in seven days. I

w Chef Matt Golinski (above and below) has a busy schedule at home in the garden and at work.

PHOTO: WARREN LYNAM

‘‘

I get to travel and see the ways things are done. From a chef’s point of view, that’s good. In a couple of years it might settle down but for now, it’s all good. thought I’d be exhausted.”

In typical style, Matt used the Prime Minister’s lunch to show off local produce, about which he is fervent.

“It was a great opportunity to use a lot of stuff from producers I’ve met over the last couple of years, people who are really passionate about what they are doing,” he said.

Another exciting assignment came his way through his strong connection with Slow Food Noosa – cooking for a BBC film crew making an adventure/food series. On the banks of Lake Cootharaba at Boreen Point, Matt cooked barramundi with macadamias and finger limes, all filmed to be shown around the world. No sooner had he finished that assignment, he was off to Cairns to talk about giant gropers.

“I am ambassador for a man who farms gropers,” he said. “I struck up a relationship with him when I sat next to him at a lunch in Rockhampton.

“His company asked me to be ambassador for their product.

He has been exporting the groper. It’s a really great product.

Rene Redzepi used it in his pop-up Noma restaurant in Sydney.

“Groper is not known as an eating fish. People think of gropers as those 500kg fish. But these are farmed to about 4kg.

Their flesh is firm and white, like a reef cod, really lovely flesh.

I’ve spent a couple of months working out recipes for using groper. That’s my first role until there is enough stock to hit the domestic market. I have a dozen recipes already. I cooked groper at a dinner in Rockhampton, did it with local cuttlefish

and fennel and preserved olives. It went down really well.”

You’d think that would be more than enough workload for any chef but there is more. Matt makes guest appearances at almost every festival in the state including The Buderim Ginger Festival, The Felton Food Festival (Toowoomba), Tastings on Hastings (Port Macquarie), The Relish Fraser Coast Food Festival, Capricorn Food & Wine Festival, Tin Can Bay Food Festival... the list goes on and on. Yet still there is more.

“I am involved in the running of a restaurant in Montville to open at the end of the year,” Matt said. “It’s called Altitude. I will be a consultant. Altitude should be up and running by October.”

There is balance to this prodigious work load and obviously a great deal of Matt’s happiness comes from his new life with Erin on their quarter-acre property in Pomona. Matt says his garden is another source of pleasure.

“Every square inch of the place is chock-a-block with every kind of plant. It is the Noah’s Ark of fruit trees.”

For now, Matt is enjoying his many and varied roles and the chance to meet people from different walks of life. He doesn’t have time to look to the future. “I get to travel and see the ways things are done. From a chef’s point of view, that’s good. In a couple of years it might settle down but for now, it’s all good.”

w Matt Golinski’s downtime is running, which he describes as his yoga.

PHOTO: EYES WIDE OPEN

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Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

TV TREAT: MasterChef contestants and viewers are in for a treat with Nigella Lawson joining the hit show for a week.

w Prepare to be seduced by the velvet tones of UK television star Nigella Lawson when she features this week on MasterChef Australia.

PHOTO: MARTIN PHILBEY

MasterChef ’s special guest

Domestic goddess inspires faith Celebrated home cook and UK television star Nigella Lawson reveals why she loves Aussie tucker B y Sea nna C r on i n

H

ER name is synonymous with home cooking, and if her recipes don’t seduce you then her velvety voice will.

Nigella Lawson, Britain television’s original domestic goddess of cooking, will take over our screens this week as MasterChef’s special superstar guest.

She has sold more than three million cookbooks but she says her transition from journalism to food was accidental.

“I’m a home cook – it’s my favourite sort of food,” she tells Weekend.

“I didn’t even think I was going to do it as a career when I was younger. It sort of happened by accident.”

After graduating from the University of Oxford with a degree in medieval and modern languages, she reviewed books for The Spectator and became the deputy literary editor of The Sunday Times in 1986 at the age of 26.

That led to restaurant reviews and food columns, which segued into two best-selling cookbooks and her first TV series, Nigella Bites.

By the time she first guest starred on MasterChef in 2011, Nigella had seven food shows under her belt.

She has a special relationship with our version of the popular reality cooking show. It’s the only series in the MasterChef franchise worldwide she has appeared on.

“When I come to Australia I always like the fact that there’s a confident cooking that mixes different cultures but is very much its own thing,” she says.

“Australian cuisine has a very bold personality, which I like. I never know what I’ll take back to cook in my own kitchen.”

Her arrival in the MasterChef kitchen tomorrow night will cause hysteria among the contestants, many of whom have idolised the TV and cookbook queen.

“Thirteen-year-olds at a Justin Bieber concert have nothing on

w Cookbook author and UK TV personality Nigella Lawson with MasterChef Australia's Matt Preston.

PHOTO: CHANNEL 10

‘‘

Australian cuisine has a very bold personality, which I like. I never know what I’ll take back to cook in my own kitchen.

how I feel about Nigella being here,” one contestant says.

The admiration appears to be mutual.

“I am in awe of the way these contestants, and a lot of them are pretty young, manage the pressure and find themselves flourishing under it,” she says.

“I can’t tell you how stressed I got just watching them cook in the challenges. Sometimes I had to put my hands over my eyes like a horror film. I couldn’t bear to watch... I’m glad I’m eating the food.”

Never one to shy away from eating delicious food, and being filmed while doing it, Lawson will challenge the 19 remaining amateur cooks to create food “made to give pleasure, not to impress”.

From decadent cakes to the tastiest midnight snacks, it’s going to be a week full of calories and flavour.

“I think most people would be very envious of a day that meant you were sitting eating many cakes,” she says.

“Being cooked for always feels like a treat, like a gift in a way. When people bake a cake there’s something quite personal and celebratory about that. It’s a joyful occasion.”

She believes bright futures in the food industry lie ahead for many of the home cooks.

“It’s remarkable how high their skill levels are,” she says.

“I’m not a particularly technical person, but I feel that gives them the freedom to focus on flavour a lot because they’re not struggling with putting together quite difficult ideas.

“In the week I’ve seen how quickly some of the contestants in particular have grown and really grasped what they want to do.

“It’s like seeing an education speeded up. It’s very intense and very fast. There’s not much time to mull things over and you can see a contestant suddenly astonish you and themselves.”

Nigella week starts on MasterChef Australia tomorrow at 7.30pm on Channel 10.

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frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

THE WEEKEND COOK with Maggie Cooper

SOFT DOUGH DUMPLINGS w Go loco for choko and cocoa.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

ARE A BREEZE TO MAKE A N D TA ST E G R E AT

The chokos are on you Perfect to enjoy with a glass of red

Gnocchi goodness Making it at home is easier than you think

Cocoa choko cake

INGREDIENTS: w 185g unsalted butter (divided) at room temperature w 1 1⁄4 cups sugar w 2 large free-range eggs w 1 tsp vanilla essence w 1⁄2 cup milk w 2 1⁄2 cups plain flour w 4 tbs cocoa powder w 1 tsp bicarb soda w 1⁄2 tsp cinammon w 1⁄2 tsp salt w 2 large chokos, peeled, seeded and grated (about 2 cups – you can use zucchini if there are no chokos available) w 125g dark chocolate w 1 tbs milk w 1 tbs golden syrup.

METHOD: Preheat oven to 160C. Grease a 23cm springform cake tin, and line the base with baking paper.

Cream 125g of the butter and half the sugar together until pale and fluffy. Beat in eggs and remaining sugar. Add milk and vanilla, then gradually beat in sifted dry ingredients. Add grated choko and mix through.

Pour into tin and bake for 50-55 minutes, until cake sides shrink away from the tin, or a skewer comes out clean. If cake begins to crack too much on top, lightly cover with a piece of foil for the last 15 minutes of cooking.

Cool in tin for 5 minutes, then release the sides of the tin and turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Glaze: Melt remaining butter and the chocolate over a pan of simmering water. Stir until smooth, then mix in milk and golden syrup. Spread on cooled cake and leave to set.

Email Maggie at maggies.column@bigpond.com or check out her blog herebemonstersblog.com

EAT

with Dan and Steph Mulheron

G

NOCCHI… they’re little mouthfuls of fluffy goodness, but not many people actually create them at home. Why? Perhaps you think they are too hard, but as the saying goes, you never know unless you try making them.

A bit of gnocchi goes a long way. Our first attempt to make gnocchi was when we were practising cooking during the filming of MKR more than three years ago. Now we enjoy making a large batch and enjoying it with a glass of red.

Mushroom ragu gnocchi Serves 4

INGREDIENTS: Gnocchi - w 2kg desiree potatoes, peeled and quartered w 4 egg yolks w 2 whole eggs w 100g grated parmesan w 200g plain flour or ‘OO’ flour w Salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Mushroom ragu - w 6 cloves of garlic, sliced w 2 onions, finely diced w ¼ bunch of lemon thyme w 800g mixed mushrooms (Portobello, swiss brown, field and oyster) w 1 lemon zest and juice w 75g butter w Olive oil w Salt and pepper w ¼ bunch of parsley w Shaved parmesan.

METHOD: Bring water to the boil in a large sauce pan. Add potatoes and boil until tender. Drain and place back in the saucepan on the stove to lightly dry out.

Whisk egg yolks. Take potatoes off the stove and mash into a rough puree with a whisk or masher.

Turn potato out on to a floured bench and fold in egg, parmesan, salt and cracked pepper. Knead together. Add three-quarters of the flour or until the gnocchi doesn’t stick to your hands and is a good firm consistency. Work quickly and roll into a sausage about the thickness of your thumb, then cut into pieces about 2cm thick. Place on to floured trays.

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil then reduce heat to a simmer. Place the gnocchi in the water and cook for about 2 minutes or until it starts to float.

Place immediately into an ice bath to stop the cooking process for a couple of minutes and then remove from water – set aside for crisping.

To make the ragu, melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, finely chopped thyme, salt and pepper and allow to sweat down. Chop mushrooms roughly and slowly add to the pan with the onions. Once all the mushrooms are cooked, take pan off the heat.

In another large saucepan, heat oil and butter. Add gnocchi and pan-fry until golden brown and crisp. Add mushroom ragu and heat through.

To assemble, plate good spoonfuls of gnocchi on to the centre of the plate, stacking high, then finish with lemon zest, lemon juice, chopped parsley and shaved parmesan.

Dan and Steph Mulheron won My Kitchen Rules in 2013. Visit www.danandsteph.com.au

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w

OU either love chokos or you hate them. They’re a funny fruit. Mostly water, they taste of not much at all, really. My ex-husband used to say chokos taste like butter and pepper. Duh. I always thought they tasted like cheese sauce. It comes down to how your mum served them when you were a kid.

Native to Mexico, chokos are full of folate, fibre, manganese and vitamin C. The whole plant is edible, including the vine stalk and seeds, and the leaves can be made into a tea. Here is a recipe I devised some years ago when I had a bumper crop. The cake is dense and moist, and stays that way for a while.

ONE LOCAL TO ANOTHER

W9

easy eating

Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

To share

Enjoy oodles of zoodles Pasta alternative offers great versatility and soaks up the flavours

Wines of heavenly quality await you WINE WORDS with Regan Drew

E

DEN Road burst o nto the scene in 2009, winning the Jimmy Watson Trophy at the Royal Melbourne Wine Show with their Long Road Shiraz. Winemaker Nick Spencer may still look cherubic in promo shots, but he’s moved on from boyish charm to producing a mature catalogue of multi award winning wines in Murrumbateman NSW, on the outskirts of the ACT. More than ably assisted by Hamish Young, they source fruit from Hilltops, Gundagai, Tumbarumba and their own estate to consistently produce wines of heavenly quality.

w Zucchini pasta with prawns, chilli and lemon.

S E AS O NS T O S H AR E w i t h J a c qu e li n e A l wi ll

Z

UCCHINI pasta, also known as ‘zoodles’ or ‘spirals’, has become one of the best alternatives to wheat-based pasta due to the neutral flavour of the zucchini and its ability to hold its shape and soak up delicious flavours. There are plenty of tools around to make these zoodles, but you don’t need fancy equipment or skill of any sort to get started. Simply use a vegetable peeler to make long thin strips of zucchini, then either keep them wide or stack them and cut lengthways into thinner strips.

Zucchini pasta with prawns, chilli and lemon Serves 2

INGREDIENTS: w 2 large zucchini w 3 tbs olive oil w 6 raw king prawns, peeled and deveined (tails left on) w 1 garlic clove, finely chopped w 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest w 1⁄2tsp finely chopped red bird's eye chilli (seeds removed if you don’t want the pasta too spicy) w 2 tbs lemon juice w a small handful of rocket leaves w 60g freshly grated parmesan cheese (optional) w sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

METHOD: To make the zucchini pasta, either use a spiraliser or follow the instructions in the introduction above. I prefer my noodles slightly thinner as I find they catch the flavours a bit better, but go with what you feel most comfortable with to start

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

and progress to thinner noodles as your confidence improves.

If you want to make these earlier in the day, they’ll keep well in the fridge until you’re ready to cook them.

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Cook the zucchini noodles for one minute then remove from the pan and drain well.

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat.

Then add the prawns, garlic, lemon zest and chilli and cook, keeping everything moving around the pan, until the prawns just start to change colour. Add the drained zucchini noodles and toss well to combine.

Gently stir through the lemon juice, rocket, grated parmesan (if using), and a good pinch of salt and pepper, then serve immediately.

Recipes and images from Seasons to Share by Jacqueline Alwill (Murdoch Books) $39.99.

Maragle Vineyard Chardonnay

2014: From a single vineyard in Tumbarumba, near the Snowy Mountains. Twelve months French Oak aging, 25% new. Whipped double cream, peach slices and the tiniest hint of nutty oak. Delicious and textured right from the outset. The oak treatment threatens to make this corpulent, but the powerful natural linear fruit pulls everything into line. w Rating: 9.5/10 w RRP: $40 w Alc: 12.6%

P3, NV

Equal parts pinot noir, pinot meunier and pinot gris, all co-fermented together. When you’ve got rungs on the board, you’re allowed to play your own shots. This is the Eden Road boys playing, experimenting and coming up with a delicious drink. Bacon, sweet brown spice, strawberries and musk lollies. w Rating: 8.5/10 w RRP: $33 Alc: 12.5%

Canberra Syrah

2013: Predominantly estate fruit with additions from nearby wineries Quarry Hill and Long Rail Gully. Smells inviting, with perfumed violets, shiny ripe plums, soft clover and the right amount of savoury meatiness. Almost perfectly balanced from the outset in youth, with delicate dark fruit in symbiosis with fine, elegant tannins. w Rating: 9.5/10 w RRP: $60 w Alc: 13.5% Eden Road wines available at major retailers. vinonotebook.com

Enjoy a yummy caramel slice you won’t feel too guilty about YOU might be surprised to learn that the nutritional profile of this caramel slice is incredibly diverse. The nuts and seeds used here are rich in omega-3 and amino acids, there is just the right amount of natural sweetness with a hint of vanilla, and the delicious clean caramel gets a touch of endocrine support courtesy of the maca powder. This can be made well ahead of time and stored in the freezer for up to two weeks.

Raw almond caramel slice

INGREDIENTS: Base - w 60g walnut halves w 40g almonds w 125g Medjool dates, pitted (about 7 dates) w 2 tbs coconut oil, melted w 3 tbs raw cacao powder w 1 tbs linseeds w 1 tbs chia seeds w 2 tbs rice malt syrup.

Raw caramel - w 70g almond butter w 2 tbs hulled tahini w 2 tbs rice malt syrup w 75g Medjool dates, pitted (about 4 dates) w 2 tsp vanilla paste or extract w 1 tsp maca powder w 115g chopped almonds.

Chocolate topping - w 3 tbs coconut oil w 3 tbs rice malt syrup w 3 tbs raw cacao powder.

METHOD: Combine all of the base ingredients in a food

processor and blitz to a crumb, or until a paste is formed if you prefer a smoother texture for your base. If you need to loosen the ingredients to assist with blending, add a touch of water.

Line a square 20cm cake tin with baking paper, then spoon the base mixture into the tin and evenly spread it around. Place in the freezer while you prepare the caramel and topping.

Place all of the raw caramel ingredients, except the chopped almonds, in the food processor and blitz until a smooth caramel-like texture forms. Take the base out of the freezer and spread the caramel evenly over the surface. Sprinkle over half of the chopped almonds, then return to the freezer.

To finish the slice, make the chocolate topping by melting the coconut oil in a small saucepan on a low heat. Once the oil has melted, remove from the heat and add the rice malt syrup and cacao powder. Whisk well to create a smooth melted chocolate.

Pour this molten chocolate over the slice, then spread it out evenly over the top and finish by sprinkling over the remaining chopped almonds.

Return to the freezer and allow to set for approximately 4–6 hours. Serve straight from the freezer. Makes 24 slices.

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travel

frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

Vietnam

Destination: wedding Why one couple chose to tie the knot in Vietnam

BHAYA WEDDING PACKAGE For an all-inclusive cost, we were provided with one night’s accommodation, lunch, dinner and breakfast and brunch, flowers for the table settings and bridal party, ceremony with a celebrant (who actually turned out to be the wedding planner I had been dealing with the whole time, which was nice), decorations for the wedding, a cake and champagne, entrance fees to sites the next morning and kayaks for guests to use.

w A small and unique wedding in Vietnam was also an economical alternative for Nicola and her husband Ben.

T RA V E L w i t h N i c ol a Po w el l

P

LANNING a wedding can be a daunting task. When you throw in the fact that you’re planning it by email, communicating with people whose first language is not English, in a country that you may not have visited before, it’s a whole different kettle of fish.

The risk of things going wrong dramatically increase, and suddenly the colour scheme’s importance is thrown out the window when you’re asked questions about how you’d like things positioned in a setting that you’ve never set eyes on.

And yet destination weddings are fast becoming a popular choice for Gen Y. Let me tell you why. They are affordable alternatives to dropping an entire house deposit on one day in your life that seems to rush by in an instant.

You can choose to get married anywhere, and it has the added benefit of a forced holiday for yourselves and your guests. They are easy to plan and you’ll create an unforgettable experience for everyone involved.

Destination weddings truly are a fantastic way to go. However, you have to be willing to let go of the element of control, put all your trust in the hands of someone else throughout the whole organisation process, and just go with the flow, which certainly is not for everyone.

MURR AY RIVER

PHOTOS: CHUCK KUHN

‘‘

We wanted somewhere most of our friends and family had not travelled to, yet somewhere that was affordable When I mentioned we were getting married overseas a lot of people called us crazy. It was even harder to explain to people why we decided on Vietnam to do it.

We chose a destination that was different to typical destination weddings (Thailand, Fiji, Bali), as we wanted somewhere that meant something to us (we backpacked in Vietnam eight years ago and loved it).

We wanted somewhere that most of our friends and family had not travelled to, yet somewhere that was still affordable for them to make the trek with us for the wedding and make a holiday out of it. In the end, we decided to get married in Ha Long Bay, on a traditional Vietnamese junk boat (through Bhaya Cruises).

Planning the wedding itself was really not all that difficult.

After we decided where we wanted to tie the knot and found a company that communicated well, everything just fell into place.

Bhaya Cruises has a fleet of junks. The largest has 20 cabins and so there is a maximum of 40 people. That gave us a number

Paddle wheeler’s birthday cruise MAJESTIC paddle wheeler PS Murray Princess turns 30 this year and to celebrate, Captain Cook Cruises is throwing a special birthday cruise featuring a unique three-night itinerary.

The cruise departs from Mannum in South Australia on Friday, August 12.

There will be nostalgia from days gone by and a spectacular 30th birthday gala celebration and dinner hosted by the captain.

In between partying there will be plenty of time to experience the magnificent Murray River with an itinerary designed especially for this birthday cruise.

Prices include accommodation, all meals, guided nature walks, eco-excursions, onboard presentations, onboard wi-fi, the captain’s dinner and dance, live entertainment, the use of ship’s facilities including a sauna, spa, sun deck, bar, two lounges, restaurant and mini gymnasium, and complimentary scenic coach transfers from Adelaide or car parking in Mannum. Prices exclude drinks, optional tours and services. w COSTS: From $787 a person. w MORE DETAILS: murrayprincess.com.au.

of guests to work towards inviting, and deciding the guest list was probably the hardest part.

Bhaya Cruises also proposed that they take our photos and some videography of the day and night. They would provide these to us, and in return use the photos and videos as their promotional material.

This was a fantastic alternative to providing our own photographer, which would have proven to be very expensive ($2000 and we’d lose a room on the boat).

At the end of the day we had to remember that we were doing this for ourselves and not for anyone else, and the most important thing was that the two of us were happy.

The wedding went off without a hitch, we had an amazing time, and the backdrop of Ha Long Bay was simply breathtaking.

It actually exceeded my expectations far more than I could have imagined.

And the best thing (aside from getting married of course) was that we got to incorporate our honeymoon into the whole trip.

Well, in our case as we had 30 family and friends travelling over with us we coined it our “groupie-moon’’ and had a few people travelling down the coastline with us for four weeks.

Highlights included trekking in Sapa, scuba diving in Hoi An, learning how to drive (and crash) scooters, and relaxing on various beaches on the south coast, including Mui Ne and Phu Quoc.

It was the experience of a lifetime, and I would not change one thing.

Of course, all weddings are a memorable and magical time, but if you have the constitution to do something for yourselves and want to create a truly unforgettable memory then I would definitely recommend a destination wedding.

Check out Nicola’s blog at www.lovedupandlost.com

TUSCANY

New Year in glorious Tuscany

EXPERIENCE a New Year’s like no other among Italy’s cobblestone streets and romantic piazzas with a 7-day tour.

Fully escorted by an experienced tour manager, the tour includes transport in a first class touring coach, 6 nights accommodation, some meals and excursions and entrances. w COSTS: With more than $700 of included extras, the 7-day New Year in Tuscany tour is priced at $3189pp and departs Milan December 28, 2016. w MORE DETAILS: 1300 135 015 albatrosstours.com.au.

W 11

travel

Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

TASTY SERVICE: The town of Rudesheim will entice you with its food, wine and friendly nature.

w The town of Rudesheim on the bank of the Rhine and, right, the cable car to the top of the Niederwald Forest. PHOTOS: CONTRIBUTED

Germany

Putting on a party The Rhine, the wine and a cable car ride make Rudesheim a must CRUISE EUROPE

TRAVEL

with Ann Rickard

T

HE small German winemaking town of Rudesheim in the Rhine Gorge has just 10,000 inhabitants yet it receives three million visitors a year. So what is its secret?

It knows how to put on a good party. And there is never a shortage of good local wine.

Vines grow lavishly up imposing hills soaring from the Rhine, flourishing hectares of them ascending to the heavens. Just the sight of such abundance puts you in a party mood.

The small but lively town is a labyrinth of cobbled lanes and narrow streets crammed with bars, cafes, shops, all built around picturesque half-timber houses. A tad touristy, especially by the river, but that is part of its allure.

We got to know Rudesheim briefly but comprehensively in one big day on a shore excursion with Avalon Waterways when our ship Imagery II pulled up.

Before we scaled those vine-covered hills, about to burst into spring bud, we stopped at the Museum of Musical Cabinets where a privately owned collection of musical instruments – mostly organs – varied from the so tiny you could hold them in one hand to the enormous, those colourful organs used in fairs

in bygone days complete with giant pipes and bellowing music with twitching puppets and dancing figurines.

It was a marvellous segue into the attractions waiting for us at the top of the vine-covered hills.

Depending on when you go – early spring in our case – it could well be the coldest but most exhilarating journey up a hill you are ever likely to experience. The icy spring wind cut across the open air cable car, through our thick jackets and bit into our bones as we were swept speedily over thousands of budding vines to the top of the Niederwald Forest with its famous Germania Monument, built between 1877 and 1883 to commemorate the rebirth of the German Empire.

It was breathtaking in the literal sense. High up there we stamped our feet and squealed against the cold and looked down over the panoramic view to Rudesheim’s old town where the tranquil river was dotted with small green islands.

Our guide Suzanne, who we surmised owned half the town and was the unofficial mayor, told us to brace against the cold and walk. All the way down. On first look it seemed impossible but the path zig-zagged lazily through myriad vineyards and it was so bracing, so beautiful, so invigorating.

And it didn’t hurt that Suzanne had organised a picnic for us halfway down: tables with pale German sausage, fat red radishes, excellent bread and endless glasses of riesling.

Suzanne gave up good information: “We all have parcels of

THAILAND

Avalon Waterways offers river cruises across Europe including the eight-day Romantic Rhine itinerary travelling between Zurich and Amsterdam. Highlights include Strasbourg, Heidelberg, Rudesheim, the Rhine Gorge, Koblenz and Cologne. Departures in 2017 are now on sale, priced from $3462 a person twin share.

Until May 31, 2016, fly return economy to Europe with airlines including Cathay Pacific from $789 a person next year with all cruises of 7-14 days. Cruises of 15 days or more are available with free return economy flights. w MORE

DETAILS: www.avalonwaterways.com.au

land here, and we all help each other care for the vines,” she said. “One man had a sick daughter and had to spend a year in Frankfurt when she was in hospital. All the other land owners pitched in and cared for his vines so he did not suffer any loss during the awful year he had to care for his family.”

Suzanne guided us to the Rudesheim Schloss Hotel and we were ushered into its wonderfully welcoming warmth where about 100 people sat eating hearty sausages and drinking wine, and frauleins dressed in traditional garb made us brandy flambé coffee while the band stopped playing German beer songs and burst into a good rendition of Waltzing Matilda.

The writer was a guest of Avalon Waterways.

EUROPE

Escape to beautiful beachfront luxury DISCOVER The Haven Khao Lak Resort and experience eight nights of five-star romance in Thailand for only $999 for two (valued at $3298).

The beachfront resort is located on Khuk Khak Beach, one of the most beautiful beaches in Thailand.

The luxury package includes private airport pick-up, daily buffet breakfasts, indulgent massages, exotic dining experiences, super-late checkout, and more.

The limited offer is available for purchase for one week (unless sold out) and valid for travel until November 2017. w MORE DETAILS: Visit luxuryescapes.com or call 1300 889 900.

Bask in old world charm

ENJOY an 18-night Cruise1st fly, cruise and stay package including pre and post accommodation as you take in European highlights, starting in Athens and finishing in Barcelona. Fly from Australia on October 7 for three nights’ accommodation in Athens before beginning the cruise on Carnival Cruise Lines’ Vista on October 11. Priced from $2999 a person twin share, based on an inside cabin. w MORE DETAILS: 1300 596 345 or visit cruise1st.com.au.

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home

frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

ANCIENT REMEDY: Apple cider vinegar has been used by mankind since 5000BC as a tonic and beverage.

Style w i t h T r a c ey H o rd e r n

Living in harmony with symmetry

M

ANY of my friends think I’m mad. Really.

This madness has a lot to do with being obliged, or rather driven to say, straighten a painting, or centre a piece of furniture under a painting.

Like many, I find asymmetry in a living space jarring. There’s a good reason for this, and it’s the fact that symmetrical design affects our brain. Even when it is too subtle to be consciously acknowledged, subconsciously we know when something is off-centre or out of balance.

At the same time, most of us are drawn to balanced images and spaces, as we tend to think of them more aesthetically pleasing than their off-kilter counterparts. Regardless of your personal style, symmetry has to do with a sense of balance.

You will find symmetrical balance in most traditional interiors, just picture in your mind’s eye the exterior or interior of a grand home; it’s symmetrical isn’t it?

The design principal of symmetrical balance is best characterised by the same objects repeated in the same positions on either side of a vertical axis.

For example, a pair of bedside tables, placed one either side of the bed. Asymmetrical balance is more casual and suggests movement, leading to lively interiors. An example would be a tall standing lamp on one side of a sofa and a small table on the other side.

And then there’s another good reason to pursue symmetry in your space – and that’s the ancient art of Feng Shui. Pairs are especially important in a space according to Feng Shui as they can reflect or attract a couple and is said to bring and maintain romance into your life. Now there’s a great reason for symmetry.

FENG SHUI LIKES ALL THINGS EQUAL

w A classical and symmetrical living space.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

w Apple cider vinegar has myriad uses.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

At home

Ancient remedy for ills Benefits of apple cider vinegar known for thousands of years STAY AT HOME MUM with Jody Allen

M

ADE from the juice of whole apples that have undergone a fermentation process until their sugars turn to vinegar, apple cider vinegar has been used since 5000BC as a tonic and beverage. Here are my 12 top uses for apple cider vinegar: 1. Improve your sleep. Mix one or two teaspoons with a little honey and some water, and sip prior to bed. Traditionally this mixture was used to help bring about sleep.

2. Improve digestion and help lose weight. Sipping apple cider vinegar mixed with water during a meal helps to keep blood sugar and insulin levels lower, helping to reduce cravings and increase your fullness after eating.

3. Neutralise stomach acid. After consuming a fatty meal, take two teaspoons of cider vinegar in a glass of water to relieve the nauseous feeling and get your digestion working better.

Indigestion and acid reflux sufferers can also use apple cider vinegar to help relieve symptoms. For best results, dilute one to three teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in warm water and consume before every meal.

4. Boost your hair’s radiance and shine. Add half a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and a cup of cold water to a clean plastic bottle. Pour the solution through your hair after

shampooing. Careful you don’t get it in your eye’s though – it stings.

5. Fresh, healthy complexion. Dilute one part apple cider vinegar to two parts water (dilute further for sensitive skin) and use a cotton ball to dab on your face after cleansing and before applying moisturiser. Apple cider vinegar helps to balance the pH level of the skin and the antibacterial and anti-fungal properties of the cider vinegar help prevent acne problems.

6. Keep pet fur shiny and eliminate odours. Add cider vinegar to your pet’s drinking water and smell the difference.

7. Remove lint from clothes. Don’t you hate it when the washing comes out of the machine covered in lint? Add half a cup of cider vinegar to your rinse cycle and watch it disappear.

8. Deodorise the fridge. Place a cup of apple cider vinegar inside the refrigerator for two days for a fresh clean smell.

9. Clean and disinfect wooden cutting boards. Simply with a wipe of full strength apple cider vinegar.

10. Remove spots and film from glasses. Milk can leave a film on glass and water spots are the worst! Rinse glasses in water and cider vinegar.

11. Clean windows and floor tiles. For a sparkly clean, add cider vinegar to the wash water.

12. Extend the life of fresh cut flowers. Make those blooms last longer by adding two tablespoons of cider vinegar and one teaspoon of sugar to each litre of water in the vase.

Jody Allen is the founder of Stay At Home Mum: www.stayathomemum.com.au

Home products wi th T ra c ey H o r de rn

Good things come in pairs ...

w Grey Ombre Faux Fur Cushions, $12 each, Kmart, www.kmart.com.au

w Zimmer Bedside Table, $798 each, Pottery Barn, www.potterybarn.com.au

w Florence Table Lamp, $149 (pair), Temple & Webster, www.templeandwebster.com.au

W 13

make

Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

COFFEE ON THE MOVE: Save on material costs by recycling an old timber pallet or two.

Do-it-yourself

Turn the table with this simple idea Wheel out a new coffee table you made yourself

D I Y w i t h G r ei g M o rg an

A

COFFEE table with a shelf for magazines is handy, and one on wheels that you can move around the room to suit what’s happening is even better. I’ve made this one to resemble a pallet for a more rustic look.

w Step 1

Decide how big you want your table to be, then measure, mark and cut the number of boards you need to the length you require, keeping the size of the table in proportion. I cut eight lengths at 900mm for the bottom and top.

w Step 2

Position the boards with about 20mm between them (which is the thickness of the boards). This will give you your measurements for the table sides. Now mark and cut

Materials w 150x25mm pine w Caster wheels, 2 with a brake w 40mm stainless flathead nails w Stain.

Tools w Protective wear w Mitre saw w Tape measure w Pencil w Screw gun w 2.5 -3mm drill bit w Hammer w Hand plane w 150g sandpaper w Paint brush. two boards to length for the sides of the table, but also allowing for the thickness of four corner pieces of about 100mm. The front and back corner pieces will sit flush with the table.

w Step 3

With the boards all cut to size, plane the sharp edge off all the ends to give a nice finished look.

w Step 4

Scribe a pencil line about 10mm in from the ends on the top and bottom boards as a guide. Pre-drill three holes evenly spaced along the pencil line on each board. Pre-drilling holes prevents the wood from splitting.

Tip: Sand and stain the components before assembling.

w Step 5

Fix the top and bottom boards to the side boards as well as to the four corner pieces. Carefully hammer the nails in flush.

w Step 6

With your table now assembled, cut four corner pieces to length, about 150mm, for the bottom. Line up the ends, pre-drill and nail flush with the corners. These are for the caster wheels.

w Step 7

Place and fix the caster wheels in the centre of the corner blocks, using screws of the appropriate length.

w Check out these simple but effective additions.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

headspace can help young people 12 - 25 with: - general health - mental health and wellbeing - alcohol and other drugs - education, employment and other services

headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health under the Youth Mental Health Initiative.

headspace.org.au

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garden

frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

NATURAL GOODNESS: Plants that prefer an acid soil such as camellias and azaleas will benefit from a good layer of leaf mulch.

In my garden w i t h A n gi e T h om a s

YOU MIGHT NOT RECOGNISE THE w The golden glow of autumn.

NAMES, BUT YOU WILL ALMOST

PHOTO: PATRIK STEDRAK

C E RTA I N LY R E C O G N I S E T H E P L A N T w Zygocactus are a member of the cactus family but they are not desert plants and they are not thorny.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

Gardening

Celebrating in style Zygocactus use shorter days to show off true colours GREEN THUMB with Maree Curran

P

LANTS respond to the changing seasons in many different ways. In autumn, the shorter days and cooler nights causes the leaves on deciduous trees to colour and eventually fall. The shorter days also causes several plant species to flower.

One of these is zygocactus, a member of the cactus family that celebrates the shorter days in style.

In fact the name was changed a few years ago, and what we know as zygocactus should now be called schlumbergera truncates. In Europe and America they are known as Holiday Cactus or Christmas Cactus because they flower at Christmas time. But Australian gardeners still tend to call them zygocactus.

You might not recognise any of these names, but you will almost certainly recognise the plant when you see it, with its distinctive fleshy, flattened, segmented leaves that grow in an arching formation from the base of the plant.

The unusually shaped, very brightly coloured flowers emerge at the end of these leaves.

The blooms are often a bit shimmery, and range in colour

from white through pinks, lavender, coral, orange and red.

Although they are a member of the cactus family, they are not desert plants and they are not thorny.

They come from the jungles of Brazil, a humid area with high rainfall. Like many bromeliads, zygocactus are epiphytes, which means that they depend on other plants for support, but not for nutrition. In the wild, Zygocactus grow in trees, where they enjoy sunlight filtered through the canopy. You could experiment with replicating those conditions in your garden. They are especially well suited to tall pots and hanging baskets as they do tend to hang rather than grow upright.

Zygocactus are incredibly hardy and easy to grow. Like all epiphytes, they need excellent drainage. Some experts suggest a cymbidium orchid or bromeliad mix, but you could also use a premium potting mix, but not a cactus mix. They are best in a partly shaded situation.

Use a slow release fertiliser in spring and again in mid to late summer. The flower buds start to form in about March. Because the flowering is triggered by shorter days, flowering can be impaired or stopped entirely if the plant receives artificial light at night in autumn.

Got a gardening question? Email maree@edenatbyron.com.au

Rake or mow and make the most of those fallen leaves DECIDUOUS trees, if you have them, can provide you with wheelbarrow loads of fantastic fallen leaves during autumn.

Don’t leave them on the lawn as they can shade the grass and create bare patches. Rake them up and scatter them over the top of garden beds as leaf mulch. Or run the lawn mower over them. They’ll be chopped up finely in the catcher. These too can be used as a leaf mulch or better still, mixed with a few handfuls of Dynamic Lifter and turned into compost. There are lots of different composting systems available, ranging from enclosed compost tumblers to do it yourself bays or frames in the back corner of the yard.

Autumn leaves are high in organic matter but low in the nutrients needed for effective composting.

Peas in a pod

IT’S great to encourage kids to get out into the garden, and growing something that they can devour straight off the vine is not only fun but also shows them where food actually comes from. Yates climbing sugarsnap peas are quick to grow (eight to 10 weeks to mature) and are a prolific cropper, so they’re a great vegie to grow for impatient and hungry children.

Both the pea and pod are sweet, juicy, and nutritious.

When the pods are young they can be eaten whole or when they’re mature, kids can have fun breaking open the pods and extracting the peas. The peas will need a trellis (they’ll grow to two metres) in a sunny spot. They can also be grown in pots. Use a tripod in the pot or position the pot next to a trellis attached to a fence. Sow in autumn in temperate and tropical zones. Leave sowing until early winter in cool zones.

Feed the peas regularly with a fast-acting liquid fertiliser.

Angie Thomas is an expert horticulturist from Yates

Garden products

From the garden to the wall All products available from Bunnings

w Whites Garden Up Terrace Balcony Planter incorporates a frame ideal for hanging over rails and fences. Includes safety clips to secure pot. RRP $10.70

w The Holman GreenWall is an engineered platform that is designed to make hanging or vertical gardens easy to set up and maintain in an Australian yard, even an apartment balcony. RRP $69.

w The Lotus Black Horizontal Garden features a solid metal powder coated frame and is ready to hang free-standing or wall mountable. RRP $49.95

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stuff

Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

On A Lighter Note

Gadgets

The family kitchen is a place of mystery

w i t h G e of f E g a n

Who eats the toast that’s nuked on settings above number four?

‘‘

ON A LIGHTER NOTE with Greg Bray

R

ECENTLY I found myself languishing on the lounge with an icepack on my fist wondering how I, a man who lifts heavy stuff for a living, nearly dislocated two fingers trying to open a bottle of bolognaise sauce.

Why are these lids screwed on so eye-poppingly tight? And how are weaker, older, arthritic or disabled folk getting them off?

Do they get someone else to unscrew them, or simply go without? Perhaps they use a large pair of multi-grips to remove the caps; like I’ll be doing from now on.

That night, I shovelled down two large helpings of spag bol – while I still could.

The next morning another mystery popped up along with my burnt toast: Why are there 10 settings on the toaster when anything over four, turns bread to charcoal?

Seriously, who eats charred toast?

I did some experimenting and discovered that each of those six settings produces an amazing variety of blackened bread, from merely scorched, to radioactive crumbs.

My research came to an end when Long Suffering Wife raced into our smoke-filled kitchen with a fire extinguisher.

Gadget review w i t h G e of f E g a n

Motorola thinks big in new phone design

My research came to an end when Long Suffering Wife raced into our smoke filled kitchen with a fire extinguisher.

w IF YOU’VE ever wished you could hang a bigger digital picture frame on your wall, then you are in luck. The Acanvas is a customisable digital display that can show your own photos or artwork from professional artists. Pre-order on Kickstarter.

When I was allowed to work unsupervised again, Mystery #3 arrived while I was making scrambled eggs; unfortunately I’d started out making fried eggs.

How are my eggs managing to weld themselves to the bottom of an alleged non-stick frying pan?

I honed the edge of our egg flip to samurai sword sharpness and it slid under the eggs without smushing them, but it also removed quite a lot of non-stick coating from the bottom of our frying pan.

Which leads us to the final mystery: When will Long Suffering Wife finally ban me from the kitchen, allowing me sit on the lounge with a cold beer in one hand while she does all the cooking?

Greg Bray blogs at www.gregbraywriter.wordpress.com. Find him on Facebook: Greg Bray – Writer.

w ACTIVITY trackers are becoming more and more common and increasingly cheap. But the Garmin Forerunner 735XT is a high-end device that includes GPS tracking, 24/7 heart rate monitoring and has in-built activities for a range of sports. Price $600.

FEATURES: 1080p display, up to 64GB storage and 3000mAh battery.

MOTOROLA has joined the massive-phone race by upping the size of its Moto G by half an inch. The newly announced Moto G and Moto G Plus will both have 5.5 inch (about 14cm) screens – up from the previous model’s five inches.

The Plus offers two additions to the base Moto G model – a fingerprint scanner and upgraded camera. The standard Moto G comes with a 13 megapixel camera compared to 16 megapixels in the Plus model. The Plus also comes with upgraded laser focus and autofocus. Australian release date and price TBA.

w The bigger and better Moto G.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

w BY COMBINING over- and inner-ear headphones, Aussie start-up Nura has designed unique headphones. Nura states the headphones can adjust to the output best suited to each listener. Similarly, they play bass through the outer cup and higher notes through the in-ear bud. Pre-order on Kickstarter.

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closet

frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

Fashion Style

The four commandments for heavenly hair in winter

C

w i t h K i r i t e n D o ll e

All choked up

ONTRARY to popular belief, the winter months don’t have to wreak havoc on your healthy, glowing locks. Oscar Oscar artistic director Jess Longhurst gives us the low down on the four hair commandments you should abide by to keep your tresses looking lustrous well after the winter chill sets in.

1. Thou shall put down thy hair straightener

The mercury has dropped to the single digits, your hair is in a state of disarray and the only way to remedy the frizz situation is with that magical straightening wand, right? Wrong! “Hot tools will make your hair look sleek in the short term, but in the long run you’re just drying your hair out more than it already is from the changing seasons. Try blow drying and straightening your hair and then vetoing the tong in favour of a little dry shampoo in between washes – you’ll end up with a tousled look that is effortlessly chic and still on trend,” says Jess.

2. Thou shall use heat protection

If you do find yourself reaching for the straightening iron, make sure you’re using a heat protectant to stop your hair from getting fried and damaged from the heat. Try Redken’s Iron Shape 11 Finishing Thermal Spray.

3. Thou shall treat thyself

Treatments are your hair’s knight in shining armour during the cooler seasons. “Using an intensive hydrating treatment each week will bring even the most lacklustre hair new life,” explains Jess.

4. Thou shalt visit thy hairdresser

With extreme temperature changes in winter, hair is more prone to developing split ends. “While there are many ways to try to lessen the look of split ends, once the hair is well and truly split the only real way to banish splits for good is to cut them off.

This means regular trips to the salon – ideally every six to eight weeks for a small trim. And if you take this advice as gospel, your tresses are guaranteed to look a million times better once summer rolls around.

The black and white of choker necklines

WINTER DOESN’T HAVE TO WREAK HAVOC ON HAIR

Weekend wellness w i t h N i k ki F og d en - M oo r e

Give yourself a digital detox before your body says ‘no’ DOES it ever feel as if life is just speeding by and you’re running from one thing to the next, without time to pause and regroup?

Have you lost your sense of humour? Are you feeling more sensitive or just not feeling quite yourself? And have you put working out, exercise and general well-being at the bottom of the list as you don’t have time?

You are not alone. Despite all the technology we have in our lives that is supposed to save time, it seems like people are more stressed and time poor than ever before. According to Nielson research US, Americans spend up to 60 hours a week consuming content across up to 4 devices. Australia is not far behind either.

At a certain point, your body simply says ‘no’. It may be in the form of a cold or flu, poor eyesight, a niggling pain or injury,

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headaches, digestive complaints, skin disorders, insomnia or just the fact you feel exhausted and can’t concentrate efficiently during the day. By the time it has come to this, it is already a reflection of a low immune system and the cellular impact of stress.

How can you start right now to help deal with stress and help your body cope with daily mental and physical demands? By giving yourself a regular digital detox. Here’s some practical tips for a daily reboot: During the day: w Take a nano break: get up and walk away from your computer, go talk to a colleague personally rather than emailing across the room. w Stay off Facebook/social media in the morning on the way to work - listen to music, a podcast or read an actual book instead. w Take a fresh air break at lunch time, rather than eating lunch with your phone or iPad in front of you.

At night: w Avoid TV, illuminated alarm clocks and other digital stimulus in the bedroom. w Read a book before you go to sleep, rather than watching television or working late on the computer.

w Create a regular bedtime routine and a regular sleep-wake schedule. w Keep a diary of things that are on your mind, get them out of your head and on to paper – even if it’s a list of things to do for the next day.

Think of a digital detox as recharging your own batteries.

Sometimes you need to disconnect to reconnect. www.thevitalitycoach.com.au

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you

Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

OBSERVE YOUR DATE’S BEHAVIOUR AND G A I N V I TA L C LU E S

w A restaurant is also a great place simply to enjoy food, wine and a few laughs ... or to check out a potential significant other.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

Relationships

Dinner dates show true colours You can gain a lot of useful insights into a potential partner while seeing if they can use cutlery BETWEEN THE SHEETS with Helen Hawkes

W

HAT makes the ideal first date? The kind that may lead to a house, 2.4 children and a white picket fence or, at the very least, sex and romance. Mea culpa, mea culpa. Let us immediately right that wrong.

If you are contemplating a first date, that may lead to a relationship or to sex, I have two words for you: dinner date.

Yes, I know these days relationship gurus advise a coffee meeting to get to know someone you have met through letshookup.com But what I am saying is that nowhere will you get better clues about a person you may wish to have some kind of relationship with than in an establishment that serves food.

Obviously the very act of eating is connected with a biological need. Everyone has to eat, hence an invitation for this kind of date is more difficult to refuse.

Most people are interested in the idea of a free meal, especially at a desirable venue, if you’re offering.

That hurdle overcome, dress in your best, wear a little

aftershave/perfume and come prepared to observe your date’s behaviour and garner vital clues.

Of course you may not wish to play detective and that’s fine too. A restaurant is also a great place simply to enjoy food, wine and a few laughs if you’re not auditioning your date for the role of significant other, or sexual partner. But then, can I ask, why are you going on this date exactly? Maybe think about that.

So ready? A person with good table manners is more likely to be a considerate partner and lover than someone who rests their elbows on their table, eats with their mouth open and doesn’t seem to know how to use cutlery.

Someone who is prepared to try something different on the menu can probably boast a more adventurous attitude to life and sex than someone who says "I always have the sweet and sour prawns". In fact, they might as well add, "I only like missionary".

A person who is tight about prices is equally likely to be tight about spending money on the house or the children, if you get that far. And be warned that someone who is rude to the waiter/ waitress will be talking to you like that in five years’ time.

The dream dinner date is the person who takes you to a restaurant where they know you will like the food, even if they don’t really like Mexican/Indian/Japanese themselves, who insists you have anything you desire no matter what the price,

‘‘

Food and wine plus good company is the perfect recipe for the start of a relationship... and who makes the serving staff feel appreciated but not leered at. If he takes you to the equivalent of hooters, it’s trouble. Ditto if she only seems to know restaurants where she’s slept with the maître d’/barman/waiter.

Someone who can choose a wine or, if they can’t, doesn’t pretend to be a buff; who keeps up an intelligent conversation and doesn’t instantly go eyes down and fork up when the food arrives; and who isn’t a glutton on the scale of Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, also has relationship potential.

A willingness to share food, if asked, also scores points, while someone whose fork veers towards your plate, unasked, to stab the last chip, will be the same person rifling through your wallet when they’re short at the end of the week.

So if you want to get to second base, remember, food and wine plus good company is the perfect recipe for the start of a relationship, if you cook it right.

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18 W

screen life

frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

GREAT START: Film has already smashed New Zealand box office records, unseating Waititi’s 2010 movie Boy.

Hunt for the Wilderpeople w Stars: Sam Neill, Julian Dennison, Rhys Darby, Rima Te Wiata, Rachel House, Oscar Kightley, Stan Walker. w Director: Taika Waititi w Rating: PG w Reviewer’s last word: Director Taika Waititi is in top form in this heartwarming and hilarious wilderness adventure starring the most unlikely of partners in crime.

Star profile: Taika Waititi PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

Porker of a tale

With a rebel yell Heartwarming comedy loosely based on great Kiwi novel SCREEN LIFE

with Seanna Cronin

T

AIKA Waititi’s new film Hunt for the Wilderpeople will have you itching to release your inner rebel.

The Kiwi comedy stars Julian Dennison and Sam Neill as a teen and his foster uncle who lead authorities on a manhunt through the beautiful wilds of the New Zealand bush.

The film is loosely based on Barry Crump’s Wild Pork and Watercress, which Waititi was originally asked to develop into a screenplay in 2005. Waititi resurrected the project after meeting Crump’s family three years ago.

Anyone familiar with the book will immediately recognise the humour and quirkiness Waititi has injected into the story.

“The book is a slow burner. It takes place over a few years... there’s no immediacy,” Waititi tells Weekend.

“I wanted something where people could get invested a bit more emotionally and have a laugh.”

The film is set to make young actor Julian Dennison, whom

Waititi had previously worked with on an award-winning advertising campaign, an instant star.

“I think he realised early on the entire film is based on him and him making himself available,” he says.

“He worked really, really hard. He just never let us down. He was 12 years old having to wander through the bush and remember lines; he’s a real trooper.”

Hunt for the Wilderpeople has a strong visual style reminiscent of Wes Anderson with touches of Quentin Tarantino in the soundtrack.

“From the start I wanted an ’80s synth feel a bit like the chase adventure films in the ’80s,” Waititi says.

“I’m a huge fan of the soundtrack from Peter Weir’s Gallipoli. I wanted to embrace that whole filmmaking style from how they moved the camera to the characters they had.”

The film has already smashed New Zealand box office records, unseating Waititi’s 2010 movie Boy, and currently has a 100 per cent “fresh” rating on critic aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.

“So far people have really fallen in love with it,” he says.

“These days when there are so many superhero movies, I was interested to see if there’s an appetite for this sort of film.”

OPEN 7 DAYS • PLEASE NOTE: SORRY NO EFTPOS Facilities provided www.atci

THU 2.20

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THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE 3D (PG) 94 MINS WHISKY TANGO FOXTROT (M) 112 MINS

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BASTILLE DAY (M) 92 MINS NO FREE LIST

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When purchasing a MEGA Movie Deal - While Stocks Last 20/5/16 only.

X-MEN: APOCALPYSE (MA15+) 147 MINS NO FREE LIST THU

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It’s funny Waititi mentions superhero movies, since he’s about to direct one.

He will be based on the Gold Coast for the rest of this year to helm Marvel’s third Thor film, Thor: Ragnarok. Waititi doesn’t seem phased about heading up a film that is expected to gross hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office.

“It’s just longer and a little different and there are more people involved, but ultimately it’s the same as any of my other films,” he says.

“You’ve got a bunch of people coming together wanting to tell a good story. It’s just a bit more money and more time (with Thor). I think of every production I’ve ever been on, even on TV and big commercials, and you always run into the same problems. It’s just the nature of production.”

It will be interesting to see how he reconciles his sense of humour with the established big-screen juggernaut that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

“It’s the same as all my other films. It comes down to how much leeway do I give myself?” he says.

“I have to rein myself in on my films. Sometimes my ideas aren’t right for the story we’re trying to tell. With Wilderpeople I had to get rid of certain jokes because it was too distracting; other times I managed to fit them in. It’s all about the balance when you’re editing and getting as much of yourself in there as possible.”

Hunt for the Wilderpeople opens at select cinemas on Thursday. For more information go to madman.com.au.

Movies showing from THU 19.05.2016 to WED 25.05.2016

mas.c m.au • Maryb r ugh P aza, Bazaar St • Info lIne:

THE ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE (PG) 95 MINS THU .

2.40 .

7.05

w Quirky fact: Spent two years in Berlin working and exhibiting as a painter and photographer in the Schliemann 40 House. w Best known for: Boy, What We Do in the Shadows, Eagle vs Shark, Green Lantern. w If you like this movie you’ll like these: What We Do in the Shadows, Thor: Ragnarok, Tama tu. w Quote: “I have to rein myself in on my films; sometimes my ideas aren’t right for the story we’re trying to tell.”

X-MEN: APOCALYPSE (MA15+) 147 MINS NO FREE LIST THU

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FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS (M) 110 MINS

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w Sam Neill and Julian Dennison in a scene from the movie Hunt for the Wilderpeople.

W 19

relax

Saturday, May 21, 2016 frasercoastchronicle.com.au

EDITOR’S PICK: High Seas & High Teas. A vivid account of early voyages to Australia, giving us insight into what defines us as a nation.

Books

Shackled to the past

Five second reviews

Romantic suspense novel keeps readers on their toes

Alice-Miranda to the Rescue

R EV I E W b y D e bo ra h C o ok

By Jacqueline Harvey: A

N

ORA Roberts is the prolific author of well in excess of 200 novels – under her own name as well as a number of pseudonyms.

She really hits the ground running in her latest romantic suspense offering. The Obsession begins with a shocking event that changes 12-year-old Naomi Carson’s life forever.

We meet Naomi and her family a few times over ensuing years as the fallout from her childhood continues to revisit when she least expects it.

And now, in the present, Naomi has established herself as a photographer and ready to put down roots. She has bought a run-down mansion to renovate in the small community of Sunrise Cove and is finally feeling positive about her future.

Although she thinks she has left her past behind her, she is reluctant to share much of herself with anyone for fear that they will learn her secrets.

But her new love interest – mechanic, musician, bar owner and all-round good guy Xander – knows Naomi’s keeping something from him and is determined to learn what that is.

Naturally her past catches up with her and before long her childhood is literally replaying itself in Naomi’s new life.

Roberts eases off a little after the cracking start, but easily keeps readers on their toes by ensuring they are suspicious of the newcomers in Naomi’s life. Which of course is everyone in the Sunrise Cove community.

Naomi’s character is particularly well developed with a complexity borne of her early years. After a slightly cheesy introduction Xander proves himself a worthy suitor but his interest in Naomi’s past means he can’t be discounted when violence rears its ugly head in the otherwise quiet community.

Roberts has again turned out a well-paced novel, offering a good balance between romance and suspense and introducing a range of interesting suspects. Ahem, characters.

Review

delightful children’s book presenting Alice-Miranda and her friends at school, who are looking forward to Miss Reedy and Mr Plumpton’s wedding. But first she must solve the schoolyard mystery.

(Random House - $16.99)

Our Vietnam Nurses

By Annabelle Brayley: A compelling collection of stories recording the invaluable and previously unacknowledged contributions of all Australian nurses and medics in the Vietnam ware.

(Penguin Random House $34.99)

Tell Me a Tattoo Story

By Alison McGhee and Eliza Wheeler: A beautiful, The Obsession by Nora Roberts is published by Hachette Australia (Imprint Piatkus), RRP $29.99.

MOST Australians are familiar with our early history, the gruesome tales of wretched convicts being shipped to Australia under terrible conditions. But did you know between 1787 and 1900 more than 1.6 million immigrants, including 160,400 convicts, travelled to Australia by ship in search of a better life.

Almost half these pitiful passengers were government assisted, mostly from England, and were offered free emigration. This book looks closely at the reality of life on board in those formative times, and it is not pretty. Claustrophobic conditions, weevil-ridden food, rough weather, seasickness, disease and rats for companions along with convicts, all had to be endured. But it was the endless boredom on the long and laboured journey that plagued everyone the most.

Dr Russell, a historian who has written and edited books and articles on Australian history, has brought to vivid life this important part of Australia’s history.

w i th Ann Ri c ka rd

High Seas & High Teas – Voyaging Australia by Dr Roslyn Russell

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BASTILLE DAY (M)

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2.05, 4.40 & 9.25pm

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CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL 170mins WAR (M) Daily To Wed 25th

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MAX and Charlie are old friends tired of their mundane lives who reunite at their 25th high school reunion and decide to wipe the slate clean for a do-over.

After faking their deaths and assuming new identities, could their lives be better the second time around? On Netflix from May 27.

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20 W

mind TEST YOUR GENERAL KNOWLEDGE: Quiz compiled by O’Reilly.

frasercoastchronicle.com.au Saturday, May 21, 2016

Mind you w i t h N i c k B e nn et t

Be in the conversation

Quiz

Learn to talk with someone, instead of talking at them

1. For the third consecutive year, the independent airline website, AirlineRatings.com, recently listed which Australian airline as the world’s safest?

2. A recent World Economic Forum report claimed that by 2050, what will exceed fish by weight in the oceans (a) metal (b) rubber (c) plastics?

3. Was rock star Jimmy Barnes born in Ireland or Scotland?

4. In 2014, Australian F1 star Daniel Ricciardo was beaten in a race against which 1915kph vehicle?

5. The letters FAQ, referring to obtaining information, stand for what?

6. Galah is in which Australian state/territory?

7. Name the middle colour of a rainbow.

8. “I’m in California dreaming about who we used to be,” are lyrics from which song?

9. Why were the 1908 Olympics moved from Rome to London?

10. Beginning with “g”, what is the term for the mixture of proteins found in wheat and related grains?

11. Last year, who resigned as NRL CEO? 12. What was written on the informal ballot paper at the unsuccessful federal Liberal spill motion last year (a) maybe (b) pass (c) undecided?

13. Which movie, partially filmed in Australia, recently received 10 Oscar nominations?

14. Which number is represented by the Roman numerals XCIX? 15. Which tennis grand slam tournament starts tomorrow?

16. Which former federal opposition leader recently described Rosie Batty, Australian of the Year 2015, as “spokesman for the left feminist movement”?

17. In which country was the first human transplant performed in 1967?

18. The husband and brother of which Canadian singing star recently died of cancer days apart?

19. The daughter of which five-time winning Melbourne Cup trainer was the winner of Dancing With the Stars last year?

20. The husband of which queen is credited with popularising the Christmas tree tradition in Britain in the 1840s?

21. Name the three speeds for letter delivery in Australia.

22. In England in the 14th century, which unit of measurement was legally defined as “three grains of barley, dry and round, placed end to end, lengthwise”?

23. In the 1980 movie, The Empire Strikes Back, what was Han Solo’s reply after Princess Leia emotionally said to him, “I love you.”?

24. Name the only person named Oscar to win an Oscar.

25. Name the ancient Jordanian city noted for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit system.

w Communicating doesn’t mean being the person who speaks loudest or longest.

T

HERE are many ways to communicate and it has always surprised me how little effort people actually put into doing it clearly.

It seems that we communicate based on our emotion and feeling in a situation, and that’s often from the defensive state we’ve placed ourselves in as we judge the value of a person, their message or the impact of their words.

When I was younger I was renowned for opening my mouth to change feet. I would be so caught up in the moment that talking in a stream of consciousness ensured that I rarely engaged my brain in the conversation or actually heard what someone was saying.

While we have the capacity for incredibly creative thinking it seems that without some level of self-awareness we haven’t the maturity of our experience to realise that we aren’t the most important thing in the room at the time or that everything we think should be said.

Over many years I have learnt to place a simple “braking” mechanism in my thought process regarding communication in order to provide at least some small guarantee that I or my message will not be misunderstood and that I will understand others.

PHOTO: THINKSTOCK

That “brake” is the thought that “if this was the last thing that I said, would I really want it to be the last thing that I said?”

Now, what that does for me – and possibly you too, if you want to enhance the way you are communicating with people

‘‘

If this was the last thing that I said, would I really want it to be the last thing that I said? and in relationships – is to challenge me to be present in the conversation, to actively listen and as much as is possible stay out of judging too early what’s being said.

I can honestly say that my life changed because of it.

Remember, a conversation is an ongoing series of exchanges from which relationships are built or buried. If you are so busy being locked into your own conversation then how on earth are you going to learn what others know, think or can teach us?

Nick Bennett is a facilitator, performance coach and partner of Minds Aligned: www.mindsaligned.com.au

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1. QANTAS. 2. (c) plastics. 3. Scotland. 4. RAAF F/A-18 Hornet. 5. Frequently asked questions. 6.

Victoria. 7. Green. 8. Hello. 9. Eruption of Mt Vesuvius. 10. Gluten. 11. Dave Smith. 12. (b) pass. 13.

Mad Max: Fury Road. 14. 99. 15. French Open. 16.

Mark Latham. 17. South Africa. 18. Celine Dion. 19.

Lee Freedman. (Emma Freedman). 20. Queen Victoria. (Prince Albert). 21. Express post, priority, regular. 22. Inch. 23. “I know.” 24. Oscar Hammerstein II. 25. Petra.