Blog

I can't tell you how many times I've hit a very low ebb in my life. To be honest, sometimes it seems like I've been going from one crisis to another since I was little, with intermittent periods of stability. Not to brag, but this kind of makes me an expert in breakdowns and recovery. For me, briefly, breakdown meant a loss hope for the future, high anxiety, and sleeplessness. I felt isolated and powerless. But they were also a chance to rewrite the script. A clean slate, a r

How news and social media shape our emotions, distort our perceptions and influence how we see each other. Yesterday I saw a book called Middle Rage, by Australian media personality Myf Warhurst. She's a familiar and much-loved figure from Spicks & Specks and the Js, so I was intrigued by the title. The blurb talks about the “seething fury” of middle-aged women, the injustices they face and the “volcanic rage of a Gen X woman”. It got me wondering: Why is Myf so angry? and Ho

The world is changing rapidly. Climate change, Trump, the cost of living and AI are among the forces contributing to a sense of unease across society. Through 24-hour news and the pocket-sized computers we carry all day, we are more aware than ever of what is happening around the world. Much of what reaches us is designed to provoke fear, anger or outrage - to keep us looking at it. And we can do almost nothing about most of it. This can leave us feeling frustrated, powerless

For much of my life, I thought being a good man meant being accommodating, considering others before myself. I tried not to cause problems. I waited for a break in the conversation before speaking. I considered what everyone else wanted before asking what I wanted. I tried to be useful, understanding and easy to be around. These qualities are not necessarily bad. Kindness and considering others are good qualities. Being able to understand other people is a strength. But there

I think the world needs more horny men. There. I said it. This might sound like the last thing women need. "Aren't horny men already the problem?" But I'm not talking about desperate men. Or entitled men. Or men who think their desire creates an obligation for somebody else. I'm talking about happy, healthy, horny men. Men who enjoy being alive. Men who like women. Who enjoy their company. Who are attracted to them, flirt with them, laugh with them and - when the feeling is m

Loneliness is not always about being physically alone. You can have people around you, a job to go to and activities filling your week - and still feel as though you don’t really belong anywhere. I know that feeling. A few years ago, during my first week studying Community Development, I was asked to write a short piece about the communities I belonged to. My immediate reaction was: None. It wasn’t something I had to think about. That was simply how my life felt at the time.