Weird News Tuesday: Wednesday Edition

I would first like to apologise for the lack of post yesterday. This was due to a power-outage caused by the extreme heat conditions. I am very sorry for this. Great, now I sound like an emotionless robot. Anyway, on with the weird news! This segment, usually posted on a Tuesday, goes through different news sites to find some odd news or else news that really should not be considered news. Today, we are using the United Kingdom's news-site; The Mirror. First we have surgeons who amputated a student's foot and then reattach it to his left hand where he had lost a finger as a child. It does look weird but I am not posting the photo on my blog because I do not want that picture on my blog. It has a lot of blood. Anyway, how would you even explain that? Hi, my name is Luke. As a child I sort of lost a finger but, luckily, surgeons were able to attach one of my toes in its place. There is a funny video of a man falling through the roof of a shop and another man going about his shopping as though that sort of thing happened all the time. Seriously, who does that?

Source: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/cash-machine-spews-out-free-3022471

An ATM attracted a queue of over sixty people when word spread that the ATM had malfunctioned and begun giving out free money. I think it is more worrying than anything that word got to sixty people before it got to the owners of the ATM. Someone is definitely going to get into trouble over this debacle. A young ostrich in Kent disrupted traffic when it decided to race the cars driving past. Amazingly it reached speeds of up to forty kilometers an hour. A man bared his bottom on Reddit for the whole internet to see after a rare medical condition caused his buttocks to require surgery. This resulted in the loss of his bum cheeks so all there really is to see is a whole lot of back with what looks like a belly-button but is actually... well, you know. There is even more animal news today when a squirrel caused more than 7000 pounds (nearly AU$13,000) to the house of a mother-of-two (apparently this was important to the story somehow) when it was trapped inside. The mother thought the house had been robbed. A silly truck-driver has found himself stuck under the shelter of a petrol station after trying to pass through with a large load of hay. Sometimes you wonder if these guys even think. Apparently the driver appeared to be "shaken". I do not understand how this counts as 'weird' news but The Mirror thought that it did. A sex toy company has invented mobile phone controlled vibrating panties. This is big news apparently. A father's plan to hold an internet vote to name his new baby has backfired with names such as Slagathor and Megatron making the list. You know when people get the chance they are going to vote for those names. I bet the man's wife is very pleased with him right about now. Does anyone else hear the call for a divorce? Some Chinese students have created an 'ingenious' way of staying awake while studying. They use a home-made peg device attached to their hair so if they start to fall asleep they get yanked back into reality. It does sound pretty desperate but hey, you can not hate ingenuity. A pastor in the UK has condensed his whole service into ONE MINUTE just so he could watch the NFL game. I know some people would not be very happy but I would LOVE to go to that Church. I would probably only go to masses that he was hosting and only when there was an NFL game but hey, I could say that I go to Church a whole lot more often. Two lovers have ended their sex-romp in a whole lot of pain when the man fell from a tree right on to his presumably erect manhood. According to the story the poor man snapped his penis. I think all men everywhere would agree when I say ouch. Artist David Cata has sewn painfully accurate portraits (only of the head) of his family members on to his palms to reflect how they are sewn into his life. That must have been incredibly painful and would it not be so ironic if one day he had a big falling out with one of his family members? It is just as bad as, if not worse than, tattooing the name of a boyfriend/girlfriend onto your body. Finally, I wrap up this weeks Weird News Tuesday with China building a Titanic theme park with a life-size replica of the doomed ship simulating its sinking.

Hope you have had not too weird a week. See you tomorrow.

What Songs Really Mean

Have you ever been listening to a song and thought "What is this person trying to say?" Of course, I am not talking about some of Miley Cyrus' new songs but instead some of the other popular songs you hear on the radio. Well, in today's post, I am going to talk to you all about what songs actually mean. Before we continue on I just want to apologise for yet another lack-of-post yesterday but my brother's Valedictory dinner went later than expected and all you would have got from me anyway was a hastily written "Sorry I am so late right now but I am writing this on my phone.." and the rest you can just guess. I was sleeping most of the way home anyway so was in no state to share my views with the world because, most likely, the world would have rejected them. So, on with the show!

1. Do What U Want by Lady Gaga (Ft. R. Kelly)

Source: http://www.celebuzz.com/2013-07-30/here-is-everything-we-know-about-lady-gagas-artpop-so-far/

Looking in on this song it just sounds like Lady Gaga asking you to do literally anything to her. However, if you actually look at the lyrics you get a whole different perspective. The first verse is all about how she puts herself out there and yet is judged by other people who do not know her and it makes her "want to scream". Then she goes onto say that you can do what you want with her body and you can say what you want about her but you can never take her heart and her mind. It is basically her fighting back at her critics saying that they can say whatever they want about her because she does not care. It really is a great message from a song that, from the outset, looks to be all about sex. That is merely one interpretation and the beauty of this is that it is open to all these interpretations and so how I read it is going to be entirely different to how someone else reads it. It really is quite fantastic.

2. Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus

Source: http://globalgrind.com/2013/10/16/acoustic-version-miley-cyrus-wrecking-ball-new-music/

This song is again one that people come into with a lot of prejudice. If you take away all your prejudices you actually realise that this is a very emotional and from-the-heart song that is just Miley trying to be sincere. Even the nudity is artistic in this context as it is intended to show her raw emotions and what she is going through. The song is about Miley Cyrus putting herself out there only to be heart-broken just when she let her guard down. It is all about her struggles with giving the person her all only to be shut-down. At some points she blames herself for coming in too hard (the wrecking ball being a metaphor for her love) and trying to get through to the other person. Even without the lyrics you can tell that this song is more than just Miley Cyrus trying to get some more attention, it is nothing like that. For all we know, it could be about her break up with fiance (sorry, it will not allow me accents on blogger) Liam Hemsworth.

3. Royals by Lorde

Source: http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/5770722/lordes-royals-crowns-hot-100-for-fifth-week

It is hard to believe that this relatively new artistic sensation only just turned 17 this month but wow, he career has sky-rocketed. The song for which most people know her, Royals, is one that most people have listened to and liked so let us dissect the lyrics. She starts by saying that she is not rich and does not live in a rich-town. She then, correctly, says that every other song is about wealth, fame, drugs and sex and it is partly this true fact that makes the song so popular. People are finally getting something different and wholesome and have a new platform to support this view. Lorde than goes on to sing about how they will never be rich and famous but in their dreams they can be whoever they want to be. Lorde even says that she never did it for the money (here we can assume she is referencing her fame) while every other song is "like gold teeth, grey goose, trippin' in the bathroom. Blood stains, ball gowns, trashin' the hotel room." It really is an honest song that takes a different perspective to all the other songs out there. It really is a great song.

Not all songs are as they initially appear, see you tomorrow!

Annoying Junk Emails

My inbox at the moment is so annoying at the moment because it is so full of junk mail that somehow made it past the filters (I guess Outlook really wants me to check out those latest deals and how to increase the size of my "manhood"). Seriously though, those emails are so annoying sometimes that I just want to spam them with endless bloody emails and see how they like it. I have never once shown any interest in any of the topics that they keep sending to me. The worst part is that when there is an important email I need to activate something that is when the filters kick in and send it to the junk folder. Outlook, get your damn act together! All I am saying is be prepared for a rant.

Source: http://www.ubergizmo.com/2013/05/hotmail-to-outlook-com-transfer-geeks-out-at-150-petabytes/

The emails themselves are just stupid and obviously fake. Forgive me for not jumping with joy when I find out that I have won a billion pounds in a lottery in the UK that I never even entered, let alone heard of. Who offers a billion pound reward anyway? If the lottery gave away that much money they would go broke, what do you take me for, an idiot? Do not answer that question. Then you get those 'official' emails from the supermarkets. I seriously received one that said the sender was IGA and yet the topic was Woolworths Vouchers. The worst part is that people must fall for it because they keep sending them out. If you are going to run a scam like that at least check that it makes sense. Now, onto those stupid emails about improving my "intimate life". Before I begin, I would like to clear up any doubt that males do not have the same genitals as our female counterparts. I know that most of us learn that pretty early on but apparently some scams are not as knowledgeable about these organs. I have seriously seen so many emails clearly tailored to men yet referencing enlargement of "our" (it specifically used this pronoun) breasts. Like, seriously, come on. If it is not bad enough that you bombard me with stupid emails, it is even worse that you do not even get your anatomy correct! Then there are the emails that are clearly meant to be coded such that the email will read your address and use the first part as your name. As my email starts with "manl97" I get several interesting emails regarding using manl97 as if it is my name. I must have forgotten to change it to Luke before I came out of the Womb. Woops, my mistake. Then I get those emails trying to set me up with "Local Sluts" or to get me on to the adult version of Facebook (they are so creative, they replaced Face with the F word). I mean, I know some  people see me as a player but I am only sixteen and the use of such sites is, technically, illegal. So next time you stupid scammers want to send me a stupid email, check to make sure it makes bloody sense before you fill up my inbox. Thank you.

Do you guys get as annoying junk mail as this? See you tomorrow!

Disappointing Sequels

You know how people say too much of a good thing is a bad thing? Well, this is proven exceptionally well in several of the movies coming out of Hollywood. Sometimes movie makers strike gold with their creations and other times they are just misses. Movie making is really a gamble in many ways and whether a movie will be a success or not is hard to tell with even the most anticipated movies being disappointments. However, when these hits are made producers want to make as much money as they possibly can before the buzz dies down and it becomes a classic sitting in the corner gathering dust.

Source: http://www.popmatters.com/column/126567-sequels-we-were-denied/

What is one of the most lucrative ways of milking a movie franchise for all it is worth? Sequels of course. These sequels can often turn a good series bad and leave a bad lasting memory. There are many instances of this occurring throughout history (yes, I am getting deep here. Prepare your mind) where a movie's sequel has ruined the franchise entirely. Today I went to see Grown Ups 2 and was very disappointed. The first movie was great and so I went to this one with the same expectations. Sure, there were funny moments but that was all and it seemed like they just wanted to put in random gags and it was cohesive. It just came together messily and I really wanted my time back. Other disappointments include Spider Man 3 which is widely considered as a disappointing ending to the trilogy. The latest installment of the Die Hard franchise was also a kick-in-the-face to Die Hard fans across the world. It just goes to show that some good things just need to be laid to rest after they have had their time.

Don't let too much of a good thing ruin your good thing, see you tomorrow!

Year 10 Formal

So last night, as you may well know if you read last night's scheduled post (I know, I was organised for once. Hooray!), was my Year 10 Formal. To put it simply, it was AWESOME! There was so much work that went into it and it all payed off in the end as everyone I spoke to had a great time. Even one of my friends who is always a bit on the Mr Negativity side of things and came to the night thinking it was a waste of time came up to me and said that he was wrong and this is fantastic. I guess fantastic really does describe it as the atmosphere itself was just fantastic. It was held at Waterfront Venus Docklands in Melbourne and it had the best view over the harbour and over past Etihad Stadium. It was wonderful and I would really like to thank the venue staff for making the night so memorable.

Source: http://thecontrolleronline.com/2012/10/007-legends-review/

As you may have worked out from the picture the theme was James Bond. This was more in the way of decorations rather than actual dress theme which made it even better as everyone looked different. There was a lot of work also that went into the night which included Year 10 class captain meetings and surveys to ensure we could cater to as wide an audience as possible. In the end we had 167 (out of 200) Year 10 Students come plus around ten or so teachers. There was also a free photo booth (photos printed on the spot and put on Facebook for free), a roaming photographer (photos free and on Facebook) and a set photo point with a backdrop with prints costing $10 but it was all worth it. People really got into the night and came dressed to impress and some people were very hard to recognise because they looked so different in such a good way. I was lucky enough to arrive early to help set up so I could see the sunset over the harbour as I was placing seating arrangements. We were expecting people to come a bit later than 7pm but at around ten to there was already a large crowd waiting outside to come in but they were not allowed until 7pm. However, many of us had already been there since 6pm setting up so we were all ready and basically we were waiting on both sides of the door. It was such a great opportunity and something to be a part of. We danced (by dancing I mean jumped up and down with the beat and everybody else), socialised, ate, drunk, took plenty of pictures and had a damn good time. When it was time to leave I just did not want to go.

This formal was definitely something I will remember for years to come, see you tomorrow!

Fundraising

So the trouble with going to a school with so many fundraisers (besides the constant loss of money) is that when it comes time to have one you have no idea what to do because most of them have already being done. As those of you who have been reading this blog for some time may know that I am part of a leadership program run by Wyndham Police called 'Leaders of the Future'. Part of this program (the culmination in fact) is walking 96 kilometres of the Kokoda Track. Some of what we are doing involves raising money for a local Health Centre in the village of Menari which is along the track. So now that it comes time to think of brainstorming ideas with the other person from my school who is also doing the program we are at a bit of a loss. Damn you charitable school.

Source: http://desktopmag.com.au/project-wall/fundraising-downunder-logo/

Do not ask me why I chose that picture. I used Google to image search "Fundraising" and that was the only one that caught my eye. Do not judge me. Anyway, so I spoke to one of the assistant principals at my school and managed to secure the casual clothes day at the end of term for our cause. The thing with our school is most end-of-terms (except the end of year since we all finish different days) are casual clothes days to raise money for whatever organisation in the school puts their hand up for it (or organises) it first. If no one organises it then there is no casual clothes day. That was the easy part. The hard part is thinking of other things we can do on the day to raise even more money. We can not do a talent show as so many other groups have already done that this year. A guess-the-lollies in the jar competition is also out of the question as they only just did that a few weeks ago for the 40 Hour Famine. I was thinking of maybe doing a raffle with jars of lollies as prizes or something. That way there could be more than one prize and we could get away with charging more than 50 cents a ticket. Anyway, I better leave it at this as it is getting late.

Why does our school have to be so damn charitable? See you tomorrow!

Sticky Beaks

So today's post was a bit of a toughie to find a topic for. I hate to break it to you guys but finding inspiration is hard (something I have probably set several times, make that definitely). It is especially so when your life revolves around School, CFA (sometimes a source of inspiration), Piano, Jujitsu, Relaxation and Sandy. Of course my life does not completely revolve around those six things (can you believe how long it took me to count that? Well, probably not since it seems as though this sentence just goes on and on and on) but you get the idea. Sometimes I am lucky and I find some good inspiration which provides me with posts for many days ahead. So, of course, I use one and save the rest for a rainy day. Guess what guys, it is raining (well actually it is but never mind) and it is time to use up one of these posts. Granted, the inspiration was reiterated yesterday when I was walking Sandy but let's keep it going. Wow, I do mention Sandy a lot in this blog. I just went through my tags and there are twenty posts tagged with Sandy. That means that 11.9% of this blog is currently about Sandy. Anyway, moving on.

Source: http://goldsworthy.aminus3.com/image/2013-02-01.html

So I realised while walking Sandy yesterday (see there he is again) that my family are total sticky-beaks. I mean total sticky-beaks. No, I do not mean my family are birds with their beaks covered in a sticky substance. I mean that they like to know what is going on even when it does not concern them. Hey, I am little guilty of this as well. By little I mean a bit and by a bit I mean a lot. Sandy is a sticky-beak in almost everything. If ever we go to feed the chickens (whose coop is in the backyard) Sandy follows us always and if we do not give him a piece of the bread that we give the chickens then he goes into melt-down. Put simply, Sandy is very jealous of the chickens and always wants to know what they are getting. Then whenever we walk him and he comes a cross a bush he always tries to look over it to see what is on the other side (why he does not just walk around with me is something I will never quite understand). My Mum on the other hand was such a sticky-beak at one point that I made ten dollars once (I negotiated) just for walking out the front of our house to check if the neighbor's car was next door. Needless to say it was the easiest ten dollars I ever made. My brothers both like to know what is going on at any one moment and one just seems to have supersonic hearing, when it suits him of course. Then there comes to those reality television shows like Big Brother. I used to like it but have since stopped watching it as it takes up too much time. I'll watch it occasionally but sometimes this can be as little as once every two weeks if that. Mum and my brother on the other hand watch it devoutly. I swear, if that is not a sign of being a sticky-beak then I do not know what is.

Don't even get me started on my father, see you tomorrow!

Disposable Income

Hooray! Finally, another one of the posts with pictures typed on a Laptop. Of course this means more content as a phone takes longer to type so let's get on with the blog! You know those people who always seem to be going out and spending unnecessary amounts of money on unnecessary things? Think about that for a while because chances are you do. These are the people who do not bother trying to find the cheapest option and just go with the first thing they see. People like these also seem to be going out every second day and spending copious amounts of money doing unnecessary things or just simply going out too much as though they have a bottomless wallet or a money tree. That would be really good wouldn't it, a money tree? Instead of oxygen it would produce inflation and money would end up losing its worth but whatever. Back on topic, these people are also the ones constantly complaining they have no money or they just don't say anything at all. My Mum likes to call this "disposable income" as in money that people just spend instead of saving. If only we all had a little "disposable income" around the place.

Image Source: http://www.prisonbreakfreak.com/?p=3926

You see these people all around you whenever you go. These are the people who go to the cinemas and buy value-packs or a large popcorn per person. Sometimes these people have big families too and you wonder how they can still support themselves while still spending money on such wasteful things that will not last very long. Over the Holidays my Mother, Grandmother, Aunt and I went to Gold Class at Village Cinemas to see The Great Gatsby. We do not go to Gold Class very often so when we do it is like a special occasion, well it is. The thing was there were families and mothers with little children also at Gold Class to go see Monsters University. What is the point of going to Gold Class with such little children (who will not be able to even fully comprehend and use the abilities of Gold Class) to see a movie in Gold Class which they could just as easily have seen in the normal theatres and spent even less money even if they brought heaps of junk from the candy bar. The kids are not even going to remember it and even I never went to Gold Class until I was in Year 8. It just goes to show how many families have enough Disposable Income to be able to afford such outings. We also went to the Enchanted Maze Garden at Arthur's Seat (it's a Mountain, not an actual seat) which is not very cheap to get into yet families were still going in and even paying another extra $30 on top of that to do the tree-climbing activities. It was not even a good day. Then on our way out, which is through the lolly shop/cafe, there were families who had brought $5 boxes of chips per child and a cup of lollies $4.50 per child which would have cost them heaps. Even one between two still would have been costly. It just really amazes me how much people spend on things instead of saving up by spending a little bit less on the unnecessary items. That's my rant for the day as I would rather not let this blog be one of the ones where your age has to be confirmed before you can enter.

Saving for the unexpected costs is the best thing to do, see you tomorrow!

The Wonders of Blogging

Blogging is a wonderful thing and there are many benefits of it that could help you at any age in life. It can help you right now or it may be a good thing for the future. Blogs can come in many different forms but I am not going to go through all that since I already did in my post about Blogs. What I failed to mention in this post is all the wonderful benefits that Blogging can bring. I did some research and have compiled a list, so let's begin!

Image Source: http://buzz.blogger.com/2010/11/welcome-google-apps-users.html

Did you know that writing Blogs and having a positive online influence can help you get a better job? In today's age it has become the norm for employers to do some internet research on a potential employee and having a positive online influence can really help you in this respect. People want to employ people with a strong, and positive, online influence as they can better help their company become like them. A Blog can also earn you enough money to live off. One such success story is of a man called Pat Flynn who wrote a blog about his feelings on architecture. Once he was laid off from his job he began to take his blog more seriously and shortly after was earning $100, 000 per year! Of course, this will not happen to everybody but it does put faith in the fact that you can use your blog to make money, even if this is just some extra money on the side while you maintain your day job. Blogging can also help you become a better writer and one day even a published author or journalist. Since the only way to really improve your writing is to continue writing a Blog is perfect! Plus, you can have people give you feedback from all over the world. This feedback can improve your writing so much that one day you might write a book or even become a journalist. Blogging really can open up many career options as well as helping you out with the one you already have. Blogs are a great way of getting your business out there and known. It really can increase awareness and sales just through a simple blog. Some companies hire a whole group of people just to work on their Blog.

Image Source: http://www.wisesyracuse.wordpress.com

Blogging can also help you gain influence in the world. Think of all those blogs dedicated to movie reviews. They had to start out small at some point and now big Hollywood Blockbusters are using their reviews in advertisements and social media. These blogs show how writing a blog can gain you influence in the world which means people are more likely to trust you and follow what you write. Also, as I said earlier, employers like people who are influential as they can make their business sky rocket. Blogging can also help you build a network with like minded people. Some blogs work along side each other or even with each other and have created strong bonds between people who would never have met otherwise. Also, some blogs can have interviews with people or the like which can mean that with every new post a new person is added to that Blogger's network. Plus, blogging is such an easy thing to do in today's age with sites like Blogger allowing you to log in with your Google Account and just start making posts. It is as simple as that with no computer programming actually needed. As you continue blogging you learn new skills along the way such as inserting links or scheduling posts. Blogs can seem like very daunting things but are actually made by some sites in such a way that most people would be able to easily use it. Blogging can also help you keep up to date with news and information around the world. For instance, if you are writing a technology blog you are keeping up to date with the latest technology and information around the world. Even general blogs can help you keep up to date as when you are searching the internet for writing inspiration you can come across articles and news that may surprise you and influence that post in some way. It can also help your readers keep up to date as well as they can learn about current events while reading their favourite blog. It really is fantastic!

Image Source: http://www.wiziq.com/course/3784-current-affairs-questions-and-answers-2012

Blogs are also great ways to connect with the people you admire. For instance you may write a blog post and tag your idol in it or tweet it out to them and the world. Then they may come across it and read it and actually enjoy it. Suddenly, they have found a connection to you and have shared your blog to all the people who follow them. It is great as suddenly you have a link to the people you have always wanted to meet or talk to. In summary, Blogs really are wonderful things and I encourage you to start one yourself. It really is quick and easy.

Blogging is a wonder of our modern world, see you tomorrow.

Privacy

Whatever happened to privacy? It is a seemingly lost right in our society. The online world makes it nearly impossible to have any privacy. Then there are the people who seem to have just given up on trying to maintain privacy and have just left their lives bare for everyone to see. Likewise there are people who go out of their way to invade someone else's piracy. It seems our world is full of these people so where does the future of privacy actually lead?

The online world makes privacy a near-impossible thing in today's society. Social Media sites like Facebook and Twitter allow us to put our lives online for everyone to see. The worst part is we do not even have a qualm about what we are doing until it is too late and you wish you never posted or tweeted something. We are so worried about our privacy yet when it comes to Facebook and Twitter people just lose caution and post what they think, without thinking. Then there are the sites like YouTube where 'Vloggers' [video bloggers] and other YouTubers put their thoughts and their lives in video. The worse part is that their viewers  still demand more from them. If you go through a video on YouTube about a 'vlogger' there are always heaps of comments from people asking very personal questions, or making horrible judgements. The worst part is that these are the people who, in other videos, get all touchy when other people do the same thing. No matter how much of our life we want
to control there are always those around us who want to control so much more.

Then there are also those around us, like celebrities, who live their lives in the public eye. I am not talking about all celebrities, only the ones who go as far as to tell people their every move. These are the celebrities who tweet everything, even the things we do not even want to know. Just recently, there was a celebrity wedding, I will not mention who, who sold out all photography rights to a magazine for $350,000 which is obviously a lot. That would pay for a normal wedding as well as the honeymoon and a deposit on a house. It is insane that out privacy has become a commodity to be sold yet is not uncommon. I really hope our lives do not become revolved around a lack of privacy. I pity the people having to live in such a world.

May the odds be ever in your favour, see you tomorrow.

Community

Community (No, I do not mean the popular TV show) is something most people classify as history, no longer a part of today's multicultural environment. I beg to differ and I believe that Community is still alive today and I have seen examples of this everywhere. By Community I am not referring to buildings or any physical. I am talking about the social links between people in an area.

Just recently I had the pleasure of seeing this, just yesterday in fact. As you may have read yesterday I went to Relay for Life and there were so many people united to raise money for the Cancer Council. There were just so many people and there was such a good vibe around that it wasn't hard to see the sense of community.

There were so many different teams there, and they were all happy to be there even though they could have been spending their weekend doing something else. There were Fire Brigades, School Groups, Paramedics, work groups and other community groups who all had busy tents and full teams. Then there was also all the teams who also sold raffle tickets, food, lollies (yeah, I know lollies are food) and those beads and necklaces and everybody was smiling and were talking to other teams like they had known each other for years. So there was a really vibrant sense of community at this event and like all other Relay for Life events that I had attended. I really enjoyed my time and that was partly due to the sense of community I felt at every part of the track, it really gives you hope for the world. NOTE: These photos are from Relay for Life 2012 and are from the Wyndham Relay for Life Facebook Page.

May the odds be ever in your favour, see you tomorrow!

New Zealand Legalises Gay Marriage

New Zealand has became the 13th Country in the world, and the first country in the Asia-Pacific, to legalise same-sex marriage. The parliament voted 77 to 44 in favour of the Gay-Marriage bill and now same-sex couples can legally be married in New Zealand. This bill will also allow a same-sex couple to adopt and the couple will have their marriage recognised in other countries.

This is expected to put pressure on surrounding countries to follow in New Zealand's footsteps but Julia Gillard, the Prime Minister of Australia, has expressed her opposition to Marriage Equality and there is little federal movement in this area. So it looks like same-sex couples will be taking more trips to New Zealand to get married which will surely benefit their economy and tourism industry.

It is expected that this change will boost Tourism in New Zealand as well as the economy due to the new market opened up to spend money on Weddings. It was estimated that an extra $700 million dollars will be spent by same-sex couples on their weddings (in total, not individually) which will truly kick-start the New Zealand Economy. Many Australian Same-Sex Couples have also said that they would go on a trip to New Zealand to get married instead of waiting for a similar bill in Australia, which at the current rate could be a long way away. However, same-sex couples will have to wait around 4 months so that The Department of Internal Affairs (handling births, deaths and marriages) can be prepared for the surge of new paperwork.

I support Marriage Equality as I believe that Love is Love no matter who it is between and I believe some Same-Sex couples love each other more than some heterosexual couples and therefore deserve the right to marry who they want, where they want. So I think Australia should follow in New Zealand's footsteps and legalise Same-Sex Marriages.