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Trump's insult to Biden after he drops out of presidential race

<p>Joe Biden has officially withdrawn from the presidential race against former president Donald Trump. </p> <p>Biden, who is the oldest US president at 81, has been facing mounting calls to drop out of the election from both his opponents and supporters, amid fears of his failing health, mental clarity and age. </p> <p>On Sunday, the 46th president shared a lengthy statement to share that he would be dropping out of the race, saying it is "in the best interest" for both his Democratic Party and the country to take a step back. </p> <p>“While it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Mr Biden wrote in a letter he posted on his X account.</p> <p>“I will speak to the Nation later this week in more detail about my decision. It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve as your President.”</p> <p>Biden shared a second announcement to social media following his bombshell withdrawal, saying he would be endorsing his Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee to run for President in the November election against Trump. </p> <p>"My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President, and it’s been the best decision I’ve made," he began.</p> <p>"Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this."</p> <p>Mere hours after Biden's announcement, former President Donald Trump reacted to the news on TRUTH social, his own social media platform, exactly as many expected. </p> <p>“Crooked Joe Biden was not fit to run for President, and is certainly not fit to serve — And never was!” Trump said.</p> <p>“All those around him, including his doctor and the media, knew that he wasn’t capable of being President, and he wasn’t. We will suffer greatly because of his presidency, but we will remedy the damage he has done very quickly.”</p> <p>In a phone call with CNN minutes after Biden announced his exit from the 2024 race, former Trump described Biden as going “down as the single worst president by far in the history of our country”.</p> <p>Mr Biden will remain President until the end of his term next January.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Bonnie Cash / Pool via CNP/ Ron Sachs/CNP /Shutterstock Editorial </em></p>

News

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Escaped race horse shocks commuters at suburban train station

<p>An escaped race horse has been spotted at a suburban Sydney train station, bamboozling confused commuters. </p> <p>CCTV footage captured the moment a retired racehorse wandered into Warwick Farm train station around midnight on Friday, as confused commuters hid from the animal. </p> <p>Sydney Trains CEO Matt Longland said they were alerted to the unexpected passenger, and notified train drivers to keep a look out for a passenger that was "horsing around".</p> <p>“Thankfully we were able to warn our train drivers to take extra care to look out for animals on the tracks” Longland said.</p> <p>“A train stopped at the station, (but) didn’t open its doors.”</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5mXYfHSINA/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5mXYfHSINA/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by 7NEWS Australia (@7newsaustralia)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>After pacing the platform for almost 30 minutes, the horse was reunited with its owner, top Australian horse racing trainer Annabel Neasham.</p> <p>“Unfortunately, we had an intruder break-in to one of our stables,” Neasham said. “In the meantime, he managed to let our stable pony out.”</p> <p>“(Our) horse is back at home, none the wiser, not even a scratch on him.”</p> <p>Stable hand Keith Morrison said it was “highly unusual” that the horse ended up on the platform and left him with unanswered questions.</p> <p>“I still want to know how it got up the stairs and onto the platform — it didn’t use the lift!”</p> <p>Langland said Sydney Trains were giving the horse, now affectionately nicknamed “Mr Red” by train staff, a “stern warning” for “failing to tap-on at the station”.</p> <p>"It's not every day you see a horse on the platform, but that's what we saw at Warwick Farm," NSW Transport Minister Jo Haylen said.</p> <p>She said the horse was a well-behaved passenger, adding, "It kept its hooves behind the yellow line, which is a good thing."</p> <p><em>Image credits: 7News </em></p>

Family & Pets

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Do racehorses even know they’re ‘racing’ each other? It’s unlikely

<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cathrynne-henshall-572585">Cathrynne Henshall</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/charles-sturt-university-849">Charles Sturt University</a></em></p> <p>When racing season arrives, everyone becomes an expert on the horses that are the stars of the spectacle.</p> <p>TV personalities, professional pundits and form guides talk confidently about the favourite’s “<a href="https://www.racenet.com.au/news/tony-brassel-on-the-great-unmeasurable-ticker">will to win</a>”. In close races, the equine contestants “<a href="https://www.justhorseracing.com.au/news/australian-racing/war-machine-to-battle-it-out/120326">battle it out</a>”, demonstrating “heart”, “grit” and “determination”.</p> <p>But do horses even know they are in a race, let alone have a desire to win it? Do they understand what it means when their nose is the first one to pass the post?</p> <p>Based on decades of experience and everything we know about horse behaviour, I think the most plausible answer is “no”.</p> <h2>From the horse’s perspective</h2> <p>From a horse’s perspective, there are few intrinsic rewards for winning a race.</p> <p>Reaching the end might mean relief from the pressure to keep galloping at high speed and hits from the jockey’s whip, but the same is true for all the horses once they pass the finishing post. If the race is close, the horse that eventually wins might even be <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0015622">whipped more often</a> in the final stages than horses further back in the field.</p> <p>So while being first to reach the winning post can be crucially important to the horse’s human connections, there is very little direct, intrinsic benefit to the horse that would motivate it to voluntarily gallop faster to achieve this outcome.</p> <p>So does a horse even know it’s in a race? Again, the answer is likely “no”.</p> <p>Running (cantering or galloping) is a quintessential horse behaviour and horses voluntarily run together in groups when given the opportunity – even in races <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/2022/08/22/riderless-race-horses-take-to-the-streets-in-central-italy-in-pictures/">without jockeys</a>. However, there are a number of reasons to think horses have not evolved a desire to “win” during a group gallop.</p> <p>Horses are social animals. In the wild, to minimise their individual exposure to predators, they <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0258944">synchronise their movement</a> with other horses in their group.</p> <p>This synchronisation includes maintaining similar speeds to other group members (to keep the group together), being alert to the positions of their own body and their neighbours’ to avoid collisions, and adapting their speed to the terrain and environmental cues that indicate upcoming danger or obstacles. In the wild, “winning” – that is, arriving first, long before other group members – could even be a negative, exposing the “winner” to an increased risk of predation.</p> <p>This collective behaviour is the opposite of what owners, trainers and punters want from horses during a race.</p> <h2>The horse’s preferences (and how riders override them)</h2> <p>Horse races depend on two horse-related factors: the horse’s innate tendency to synchronise with other horses, and its ability to be trained to ignore these tendencies in response to cues from the jockey during a race.</p> <p>Trainers and jockeys also harness the preferences of individual horses. Some horses are averse to bunching up with others during the race, so jockeys let them move to the front of the field (these are “<a href="https://www.racingnsw.com.au/news/feature-articles/the-art-of-the-front-runner-timing-a-jockeys-best-friend/">front runners</a>”). Other horses seek the security of the group, so jockeys let them remain in the bunch until closer to the winning post (these are “come-from-behind” winners).</p> <p>Jockeys use several different interventions to override the horse’s innate tendency to synchronise. These might include:</p> <ul> <li> <p>directing the horses to travel much closer to the other horses (risking the sometimes fatal injuries we sometimes see at the track)</p> </li> <li> <p>travelling at speeds not of the horse’s choosing (usually at far higher speeds and for longer durations, and often maintained by use of the whip)</p> </li> <li> <p>preventing the horse from changing course to adapt its position relative to other horses in the field (directing its path via pressure on the mouth from the bit or taps from the whip).</p> </li> </ul> <p>During the early stages of a race, jockeys rely on horses’ innate desire to remain with the group to ensure they maintain the physical effort required to keep in touch with the front runners. This tendency may then be overruled so the horse will act independently of the group, leave it behind and come to the front to hopefully win.</p> <h2>No concept of being in a race</h2> <p>So horses most likely have no concept of being in a “race”, where the goal of their galloping is to get to a certain location on the track before any of the other horses. However, they undoubtedly know what it’s like to <em>be</em> in a race. That is, they learn through prior experience and training what is likely to happen and what to do during a race.</p> <p>And with jockeys and trainers who understand the individual preferences of their horses to maximise their chances during the race, there will always be one horse that reaches that part of the track designated the winning post before the other horses in the group.</p> <p>But as for winning horses understanding they are there to “win”? It’s far more likely it is the combination of natural ability, physical fitness and jockey skill that accounts for which horse wins, rather than any innate desire by that horse to get to the winning post before the other horses.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216641/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/cathrynne-henshall-572585"><em>Cathrynne Henshall</em></a><em>, Lecturer, School of Agricultural, Environmental and Veterinary Sciences, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/charles-sturt-university-849">Charles Sturt University</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/do-racehorses-even-know-theyre-racing-each-other-its-unlikely-216641">original article</a>.</em></p>

Money & Banking

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How do I stop my mind racing and get some sleep?

<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alexander-sweetman-1331085">Alexander Sweetman</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a></em></p> <p>Martin turns off the light to fall asleep, but his mind quickly springs into action. Racing thoughts about work deadlines, his overdue car service, and his father’s recent surgery occupy his mind.</p> <p>As he struggles to fall asleep, the hours start to creep by. He becomes frustrated about how he will cope tomorrow. This is a pattern Martin has struggled with for many years.</p> <p>But what’s going on when your mind is racing at night? And how do you make it stop?</p> <h2>It can happen to anyone</h2> <p>In bed, with no other visual or sound cues to occupy the mind, many people start to have racing thoughts that keep them awake. This can happen at the start of the night, or when they awake in the night.</p> <p>The good news is there are effective ways to reduce these racing thoughts, and to help get some sleep. To do this, let’s take a step back and talk about insomnia.</p> <h2>What is insomnia?</h2> <p>If you are like Martin, you’re not alone. Right now, up to six in every ten people have regular <a href="https://www.sleepprimarycareresources.org.au/insomnia/epidemiology">insomnia symptoms</a>. One in ten have had these symptoms for months or years.</p> <p>Insomnia includes trouble falling asleep at the start of the night, waking up during the night, and feelings of daytime fatigue, concentration difficulties, lethargy or poor mood.</p> <p>Just like Martin, many people with insomnia find as soon as they get into bed, they feel alert and wide awake. So what’s going on?</p> <p>The more time we spend in bed doing things other than sleep, the more our brain and body start to learn that bed is a place for these non-sleep activities.</p> <p>These activities don’t just include worrying. They can be using a mobile phone, watching TV, eating, working, arguing, smoking or playing with pets.</p> <p>Gradually, our brains can learn that bed is a place for these other activities instead of rest and sleep. Over time the simple act of getting into bed can become a trigger to feel more alert and awake. This is called “<a href="https://www.med.upenn.edu/cbti/assets/user-content/documents/ppsmmodelsofinsomnia20115theditionproof.pdf">conditioned insomnia</a>”.</p> <p>Here are six ways to spend less time awake in bed with racing thoughts.</p> <h2>1. Re-learn to associate bed with sleep</h2> <p><a href="https://www.sleepprimarycareresources.org.au/insomnia/bbti/insomnia-stimulus-control-therapy">Stimulus control therapy</a> can <a href="https://www.med.upenn.edu/cbti/assets/user-content/documents/Bootzin%201972.pdf">help</a> re-build the relationship between bed and sleep.</p> <p>Follow these simple steps every night of the week:</p> <ul> <li> <p>only use your bed for sleep and intimacy. All other activities should occur out of bed, preferably in another room</p> </li> <li> <p>only go to bed if you are feeling sleepy (when your eyes are heavy and you could easily fall asleep). If you are not feeling sleepy, delay getting into bed. Use this time to do something relaxing in another room</p> </li> <li> <p>if you are still awake after about 15 minutes in bed, get out of bed and go to another room. Do something else relaxing until you are feeling sleepy again, such as reading a book, listening to the radio, catching up on some chores or doing a crossword puzzle. Avoid anything too stimulating such as work or computer gaming</p> </li> <li> <p>repeat the above two steps until you are asleep within about 15 minutes. This can take several cycles of getting in and out of bed. But during this time, you body’s natural need for sleep will increase, and you will eventually fall asleep within 15 minutes of getting into bed</p> </li> <li> <p>get out of bed at the same time each morning, no matter how much you slept the night before</p> </li> <li> <p>avoid long daytime naps, which can make it harder to fall asleep that night.</p> </li> </ul> <p>Over several nights, this therapy builds the relationship between bed and sleep, and reduces the relationship between bed and feeling alert and having racing thoughts.</p> <h2>2. Distract yourself with fond thoughts</h2> <p>Negative thoughts in bed or worrying about the consequences of losing sleep can make us feel more alert, worried, and make it more difficult to sleep.</p> <p>So try something called “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2012.07.004">cognitive re-focusing</a>”. Try to replay a fond memory, movie, or TV show in your mind, to distract yourself from these negative thoughts.</p> <p>Ideally, this will be a memory you can recall very clearly, and one that causes neutral or slightly positive feelings. Memories that are overly positive or negative might cause an increase in alertness and mental activity.</p> <h2>3. Relax into sleep</h2> <p><a href="https://www.sleepprimarycareresources.org.au/insomnia/bbti/insomnia-relaxation-techniques">Relaxation therapy</a> for insomnia aims to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780123815224000043">reduce alertness</a> and improve sleep.</p> <p>One way is to progressively tense and relax muscle groups throughout your body, known as <a href="https://youtu.be/pyxvL1O2duk">guided progressive muscle relaxation therapy</a>.</p> <p>You could also try breathing exercises, soothing music, visual imagery or other <a href="https://www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au/cognitive-behavioural-therapy-for-insomnia-cbt-i.html">relaxation exercises</a> that feel right for you.</p> <p>Part of relaxing into sleep is avoiding doing work in the late evening or screen-based activities right before bed. Give yourself a “buffer zone”, to allow yourself time to start relaxing before getting into bed.</p> <h2>4. Worry earlier in the day</h2> <p>Schedule some “<a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/what-mentally-strong-people-dont-do/201811/simple-effective-trick-stop-worrying-so-much">worry time</a>” earlier in the day, so these thoughts don’t happen at night. It can also help to write down some of the things that worry you.</p> <p>If you start to worry about things during the night, you can remind yourself you have already written them down, and they are waiting for you to work through during your scheduled “worry time” the next day.</p> <h2>5. Know waking in the night is normal</h2> <p>Knowing that brief awakenings from sleep are completely normal, and not a sign of ill health, may help.</p> <p>Sleep occurs in different “cycles” during the night. Each cycle lasts for about 90 minutes, and includes different stages of light, deep, and dreaming (REM) sleep.</p> <p>Most of our deep sleep occurs in the first half of the night, and most of our light sleep in the second half.</p> <p>Everyone experiences brief awakenings from sleep, but most people don’t remember these the next morning.</p> <h2>6. What if these don’t work?</h2> <p>If these don’t work, the most effective next step is “cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia” or CBT-i.</p> <p>This non-drug therapy targets the underlying causes of insomnia, and leads to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2019.08.002">long-lasting improvements</a> in sleep, mental health and daytime function.</p> <p>You can do a self-guided online program, or access it via your GP or a psychologist. More details, including links to online programs, are available via the <a href="https://www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au/cognitive-behavioural-therapy-for-insomnia-cbt-i.html">Sleep Health Foundation</a>.</p> <p>We are providing free access to online CBT-i through a research study. To find out more, <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/alexander.sweetman">contact me</a>.</p> <hr /> <p><em>The Sleep Health Foundation has several <a href="https://www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au/fact-sheets.html">evidence-based resources</a> about sleep health and insomnia.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207904/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></em></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alexander-sweetman-1331085">Alexander Sweetman</a>, Research Fellow, College of Medicine and Public Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-do-i-stop-my-mind-racing-and-get-some-sleep-207904">original article</a>.</em></p>

Mind

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Aussies race to the kitchen as CorningWare prices soar

<p dir="ltr">For decades, CorningWare’s collections have been a staple of kitchen cupboards all across the country. </p> <p dir="ltr">And now, those family favourites have collectors everywhere reaching for those old casserole dishes, with prices skyrocketing online.</p> <p dir="ltr">The news may come as a surprise to some, given CorningWare’s US-based parent company Instant Brand’s announcement - just a few days prior - that it had initiated the process for voluntary court-appointed bankruptcy. The brand encompassed the likes of Instant Pot, Corelle, Pyrex, and CorningWare.</p> <p dir="ltr">Its products could be found on the shelves of major retailers all across the country, but with the rising challenge of inflation in the market and a reported $500 million USD in debt, Instant Brands had to make the difficult decision.</p> <p dir="ltr">And while some may have assumed things would go downhill from there, CorningWare items had other ideas, as people took to online marketplaces to list their old collections with never-before-seen price tags on the wares. </p> <p dir="ltr">When one seller listed their “Wildflower Spice of Life” casserole set on eBay, they asked for a staggering $25,000 - a price that topped the previous online auction high of $10,000. Another dish from the range was asking for much less, and still more than many would have bargained for - $13,000.</p> <p dir="ltr">Other dishes included more ‘rare’ designs from CorningWare’s previous collections, with its 1971-1972 “Floral” pieces making an appearance. A 5-piece L’Echaloto would given its next owners more than a few dishes to choose from, as long as they had another $25,000 to spare to get their hands on the set in the first place. </p> <p dir="ltr">And as one seller - who dipped her toes into the CorningWare online marketplace realm a few years prior - told 7News, the success of the dishes was certainly a surprise, though not a bad one. </p> <p dir="ltr">The items she’d managed to sell were off to a better life, too, as they’d just “been gathering dust in our home for years.”</p> <p dir="ltr">“I sold off a few pieces - with my mum’s blessing, of course - and have made about $9000 so far,” she said. “I have another one listed at the moment, which I’m hoping to get around $2500 for.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I would never have thought that it could be so valuable. When I was younger, I thought it was just daggy. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Now it’s making us more money than I ever dreamed.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: eBay</em></p>

Money & Banking

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Grant and Chezzi Denyer head up all-star cast in new show

<p> The celebrity cast for Channel 10’s 2023 <em>The Amazing Race Australia</em> season has been revealed, with 11 teams set to take off on a thrilling journey across the globe. </p> <p>Beau Ryan will return as host, overseeing the contestants as they race for victory, and a $100,000 prize to hand to their chosen charity, in a race described as “heading in a new direction”, with twists and turns at every stop along the way.</p> <p>The 11 duos set to compete are bringing a wide range of skill sets to the race, with stars from sports to entertainment, comedy, and music strapping on their running shoes. </p> <p dir="ltr">Grant Denyer and his wife, Chezzi Denyer, are one of those 11 teams, with the pair joking that the whole competition will be more like a holiday from their kids than anything else - though Chezzi added that she’s also looking forward to their daughters seeing her “kick butt” on screen. As for their charity, they’ve selected Lifeline Central West.</p> <p>Emma Watkins and her sister, Hayley Watkins, are excited to spend some time together over the course of their adventure, as well as “meeting the people that we get to see and the different countries” - especially for Hayley, who hasn’t had the opportunity to do a lot of travel. They’ll be racing to raise money for the Leonie Jackson Memorial Fund. </p> <p>Peter Rowsthorn will be racing alongside his daughter, Frankie Rowsthorn, hoping that their humour will win over allies, while promising a barrel of laughs along the way. They’ll be racing for a cause close to their hearts, All Stars for Autism, as Peter explained “my grandson has autism, so we’re doing it for him.”</p> <p>Jana Pittman will be keeping it in the family too, racing with her son Cornelis Rawlinson. The former Olympian is excited to have quality time with Cornelis - the eldest of her six children - and feels honoured to have been asked to participate. Meanwhile, he has other priorities, with his sights firmly set on “the food”. They’ll be competing on behalf of The Royal Hospital for Women.</p> <p>Darren McMullen and his nephew, Tristan Dougan, will be joining the others, and promise a foolproof plan to get them through - even if they aren’t quite able to agree on who’s the brains behind the entire operation. They’ve selected Feel the Magic as their charity, noting that the children involved are “an inspiration for all of us.”</p> <p>Dane Simpson will be joined by his dad, Bow Simpson, as Dane looks to showcase the man who pops up so often throughout his comedy routines, certain that Australians everywhere are going to fall in love with him. They’ll be racing to win the $100,000 for the Dharriwaa Elders Group Incorporated.</p> <p>Alli Simpson and her mum, Angie Simpson, are another team racing to raise funds for a cause that means a lot to their family - Dementia Australia. As Alli explained, “my grandma, my dad's mum Chrissie, has gone down really fast with dementia in the last few years. It's been really difficult for us to watch. We just want to do as much as we can to prevent other families [from] feeling the pain that we do."</p> <p dir="ltr">Bec Judd will have her sister, Kate Twigley, at her side for the journey, bringing their competitive spirit and excitement to do it “together as sisters” to the competition. They’ll be racing on behalf of Impatient Advocacy - A Nicole Cooper Foundation.</p> <p>George Mladenov is no stranger to the world of reality TV competition - though his sister, Pamela Mladenov, may be a fresh face. George is sure they’ll bring drama to the screen, as they race for the Bankstown Women's Health Centre.</p> <p dir="ltr">Ben Gillies and his wife, Jackie Gillies, are hoping that the race experience will bring them closer, and teach them how to “live in the moment”. Self-confessed competitive souls, they have their sights set on the grand prize, which they hope to bring home to the Moira Kelly Creating Hope Foundation. </p> <p>And last but not least, Harry Jowsey is bringing his best friend, Teddy Briggs, along for the ride. And while they don’t expect to be “the best at this”, they’ve guaranteed that viewers are in for a fun time with their antics, and hope to bring some money to Beyond Blue with their efforts.</p> <p><em>Images: Ten </em></p>

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Backlash after new docudrama casts Cleopatra as a black woman

<p>When Netflix announced their docu-series on Queen Cleopatra VII, excitement was high among the cast and crew.</p> <p>As the series’ star, Adele James, put it “I don’t know if there are words powerful enough to express what I hope this will mean for young people all over the world who look like me (and who don’t!) who will now get to grow up seeing the greatest leader of all time (of the greatest ancient civilisation, no less!!) being portrayed by a black-mixed woman on one of the biggest streaming services in the world!!!!!”</p> <p>However, it wasn’t long before problems arose, with many voicing their opinion that Netflix was ‘blackwashing’ the show, and Egyptian experts weighing in to the mounting criticism. </p> <p>And now, those same people are taking steps towards making sure the show never gets the chance to hit screens in Egypt. The trailer alone, with over 2 million views on YouTube, does not allow comments in the wake of its backlash. </p> <p>The series, titled <em>African Queens: Queen Cleopatra</em>, marks 27-year-old biracial actress Adele James’ Netflix debut. It is also narrated and executive produced by Jade Pinkett Smith. </p> <p>And while Queen Cleopatra’s race has long been a subject of dispute, as Pinkett Smith confessed to Tudum, the decision to cast James was intended as “a nod to the centuries-long conversation about the ruler’s race. </p> <p>“During the time of her reign, Egypt’s population was multicultural and multiracial. Cleopatra’s race was unlikely to be documented, and the identities of her mother and paternal grandparents weren’t known. Some speculate she was a native Egyptian woman while others say she was Greek.”</p> <p>“I really wanted to represent Black women,” Pinkett Smith added. “We don’t often get to see or hear stories about Black queens, and that was really important for me.”</p> <p>The portrayal, however, has been dubbed “completely fake” by some experts. Egyptologist Zahi Hawass, who believes the late queen was Greek and definitively “not black”, has accused streaming giant Netflix of “trying to provoke confusion by spreading false and deceptive facts that the origin of the Egyptian civilization is black”.</p> <p>As he told the <em>Al-Masry al-Youm</em> newspaper, “Cleopatra was Greek, meaning that she was light-skinned, not black.”</p> <p>Mahmoud al-Semary, a lawyer who is of the same opinion, went so far as to file a complaint with Egypt’s public prosecutor, demanding that Netflix be blocked in Egypt for their attempts to “promote the Afrocentric thinking … which includes slogans and writings aimed at distorting and erasing the Egyptian identity.”</p> <p>And he wasn’t the only one to take action, with a petition circling online to “Cancel Netflix’s ‘Queen Cleopatra’”. And while a former petition calling for the same thing was removed by Change.org despite its 85,000 signatures, the second attempt has so far gathered over 4,000. </p> <p>Meanwhile, Egyptologist Sally-Ann Ashton - who acted as a consultant for Netflix during the series’ preparation phase - has noted that the belief Cleopatra should be depicted as entirely European is “strange”. </p> <p>“Cleopatra ruled in Egypt long before the Arab settlement in North Africa,” she explained. “If the maternal side of her family were indigenous women, they would’ve been African, and this should be reflected in contemporary representations of Cleopatra.”</p> <p>And as Adele James put it best - along with some all important advice - to the flood of criticism aimed at her, “if you don’t like the casting don’t watch the show. Or do &amp; engage in (expert) opinion different to yours. Either way, I’M GASSED and will continue to be!”</p> <p><em>Images: Instagram</em></p>

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Antibiotic resistance: an arms race going on millions of years

<p>In 2012, a team of microbial scientists, curious about the origins of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, decided to take samples from the walls of a deep, ancient underground cave system beneath the modern US state of New Mexico. </p> <p>The maze-like complex of <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0034953" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-type="URL" data-id="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0034953">Lechuguilla cave</a> stretches for more than 200 kilometres, and much of it is sealed from aboveground by an impermeable rock layer known as the Yates Formation. So, it was the perfect place to hunt for microbes unsullied by the modern world. </p> <p>What they found was both startling and spooky: the microbiome of the cave samples contained bacteria that were resistant to at least 14 different antibiotics currently on the market, even though they had been isolated for more than four million years.</p> <p>Given that antibiotics were first used clinically after Alexander Fleming cultured <em>Penicillium</em> moulds in 1928, antibiotic resistance is generally thought of as a distinctly modern problem – and there’s no doubt our use and abuse of these wonder-molecules have created a huge and growing issue. </p> <p>A <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2821%2902724-0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">recent study</a> reported in <em>The Lancet </em>suggests more than 1.2 million people died in 2019 as a direct result of antimicrobial resistance. By some estimates, the death toll could reach 10 million per year by 2050 if nothing is done (by contrast, about  eight million people die from cancer each year). The <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/antibiotic-resistance" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">World Health Organization</a> identifies resistance as one of the biggest threats to global health. </p> <p>Tony Velkov, an Associate Professor in biochemistry and pharmacology at the University of Melbourne, says not enough attention is being paid to finding answers from nature; more specifically, the organisms that make their own, naturally occurring antibiotics in a dynamic environment.</p> <p>“Lessons from nature, I call them,” Velkov says.</p> <p>The majority of antibiotic medicines used clinically today are derived from natural antibiotics produced by microbes in soil and which attack rival microbes, as part of a miniature war over precious resources.</p> <p>Indeed, Fleming’s discovery of the <em>Penicillium </em>mould’s antibacterial qualities was entirely by accident, says Velkov.</p> <p>“He was growing a bacterium called <em>Staphylococcus aureus, </em>and he decided to go on a long weekend and left the plate on the bench,” he says. “He came back about a week later and he found this mould growing in one corner of the plate, and he found the bacteria that he’d been growing were scared of this mould, and they were all dying or keeping away from it.”</p> <p>Fleming’s famously understated remark upon discovering this strange antibacterial interloper was: “That’s funny”. </p> <p>Velkov is particularly fascinated by the function of antibiotics in nature, as part of epic microbial conflicts taking place at every moment. A big part of his work is looking at a pugnacious little soil microbe called <em>Paenibacillus polymyxa, </em>which is able to kill gram-negative bacteria that enter its territory by producing polymyxins, a particularly aggressive type of antibiotic.</p> <p>“Polymyxin is used in hospitals when you’re really, really sick, because it’s pretty toxic,” he says. For that reason, it’s often a medicine of last resort, which means it hasn’t had as many opportunities as other more common antibiotics, to trigger the evolution of antibiotic resistance traits in pathogens.</p> <div class="newsletter-box"> <div id="wpcf7-f6-p187842-o1" class="wpcf7" dir="ltr" lang="en-US" role="form"> <form class="wpcf7-form mailchimp-ext-0.5.61 init" action="/health/medicine/antibiotic-resistance-millions-years/#wpcf7-f6-p187842-o1" method="post" novalidate="novalidate" data-status="init"> <p style="display: none !important;"><span class="wpcf7-form-control-wrap referer-page"><input class="wpcf7-form-control wpcf7-text referer-page" name="referer-page" type="hidden" value="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/" data-value="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/" aria-invalid="false" /></span></p> <p><!-- Chimpmail extension by Renzo Johnson --></form> </div> </div> <p>Nonetheless, polymyxin-resistance genes <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31122100/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">have been identified</a> in bacteria across Asia, Africa, Europe, North and South America and Oceania. If the power of polymyxins is usurped by these resistant pathogens, it could spell disaster for people suffering from drug-resistant bacterial infections.</p> <p>So, Velkov is trying to learn how to create new polymyxins, by mimicking soil-based battles.</p> <p>“I get the bacterium that makes that [polymyxin], and then I challenge it,” Velkov says. “I grow it opposite the bugs it hates, and they fight each other.”</p> <p>If it sounds a bit like a pathogenic boxing match, Velkov says that’s much like what he observes.</p> <p>“They actually have a bit of a battle,” he says. “You’ll see the one that makes the antibiotic starts growing towards the bacteria to push it out of the territory [the petri dish with nutrients on it], and then it secretes the polymyxins to kill it.</p> <p>“But the bug, the human pathogen, often fights back secreting stuff to kill the antibiotic-producing microbes.”</p> <p>How does all this lab-based micro-fighting translate to the real-world problem of resistance?</p> <p>According to Velkov, in medicine, humans mostly focus on producing one type of antibiotic at a time. But in the “wild”, he says, microbes can often produce a whole bunch of subtly different substances in the fight.</p> <p>“In the petri dish, when these guys are fighting each other, they make really different ones,” he says. “Ones we haven’t seen or discovered, they respond in ways we haven’t looked at.”</p> <p>In his research lab, Velkov says he’s discovered a number of new polymyxins, including one that’s in clinical development.</p> <p>So, by staging these kinds of epic battles in miniature in the laboratory, can we stave off antibiotic resistance altogether? According to Velkov, probably not. But we can optimise our participation in the evolutionary arms race.</p> <p>“You’re never going to make it go away,” he says. “This has been going on for millions of years.”</p> <p>But the hope is that by learning from how these microbes behave in nature, we can at least try to keep pace. </p> <p><!-- Start of tracking content syndication. Please do not remove this section as it allows us to keep track of republished articles --></p> <p><img id="cosmos-post-tracker" style="opacity: 0; height: 1px!important; width: 1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=187842&amp;title=Antibiotic+resistance%3A+an+arms+race+going+on+millions+of+years" width="1" height="1" data-spai-target="src" data-spai-orig="" data-spai-exclude="nocdn" /></p> <p><!-- End of tracking content syndication --></p> <div id="contributors"> <p><em><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/medicine/antibiotic-resistance-millions-years/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">This article</a> was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cosmos Magazine</a> and was written by <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/amalyah-hart" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amalyah Hart</a>. Amalyah Hart is a science journalist based in Melbourne. She has a BA (Hons) in Archaeology and Anthropology from the University of Oxford and an MA in Journalism from the University of Melbourne.</em></p> <p><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p> </div>

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“He is our guiding light”: Sidney Poitier dies aged 94

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sidney Poitier - the first black actor to win an Oscar for Best Actor - passed away at the age of 94.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Clint Watson, the press secretary for the Prime Minister of the Bahamas, confirmed Poitier’s death while speaking to </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">PEOPLE</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> on Friday.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Poitier, who broke racial barriers and became one of the most celebrated actors in Hollywood history, died in the Bahamas on Thursday evening.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The cause of his death is yet to be revealed.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After winning the Oscar for his role in </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lilies of the Field</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> in 1963, the actor, director, and activist would go on to inspire future generations of actors.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He was acclaimed for his performances in classics such as </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Patch of Blue</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">To Sir, With Love</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the Heat of the Night</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and rejected roles based on offensive racial stereotypes.</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">If you wanted the sky i would write across the sky in letters that would soar a thousand feet high..<br />To Sir… with Love <br />Sir Sidney Poitier R.I.P.<br />He showed us how to reach for the stars</p> — Whoopi Goldberg (@WhoopiGoldberg) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhoopiGoldberg/status/1479478453699330054?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2022</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I felt very much as if I were representing 15, 18 million people with every movie I made,” he <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/pioneering-movie-star-sidney-poitier-dies-bahamas-government/news-story/645b4b29e818ef6955711931e51e0d4a" target="_blank">once wrote</a> about his experience as the only black person on a movie set. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Tributes from Barack Obama, Will Smith, Morgan Freeman, and Whoopi Goldberg are among the multitude that have emerged on social media.</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Through his groundbreaking roles and singular talent, Sidney Poitier epitomized dignity and grace, revealing the power of movies to bring us closer together. He also opened doors for a generation of actors. Michelle and I send our love to his family and legion of fans. <a href="https://t.co/zkYKFSxfKA">pic.twitter.com/zkYKFSxfKA</a></p> — Barack Obama (@BarackObama) <a href="https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/1479512077878366209?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 7, 2022</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Though his groundbreaking roles and singular talent, Sidney Poitier epitomised dignity and grace, revealing the power of movies to bring us closer together,” Obama wrote.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“An icon, legend, visionary, and true pioneer,” Will Smith wrote in a tribute on Instagram, accompanied by a series of photos of the pair.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Thank you Sidney Poitier for breaking down barriers, creating the path and making it possible for there to be a Will Smith!</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Your legacy is eternal. Rest In Power.”</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CYfEFqMv0NC/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CYfEFqMv0NC/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Will Smith (@willsmith)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Aussie actor Hugh Jackman shared an undated throwback photo of Poitier surrounded by A-list Hollywood stars, including Jackman, Oprah Winfrey, Barbara Streisand, and John Travolta, at an intimate dinner.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It was here, with this amazing group of friends, that Deb and I met the exceptionally kind hearted, smart, cheeky Sidney Poitier. A life well lived. A man well loved,” Jackman wrote.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CYeWI-DLYOH/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CYeWI-DLYOH/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Hugh Jackman (@thehughjackman)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Publicist Mara Buxbaum </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://people.com/movies/sidney-poitier-family-issues-statement-on-his-death-he-is-our-guiding-light/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">issued a statement to <em>PEOPLE</em></span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> on behalf of Poitier’s family, who described him as “a man of incredible grace”, as well as a “devoted and loving husband and adoring father”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“There are no words to convey the deep sense of loss and sadness we are feeling right now. We are so grateful he was able to spend his last day surrounded by his family and friends,” the statement began.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“To us Sidney Poitier was not only a brilliant actor, activist and man of incredible grace and moral fortitude, he was also a devoted and loving husband and adoring father, a man who always put family first.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“He is our guiding light who lit up our lives with infinite love and wonder. His smile was healing, his hugs the warmest of refuge, and his laughter was infectious. We could always turn to him for wisdom and solace and his absence feels like a giant hole in our family and our hearts,” the statement continued.</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Although he is no longer here with us in this realm, his beautiful soul will continue to guide and inspire us. He will live on in us, his grandchildren and great-grandchildren - in every belly laugh, every curious inquiry, every act of compassion and kindness. His legacy will live on in the world, continuing to inspire not only with his incredible body of work, but even more so with his humanity.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The family added: “We would like to extend our deepest appreciation to every single one of you for the outpouring of love from around the world. So many have been touched by our dad’s extraordinary life, his unwavering sense of decency and respect for his fellow man. His faith in humanity never faltered, so know that for all the love you’ve shown him, he loved you back.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Poitier is survived by his wife Joanna Shimkus and his five daughters: Beverly, Pamela, Sherri, Anika and Sydney.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: Getty Images</span></em></p>

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A MUST for any racing fan: Immortals of Australian Horse Racing review

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Australia has a long history when it comes to horse racing legends, with the likes of Phar Lap and Makybe Diva taking to the tracks over the years and quickly becoming legends.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Prolific non-fiction author Alan J. Whiticker has brought the stories of two dozen of these racers to life in his latest book </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.simonandschuster.com.au/books/Immortals-of-Australian-Horse-Racing/Alan-Whiticker/9781925946963" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Immortals of Australian Horse Racing: the Thoroughbreds</span></a></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">(Gelding Street Press $39.99).</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Immortals</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> features in-depth statistics about each thoroughbred, with historic photos and artwork scattered throughout depicting the horses in action.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845861/horse-review2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/c1d0f6663e6141108ec25c94654d7062" /></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Immortals peppers each racer’s profile with historical photos that any history buff is sure to appreciate. Image: Supplied</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He also takes the chance to bust some common myths about these famous horses, while still acknowledging the roles these tall tales play in Australia’s racing mythos.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“[Archer’s] tale has become an important part of the Melbourne Cup mythology and helped make the first dual cups winner immortal,” he writes.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Along with Archer, Whiticker’s pickings include the horses almost everyone will recognise - Phar Lap, Black Caviar, Tulloch, Kingston Town, Winx, Manikato, and Makybe Diva - plus a selection of crowd favourites such as Peter Pan, Might and Power, Gunsynd and Sunline.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But horses with celebrity status aren’t the only ones to make the cut; Whiticker also includes the lesser-known stories of freakish Vain, ‘super mare’ Wakeful, tragic Dulcify, and underrated Northerly.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845860/horse-review3.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/2ae98417b1494ab4ac59345586d10baa" /></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Many have come to (falsely) believe that Archer travelled from Nowra to Melbourne by hoof, but Whiticker points out that this contributes to his immortality. Image: Supplied</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Whiticker tracks each horse’s story from their birth and their debut on the track to the pitfalls and moments of victory that made them immortal.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Meanwhile, the ‘ranking’ of thoroughbreds also lays out Australia’s racing history from the start of the Melbourne Cup to Winx’s retirement in 2018, and each horse is compared to those that came before and after them.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Though less knowledgeable readers may be daunted by the statistics and racing jargon at first glance, Whiticker compensates for this with his engaging and flowing style of prose.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">All in all, racing fans and history buffs will enjoy the in-depth stories that Whiticker creates, writing as if he were commentating from the sideline.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I trust this book will settle several arguments about the greatest thoroughbreds of all time and no doubt start a few more,” Whiticker writes of his selection.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“One thing is for certain: they are all unforgettable in their own right.”</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Images: Supplied</span></em></p>

Books

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“Human race is doomed”: Model slammed over pose at her father’s funeral

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">An Instagram model has been </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/instagram-model-slammed-for-disrespectful-pose-at-fathers-funeral-c-4336312" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">called out</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> online after posting a “disrespectful” image from her father’s funeral.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">US influencer Jayne Rivera sparked a heated discussion on Reddit after she posted a photo of herself posing beside her father’s casket.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Butterfly fly away,” she captioned the photo in what was meant to be a heartfelt tribute. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">She went on to describe her dad as her “best friend” and said his life was “well lived”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But, it was the image she shared alongside the tribute that prompted it to go viral.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the snap, the influencer is wearing a black strapless dress, casting her eyes downward, and posing with her leg bent in a “foot prop” pose that has become popular on social media.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In a second image, Ms Rivera was captured in a close-up shot with her hands together and standing right in front of her dad’s open casket.</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">this Instagram model’s father passed away,,,, and she did a photo shoot with the open casket…. <a href="https://t.co/u1EVNxaajz">pic.twitter.com/u1EVNxaajz</a></p> — Mac McCann (@MacMcCannTX) <a href="https://twitter.com/MacMcCannTX/status/1453030106528632836?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Initially, her followers urged her to take it down - but its emergence on Reddit sparked further outcry.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Holy crap, is this so incredibly disrespectful,” one commenter shared.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Hey my dad died, let’s get 5000 likes!” another fumed.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I found her on Instagram and started following her, because one day I’ll have kids of my own, and I need to see where all these parents went wrong,” a third commented.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I can’t have my future kids grow up like this.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ms Rivera’s Instagram account has since been deleted.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 0px; height:0px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845135/funeral1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/21fbd12e84124d0a95ce8b2bd1cd6cf7" /></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: Reddit</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Another commented on the changing attitudes towards funerals in general.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Last funeral I went to everybody just wanted it to be over so we could go to the bar and tell funny stories about the deceased,” they shared.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Human race is doomed there’s no way it will last till 3000, we need a hard reboot,” another wrote.</span></p>

Beauty & Style

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Retired race horses on track to help troubled kids

<p><em>Image: A Current Affair </em></p> <p>New charity ‘Rehab 4 Rehab' is saving the lives of children and retired racehorses on the Mornington Peninsula through a ground-breaking equine therapy program.</p> <p>Children struggling with mental health issues get paired up with clinical psychologists, occupational therapists and retired racehorses to accelerate therapy sessions.</p> <p>“We are seeing lots of children with anxiety, depression, self-harming, suicidal kids, lots of autistic kids,” found Alisha Griffiths told<span> </span><em>A Current Affair.</em></p> <p>“They are practicing exactly what they would do in the normal four white wall environments but they’re doing it on a farm with retired racehorses.”</p> <p>Ms Griffiths said she had been around horses all her life and now she wants to share them with others.</p> <p>“They also build a rapport with a psychologist a lot quicker, they trust the psychologist because they’re around a retired racehorse,” she said.</p> <p>Clinical psychologist Jo Paterson crossed path with Alisha’s charity when she was looking for somewhere to keep her own horse – and she ended up with a job.</p> <p>“When you’re talking about things that are distressing and through trauma, then you’ve got something there that can help regulate, when they get upset,” Ms Paterson said.</p> <p>There are 46 horses at Ms Griffiths property and most of them are retired racehorses.</p> <p>In order to train them for being a racehorse to a therapy horse, they settle their lives down and “show them a slower pace”.</p> <p>Head horse trainer Alex McDonough said she’s surprised by how well the horses have adjusted.</p> <p>“It’s almost like they know they’re around children,” she said.</p>

Caring

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“An absolute disaster”: Prince William calls out billionaires’ space race

<p dir="ltr">Prince William has called out the billionaires currently competing in a space tourism race instead of focusing their efforts on the environmental problems on Earth.</p> <p dir="ltr">The Duke of Cambridge directed thinly-veiled criticism at Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and Richard Branson during a BBC interview at Kensington Palace.</p> <p dir="ltr">The three billionaires have been embroiled in a recent race to provide private commercial space travel.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We need some of the world’s greatest brains and minds fixed on trying to repair this planet, not trying to find the next place to go and live,”<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-15/prince-william-urges-billionaires-put-planet-before-space-race/100541038" target="_blank">William said</a>.</p> <p dir="ltr">The interview comes after Mr Musk announced his focus on reaching Mars, and after Mr Bezos said that his inaugural space flight was part of building a road to space “so that our kids and their kids can build a future”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We need to do that to solve the problems here on Earth,” Mr Bezos said.</p> <p dir="ltr">The Amazon founder recently celebrated his second suborbital space flight, which included<span> </span><em>Star Trek<span> </span></em>actor William Shatner among its passengers.</p> <p dir="ltr">The British royal family has made a trend of speaking out on environmental issues, with William following in the steps of his father Prince Charles and late grandfather Prince Philip.</p> <p dir="ltr">Prince Charles has been calling for action to stop climate change for decades, often facing ridicule for his stance.</p> <p dir="ltr">The 72-year-old heir to the throne<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/travel/travel-trouble/prince-charles-shocked-that-morrison-not-confirmed-for-glasgow-climate-conference?fbclid=IwAR0yBM3BrGS_5kZp0-E8kfD0lmaoVumFZDUhBcq0LmueyAmeR1gHv8fOk8I" target="_blank">recently described</a><span> </span>the UN Climate Change Conference COP26 in Glasgow as a “last chance saloon” for combating climate change, sharing how he tries so hard to encourage world leaders to attend and take action.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It’s been a hard road for him. He’s had a really rough ride on that, and I think he’s been proven to being well ahead of the curve,” William said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But it shouldn’t be that there’s a third generation now coming along having to ramp it up even more.”</p> <p dir="ltr">William also warned that not taking action now could be “robbing from our children’s future”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“For me, it would be an absolute disaster if [my son] George is sat here in 30 years’ time, still saying the same thing, because by then we will be too late.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Now I’ve got children as well and speaking to other parents, it’s a bit of a cliche, but you do start to see the world differently.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I want the things that I’ve enjoyed - the outdoor life, the nature, the environment - I want that to be there for my children, and not just my children but everyone else’s children.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The prince said the key to tackling the issue was to “bring people with us”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“People have got to feel like there’s hope, there’s a chance we can fix this.”</p> <p dir="ltr">He also echoed his father’s message, saying the upcoming COP26 conference had to result in action.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We can’t have more clever speak, clever words but not enough action,” William said.</p> <p dir="ltr">In response to the issue of climate change, William created the Earthshot Prize, with the aim of using new technologies or policies to solve Earth’s biggest environmental problems.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: @KensingtonRoyal / Twitter</em></p>

Travel Trouble

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How the edge of space became up for interpretation

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As the billionaire space race continues between Richard Branson, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, many are asking questions about how far into space they actually went. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic flight on 12 July rocketed up to 86 km off the ground, while Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin flight recently reached just over 107 km. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, these figures have experts wondering if either of them truly left the planet’s atmosphere. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Jonti Horner, an astronomer at the University of Southern Queensland, says the age-old questions of where the atmosphere ends and where space begins can be open to interpretation. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It’s one of those questions that’s a bit like saying, ‘When are you old enough to drink?’ or ‘When are you old enough to drive?’ Every country has their own version of an answer.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Where space starts and the atmosphere ends is a little bit like that, in that the atmosphere doesn’t just suddenly stop,” Horner told </span><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/exploration/where-is-the-edge-of-space/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Cosmos Magazine</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> in a recent interview. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The higher up you go, the thinner the atmosphere gets, and it keeps getting thinner and thinner and thinner, until eventually you can’t tell that it’s there anymore.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The official final point is approximately 10,000km above the surface, leaving no surprise why some want the line drawn a little closer to the Earth’s surface. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The US military, the Federal Aviation Administration and NASA all define the edge of space as 80 km off the ground, towards the upper part of the mesosphere.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This definition is very different to The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI), an international record-keeping body for aeronautics, who have adopted their own definition in the 1960s. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Called the “Kármán line”, it marks the beginning of space at 100 km above Earth’s mean sea level.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Despite all these varying measurements, Horner says they are equally as good and as bad as each other. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Now that we are in this era of commercial space tourism, suddenly people want to know where [the boundary] is because they want to know that what they did was really good enough.”</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image credit: Shutterstock</span></em></p>

Technology

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Thor or Gladiator? Race to play Steve Irwin tightens

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Rumours are continuing to grow as a </span><a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/entertainment/movies/biopic-rumours-about-steve-irwin-run-wild"><span style="font-weight: 400;">new Steve Irwin biopic</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> gains momentum in the big studios.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">According to movie insiders, the feature-length dramatised film about the Wildlife Warrior’s life has big names like Chris Hemsworth and Russell Crowe vying for the chance to play Steve.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But, </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Woman’s Day</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"> has been told that Terri Irwin is considering lesser-known actors such as Lincoln Lewis too.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CJa5G8oFiJ8/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CJa5G8oFiJ8/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Lincoln Lewis (@linc_lewis)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Steve’s international appeal, particularly to American audiences, is helping fuel enthusiasm for the project, while friends of the family say the arrival of Bindi Irwin’s baby Grace has given them “a real sense of closure” in terms of losing Steve.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The timing’s right to honour Grace’s grandad,” the insider added.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The family will want Aussie actors for the film, which will pretty much tell Steve’s life story.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The film is also expected to include “real footage of the family as they are now”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The insider said, “It’s a project they’ve considered before, but now they’re finally ready to give it the green light.”</span></p>

Movies

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Race to trace new mystery Sydney cases

<p><span>A NSW health official has made a shocking allegation about a Sydney couple who have tested positive for coronavirus, claiming they did not isolate while awaiting their results.</span></p> <p><span>Sydney was put on high alert on Wednesday after a 45-year-old man, who transports international airline staff from the airport, tested positive to coronavirus.</span></p> <p><span>Shortly after, a couple, aged in their 60s and 70s from Sydney’s Northern Beaches, also tested positive to the virus.</span></p> <p><span>The couple's diagnosis left health authorities scrambling, with warnings issued to those who visited a handful of venues to get tested and isolate.</span></p> <p><span>Speaking to The Australian, a health official, not permitted to speak publicly, alleged the couple did don’t isolate.</span></p> <p><span>“They took a long time to track down,” the official said.</span></p> <p><span>The three infections are NSW’s first cases of community transmission since December 3.</span></p> <p><span>People who have attended the following venues are considered close contacts and should get tested immediately and isolate for 14 days – even if they receive a negative result:</span></p> <p><span>The Palm Beach female change rooms on Sunday, December 13 between 9 and 9:15 am</span><br /><span>Coast Palm Beach Cafe on Sunday, December 13 between 10 and 11am</span><br /><span>Avalon Bowlo on Sunday, December 13 between 3 and 5 pm</span><br /><span>Sneaky Grind Cafe, Avalon Beach on Monday, December 14 between 10:30 am and 11am</span></p> <p><span>People who visited the following venues should tested and isolate until they receive a negative result:</span></p> <p><span>Woolworths Avalon Beach on Sunday, December 13 between 3 and 5 pm</span><br /><span>Oliver’s Pie, Careel Shopping Village, Avalon Beach on Monday, December 14 between 9 and 9:15am</span></p>

News

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Roger Federer’s worrying news: “Race against time”

<p>Roger Federer admits that he may not play in the Australian Open next year, even hinting that he may have played his last match.</p> <p>The 39-year-old shared an update at an awards night in Switzerland, which shocked tennis fans around the world.</p> <p>The 20-time grand slam champion has not played since suffering from an injury before the semi-finals at Melbourne Park last year.</p> <p>Federer has been recovering in his homeland after undergoing knee surgery for this cold time earlier this year.</p> <p>However, while he hoped for a quick recovery, he revealed that despite the season’s major first major being in February rather than January, it still may not be enough time.</p> <p>"I would have hoped that I would be 100 per cent in October. But I am still not today. It will be tight for the Australian Open," FedeThe Swiss maestro conceded that if the tournament is pushed back three weeks to its likely February 8 start date, it will no doubt help his cause.</p> <p>"It will be complicated for the Australian Open. I don't want to take the next step until I'm ready. These three weeks could help me a bit.</p> <p>"I'm curious to see whether it will start on February 8.</p> <p>"Of course, it would help if I had a bit more time."</p> <p>After being voted the best Swiss athlete in the last 70 years, Federer gave hinted that he may have already played his last match.</p> <p>"I hope there is still something to see from me next year. But if that was it, that would have been an incredible ending for me at these Sports Awards."</p> <div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>The extraordinary statement left tennis fans shaken.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Not sure, how serious he was. But <a href="https://twitter.com/rogerfederer?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@rogerfederer</a> ends with the words: "I hope there is still something to see from me next year. But if that was it, that would have been an incredible ending for me at these Sports Awards." Personally, I am sure he'll do everything to be <a href="https://twitter.com/Wimbledon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@wimbledon</a></p> — Simon Graf (@SimonGraf1) <a href="https://twitter.com/SimonGraf1/status/1338244018317250560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2020</a></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Going to therapy tomorrow for the 1st time and all i'm gonna talk about is the fact that roger federer might retire 😭😭</p> — dihya (@dihyatnn) <a href="https://twitter.com/dihyatnn/status/1338250939862540290?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2020</a></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Roger Federer is preparing all fans for the farewell from tennis <br />I am completely surprised and sad tonight <br />I cannot imagine the future of tennis without <a href="https://twitter.com/rogerfederer?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@rogerfederer</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Federer?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Federer</a> <a href="https://t.co/jyuNClqJyX">https://t.co/jyuNClqJyX</a></p> — Arthur Delaye 🇫🇷🇫🇷⭐️⭐️ (@ArthurDelaye) <a href="https://twitter.com/ArthurDelaye/status/1338250837995479042?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 13, 2020</a></blockquote> </div> </div> </div>

News

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ALDI-themed birthday party sets hearts racing!

<p>In honour of her youngest daughter’s supermarket obsessions, mother of five Meaghan Singleton decorated her child’s birthday party to the nines by ALDI-fying everything.</p> <p>Four-year-old Saylor’s birthday was truly one for the books, with Ms Singleton writing in a Facebook caption: "We brought Aldi to our house for our Aldi-obsessed Saylor and we didn't forget our quarters or bags!"</p> <p><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FWebbtriophotography%2Fposts%2F2707763852671085&amp;width=500" width="500" height="805" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media"></iframe></p> <p>From creating a cash-register-inspired fruit bar, “red hot” goodie bags and 25-cent cookies inspired by the $1 and $2 gold coins you have to inset into shopping carts before you push them around – Saylor’s mother went all out for the ALDI-themed celebrations.</p> <p><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FWebbtriophotography%2Fphotos%2Fa.882407735206715%2F2707760539338083%2F%3Ftype%3D3&amp;width=500" width="500" height="336" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media"></iframe></p> <p>Meaghan took to the Facebook page ALDI Aisle of Shame Community to share the hilariously adorable photos from the event that she also posted to her page<span> </span><em>Webb Trio Photography.</em></p> <p>The sweet post has garnered thousands of likes and over hundreds of comments, with many complimenting the mother’s unconventional and creative decorating skills.</p> <p>For her party outfit, Saylor wore a dress fashioned out of an employee uniform polo shirt, complete with an embroidered logo.</p> <p>The special moment was solidified forever with a gorgeous photoshoot.</p>

Family & Pets

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