It doesn’t take much more than four steps to feel as happy as a billionaire! When it comes to seeking worldly advice it’s perhaps more useful to ask what makes someone happy as opposed to salivate over how they spent their money… especially if they are worth north of $96 billion. Such is the wealth and generosity of Bill Gates, you can find out both in these stories but given I don’t ... Read more

Just before the Budget, the authoritative but little-known Parliamentary Budget Office issued some illuminating and non-partisan research into the costs of our ageing population. And while these reports are manna from heaven for pundits, policy wonks and think tanks to put their own spin on there’s also plenty of food for thought for us lesser mortals i.e. those they are talking about. ... Read more

Electricity relief is on its way for some 758,000 households who are currently stuck on expensive standing offers.   On July 1 2019 all customers not receiving an electricity discount will be automatically switched to a Default Market Offer (DMO), saving some households between $118 and $181 a year across New South Wales, South-East Queensland and South Australia. Similar changes from July 1... Read more

Are you feeling guilt-tripped or “Boomer-blamed” by all the election chatter about soaking better-off oldies to appease a less well-off younger generation? For all the recent fuss about the identity politics on race, religion and sexuality, there’s a far more ancient battleground between the generations and it’s now more central thanks to the key election battlegrounds of retirement inco... Read more

Just when you thought you might have the peculiar world of electricity prices sort of understood along comes another mouthful of jargon to mull over. The good news is that the new Default Market Offer (DMO) might help save 758,000 households some serious money such as $180 a year in some states and they don’t have to do anything. These are typically the people who despite the entreati... Read more

By nature, I tend to avoid anywhere which attracts over-hyped superlatives such as:  the ‘biggest shopping mall in the southern hemisphere’ even ‘the best Italian in Carlton’ or worst ‘the best-kept secret in Bondi’. But prejudices usually do you a disservice, as I’ve just discovered after hiking a four-day traverse of Fiordland in the South Island of New Zealand often called the ‘finest... Read more

When I departed Perth en route to JFK International Airport in New York, I thought our Australian culture would be somewhat similar to the American’s. I couldn’t have been more wrong. While we speak the same and seem the same at a glance, our two countries couldn’t be more different. Here are a few things I learned travelling through the USA that could help you if you are heading... Read more

Whether you are setting sail for the first time or the fiftieth time, here are 5 tips that could make your trip on a ship a little easier. LUGGAGE: With most staterooms being small in size, leaving your luggage out in the open won’t be an option and the closets aren’t likely to hold all your bags. There are stowaway areas under most of the beds in staterooms, but keep the luggage to long... Read more

Sometimes, becoming sick while traveling isn’t preventable, but here are a few tips on how to prevent some illness while travelling. Wash Your Hands Channel your inner germophobe. Wash your hands as much as possible. We all know that when you touch something contaminated, you create an easy way for germs to infect you. If you are without water and soap, hand sanitisers and disinfectan... Read more

  A recent surgical procedure to correct an irritating and common condition in older men caused me to ponder on the following question:  More screening for more cancers is a good thing, if it leads to earlier interventions which then help save more lives? Yes, unless you are talking about prostate cancer as a major study out this week has revealed yet again.  The irony is that w... Read more