Love, Sex, Lifestyle Ruth Ostrow

Friendship needs honesty

Ruth Ostrow — Sun, 13 May 2012 08:33:06 +0000

Without boundaries and truth, our friendships are doomed A WOMAN I work with was bemoaning the loss of a friendship so late in her life. At 56, she said, she honestly didn’t think it was possible to lose a 40-year friendship. ‘‘We’d been at school together, reared each other’s kids, shared our lives, lived abroad…

Accepting loss

Ruth Ostrow — Sun, 06 May 2012 11:27:51 +0000

One mother’s attitude to grief after the death of her child is causing controversy. Last year I received an amazing letter from Julia Bianco-Garrouche, a woman who recently appeared on Insight talking about grief following the death of her daughter. It was in relation to a column I wrote about being criticised. I was the…

Don’t let life become a pain

Ruth Ostrow — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 14:55:39 +0000

Experts now reveal chronic pain can be ignored I MET a former doctor last year through a friend of a friend who was giving me some information on the pain in my shoulder. Mysteriously, some people develop an awful condition called frozen shoulder. It can come at any age and hit anyone: the capsule around…

You can’t buy bliss

Ruth Ostrow — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 09:50:03 +0000

The Rinehart famly saga proves there’s no automatic bliss for billionaires IN the wake of the Rinehart family brawl, it’s obvious to onlookers that there’s no correlation between money and happiness. While most of us ponder the thrill that can come from having trough- loads of moolah, and indeed of power, the cost can often…

Thinking Positive

Ruth Ostrow — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 13:07:12 +0000

Neuroscientists have discovered that if you want to break a habit, stop trying to. AN interesting thing happened recently. After two years of being over my desired body weight, I suddenly lost the weight very quickly. Of course, as the weight started falling off, I went to the doctor, who ordered all the mandatory tests.…

Filthy hands make food hard to swallow

Ruth Ostrow — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 04:46:27 +0000

Filthy hands in juice bars to butchers make food and drink hard to swallow THE other day I was thirsty, having walked for an hour in the boiling sun. I pulled up at a gorgeous little cafe that promised freshly squeezed juices. It was just what my heart desired. It was a quiet day so…

Going for what you want

Ruth Ostrow — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 04:27:23 +0000

Most are just too fearful to go for what we deeply want: passion, adventure, the creative or crazy life. We say no to opportunities out of fear. I’VE just done a scriptwriting seminar with visiting Hollywood writer Michael Hauge on how to construct character and plot. The interesting thing is that when it comes to…

Hoarders

Ruth Ostrow — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 13:18:32 +0000

The annual Hoarding Conference was held recently in Sydney, but no one could find their car keys to come. A FEW weeks before I went overseas in December, I made a pact with myself. I would go through all of the boxes I’d stuffed in my wardrobe and do a spring clean. Worse than the…

Immortality

Ruth Ostrow — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 04:16:02 +0000

Mortality sill confounds me. If Davy Jones can die then what about the rest of us home coming queens? THE other night we were flicking through the channels trying to find something to watch. We ended up on an old movie with Natalie Wood, who was once one of my favourite actresses. I felt so…

The mighty pen

Ruth Ostrow — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 11:26:13 +0000

The power of the pen can be great when the unfairness of the world is too much to bear. “Please missus, please pen,” cries a little boy amidst a throng of children all begging for pens and school books. But I’ve just run out. I’m in the heart of Africa, in a village in Tanzania.…

Fear Bucket List

Ruth Ostrow — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 11:20:49 +0000

We should be out there doing the things we most fear before we die: A Fear Bucket List I’m out at sea in a small boat shivering as if I were cold. But the wind is warm. It’s just fear. Ever since I was a little girl I’ve feared deep water. The reason is sharks.…

Compatibility

Ruth Ostrow — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 11:20:20 +0000

Are there really failed marriages and relationships or do we just change? I met an interesting man while travelling in Africa. We stayed at his hotel on a remote island in Mozambique. It had been his dream to run a resort. His great passion is the sea. Before he built his hotel he did many…

And how are you today?

Ruth Ostrow — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 11:19:49 +0000

Mindless phrases like “And how are you today?…” are driving me nuts. Or the new horror “Yeah/ No…” It’s one of the banes of my life – mindless social phrases. I’ve been on the phone for ages waiting for a call-centre stranger to pick up. I want to cut to the chase: to find out…

Holiday Clues not Blues

Ruth Ostrow — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 09:04:10 +0000

Three things you’ll really want to know about this holiday period like how to save your relationship. Hi readers, I’m back! Here are the three column blogs I wrote during the break on how to avoid holiday blues. 31s December How to avoid becoming an +++hole. this time of year It’s that time of year…

Call Centre Blues

Ruth Ostrow — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 22:51:47 +0000

Call Centres are driving us all crazy I WAS dealing with a call centre recently, trying to get something I had organised to be cancelled. The process was exhausting. Every time I called I had to stay on the line for at least a half hour because of the pre-Christmas backup. And each time I…