Happy Straya Day mate!

Posted in Lifestyle by Nikki

I know our beloved country day is wrapping up but I still thought I’d get in and wish everyone on behalf of Solstice Satisfaction a solid Australia Day, even if you live in another country.

As SolSat is based in Australia and the team are located in different cities, I can happily say that we are the fortunate ones who get to live in this wonderful country where you can say what you want, believe what you want and so on and so forth. Unless you’re calling a cop “a pig”. That is an arrestable offence.

I sincerely hope you all had a beer or two, put on your best green and gold outfits – or red, white and blue outfits, as it were – and spent the day with loved ones. Just as a quick reminder to some who may have forgotten, here are some of the best things about being Australian:

What are some of the best things about being Australian…

[x] We are generally stereotyped as one of the most calm, collected and laidback cultures in the world. Why? Because we’re awesome, obviously.
[x] We have our own cool way of speaking English, called speaking “Strayan”. If you need a refresher on how to speak Strayan, we’ve got you covered.
[x] In Australia, we call mates “c-word that rhymes with punt” and we call c-word that rhymes with punts “mate”. Who else is cool enough to do that?
[x] Sprinting in thongs. If you can’t do it, you’re not Australian.
[x] We know that you do not actually cook shrimp on the barbie.
[x] Going to the shops in a daggy tank top, footy shorts and thongs, and it is completely socially acceptable.

Now to end this quick post, here are some of the few awesome Australia Day pictures I found on my Facebook timeline.

Happy Straya Day!

– by The Black Widow

22Jan2014

What I Miss About You, Bebo

Posted in Lifestyle by Nikki

I don’t know about you, but as a young youth growing up in Sydney (say between the ages of 13 and 16), the go to social networking site was Bebo. Sure, MySpace and Hi-5 were around back then, but Bebo was the one that all the cool kids went on.

Share the luv!

Now, we have Facebook and Twitter and Instagram and Tumblr and all of the above, and pretty much no one uses Bebo anymore. Why? Because Bebo simply became outdated. It’s the unfortunate truth with trends – they all go out of fashion eventually. Regardless of this – and my love for Facebook – there are several things that I miss about that good ol’ red B.

What I miss about you…

[x] Share the luv. How grand was it pestering people to give you “luv” so your little love heart count could top that of your high school rivals. I specifically remember having a pretty damn high luv count compared to those of my high school classmates and I always felt the need to brag about it. How did I get such a high number of luv? Via pestering, of course. And “luv for luv”.

[x] Flash boxes. Remember how you could have a video or some other form of “flash box” play on your Bebo profile? Wasn’t that the coolest thing ever? I remember my first flash box was Control Myself by LL Cool J ft. Jennifer Lopez. I don’t even know why; I didn’t even like that song that much. After, however, I managed to get Pacman into my flash box and became the coolest kid on the block. Subtle JLo reference. It just added that extra zing to your profile to establish just who the hell you were in the land of Bebo.

[x] Top 16. You knew your relationship was real when you were in each others top 16. It was cool but also quite pressuring to establish your top 16 because if someone had you in their top 16 and the feelings weren’t reciprocated, well, that just made it awkward for everyone. Of course, to make sure this didn’t happen, there were always “I’ll put you in my top 16 if you put me in yours” conversations. Problem solved.

[x] Other halves. Aww. You had your friends, you had your top 16 friends, and then you had your other half. This person would get their own little space on your profile with a cute little message attached to them. The twelvies would always have their flavours of the week with “luv u bbygurl s2” which was awkward because they always broke up like five minutes after. I can happily say I had under five other halves and they were never romantic counterparts.

[x] Photo stealing. How annoying is it if you want to steal someone else’s picture on Facebook and then re-upload it onto your own profile? That’s a long tedious procedure if you ask me. Back on Bebo, all you had to do was select the picture you wanted to steal, click “Copy”, pick an album to put it in, and voila – it’s there. No bruises or scratches.

[x] Custom skins. What was originally made famous on MySpace became a big thing on Bebo. While we’ve become accustomed to the Facebook blue default skin and probably couldn’t care less about it, the cool thing about Bebo was the option to pick a cool profile skin and jazz it up a bit. I once dabbled in creating my own Bebo skins and came up with cool WWE Diva skins, like Mickie James and Torrie Wilson. Complete with “Made by Noah La’ulu” tag, of course.

With news that Bebo is making a comeback and will be better than before, may we see the return of luv sharing, flash boxes and other halves? Hopefully. However, I will give my honest journo’s opinion – I don’t see Bebo toppling Facebook at this point in time. It’ll be nice to see them try, though.

Much luv to all of you SolSatters!

– by The Black Widow

20Jan2014

Review: Nobody But Him

Posted in Books, Entertainment by Nikki

So guys, I finally did it. I got around to finishing the romance novel I have been in the middle of for well over four months now. It’s not to say that the book was terrible, it was just because I lacked the motivation to finish off the novel. Oops.

Anywho, Nobody But Him by Victoria Purman is a romance novel set in the fictitious beachside town of Middle Point in SA, near Radelaide. The story features the two main characters, Julia Jones and Ryan Blackburn, as they encounter each other after years of trying to forget each other after that “one summer” that I’m sure everyone has had.

Follow the love story of Julia Jones and Ry Blackburn. You won’t regret it!

I’m just gonna say it. There were too many mistakes in the novel that somehow made it past the editors that made it difficult for me to fully enjoy. The sub-editor in me did not approve in the slightest. I understand one mistake or two in the final copy because not everyone is perfect, but when the mistake count requires two hands, that’s when you know that someone stuffed up. With all due respect to Ms. Purman and her superiors, I really feel as if this problem should’ve been rectified before the novel hit the shelves. The wrong use of “your/you’re” was enough to do it for me.

Sub-editing aside, the storyline of it was okay. It didn’t wow me but it did make me feel that bubbly sensation inside when I am experiencing fictional love. The sprouting love, or re-love as it were, between Julia and Ry was inevitable and the developments of their relationship throughout the novel kept me reading on and on. I didn’t feel as if there were any other major stories in the book that were properly explored, but that just only shows you how important the relationship between Julia and Ry is.

I found the style of writing to be effective but I don’t think it suited my style of reading. The books I like to read and the style I like to write my novels in (shameless plug for My Best Friend and I) has action after action and quick, snappy dialogue. Nobody But Him had action and snappy dialogue but it also had a lot of detailed descriptions and imagery used in the book; the language used to illustrate these images was on point and it definitely added to the homely beach feel of Middle Point. However, because I have the attention span of a fly, I found myself lost in these words and I eventually skimmed the lovely descriptions to get to the main juice of the story – the love of Julia and Ry.

Victoria Purman managed to achieve something in this novel that not many other romance novelists manage to do – create a book heroine who isn’t a complete moron. I found myself actually liking Julia Jones, although she had her questionable moments. She wasn’t helpless or needy or whiney and was the epitome of a woman-in-charge. I liked that in her. Ry Blackburn was just a dreamboat, not gonna lie. I couldn’t help but picture Caleb Geppert in the role of Ry as I read this novel, and that is most definitely a good thing.

Solst-o-meter
Storyline: 7.0
Style of writing: 6.2
Overall: 6.6

Nobody But Him is a keeper and I have no regrets in purchasing this book and adding it to my nearly overflowing bookcase; however, I feel as if the entire novel could have been executed better, especially without the typos and grammatical errors. That’s just me talking, especially because I’m anal when it comes to grammar and spelling. I think all you SolSatters out there would enjoy this novel.

– by The Black Widow

17Jan2014

Hitchcock’s Hotties

Posted in Entertainment, Movies by Nikki

In an attempt to make myself seem and feel more cultured, I have embarked on a movie journey, watching and re-watching Hitchcock films, one movie a night. Alfred Hitchcock, despite being a troubled and eccentric director, is definitely my favourite movie director in the history of cinema. Sorry Spielberg.

While watching movies such as Dial M for Murder and Strangers on a Train, I couldn’t help but notice just how damn attractive the main actors and actresses were. I don’t know whether this is because being that beautiful was the norm during the 50s or because over time, we have just become uglier and uglier (unless your name is Jase Dean). Either way, I feel as if the actors and actresses of today’s generation need to step their game up compared to the likes of these hunks and bombshells.

Naturally, I felt the need to rank these amazing guys and girls in order of personal preference. If you aren’t familiar with Hitchcock’s films, prepare to be wowed. Some of these stars were in more than one Hitchcock film and some of them only appeared in one. Either way, I still consider them Hitchcock’s stars.

The Boys
5. Farley Granger

This handsome bloke was featured in two of Hitchcock’s films, Rope and Strangers on a Train, the latter being one of my favourites. Granger has this innocent, cute boyish charm about him, sure, but you want to know the cutest thing about this guy? He was with his partner Robert Calhoun from 1963 all the way to his death in 2008. Longevity in a Hollywood relationship is a rare gem, so that definitely boosts Granger up the list.

4. Sean Connery

I really shouldn’t have to explain what makes Sean Connery attractive. You have the choice of his dashing good looks, his sculpted body or his “Connery voice”. If you’re surprised that Connery is on this list, he just made the cut, appearing in one of Hitchcock’s last films Marnie. Despite one questionable scene in the film, Connery is just as charming in the film as he is in general.

3. James Stewart

As the kids nowadays would say, dat drawl tho. One of Hitchcock’s legends, Stewart appeared in four of Hitchcock’s films – Rope, Rear Window, The Man Who Knew Too Much and Vertigo. While Stewart is a handsome man with a gentleman charm to him, his distinctive drawl voice was probably the sexiest thing about this cinema legend. If you want a modern sample, a snippet of his voice can be heard in McFly’s Love is Easy song around the 2:46 mark. Game, set and match.

2. Cary Grant

Probably Hitchcock’s greatest male protege, Cary Grant is also featured in four of his films – Suspicion, Notorious, To Catch a Thief and North by Northwest. If the picture isn’t enough to show you just how damn attractive this man is, may I suggest you rent To Catch a Thief from your local video store and watch the scene where he comes out of the water at the beach and lays down on the sand, rather suggestively might I add. You’re welcome.

1. John Gavin

Unfortunately for us, John Gavin only appeared in Hitchcock’s Psycho, but at least you got a good shirtless glimpse of this Hispanic hunk (alliteration 101). I don’t really need to explain why he is number one on the list. Just let the picture and your subsequent Google stalking speak for itself.

The Girls
5. Doris Day

With a face like that and a voice equally as beautiful, it should be no surprise that this bombshell is on the list. Day appeared in The Man Who Knew Too Much and is probably most well known for the song Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) which was made for the suspense film. If you want to have a listen to Day’s original version of the song, here’s a quality link.

4. Janet Leigh

The third star from Psycho to be included in this list, Janet Leigh played the all important role of Marion Crane in the film, which earned her a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. Besides the all important shower scene, Leigh appears at the beginning of the film in her bra alongside a shirtless John Gavin, which I am assuming was the back-in-the-day equivalent of a full on nude scene today. An interesting note: Janet Leigh is the mother of Jamie Lee Curtis, who went on to become a Scream Queen in her own right.

3. Kim Novak

Not at all related to Jack Novak, Kim Novak is best known for appearing in Hitchcock’s Vertigo. While her character was originally a brunette, there’s no denying that Novak looked better as a (Hitchcock) blonde. If watching this blonde bombshell babe isn’t motivation enough for you to watch Vertigo, let me tell you this – the film is one of my personal favourites just because it took me nearly a whole day to understand what happened in it.

2. Tippi Hedren

One of my personal favourite actresses, Tippi Hedren has the acting ability to match her stunning good looks. It’s no surprise that Alfred Hitchcock was obsessed with her (depending on which series of events you want to believe). Beautiful Miss Hedren was featured in two of Hitchcock’s greatest films, The Birds and Marnie, the latter of which is widely considered as Hitchcock’s last great. In my opinion, it’s because Tippi Hedren is a legend.

1. Grace Kelly

To those who know me well, it shouldn’t be a surprise that this cinema goddess is number one. If perfection were personified in any human being that has ever walked this earth, it would be Grace Kelly. Without a doubt Hitchcock’s most popular actress, Kelly appeared in three of his films – Dial M for Murder, Rear Window and To Catch a Thief. Words cannot express just how beautiful Miss Kelly is. It is no surprise that Kelly won the heart of Prince Rainier III of Monaco and subsequently became Princess Grace of Monaco. Kelly’s legend still lives on; one of the most mainstream examples of this would be MIKA’s song Grace Kelly.

I really think that this article alone should motivate people to partake of the genius that is Alfred Hitchcock’s cinema legacy. Excellent storylines, great films and, of course, hot men and women. One more time: you’re welcome.

– by The Black Widow

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Author Archives: Nikki

Happy Straya Day mate!

Review: Nobody But Him

Hitchcock’s Hotties