Innehållsförteckning för TAK2352 från Take 5

My friend placed a tray of vodka drinks onto our table. “I love this song!” she cried. “Let’s dance.” She grabbed my hand and I followed her to the dance floor moving my hips to the music. We swayed and sang along, our faces splashed blue and red by the lights. “I need to sit down,” I said eventually so we returned to our friends at the table and downed our drinks. “Another round!” one of the girls announced, and headed to the bar. “It feels so good to let my hair down,” I laughed, even though I was starting to feel pretty drunk. It was February 2020, and I’d recently been through a divorce. My daughter Isabelle, three, was staying with her dad so my friends suggested we go…

You’ve sworn off alcohol, but then Christmas arrives and uh-oh – temptation. While it may feel like Christmas and booze go hand-in-hand, it is possible to enjoy yourself without alcohol. Yes, even during the silly season. Personal trainer, fitness expert and body positivity advocate Sarhys Page offers tips for celebrating without the need for champagne… DON’T BE AFRAID TO SAY NO TO EVENTS If you get nervous in social situations and normally rely on a drink to relax, then try to be gentle with yourself. Allow yourself to turn down invitations that make you uncomfortable. Honestly, that was the best lesson I learned. I no longer feel obliged to go to events. The most important thing is my sobriety and comfort. If I attend an event, it’s on my terms,…

Zipping up my backpack, I felt a wave of fear. Maybe tomorrow’s flight will get cancelled and I won’t have to go after all, I secretly hoped. It was May 2022, and I’d quit my job in insurance to embark on a year-long journey around the world. I loved to travel and had been fortunate enough over the years to visit 67 countries with friends and family. This time though, I’d be travelling alone, which was pretty daunting as a woman with a disability. Although I had full muscular control of my arms and legs, as a child, I found walking increasingly painful. By age seven, even the walk from the kitchen to the bathroom was a gonising. Doctors couldn’t find a diagnosis, but I quickly learnt to navigate life…

Despite the fact that Christmas is widely regarded as a universal event, different countries have their own customs and traditions. In Australia, it’s not unusual to flock to the beach on Christmas Day. While Santa hats on the sand are a familiar sight Down Under, you’d be hard-pressed to find people celebrating the same way overseas, where other traditions reign supreme… Germany St Nicholas Day is a favourite holiday. On the night of December 5, children clean and polish their boots and leave them outside before going to sleep. The next morning, children will find their shoes filled with nuts, lollies and small gifts from St Nicholas. Austria What’s the opposite of Santa Claus? Enter Krampus. In Austria, Santa gives the good children presents, while Krampus – a terrifying…

Stifling a yawn, I took a sip of my drink and looked up at the decorations. It was New Year’s Eve and the staff at my local pub had gone all-out with the fairy lights and tinsel. The whole place sparkled! Sadly, the same couldn't be said about my date. Since we’d arrived there, he’d barely said two words to me. Some New Year’s Eve this has turned out to be, I thought. After 13 years as a single mum to my daughter Aaliyah and a string of disastrous dates, I’d almost given up on love. But a few days earlier, just before Christmas, a bloke had approached me in the same pub and asked me out for a quiet drink. “How about New Year’s Eve?” I’d suggested. I had…

The priest stroked his chin in thought. “If you can guarantee she will be good, then I don’t see why not,” he said. It was 2007, and I was planning my wedding to my fiancé, Graeme, 33. We’d just asked if our black Staffordshire bull terrier Ashka could be our ring bearer. At this point in time, having pets as part of a wedding ceremony was highly irregular. But Ashka was such a massive part of our relationship we had to have her there. Thankfully, the priest trusted our judgement, and the wedding went ahead, with Ashka playing her crucial role. We also had photos taken with our two horses, Ernie and Mikey. After the ceremony, Graeme and I had to take the animals home and feed them before…

Chatting with my friend Mai, as we wandered through town, I spotted a $2 shop across the road. “Do you mind if we have a little look around?” I asked her. “Of course not,” she said. It was 2013, and although I’d studied social science at Rotorua Polytech, I’d always been creative and loved to paint. So, it was no surprise later when I came out of the shop armed with brushes and canvases. Back home, I set everything up, but as I went to grab a brush with my hand, I heard a voice in my head. Use your mouth, it said. I’d been born with the condition arthrogryposis multiplex congenita, meaning the joints in my limbs hadn’t developed in the womb. Due to this, I found using my…

Opening the door, I grinned at the handsome man on my doorstep. “Merry Christmas,” he said, and handed me a box of chocolates. “Come on in,” I said. Ben and I had worked together at a supermarket as teenagers. We’d always got on well, but had lost touch after I met someone and had my kids, Jack and Holly. Now I was single again, Ben and I had reconnected on social media. He’d messaged me that morning to wish me a happy Christmas. I’m free later, I’d replied to him. My children are going to visit relatives. Now here he was, in my lounge room, standing beside the Christmas tree. “You haven’t changed a bit,” I said. “Neither have you,” he replied, smiling. We sat together and chatted while festive…

It’s safe to say that everyone’s feeling the pinch this Christmas. Thankfully, there are ways you can cut costs while still having a very merry Christmas… USE GIFT CARDS NOW Check your wallet or purse – there’s a good chance there’s an unused gift card lurking in there. According to finder.com.au, Aussies are sitting on $835 million worth of unused gift card credit. The average person has two gift cards, with a combined value of $187 per person. Use them to buy gifts for family and friends. And should you be given a gift card on Christmas Day, make note to use it straightaway in the holiday sales – lest it stays unused! END-OF-YEAR SALES Speaking of Christmas sales, make it your mission this year to only buy the things…

Lying in my hospital bed, I was flicking through the channels when I suddenly paused, seeing muscular women in bikinis and high heels strutting on my screen. Wow! I thought in amazement. They were competing in a body-sculpting competition and looked incredible. I longed to be fit and healthy like them. It was 2004, and I’d been hospitalised with asthma and pneumonia, giving me the kick up the bum I needed to adopt a healthier lifestyle. Though I’d never been overweight, since the age of 18 I had fluctuated in size. I didn’t know how to exercise correctly and found it hard to stick to diets, particularly when my three kids, Vanessa, 22, Anthony, 18, and Damien, 16, were younger. But now, at 49, it was time for change. The…

Hi Take 5ers, Taking my granddaughter, Rosie*, on coffee dates has been one of my favourite outings since she was a little girl. However, since she turned 13, it just hasn’t been the same. Her parents bought her a smartphone and she uses it constantly. When I try to make conversation, she gives one-word answers without looking up from the screen. I want to keep spending time with her but fear I’m less interesting than the phone. What should I do? Rhonda*, 73 Are YOU in a tricky situation? Why not write in and let our readers help you out. We’ll pay $50 for every question printed. Our contact details are on page 73. At 13 you’re fortunate that she still wants to spend time with you. Speak to her…

We pay $100 for each letter printed Cunning strategy I asked my grandson, Dane, eight, what New Year’s resolution he was going to make. “What’s a resolution?” he asked. I told him it was something he wanted to do that would make his life better. “Your resolution could be to try the vegetables on your plate before saying you don’t like them,” I suggested. Dane’s face lit up. “Mummy’s resolution could be to not give me so many vegetables!” he said gleefully. Candice Mooney, Greystanes, NSW. NYE prediction Twenty years ago, some girlfriends and I went to a New Year’s Eve party at the family home of a boy I fancied. When he leaned in for a kiss right on the dot of midnight, I was thrilled. He went to…