Innehållsförteckning för TAK2418 från Take 5

It’s back! This week we see the return of our exciting comp Winner Takes All!, with one of our most thrilling prize jackpots yet. The total haul valued at up to $37,101, includes a whopping $15,000 cash, as well as a pretty jewellery set and gadgets for your home. All you need to do is solve one puzzle and post it off. You’ll find entry forms in loads of upcoming issues for extra chances to win. Check out page 18 for your first puzzle. Over the page, we loved Tamika’s story about flying to the other side of the world to surprise her ex, not knowing if he’d take her back. Or if he had another woman in the house! It doesn’t always go to plan – a friend of…

We’re on a mission to find the best places to swim Caroline Clements, 39, Manly, NSW. Jumping into my partner’s Toyota Troop Carrier, we started off on another trip down the coast. It was 2016 and I’d met Dillon, 31, the year before. He was from the States, but I soon learned he shared my love of the water. Living in Melbourne, the best swimming spots were further out, so we’d head off on weekly getaways. Often, we’d surf at a beach we knew had some great breaks, other times we’d wade into a new river or lake we’d heard about. Many places were off the beaten track but it always led to a beautiful body of water we often had all to ourselves. “Where are you headed this weekend?”…

Here’s an interesting statistic: 80 per cent of the planet is affected by light pollution. Also, a third of Earth’s inhabitants cannot see the Milky Way. It’s little wonder then that stargazing and getting out into what are called ‘Dark Sky Places’ is a growing trend as travellers want to get back to nature and look to the skies. Here are six hotspots in the USA where you can get gazing… BRYCE CANYON, UTAH Hoodoos (irregular columns of rock) exist on every continent, but here is the largest concentration found anywhere on Earth. These are astonishingly beautiful by day and equally interesting at night, silhouetted against a dazzlingly starry sky. Visit during the annual Bryce Canyon Astronomy Festival in June for fascinating constellation tours and evening programs. STAY AT: The…

His mum’s words made me fly to the other side of the world. Would he take me back? Tamika Cheney, 22, Kings Beach, Qld. I stared at my boyfriend, Sam, in shock. “Are you saying you’ve already bought your ticket?” I asked. He nodded. “Yeah, I bought it last week. I just didn’t want to tell you because it was your birthday,” he admitted. I sat down and put my head in my hands. It was December 2022, and Sam had just revealed he was moving to Brighton in the UK – 16,000km away. I knew the move would be good for him. He and his brother Tim were both singers and had a band together. Trying to make it in the music industry on the Sunshine Coast just wasn’t…

I’m telling my story to warn other women not to do it Venesa Vaughn, 47, Caulfield North, Vic. My boyfriend’s face went red with rage. We were in the middle of a heated argument, then he threw me an astonishing comment. “Your vagina is the worst I've ever seen,” he roared. I paused and stared at him, reeling in shock. At just 25, I’d never considered what my vulva looked like, nor how it compared to other women. Eventually, our rage subsided but his comment played on my mind. Weeks later, I found him watching porn so I sat down with him. I was curious to see what the women’s vulvas looked like and to my amazement they were totally different from mine. Theirs were flat and neatly tucked…

It was our family’s darkest day. Then some money went missing... Eileen Fowler, 55. I carried a tray of mugs through to the living room and set them on the table. “Here we go,” I said. “Teas all round.” Every couple of weeks, my husband, Alan, and I visited his parents, Agnes and Dan. They were both in their 80s and Dan was in a wheelchair, having suffered a stroke that had paralysed his left side. Agnes had hired carers who came in daily to help him get washed and dressed. But despite this, I’d noticed on the last few visits that Dan looked quite unkempt, and it had got me worried. “Are those carers still not picking up their act?” I said to Agnes now. “I know, I’m going…

I look in the mirror and am reminded of an evil killer Natalie Mallette, 37. Peering through the window, I saw the postie drop mail in my letterbox and rushed out the door. My heart started racing with excitement when I saw an envelope with the familiar prison stamp on the outside. It was 2007 and I’d been writing to prisoner Norman Duncan, 28, for a few months after a mutual friend suggested it. Tearing open the envelope, I felt my daughter, Christina, four, tugging at my dress. “What’s that, Mummy?” she asked. “Oh, it’s a letter from my special friend,” I said, clutching the paper to my heart. His nickname was Nozzie, and as I was a 21-year-old single mum, it felt nice to be getting some male attention.…

Put dry tea bags into stinky shoes to absorb the smell. Lynette McIntosh, Buderim, Qld. When you’re hanging up jumpers, hang them inside out so the coat-hanger doesn’t cause bumps at the shoulders that stick out. Deirdre White, Gunnedah, NSW. Peel a kiwifruit by cutting it in half then running a teaspoon under the skin right around. Kirsty Turner, Rotorua, NZ. If you’re grating chocolate into baking, put both the chocolate and your grater into your freezer for 10 minutes first. Try it! Josie Saville, Morphett Vale, SA. Store tomatoes with the stem side down. I’ve found they stay fresher for longer. Gail Anderson, Roxburgh Park, Vic. If you need to save money, take a break from alcohol. You’ll be amazed at how much you’ll save! Louise Shaw, Geraldton, WA.…

Telling strangers how I spent my money helped me get out of debt! Nataasha Torzsa, 33, Brisbane, Qld. Scanning my groceries through the self-serve checkout, I panicked. They’d cost more than I had in my account. Please, not the dreaded declined message again, I grimaced. As an admin assistant, I earned a decent wage, but money ran through my fingers like sand. If I was ever caught short, I’d whip out my credit card, even though it cost me a bomb in interest. Next payday, I’m giving my finances a good once over, I’d vow. But as soon as my wages hit my account, I’d be off spending again. It was 2017, and aged 27, my finances were a mess. My credit card had reached its $5k limit and I…

After 10 years in service, Benson is enjoying retirement Ryan Olender, 37, Shellharbour, NSW. The dog walked happily beside me along the beach. “Good boy,” I said, letting him off the lead to run around. It was 2013, and I was a volunteer for Assistance Dogs Australia. The dogs were being trained to help people in wheelchairs, returning soldiers with PTSD and adults with disabilities. I took them out on the weekends to give their weekly carers a break. During the week, I worked at Lake Illawarra High School as a special education teacher. Watching the pup play in the sand, I wondered if the dogs from Assistance Dogs Australia could help some of the kids at my school. A lot of my students had suffered from trauma and needed…

APR 25-MAY 1 TAURUS Apr 21–May 21 It’s set to be a huge week for you, as the planets align in a way they haven’t since 2011. This offers you a chance to turn your life around in whatever way you really want to. If you want to change the way the world sees you, act now! ★ Sometimes a change really is for the best! LEO July 24–Aug 23 The week is offering you a massive chance to make changes to your professional life. It’s the biggest chance you’ve had for more than a decade. So do pivot professionally if that’s what you want to do. ★ The skies support you with any career changes! SCORPIO Oct 24–Nov 22 When it comes to love, you have pretty amazing…

Our cheeky boy climbed inside a claw machine... Tim Hopper, 33, Brisbane, Qld. Walking around the supermarket with my partner, Kymberley, keeping tabs on our three lively boys was getting hard. Growing restless, they were disrupting other shoppers. “I’ll take the boys and leave you to do the shopping in peace,” I said to Kymberley. I herded Darcy, 10, Elijah, eight, and Ethan, three, out, leaving Kymberley, 33, with our one-year-old tot, Sophie. Glancing around the busy mall, I spotted a free bench near the claw game machine. “If you three settle down, you can have a go,” I told the boys. Their faces lit up. As we wandered towards the bench, the boys started mucking around and Ethan dashed over to the machine. “Wait here on the bench,” I…