George Clooney...our last chance?

Can this man save Hollywood?

Is it the end?

What Happened to Hollywood?

Could someone please get Beyonce off the red carpet and back into a studio!

The Golden Globes were last night and I have to say that I'm a little disappointed. To begin with the ceremony was flat, blah, lacking. There was nothing extraordinary, or even slightly above ordinary. Hardly any jokes, no drunken speeches, and dare I say it a room full of boring people, not bright shining Hollywood stars. Bring back the era when being a star actually meant something. Now let's take the above picture of Beyonce. I'm full of words. This is a celebration for actors Beyonce, why are you there? Ok, sure, you were in Dreamgirls and oh we know you can sing, but seriously, look at you! Take that gold from your dress and try turn it into some golden records but please keep away from the Golden Globes (and every other golden statue desginated for actors)

A true beauty

However there were still a few glints of stardom lurking. Look at Jennifer Hudson. Truly a beauty. She may not fit into Hollywoods sick twisted idea of a "real women" but she's possibly the most "real" woman I've seen on a red carpet. Congratulations Jennifer on your win. I hope that you continue in film and music so that society can finally see beyond the plastic.

There ain't nothing ugly about this

America Ferrera was another natural beauty at the Globes. Her speech was an inspiration to many women out there and I hope to hear many more of them in the future. Overall I think that the Golden Globes and Hollywood in general needs aid from the Grey's Anatomy team (I think we may need a triple bag blood transfusion) The films I've seen lately have been nothing worth mentioning. I waited in anticipation for "Children of Men" only to be disappointed. And If I hear about another remake of Pirates of the Carribean or some Japanese horror film I think I may just have to throw the tv out the window. Where has originality gone? The last good original film I saw was "Good Night and Good Luck" but I just don't think it's fair of us to bank on George Clooney to make the only good films in hollywood. There's got to be something more, someone has to save hollywood, or is it too late?

Is this the end of Hollywood?

I know this much is true

Well it's the new year, so I guess it's only natural to look back on your life and contemplate. There are people out there with blogs that are filled with amazing pictures and wonderful exotic places from all over the world. My blog can not compare to those. I don't have amazing stories about the exotic places I've been or the things I've bought. But I do have a story.

I won't forget the place I come from

I was born in New Zealand to Tony and Judith in 1984, when I arrived I had an older brother already waiting for me and then 4 years later my younger brother joined us too. I had a really great life when I was young, I don't think I realized then just how good I had it. When I was 12 my parents decided to end their marriage. Like any child of divorce will tell you, my world fell apart. A few months after my mum left my dad met someone and she moved in with us. My step-mum and I had problems the minute we met and I'm sad to say that they never got solved.

When I was 15 my mum met a guy and moved to Australia with him. It doesn't matter if you're 5, 15 or 25, you can always feel abandoned by your parents. I moved in with my dad and step-mum and we all tried as best as we could to get along. When I turned 18 I guess we'd all grown tired of trying because my dad told me that he was moving to a new house and I couldn't come with them. My mum had moved back to NZ by this point so I moved into a one-bedroom apartment with her and we worked hard at fixing our relationship. For a year I worked hard at forgiving my parents.

Karina and I

By the time I turned 19 I felt that I needed something else in my life, I didn't know what it was but I just knew I had to go find it. After meeting my best friend Karina at University I finally felt like something good was happening. For a year we had a lot of fun skipping class and dreaming about Hollywood. However, after one year she had to go back to Canada. I was really upset but we planned for me to come and visit her that year. In early 2004 a series of events made me re-think my plans and it was then that I decided to move to Canada for a year.

When I landed in Vancouver Karina was waiting for me and we spent the next two months traveling around BC and LA. When Karina went to Kamloops in September 2004 I was officially alone.

Alex and Aman

2005 was a great year. I ended up managing a restaurant and met great friends including Alex, Aman and Mason who became my partners in crime every weekend. After many months of denial I finally realised that I was falling in love with Alex, only I happened to realise it 2 months before I had to leave. When it came time to leave Canada I was a wreck. Everything I'd always wanted was in Vancouver and everything I'd run from was waiting for me in NZ.

Those four months in NZ were the hardest but most important months of my life. I worked in a bar to save money to get to Montreal where Alex was waiting for me. My dad and I worked hard at dealing through everything that had happened and I'm glad we did.

Concordia University

In November 2005 I moved back to Canada. For the first time in my life I was running towards something instead of running away. I came in on a 6 months visitors visa and had no plan on how I was going to stay but just knew that somehow I'd make it happen. In January 2006 I applied to Concordia University and got accepted. I've already completed a semester at Concordia and I love doing a French degree. This April Alex and I will celebrate our 2 year anniversary.

The love of my life, Alex

I still feel like there's so much more to do but I also feel proud of what I've accomplished. I've always been surrounded by friends whose parents paid for everything and for a long time I was jealous of them. But when I look back on the last few years I'm so glad that I didn't have anyone helping me. I would not have been able to get here if I didn't have to fight for it like I did. And now that I'm here I feel blessed. Blessed that I have to work a lot to pay for school and rent, blessed that I can't just go out and buy the things I want, blessed that I have to work hard for the things I want. I feel blessed because I know now that I have the strength to go wherever I want and do whatever I want. Maybe someone is reading this blog and is in a place like I was when I was 12 or 15 or 18 and I just want them to know, it doesn't matter if you don't have much money, as long as you have passion and determination then you're richer than you can imagine.

The world just seems that little bit less safe

Two days ago Alex was walking to my house. It was nearly 6pm and he was a block from my home. Three guys approached him and asked him for money, he said no. One of them came at him so he punched the guy. Then the other two came at him and held on to him whilst the other sprayed him in the eyes with pepper spray. Alex threw his money at them and they ran off. His eyes were really messed up for a few hours, but luckily he's ok.

I can't stop thinking though, what if they'd had a knife, or a gun. What if, in the space of a few moments, they took away the one person in my life that's made everything I've ever gone through worth it. I know that it's not a postive way to think and is probably self destructing but I guarantee that anyone who's been in a situation like this has felt the same.

As one of my best friends said to me, Alex is ok and that's all that matters. It's just really made me realise how quickly things can happen that can change your life. I was lucky, but many people have not been. We can never live our lives thinking that things like this will never happen to us. We need to accept that they can and we need to protect ourselves.

Go to: http://www.webmd.com/content/Article/119/113399.htm?pagenumber=3 for information on how you can protect yourself.

As negative as it sounds, you cannot trust people that you don't know, regardless of how kind they seem. It's much better to come across as rude than it is to be placed in a vulnerable situation.

I strongly suggest that everyone, male or female, become aware of the steps you can take to keep safe. Ignorance is not bliss, but knowledge is power.