Brittany Vonow



Tea lovers spoilt for choice

Sitting down to a good cuppa is not what it used to be.   Gone are the days of a cup of traditional black tea with a dash of milk and teaspoon of sugar.   Instead we have hibiscus, white dragon, rose and French vanilla flavours – all growing in popularity as young and old […]


Vegans predict a meat-free future

More people would go vegan in the future because eating animal products was an unsustainable practice, according to a Brisbane dietician. The Vegetarian/Vegan Society of Queensland co-founder and dietician Amanda Benham said the popularity of veganism would continue to increase. “The human race has no choice but to move away from eating animal products for […]


Juror’s migraine halts trial

A migraine attack has stopped a District Court trial in Brisbane. A woman in the jury suffered the migraine yesterday afternoon, drawing a complaint from a defence barrister who was worried she hadn’t been paying attention. The jury member listened to barrister Lars Falcongreen’s final statement in the morning but was unable to continue after […]


Train trip from suburbs to city ‘to cost $15 in 2014’

A one-way train trip from Richlands to the CBD will cost almost $15 in 2014* according to a leaked state government strategy document. The shock figure was revealed at yesterday’s Brisbane City Council meeting by public transport chairman Julian Simmonds, who quoted an internal Translink document projecting big increases in all public transport fares in […]


Seven months on, kids still suffering flood anxiety

Queensland children could still be concerned about the floods seven months after the deluge that affected Brisbane, according to a leading child development expert. Queensland University of Technology early childhood Professor Susan Danby (pictured) said the January floods had increased the risk of anxiety in children. “The floods raised real issues of uncertainty and unpredictability […]


Council accused of a lousy deal over bike helmets

The number of Brisbane cyclists with itchy heads may increase dramatically in the next three months, the Brisbane City Council trialling a shared helmet system for Citycycle. From next Monday a third of the bike fleet will have a helmet provided free of charge, one of the council’s seven improvements to increase the struggling scheme’s […]


Council fails seniors: Labor

The Brisbane City Council has shirked its responsibility to seniors, the Opposition said today. Opposition leader Shayne Sutton criticised the council’s plan to deliver a seniors-friendly city, and called their draft Seniors Strategy for 2011 to 2016 a disgrace. “It’s noble and idealistic,” she told today’s council meeting. “We need more detail… More concrete policies […]


Breastfeeding rate lower in Brisbane

Women who decide to breastfeed need more community support than ever, according to a Brisbane lactation consultant. Alexandra Read, who has worked as a certified consultant for 12 years, said women still faced societal pressures if they decided to breastfeed their child. “We are coming out of a period, the 1960s and ’70s, that was […]


Review: Dr Zhivago

Based on an iconic book and epic three-hour movie, the musical adaptation of Dr Zhivago has a lot to live up to. After all, song and dance would not be the first choice for many to convey the loneliness, individualism and ideology explored in Boris Pasternak’s novel. Yet director Des McAnuff and composer Lucy Simon […]


Ethnic groups to monitor government plans

The Ethnic Communities Council Queensland has said it would closely monitor a new Bligh government policy that recognises the state’s growing multiculturalism. Ms Bligh’s policy, A multicultural future for us all, applies to the whole of government and includes legislation to support interpreter, employment and transport services for migrants. But Ethnic Communities Council Queensland’s executive […]


Celebrations for Queensland icon

Break out the sponge cake, chocolate icing and coconut tonight – it’s National Lamington Day! Australia celebrates its fifth National Lamington Day on 21st July, after the first day to honour the dessert was named in 2006. The lamington has had a rich and contentious history, New Zealand and Australia still arguing over who first […]


Review: Mrs Carey’s Concert

Preparations for a school concert will always be nerve-wracking for students and teachers alike. But when the big event is to be held at the Sydney Opera House and the music teacher is the determined, passionate Mrs Karen Carey, the potential for a riveting documentary is created. Mrs Carey’s Concert follows the teachers and students […]


Lavender teddy bears invade Brisbane

Brisbanites had the opportunity to add to their teddy bear collections this week, with lavender bears on sale to support the Leukaemia Foundation. The bears and other lavender gifts were sold to support the annual Lavender for leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma appeal, held every June. Volunteers wearing lavender took to the streets throughout the city […]


‘Cheaper to give bikes away’ – Opposition

It would be cheaper to buy bikes for everyone in Brisbane than continue to hire them out through the under-utilised CityCycle scheme, Opposition Leader Shayne Sutton said at yesterday’s Brisbane City Council meeting. The Opposition called for the council to review the transport program, which began under former Lord Mayor Campbell Newman in 2010. “Barely […]


More kids walking to school

School children are getting healthier and roads less congested, transport chairman Julian Simmonds told Tuesday’s Brisbane City Council meeting. Cr Simmonds said the council’s Active School Transport program had resulted in a 35 percent increase in the number of students walking or cycling to school. “So that’s a 35 percent decrease in the number of […]


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