Tag: blog

Take A Breath And Think – Poem

Today I have written a poem which is based on gut feelings. I want to encourage everyone to take a breath and use their voices at a time where sensible, level voices need to be heard over angry ones.

Take a breath and ponder,

All the crazy in the world.

The last time I thought about it,

My fingers and toes curled.

But think about it nonetheless

And try and take it in.

The world needs clever thinkers

To ensure changes can begin.

A lot of things are thoughtless

Knee jerk reactions cause most wars.

Pollution comes from thoughtlessness

Meanwhile Antarctic ice shelves thaw.

As anger drives decisions

And feelings drive divide.

You need to take a moment

And carefully decide.

Will you sit and watch the chaos

And allow for things to spin?

Or will you make a choice to fight

To turn a corner with a grin?

Only clever thinking

Will help to steady the divisions.

Political clear thinking

And some really tough decisions.

So vote for those who care

About society at large.

Don’t allow the ignorants

To easily take charge.

Think about the climate

As it steadily decays.

Use you voice and thinking

To make a difference. Don’t delay.

Thank you for reading my ‘Take a breath and think’ poem. For more of my poetry check out my Terrible Turmoil poem. Please also consider following my blog for similar future content.

Loving Neighbours Again

My love affair with the TV show ‘Neighbours’ began in 1986. The Australian soap was light and funny and everyone watched it back then. It was the talk of my school.

As well as drawing our attention to my favourite pop star, Kylie Minogue, it has introduced many stars, including Guy Pearce, Natalie Imbruglia, Chris and Liam Hemsworth and Margot Robbie.

When it finished last year, seemingly forever, I was absolutely gutted. Check out my Everybody Needs Good Neighbours post to appreciate my feelings about this.

Luckily, when I went to the Neighbours farewell tour in Brighton, the news had already arrived that Amazon Freevee had bought Neighbours and it could then become a celebration tour instead.

It Is Back!

Since it came back in September, I have been glued to the exciting and amusing storylines. Although some characters had left, the newer ones have added even more drama. It is especially cool to see Mischa Barton from the OC in this season.

With occasional appearances by Guy Pearce and all of my favourites (Jane, Susan, Karl, Chloe etc), I am loving the four days a week format. This week we had a sequence of flashbacks, with previous cast members popping back to tell the story of what happened during the period that Neighbours was off screen.

I am loving the twists that flashback week has brought. High drama!

In A Nutshell

Normally it is hard to get into a soap opera without weeks of watching. But right now is an excellent time to try out ‘Neighbours,’ especially as it is available in the US and Canada via the Amazon platform. I know I am biased but I would urge anyone to take a look and see if they enjoy this light, easy to follow series as much as I do.

Why AI Makes Me Uneasy

My Thoughts On Artificial Intelligence

Hearing Elon Musk discussing AI in his Rishi Sunak interview, I was taken aback by some of his subtle warnings. The accelerated growth of artificial intelligence in recent months has startled me and now I worry that Elon knows more than he is letting on.

The idea of unknown entities being able to access personal data doesn’t sit well with me.

In this brief piece, I want to consider a few uncertain points that alarm me now.

What’s Making Me Nervous?

Elon mentioned that in future there may be no need for jobs. People will have no need to go to work as AI will be able to do everything for us.

Let me get that straight. Nobody will need to go to work? Sounds great but also scary.

If that is the case, how do we know these robots won’t just take over the planet? Surely we will all end up obese and with little purpose. Depressed humans with nothing to do.

As well as this, who is to say that these robots won’t spread lies and turn us against each other? Much like what fake news does these days.

I cannot perceive the range of possible ways that this AI revolution could implode. So yes, Rishi and Elon, we do need to be one step in front of it. Safeguards should be put into place to make sure the whole thing cannot just steamroll us.

In A Nutshell

This subject is so massive and very current. I could go on about it all day. But these ideas of employment becoming extinct and information getting into the wrong hands are unsettling as far as I am concerned.

What are your thoughts on this controversial topic?

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my AI article. For some book, TV and podcast recommendations, take a look at my Read, Watch and Listen November post.