And now for a little me time
THE POWER OF ... SERIES
The power of gratitude
AT THE FLICKS
MOVIE TICKETS GIVEAWAY by Lorna Gordon
Now this isn ’ t the first time I ’ ve written about gratitude , but I really feel it ’ s an important one to come back to . I recently saw a video that said we are predisposed to have nine times more negative thoughts than positive ( this is because we are animals and mother nature has made us hyper aware of threats and danger to keep us safe ). It also said you need three positive thoughts to balance out one negative thought , so keeping a list of all the things you are grateful for seems like a smart thing to do .
By writing down what you are grateful for each day , you can start to change your mindset towards more positive thinking , reduce stress , sleep better and feel happier . This practice is very low cost , you need a notebook and pen or pencil to begin , and you simply write down what you are grateful for each day .
You could be grateful for something physical like a book you are reading or a meal you ate , you could be grateful for what your body is able to do , that you have a home to live in and food on your table . You might find you are grateful for family or friends , a walk in nature or patting your neighbour ’ s dog .
It doesn ’ t really matter what you are grateful for , what is important is that you take time to think about
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Writing down the things you are grateful for can help you feel happier and have less stress .
it and notice when you are grateful for something . The more you notice these feelings , the more likely you are to notice the next time you feel that way , and this is what helps to change your perspective from seeking out the negative in life to finding the things that make you happy .
If you aren ’ t sure what to write you can look up prompts to get you thinking , or there are journals with prompts already included to help you each day . If writing in a notebook isn ’ t your thing , there are plenty of apps that you can access through your devices which do exactly the same thing , although it doesn ’ t give you the chance to buy some cool stickers or use coloured pencils like a notepad does !
However you choose to embrace gratitude , it won ’ t take long for you to feel more positive , happier and seeing the beauty every day . Why not try it and see what a difference it makes for you ?
STING
Release Date : in cinemas July 18 Duration : approximately 91 minutes Classification : TBC | Censorship Advice : TBC
One cold , stormy night in New York City , a mysterious object falls from the sky and smashes through the window of a rundown apartment building . It is an egg , and from this egg emerges a strange little spider …
The creature is discovered by Charlotte , a rebellious 12-year-old girl obsessed with comic books . Despite her stepfather Ethan ’ s best efforts to connect with her through their comic book co-creation Fang Girl , Charlotte feels isolated . Her mother and Ethan are distracted by their new baby and are struggling to cope , leaving Charlotte to bond with the spider . Keeping it as a secret pet , she names it Sting .
As Charlotte ’ s fascination with Sting increases , so does its size . Growing at a monstrous rate , Sting ’ s appetite for blood becomes insatiable . Neighbours ’ pets start to go missing , and then the neighbours themselves . Soon Charlotte ’ s family and the eccentric characters of the building realise that they are all trapped , hunted by a ravenous
supersized arachnid with a taste for human flesh ... and Charlotte is the only one who knows how to stop it .
WE ARE GIVING AWAY 15 DOUBLE PASSES TO SEE STING ! Just email us at info @ hdinews . com . au with “ Movie Giveaway ” in the subject line . Please leave us your name , address ( for posting ) and phone number . All winners will be notified by phone / email .
GIVEAWAY by Lorna Gordon
If you were a fan of the TV show , Orphan Black , then you will want to dive head first into this podcast . Having watched the series myself , I thought it was one of the most interesting and original TV shows I ’ d seen in a long time , so you can imagine my delight when I found out there was a podcast with the stars of the show included in it .
Narrated by Tatiana Maslany , the podcast starts eight years in the future where CIA agent , Vivi Valdez bumps into Cosima while on a surveillance job in Canada . Shocked that she has seen a woman who is identical to her , Vivi is sucked into the world of the Clone Club .
I won ’ t give too much away , because like the TV show , the story has more twists and turns than a bowl of spaghetti . However , the clones do end up having to go public with some crazy repercussions , like Alison and Donnie being on a reality TV show . There are some behind the scenes episodes speaking to writers and the producer as well as Kristian Bruun ( Donnie ).
If you have been having withdrawals from the sestras , Felix , Delphine and Donnie , then get on to your favourite streaming service and listen to the podcast to jump straight back into their world .
Win a Double pass to PAW Patrol Live ! “ Race to the Rescue ” on Saturday 10 August at the ICC Sydney Theatre !
Just email us @ info @ hdinews . com . au put PAW PATROL GIVEAWAY in the subject line and leave us your name and phone number to go in the draw . All winners will be notified via email or phone .
It ’ s the day of the Great Adventure Bay Race when Ryder summons your favourite pups Marshall , Chase , Skye , Rubble , Rocky and Zuma to join in a heroic rescue and race to the finish line with their motto “ no job is too big , no pup is too small .”
This top-rated animated preschool series features classic theatrical scenery , along with a high tech video wall , visually transports families to an authentic PAW Patrol environment , including locations from the TV series , like Adventure Bay , The Lookout , Seal Island , Farmer Yumi ’ s farm and Jake ’ s Mountain .
TICKETS : www . pawpatrollive . com . au
14 ISSUE 170 // JULY 2024 theindependentmagazine . com . au THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT