Table of contents for June 2020 in Readers Digest Australia

EVEN IF YOU DON’T OWN A PET, I’m almost certain that at some time in your life, you’ve been touched by the honesty and friendliness of an animal. I am lucky to have had many pets – at one stage my father warned that if he and my mother weren’t careful, I’d bring home a horse and store it in my aviary. That’s right, as well as a pet dog, cat, rabbit and goldfish galore, I had an aviary filled with budgies, parrots, two quail and, even for a short time, a rooster. These days, when I arrive home from work, I’m always greeted with genuine delight from my lovely old Lexy, our ten-year-old black Labrador. My return spells one thing: D-I-N-N-E-R! Do I mind? Not one bit. It’s the…

FAR FROM BEING JUST A PLAYMATE, dogs aid childhood development, teach children about responsibility and encourage kids to exercise and play outdoors. All good news, but there is a downside – the potential for dog bites. In most circumstances, the responsibility lies with dog owners and parents who should actively supervise interactions between dogs and young children. Veterinarian Dr Katrina Warren shares her advice on how to minimise the risks. BE GENTLE WITH DOGS. Children need to understand the difference between an animal and a toy – dogs are not toys and should never be played with in a rough manner. Children should be taught basic rules such as not to pick up small dogs, not to pull ears and fur or to pat the dog on the face. Children…

wenty years ago, Nancy Duguay T stood at the side of a football pitch watching her 11-year-old son sprint back and forth, and wished she had a cigarette. Duguay, then 39 and a cardiac-rehabilitation nurse, was trying to quit after smoking for more than half her life. She’d sneaked her first cigarettes from her parents’ packs as a teenager and hadn’t stopped since. With her hands empty as she waited for her son’s practice to end, the urge for a puff gnawed at her. Behind the field, a heavily forested mountain stood guard. As a child, Duguay and her friends regularly hiked the mountain and picnicked on its peak. Then an idea struck her: walking instead of smoking. She told another parent that she would be back in time to…

I like to stumble my way into things because that’s the only way you can challenge yourself.COLBIE SMULDERS, ACTOR When I say ‘Be kind to one another,’ I don’t mean only the people that think the same way you do. I mean be kind to everyone.ELLEN DEGENERES, COMEDIAN MY BEST IDEAS COME TO ME WHEN I’M BORED. I’D LOVE TO BE BORED MORE, BUT THERE JUST ISN’T TIME.SAM REICH, PRODUCER MAN CANNOT LIVE BY COFFEE ALONE, BUT HE WILL GIVE IT A GOOD TRY.HARRY STYLES, MUSICIAN They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.ANDY WARHOL, ARTIST I USED TO JUSTIFY MY TERRIBLE RELATIONSHIPS THINKING I COULD GET GOOD SONGS OUT OF THEM.KACEY MUSGRAVES, SINGER…

If you are a mammal, and I assume you are (Hello!), we are already well acquainted, aren’t we? I was, after all, your first food. I am the sweet secretion that flows from the mammary glands of a mammalian mum, the perfect nutrition for a baby human, cow, dog – what have you. I’m what allows an infant creature to exit outside its mother’s body and still continue to get everything it needs from her to grow into a larger, intelligent (in your case) being, tremendously jam-packed as I am with protein, fat and delicious sugars. The big twist with you humans, of course, is that you figured out how to continue your habit of drinking me well beyond your infancy and into adulthood. And rather than collect human milk…

A SPICY DISCOVERY When citizens of Aylesbury, a medium-sized town in the UK, found a large orange bird that was having trouble flying last July, they thought they’d discovered an exotic creature in peril. Upon bringing it to a wildlife hospital, though, they found out it was the animal’s bold behaviour that had led to its bold colour: the distressed bird was a seagull that had managed to get itself covered in curry. Seagulls are inquisitive by nature and are known to put themselves in similarly spicy situations. Thankfully, a couple of baths returned it to its naturally unseasoned state. WALRUS WARRIOR Phil Demers was surprised to find the police at his door when he came out of the shower in July last year. The evening before, he’d sent what…

FOOD 30 things TV chefs won’t tell you Reader’s Digest went behind the scenes to hear from your favourite chefs on TV to learn their dirtiest kitchen secrets. BEAUTY 12 hairstyle mistakes that age your face Ageing can be a beautiful fact of life – but there’s no need to rush it. Slow things down by choosing the right hairstyle for you. PETS 10 things your dog should be doing every single day As the proud owner of a cuddly pup, you know that taking care of a fur companion is no small feat. So, what should a dog’s daily schedule be? JOIN THE CONVERSATION! PLUS SIGN UP TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER FOR MORE HOT OFFERS, TOP STORIES AND PRIZES!…

“I have to hang up now. I have an hour to get these reports done.” Strong Words Some colleagues sign emails with ‘cheers’ or ‘sincerely’ followed by their names. But I typically use, ‘You’ve made a powerful enemy today’. @OHNOSHETWITNT Putting the Knife In My job as a facilities maintenance engineer required a wide range of skills. One day I might have to fix the heating, while the next day could see me painting the CEO’s office. When I described it to a colleague as “I’m a jack of all trades, master of none,” I was amused, yet slightly offended, when she offered a less than complimentary interpretation from her native Cantonese: “Equipped with knives all over, yet none are very sharp.” SUBMITTED BY CHARLES GOETZINGER Bottom of the Heap…

The Cedar Tree Nicole Alexander PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE Moving between the 1860s and the 1940s, The Cedar Tree comprises two stories, one set in the lush cedar forests of north-eastern New South Wales and the other in the arid Strzelecki Desert at the top of South Australia. The story centres around cousins Brandon and Sean O’Riain, who flee Ireland and become cedar cutters in Australia, and Stella O’Riain, whose husband, a descendent of Sean’s, takes her to live in the desolation of the desert. Set against a backdrop of religious and cultural bigotry, this book explores how lives are changed, even decades apart, through a person’s actions. An engrossing and beautifully written story.…

1. What international retail chain got its start in Älmhult, Sweden, and runs a museum dedicated to its history there? 1 point 2. Which event has the longer-distance world record: men’s discus throw or women’s discus throw? 2 points 3. What greatly admired writer used jokes about passing wind in such plays as The Comedy of Errors and Othello? 1 point 4. What popular singer was born in Havana in 1957, the daughter of a bodyguard employed by dictator Fulgencio Batista? 2 points 5. Although it freed itself from the US in 1946, what nation’s Independence Day celebrates its declaration of independence from Spain in 1898? 1 point 6. In 2016, who used his own namesake manoeuvre when he saw that a woman at his retirement home was choking? 2…

All Aboard ‘Metronomics’ (April) caught my eye and was the first article I read, having been a train traveller for several years. Like the author, I and those I travelled with on the ‘red rattlers’ during the 1960s, put other commuters in little boxes. The exclusion though is ‘the DJ/soloist’. Even though we had transportable music back then, no one would have thought of bringing on board the very large portable device – which would have required its own seat. A very entertaining read. ROS TAYLOR Terrific Teen I was impressed by Sophie Weenink Smith’s mission to clean up garbage in ‘Clean-Up Teen’ (March). Our world is being destroyed by pollution and we need more people to make us aware of what we are doing to our environment. TABIB HASSAN…

I have always loved Japan: the language, culture, food and scenery. I started learning Japanese in my 20s, though with the birth of my twin boys, my studies were put on hold. Twenty years later, I rekindled my love by taking evening classes. For the next four years, I went twice a week but my progress was slow. So, in January 2006, aged 48, I signed up for a two-week Japanese language immersion course in Tokyo. I had never travelled alone, and to Japan, what was I thinking? I hoped that by immersing myself in the culture and living the language, my progress would hasten. I arrived at Narita Airport nervous but ready to get started. While waiting to be collected, I spent much of the time in the airport…

HEART PROGRAMME CAN BENEFIT CANCER SURVIVORS A new kind of programme called cardio-oncological rehabilitation aims to improve post-cancer heart health and quality of life. It can include exercise, nutritional advice, psychological counselling, blood pressure management or help with weight changes. It isn’t yet widely accessible, but it’s worth inquiring about, as is cancer rehab, which might focus less on the cardiovascular system but still aid overall recovery. WHEN DOES ‘HEALTHY’ EATING BECOME DANGEROUS? Striving to eat healthily can, ironically, become an unhealthy obsession. People with the condition known as orthorexia nervosa fixate on consuming food in a way they consider ‘pure, ’ ‘clean’ or ‘healthy’ – to the point where their wellbeing suffers. They can, for example, become malnourished. “That’s because as the disorder progresses, patients often become increasingly restrictive…

• Walk with an upright posture, your head held straight, not looking up or down. Keep your gaze about five metres ahead. • To move faster, put more bend in your elbows. • Swing your arms forwards and backwards; moving them across the body isn’t efficient. Just like sprinting, arm movement is important for strong walking. • When your lead foot lands on the ground, roll from heel to toe. Your footwear should be pliable enough to allow the natural movement across your foot. • To speed up, increase your strides per minute rather than elongating your strides. More steps per minute means you’ll travel further, faster. • You can use walking poles to increase your heart rate and burn more kilojoules. • Intersperse intervals of brisk walking with periods…

DOGS 1 I’m basically a toddler. “The secret to understanding dog behaviour is that the average dog has a mind that’s equivalent to that of a human aged between two and two-and-a-half-years old,” according to psychology professor Dr Stanley Coren. He told Psychology Today that on average, dogs comprehend about 165 words, so they can follow a bit more than just ‘walk’ and ‘treat’. They’re also most likely to learn words associated with objects or activities, as opposed to words associated with emotions, such as ‘Good doggy!’ 2 But there are a few top dogs. ‘Superdogs’ – those in the top 20 per cent of the intelligence spectrum – are a little closer to human three year olds, and they can understand more than 250 words. “Every now and then,…

Singing has always made Stephen Dunn, 64, of Melbourne, feel joyful. He occasionally sang with bands in the past. When he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease two years ago, he remembered that his father, who’d also had the condition, lost his ability to sing as the disease progressed. Hoping to prevent a similar fate, Stephen joined ParkinSong last year, a local group of Parkinson’s patients who meet monthly with a music therapist. They sing together, choir-style, and learn skills to help preserve their singing and speaking voices. “The session involves vocal exercises, breathing exercises, correct posture and that sort of thing,” he says. “Our vocal cords are like any other muscle in your body. If you don’t use it, you lose it.” Stephen practises the exercises daily and records himself…

It’s exciting when an iconic item heads to an auction house. Not only is it cool to see what’s out there, but everyone starts buzzing about just how much it might fetch. What may be even more fascinating, though, is when it doesn’t sell at all. Check out these historic pieces that somehow failed to pique buyers’ interest. A letter from Charles Darwin Letters penned by naturalist Charles Darwin have garnered both big attention and big bucks. In 2015, a letter Darwin wrote addressing the question of whether he believed in the New Testament or not sold for US$197,000, three times the price of a previously auctioned letter Darwin wrote to his niece, according to CBSnews.com. In case you were wondering, Darwin’s answer was a big N-O. Then, just one…

I’m sorry to dampen your peach-blossom optimism with a downer. But if you are cusping 60 and beyond, your likelihood of being admitted to hospital just got a whole lot higher. In my friendship group alone, we shambled into 2019 with rotator cuff surgery, a hip replacement, complicated bone breaks, heart surgery, cancer, torn menisci and abdominal fissures. Multiply us by millions of over-60s, and you get the picture. We’re advancing through the system like a row of snowploughs on a four-lane highway. Traffic is slowing down for kilometres behind us. A few months ago, I had my own experience with one of Toronto’s greatest hospitals, Mount Sinai. I won’t get into the ailment side of things – ouchywah-wah should cover it. Instead, I’m here to be your advance scout,…

Stay Hidden is Paul Doiron’s ninth Mike Bowditch novel. And over those books, Maine game-warden-turned-warden-investigator Bowditch has matured quite a bit. “Secretly, I have always viewed my Mike Bowditch books as more of a saga than a series,” says Doiron. While Doiron always tries to make each novel accessible to new readers, he also aims to advance the overall story of Bowditch as a character. It took a while, perhaps, but Mike Bowditch is finally growing up. In the first book, The Poacher’s Son (2010), he was an angst-ridden, angry young man. Since then, he’s calmed down, and he’s learned to love and not to self-sabotage quite so much. He can still be abrasive to get the job done, as demonstrated in Stay Hidden, but fans will surely recognise that…

1. empyrean – A: based on science. B: crescent-shaped. C: concerning the sky or heaven. 2. selenography – A: study of tides. B: lunar mapping. C: traces left by passing asteroids. 3. moonstruck – A: irritable. B: distracted by romantic love. C: experiencing bad luck. 4. perigee – A: lunar mountain. B: poem addressed to the moon. C: closest point to Earth in the moon’s orbit. 5. luminary – A: unit of moonlight. B: light-giving body. C: object of worship. 6. EMU – A: extravehicular mobility unit. B: Earth-moon unicolony. C: extraterrestrial material unknown. 7. gloaming – A: dusk. B: being driven mad by lunar influences. C: dark side of the moon. 8. moon cake – A: pellet of silicon dioxide in the moon’s crust. B: thick stage make-up. C:…

TECHNOLOGY 10 tricks to make your computer run faster Over time, your computer is bound to run a little slower than it first did. But there are still plenty of things you can do to speed things up. NATURAL REMEDIES Herbs that can help ease stress Stress presses in from all sides, but you can help manage it by exploring the world of natural herbal remedies. PETS Funny photos of cats ‘working from home’ These cat colleagues might be adorable, but they’re very serious about completing their daily tasks (and helping their owners, too). JOIN THE CONVERSATION! PLUS SIGN UP TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER FOR MORE HOT OFFERS, TOP STORIES AND PRIZES!…

• Over-the-counter artificial tears provide soothing, lubricating moisture. Avoid those with preservatives, says Dr Baudouin, which can make eyes drier. (Preservative-free artificial tears are often in single-use packets and are typically labelled preservative-free.) • Eyelid hygiene. A cause of dry eye is when eyelid glands, which produce the oily component of tears, become clogged. You may not be able to tell if yours are clogged, but this is worth a try if you have dry eye. Place warm compresses on your closed eyes for ten minutes. Then, with clean fingers, massage your eyelids gently towards the lashes. Finally, wipe eyelid edges with cotton balls. “Do it twice a day for the first month and then continue once a day,” Dr Kreps says.…

You probably know the name Christopher Robin from one of the most beloved children’s books in history. But Christopher Robin Milne was a real person – the only child of Winnie-the-Pooh author A.A. Milne. It was his playtime in the woods with his parents and his favourite stuffed animal that inspired the series. However, the little boy would soon be thrust into the spotlight before he was even old enough for kindergarten, much less equipped to handle worldwide fame and recognition. Here’s what Christopher Robin really thought of Winnie-the-Pooh and his own reluctant legacy as the hero of these stories. Christopher Robin’s childhood started out idyllic Christopher Robin was born on August 21, 1920. His father, Alan Alexander Milne, kept a home in London for the family, but they would…

My wife was going to make pancakes. Then she wasn’t. Then she was. Then she wasn’t. Then she was. Now it looks like she’s just waffling. @KENTWGRAHAM A frittata is just an omelette that studied abroad for a year in university. @JENSTATSKY Dear cereal makers, exactly how deep do you think kitchen cabinet shelves are? @ANNIEMUMARY If you’re getting serious about someone, check what number their toaster is set on, because that’s what you’re going to be living with. @WILLIAMADER The quickest way to find out the time is to order a beer at breakfast with your mother. @ARTBYPUSH A new study finds that sausages are often linked to other sausages. @DONNI…

I am the owner of a new television. Well, I say owner; I bought it on 0% interest, so technically it’s still owned by a financial services company. But it’s in my living room, alongside my photo albums, and my fireplace, and our old sofa with the cat’s claw marks up the side, so it certainly feels like mine. Our old TV was adequate, but it wasn’t ‘smart’, so an ever-swelling bundle of wires hung out the back of it. Compared to the paper-thin screens you find on even the cheapest TVs these days, it was also comparatively chunky. We’d just done up our house, and understandably wanted to complete the look with a smart, thin TV. Svelte intelligence is desirable. The focal point of our swish new living space…

Colonel Brian Duffy’s second flight into space as an astronaut and pilot was on the STS-57 Endeavour shuttle. When they’re on a mission, they try and eat one meal together each day. This day, he and the crew had just gathered to enjoy a floating dinner together when, “All of a sudden, some dirty underwear came floating by… we all stared at it and started laughing, before our commander asked, ‘Anybody want to claim those?’” says Colonel Duffy. My family and I have only just begun our ‘Lunch with an Astronaut’ session at NASA, Houston, and already our guest astronaut has my three children in stitches. Clearly, he knows his audience, which mostly consists of families, along with a few astronomy nerds, identifiable by their T-shirts emblazoned with slogans like…

Would you want to own a 250-year-old waistcoat once worn by the famed explorer Captain James Cook? Buyers at a 2017 auction didn’t – not for the US$1.1 million price tag it was being offered for, anyway. After Cook’s death in 1779 (he was stabbed while in Hawaii), the waistcoat was sent back to his family in England, where it stayed until it was sold at auction in 1912, according to Reuters. It was then gifted to an Australian pianist named Ruby Rich, who had the coat altered to fit her. Apparently, Rich wore it to a number of society parties and events, and the coat ended up with wine stains on it. The centuries-old piece did eventually sell, but not for its appraised amount; it fetched US$575,000, which, let’s…

Would you pay US$45 million for a viola? Do you know what a viola is? Apparently, it’s a larger, lower-pitched second cousin to the violin and not totally revered. Case in point: in 2014, Sotheby’s tried to sell a rare Stradivarius, made by the famed Italian music instrument makers. According to CNBC, ‘The Macdonald’ was crafted by Antonio Stradivari in 1719, during the master’s ‘golden period’, and is one of only two Strad violas still in private hands. It was named for the third Baron Macdonald, Godfrey Bosville, who acquired it in the 1820s. Despite its illustrious pedigree, the viola failed to sell. Maybe that’s why we have never heard of them?…

Sustainable Escapes LONELY PLANET Are you thinking about that holiday you’ll take when the lockdowns are lifted? After months of home isolation, you might be leaning towards a sustainable holiday. In recent years, there has been interest in sustainable travel: tourism that delivers meaningful experiences and benefits the local population without negatively influencing the environment. In Sustainable Escapes, Lonely Planet writers reveal their favourite low-impact destinations. Featuring everything from high-end private island hideaways to community tourism projects, you’ll discover the world’s best eco-conscious travel experiences. Ellis Rowan: A Life in Pictures Christine Morton-Evans NLA PUBLISHING Known as ‘The Flower Hunter’ because of her attraction to the beauty of nature, Ellis Rowan determined early in her life’s work to seek, gather and paint a collection of Australian flora and fauna –…

Hunt for the Green Mountain Killer For 13 years, Ann and David Scoville made it their mission to help solve the murder of their daughter Patricia, pressing authorities to set up a DNA database. Get Sleepy If you have trouble sleeping, these soothing episodes combine a sleep story, relaxing music, mindfulness techniques, and ambient sounds to help you relax and fall asleep fast. Cautionary Tales These stories of awful human error, tragic catastrophes, daring heists and hilarious fiascos will delight you, scare you, but also make you wiser. Featuring original music and an award-winning cast. HOW TO GET PODCASTS To listen on the web: Google the website for ‘Get Sleepy’, for example, and click on the play button. To download: Download an app such as Podcatchers or iTunes on your…