Table of contents for Sep-18 in Readers Digest Australia

WE ALL HAVE HANG-UPS, perhaps we’re cautious about making decisions, or bite our nails or daydream when we should be listening – we all do it, right? According to the psychiatrists, psychologists and other experts we interviewed for this month’s cover feature, ‘Normal or Nuts?’ (page 38), these quirky behaviours and idiosyncrasies make us alarmingly average. It’s understandable, though, to wonder what is normal and what is a sign of serious mental decline. The advice in this article will set your worries at ease. The way we study grand cities and monuments of ancient history is being transformed by photogrammetry – a technique that codes photographs into ultra-precise 3D digital models. In ‘Back to the Future’ (page 88), we meet French architect Yves Ubelmann who, for the past decade, has…

“One morning, I was given the opportunity to help the chefs in the kitchen at Buckingham Palace” William Hiscock lives in Brisbane and works in the aged-care and disability sector. He recently joined a local art class, enjoys bushwalking and is busy planning a trip to San Francisco. IN MARCH 1992, my best friend Lisa and I were all packed and ready to leave Australia for an overseas adventure; a two-year working holiday in London. We had both worked at Conrad Jupiters Casino on the Gold Coast for a few years, so we were pretty confident of finding work in restaurants and hotels in London. We saved hard for over 12 months and could barely contain our excitement. We were first-time travellers; we had never been anywhere outside of Australia.…

MORE THAN 8000 LIVES WERE lost to heart attack in Australia in 2016, or on average 22 people every day. Traditional symptoms – chest pain or pressure, cold sweat, extreme weakness – are well known. However, more subtle signs are easy to miss. If you experience any of the following symptoms, see a doctor. Noticing heart attack signs early and getting prompt treatment can save your life. 1 FATIGUE Cardiologist Dr Stacey E. Rosen says this is one of the most common symptoms she sees (especially in female patients). “In my 25 years of practice, people on the verge of a heart attack report feeling tired and not able to do their usual activities,” she says. When a heart attack is taking place, blood flow to the heart is reduced,…

“Everyone deserves to have a space that is going to inspire them,” says Nancy Ballard, in one of the therapy room she helped renovate IN 2011, NANCY BALLARD went for a routine check-up that turned into something extraordinary. At 60, the recently retired entrepreneur had just completed her master’s degree in botanical illustration. In fact, she was carrying a painting of a plant she’d done when she arrived at her doctor’s office. “It would be great if we had artwork like that for our chemotherapy rooms,” the nurse said. Ballard asked to see one. She was shocked by what she found. The walls were drab and bare, and the paint was chipping. She could tell where old artwork had hung because of the naked nails. It was a depressing room…

The Devil to Pay The Devil visits a salesman and tells him, “I can make you richer, more famous and more successful than any salesman alive. In fact, I can make you the greatest salesman that ever lived.” “And what do I have to do in return?” asks the salesman. The Devil smiles. “Well, you have to give me your soul, of course,” he says. “But you also have to give me the souls of your children and the souls of your children’s children. As a matter of fact, you have to give me the souls of all your descendants throughout eternity.” “Wait a minute,” the salesman says, cautiously. “What’s the catch?” Seen on reddit EYE-CATCHING At a hotel restaurant, a man sees an attractive woman sitting alone at the…

Money doesn’t buy happiness, but it can provide more comfortable despair. LAURA WASSER, divorce lawyer YOUR WORLD IS ONLY AS SMALL AS YOU MAKE IT.GABRIELLE UNION, actress The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up.MARK TWAIN, author I’m one of those people who get up on the right side of the bed in the morning. I get up and have a cup of coffee and go to the gym before I can talk myself out of it.DICK VAN DYKE, actor COMPROMISING IS OK, BUT COMPROMISING WHO YOU ARE AS A HUMAN IS NOT. KELLY CLARKSON, singer All you have to do is listen really because the best ideas are actually already out there. They’re floating around in…

6 am Stretch in Bed Try this even before you open your eyes. Lift one arm and begin by stretching each finger, then your hand, then your wrist, and then your whole arm. Move on to the other arm. Then stretch your toes, feet, ankles and legs. Finally, end with a neck and back stretch that propels you out of bed. You’ve just limbered up your muscles and joints and enhanced blood flow throughout your body, providing a shot of oxygen to all of your tissues. Take up the entire length of the bed when you stretch. According to psychologist Amy Cuddy, this ‘power pose’ mimics the position of a bold person, making you feel more confident all day long. Open the Blinds When natural light from the sunrise creeps…

The ashes filled a black plastic box about the size of a toaster. I packed it in my suitcase this past July for the transpacific flight to Manila. From there I would travel to a rural village and hand over all that was left of the woman who had spent 56 years as a slave in my family’s household. Her name was Eudocia Tomas Pu-lido. We called her Lola. She was 1.5 metres, with mocha-brown skin and almond eyes. She was 18 years old when my grandfather gave her to my mother as a gift, and when my family moved to the US, we brought her with us. She prepared three meals a day, cleaned the house, waited on my parents, and took care of my four siblings and I.…

THERE GOES THE NEIGHBOURHOOD (DIFFICULT) Each of the six people quoted below live in one of the six houses in the neighbourhood shown. The houses are white, brown, green, blue, yellow and orange. Assuming that everyone is telling the truth, whose house is painted which colour? Mrs Antonini: Mrs Borden lives due north of me. Mrs Borden: I live in the orange house. I can walk to Mrs Englehardt’s house without crossing any streets. Mr Cruz: I live due east of a green house. Miss Dubois: There’s a white house north of mine, but I can’t see it from my house because there’s a brown house in the way. Mrs Englehardt: I live directly across a street from both a yellow house and a white house. Mr Fung: I live…

Cats Can Improve Health What a great article in the June edition about cats (Digest Pets). Growing up in the 1950s, almost every family had a cat, mainly tabbies. I always thought I would have a cat of my own but reached my 70s catless – until six months ago when my daughter-in-law found me a soulmate. Storm, a two-year-old rescue cat, and I have a special bond – although he breaks all the rules I set. However, my health has improved: my blood pressure is down, aches and pains eased, less tension – and my doctor says I am in better shape. If you live alone, why not open your home and heart to one of these special little creatures? PATRICIA PHELPS Hope and Determination I was riveted by…

WHETHER YOU GET CAR SICK, sea sick or lightheaded from playing interactive video games, motion sickness is seriously unpleasant. Kinetosis, the official term, can affect both kids and adults at varying levels. So what is the root cause of motion sickness? According to neurologist Dr Timothy Hain, it is caused by conflict between the senses responsible for registering motion. If the eyes, inner ear and sensory nerves in the skin are all sending different signals to the brain, the cross-talk will leave you feeling ill. WHY DO SOME PEOPLE GET IT AND OTHERS DON’T? Motion sickness is a bit of a scientific mystery. Some scientists believe that sensitivity may run in families while others believe it is acquired, or eliminated, as the case may be. Babies and children often grow…

THANKS TO SOCIAL MEDIA, we’re able to share our lives with friends. Especially on Facebook. But you need to be aware of how to protect your personal information through the site. Although you may filter yourself on social media, odds are you’re still vulnerable to unwelcome online visitors, thanks to one little-known feature. Those who keep their Facebook privacy setting ‘who can look me up by phone’ available to the public, are allowing their phone number to be viewed by anyone. This setting defaults to ‘Public’ view, so it could even be turned on without your knowledge. Sounds a bit worrisome, right? It essentially means that anyone who wants to contact you – including scammers – can do so simply by taking a look at your Facebook profile. If you…

“MAYDAY! We got mayday!” Frank Pisano screamed over the microphone to the air control tower. One of the two engines on his 1975 Cessna had failed, and he was now on a collision course with one of the busiest highways in the US – Interstate 405. Driving south on the 405, near the airport’s runway, was John Meffert. A fire department captain, Meffert, 47, was heading home from his shift and had nothing on his mind that Friday morning but the forthcoming long weekend. Then a low-flying plane caught his eye. He took a second glance and a thought crossed his mind: this plane’s going to hit me. He was right. The plane slammed into the centre median strip, jumped a couple of metres and clipped the front of Meffert’s…

You can’t help but have a chuckle at these cheesy dad joke tweets, gathered by @Dadsaysjokes. Singing in the shower is all fun and games until you get shampoo in your mouth. Then it’s a soap opera. What do you call an alligator wearing a vest? An investigator. I can’t find my Gone in 60 Seconds DVD. It was here a minute ago. I asked the checkout girl for a date. She said: “They’re in the fruit aisle next to the bananas.” What do you call a man lying in front of a door? A Mat. At work we have a printer we’ve nicknamed Bob Marley. It’s always Jammin’. What did the volcano say to his wife? I lava you. My best friend’s wedding was so beautiful… even the cake…

Odhir Gayen sells Polyalthia longifolia leaves, commonly known as false ashoka, on the banks of the Hooghly River…

TURNING GREEN During a visit to Darwin earlier this year, the future king of England, Prince Charles, was served a rather unusual dish – a canapé topped with zucchini pickle and green ants. Yes, green ants. The peculiar catering was part of a MasterChef world first, as His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales made his cooking competition show debut. The contestants were told to use only native flavourings, indigenous ingredients and local produce. After MasterChef judge Matt Preston revealed the presence of insects in one, Prince Charles appeared noticeably surprised. “Green ants?!” the royal foodie and long-time greenie responded. Other delicacies served up included barramundi, wallaby tartare and quandong chutney. PIZZA PEACE Icelandic President Guðni Th. Jóhannesson unleashed a global firestorm when he joked about banning pineapple as a…

One day during his first year at Columbia University, Sanford ‘Sandy’ Greenberg stood on campus by a grassy plot with his classmate Arthur Garfunkel. “Sanford, look at that patch of grass. You see the colours? The shapes? The way the blades bend?” Garfunkel asked. Greenberg was smitten. Other guys talked about girls and sports, but Garfunkel wanted to talk about ... a patch of grass! Was there a luckier guy on campus than Greenberg? Here he was, a poor kid from Buffalo, New York, on full scholarship, taking classes from superstars such as anthropologist Margaret Mead, physicist Leon Lederman, historian James Shenton, and poet Mark Van Doren. And he had a great new pal, a brainy kid from New York with a pure tenor voice. But in the summer of…

1. Upon accepting her Nobel Peace Prize, what teen said, “I am also the first recipient who still fights with her younger brothers”? 2 points 2. Which type of dog has breeds called Scottish, Welsh and Irish? 1 point 3. What name has been adopted by the most popes? 1 point 4. Which Spanish city is the setting for Mozart’s opera The Marriage of Figaro and Bizet’s opera Carmen? 2 points 5. What singer’s biography says she didn’t find anyone let alone “Someone Like You”, when she joined a dating site? 1 point 6. Although he hunted old Nazis in The Boys From Brazil, who played an old Nazi in Marathon Man? 1 point 7. What form of radiation, emitted from cesium and cobalt, is used for processing and preserving…

RD SHOP For quality products, book sales and more, visit Readersdigest.com.au/shop and Readersdigest.co.nz/shop CONTRIBUTE FOR DIGITAL EXTRAS AND SOCIAL MEDIA INFO, SEE PAGE 13 Anecdotes and jokes Send in your real-life laugh for Life’s Like That or All in a Day’s Work. Got a joke? Send it in for Laughter Is the Best Medicine! Smart Animals Share antics of unique pets or wildlife in up to 300 words. Kindness of Strangers/ Reminisce Share tales of generosity or an event from your past that made a huge impact in 100–500 words. My Story Do you have an inspiring or life-changing tale to tell? Submissions must be true, unpublished, original and 800–1000 words – see website for more information. Letters to the editor, caption competitions and other reader submissions ONLINE Follow the…

WHAT EXACTLY IS A COLD? The common cold is a viral infection of your nose and throat (upper respiratory tract). It’s usually harmless, although it might not feel that way. Common colds are the main reason your kids miss school and you miss work. The Lung Foundation Australia reports on average that more than half of us catch a cold each winter and almost a quarter of the population will catch a cold every spring. HOW ARE COLDS SPREAD? Colds are caused by viruses. In fact, as many as 200 viruses cause cold symptoms, with rhinovirus being the most common. According to Dr Megha Tewari, cold viruses spread through the air, bodily fluids and from touching surfaces where virus particles have settled. HOW LONG DOES A COLD LAST? Most people…

IF YOUR DOG IS ALWAYS BARKING, you’re not going to be very popular with the people next door. You could even be taken to court if you don’t do anything to stop the problem. Here are some ways to tackle this common (mis)behaviour. ENGAGE IN ‘ALONE TRAINING’ Your dog may not like you going out, but he needs to get used to it. Start the ‘alone training’ by leaving your pet in different rooms, at first for a few minutes, then build up to longer periods. Don’t return until your dog has been quiet for a while, then offer praise and a treat as a reward. PROVIDE THEM WITH COMPANY If you have to leave your dog alone for a long period of time, arrange for a neighbour to pop…

I was three months pregnant with identical twin boys when my husband, Ross, and I learned that one of them had a fatal birth defect. Our son Thomas had anencephaly, which means that his skull and brain were not formed properly. Babies with this diagnosis typically die in utero or within minutes, hours or days of being born. This news was devastating, and also confusing. I had never heard of this before, and it didn’t run in my family. I wondered, Was it something I ate, was it something I drank, was it something I did? But then, even if it was, why was one of them healthy? So I was wrestling with a lot of questions that would never have answers. And I had to make peace with that.…

You live a normal life. You’ve got friends, you’ve got hobbies and you’re happy to spend 20 minutes hunting for the toothpaste at the pharmacy rather than – No! Anything but that! – asking a shop assistant for help. Trust us, that behaviour is normal, because all of us are a little, well, quirky. And in most cases, our idiosyncrasies are curable, or at least curbable. We asked psychiatrists, psychologists and other experts to weigh in on some odd behaviours that are surprisingly common. You might recognise one of them in yourself and wonder, Am I normal or nuts? The answer is always yes and yes. WHY AM I AWKWARD AROUND KIDS? I have nothing to say to people under 12, and frankly, I don’t find them particularly cute. What’s…

Jonathan Pryce is one of the finest actors of his generation yet you may not immediately know his name. Rather than seeing acting as a way of accruing riches and fame, Pryce has instead built a stage and screen career portraying a vast range of complex characters – people that leave a strong impression on his audiences. His acting career began in the early 1970s after accepting a scholarship to study acting at London’s famous Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Today, almost five decades later, Pryce holds a prestigious Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire and, at 71, remains dedicated to his art. Growing up in the small village of Carmel in North Wales grounded Pryce. “As the years go on I feel more and…

Asgardia, the “first space nation of united humankind”, was founded nearly two years ago by eccentric Russian billionaire and scientist Igor Ashurbeyli and claims to already have over 200,000 citizens, a constitution and an elected parliament. Its grandiose ambitions includes building up a population of 150 million and setting up ‘space arks’ in outer space with artificial gravity where humans could live free of the control of existing nations. Named after Asgard, a world in the sky in Norse mythology, Asgardia says its citizens now live in more than 200 countries. Becoming an Asgardian citizen online is free. REUTERS…

As Yves Ubelmann dodges traffic on Paris’s Place de la Concorde it’s clear he’s a man on a mission. He’s heading to the iconic Grand Palais museum complex, just off the Champs-Élysées, which is hosting the first exhibition to showcase the work from his company, Iconem – an innovative startup that uses cutting-edge technology to bring the glory of the ancient world to life. Ubelmann, 37, is an architect who specialises in the world’s ancient monuments, many of which are fast vanishing as a result of armed conflict, urban development and natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes. His work takes him from Pompeii and Rome to Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, from Oman to Haiti and back again to his homeland, France. “THE ICONEM IMAGES TAKE VISITORS ON AN IMMERSIVE…

Books Making Dogs Happy Dr Melissa Starling and Prof Paul McGreevy (MURDOCH BOOKS) Ever wondered how your pooch is really feeling? Happy hounds are easy to pick according to this doggie directory. Simply discover the art of interpreting their body language. For example, loose tail wags indicate positive states, high tails indicate keen alertness and a low tail tends to mean your dog is probably willing to let someone else take charge. Easy to read, with lots of gold-nugget tips, this is a great reference book for anyone who thinks dogs are our tail-wagging best friends. Experience Italy (LONELY PLANET) If you’ve always dreamed of visiting Italy or you’re looking for a thoughtful gift, then this is a coffee table must-have. Hundreds of sumptuous Italian images will have you saying…

1. emulation n. – A: atomic radiation. B: desire to equal or surpass others. C: anticipation. 2. nefarious adj. – A: wicked and immoral. B: unwarranted. C: from outlying regions. 3. auriferous adj. – A: helping with hearing. B: having perfect musical pitch. C: containing gold. 4. inoculate v. – A: hide from sight. B: drink the first alcoholic beverage of the night. C: inject with a weak form of a disease for protection. 5. exultation adj. – A: triumphant rejoicing. B: promotion to a position of higher authority. C: surreal out-of-body experience. 6. oleaginous adj.– A: exaggeratedly complimentary. B: profusely blooming. C: concerning a planet’s orbit. 7. delusional adj. – A: known to magicians. B: believed despite evidence to the contrary. C:…