An increase in spirituality has seen a rise in the number of exorcisms The dense aroma of sage fills every corner of the dimly lit room. Dream catchers and tapestries decorate the walls sporadically. Crystals are scattered across the table, surrounding a stack of tarot cards. Psychic Hilda Blaine’s reading room is everything you could expect. The dazzling colours and serene music make it difficult to imagine the petite blonde woman conducting an exorcism. “It’s not something I advertise, I’ve only done it a handful of times. Other times I have had to make the decision to recommend a Priest,”…
Author: Claire Dowler
Wollongong wheelchair basketballer Brett Stibners has announced his return to wheelchair basketball after three year retirement. Stibners won gold in the Beijing Paralympics and silver in London, and now next year’s Rio games are in his sights. With a young family, a studying wife and his own physical exhaustion, he thought it best to concentrate on his personal life after the 2012 Olympics. But Stibners said he started 2015 feeling “really good”, and his eldest child starting kindergarten was all the prompting he needed. Stibners lost his left leg after his car collided with a truck in 2001. He was…
The earthquake that struck Nepal late last month has again motivated University of Wollongong students to dig deep and raise money to support a country and community in need. Students and musicians gathered at a music event on Tuesday night to raise funds for displaced families in Nepal. The event was organised by the UOW Music Society and the Friends of the Himalayan Children charity. The fundraiser was held in a small Wollongong apartment but priduced big results, with $1555 raised on the night. The funds will go to Batase Village, a community that was close to the epicentre of the…
It’s a traveller’s worst nightmare: there has been a freak natural disaster and all out-going flights have been suspended indefinitely. You’re facing a sea of angry tourists, bickering with frazzled attendants at airline desks in various dialects, with a chaotic line forming behind them. You are armed with nothing but a passport and a few crinkled foreign dollars. What would you do? Such is the situation dozens of Australians in Nepal are facing. Mitchell Pedavoli, a 25-year-old Blacktown man, said he has been in contact with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade but that there is little they can…
The countdown is on to this years massive uni-based game of nerf tag. On Saturday the 4th of April, an estimated 100-110 Wollongong Uni students will take up arms as either a zombie or a human to raise money for Polio research. Cameron McLeod, President of the UOW Rotaract Club, is optimistic about the day’s proceeds, “We’ve been able to donate $12,000 thus far. We’re hoping to raise another $8,000 with all of that going to End Polio Now.” On the day, people start out as humans equipped with nerf guns. As they wander around the uni completing missions, they…
The official line-up for annual music festival Splendour in the Grass was announced today. Headline acts include Blur, Florence and the Machine and Uptown Funk’s DJ Mark Ronson. Other international superstars to hit the stage in July include Royal Blood (in their only Australian show), Death Cab for Cutie, Jamie T and Everything Everything. The Australian acts are also in plentiful supply, including Boy & Bear, Peking Duk, Alison Wonderland, Thundamentals, The Rubens, Megan Washington and Meg Mac. From a mere 17 performers over a decade ago, the festival has blossomed into a three-day gala event featuring over 100 bands and artists. Ticket prices have also…