Where is the line drawn?

Does the name Laura Dekker ring a bell? If it doesn't, it will soon.
She is Dutch. She is fourteen. She plans to sail around the world solo.

Picture From http://bit.ly/bQDxoD

Sounds a bit familiar doesn't it?

I was a big big big Jessica Watson skeptic when the Australian announced she was about to embark on a solo sail around the world. I think she did an incredible job, and I was really impressed the way she handled herself, and she honestly seems like a fantastic young girl. I still don't agree she should have done it though. I still think she was to young.
A US teen also tried to sail around the world this year- and had to be rescued from the Indian Ocean.

I have no issue with these girls wanting to achieve something, setting their minds to a task and wanting to achieve it. What urks me is that all of these girls' families supported their decisions. There is support, and then there is stupidity. I'm sorry but these girls are just WAY TO YOUNG.
Dekker is FOURTEEN for crying out loud. It's just ridiculous.

At fourteen, all I wanted was to be allowed to go down the street with my friends after school. Or to go down to the shops by myself. Can't say I ever wanted to sail around the world by myself, but each to their own.
I think it's smart to have a dream, I think it's important to have a dream. But there are certain things that people need to remember- first thing that my head keeps screaming is safety.
If someone can explain to me how this is safe for a fourteen year old girl (let alone a twenty-one year old, or a forty year old) then I'll happily eat my words.

If I asked my parents if I could sail solo around the world, I'd get a laugh, a 'pull ya head in', and a 'sweetheart, you can do lot's of things. Just not this.' I love my parents.

I'm not the only one who feels this way, with this being taken to the Dutch courts. The Child Protection Council fighting against her decision (and losing... sigh). Read some more about it here.

I haven't led a 'sheltered life', my parents have always been fair and reasonable with me. And I honestly think that's why at nineteen I can call myself responsible and say I have a fairly good head on my shoulders (not to sound ridiculously stuck up or anything, which I think I seriously just failed at). So where is the line drawn? How can Dekker's parents honestly justify the decision to support their daughter on this?

Go back to school for a couple more years Dekker, then maybe look at the idea of sailing around the world solo. How about while your waiting you do normal fourteen year old stuff like stealing chocolate from the fridge and staying up past your bed time?

The worst sort of addiction. For bank accounts.

My bank account has been looking dangerously sad the last few months. And unfortunately, I have no one to blame but myself.
Actually I also blame my Aunty- because I get my spending habits and my ability to shop anytime, anywhere, from her.
I find that the problem is I buy things that I don't need and certainly don't have the money for.
I have weaknesses too, like any girl. I always need a new outfit when I go out (not generally a good thing when you happen to have five 21st's in two months), I can't go past a good bargain pair of shoes and finally cook books, whenever I go shopping (which is all the time) I treat myself to a cook book.
Treating myself for what you say? Good question, I wish I could answer it.

Until recently, I wouldn't call myself a shopping 'addict'. I'd call myself a chocoholic, a writerholic (I think I just made up a word), a procrasti-bakerholic (Ha, another one)but not a shopoholic.
Until I found myself shopping every single day of the week, and my bank screaming out in pain
So I'm taking some action of sorts- no shopping! For a week at least, that's a good start. And no buying things!
Except for food of course- I have some recipes calling my name.
Oh and except for the manicure I've already booked for next week.
Oh and except for the hotel room I'm paying for next Saturday.
Oh and except for the night out next week I'm going to have to pay for.
But apart from that, no spending.

See, I'm achieving some sort of happy medium, agreed?

The hardest bit is going to be not buying cook books! Angus and Robertson always have sales on awesome cook books! Hmph.
But I won't buy any... Until Callum wins MasterChef that is, because, well, I really want his cook book.

What sort of addictions do you guys have?

From bad, to worse, to plain awkward.

A few weeks back now, my email got hacked. Nothing major- from what I can tell it was just a virus, probably from a piece of spam I had accidently opened a few days prior. It was also my hotmail account, so (I thought…) it would have just sent it to a few friends- easy to email them again, apologize quickly and tell them not to open the previous email.
The thing about getting hacked is you never know it’s happened- unless you’re in the habit of checking through your sent items, or like me, you have a little guardian angel that sends you an email.

I was completely confused when I opened Annelise’s email and she first wrote-

‘Hahah, thanks but I think I'm all good for Viagra at the moment!.'

Um, what?

Further down she adds, ‘You were hacked?’

And it starts to make sense- horrible sense. I go to my sent items and what would you know? I’d apparently sent out two emails, about eight people receiving each one. I clicked on the first and it had been sent to a few friends, a few people from uni and my aunt. It was just a link, but I wasn’t going to be clicking on it anytime soon, like Annelise, I’m pretty right on the Viagra front.
So I wrote a quick apology, and sent it off, hoping most of them hadn’t checked their emails yet.
Annoying, frustrating and irritating, but not un-fixable.

Until, I checked the second email- And that’s where it gets awkward.

Again it was the same email, a link to a Viagra site. But the people this email was sent to were a little more amusing.
We have my grandparents, three high school teachers, three uni tutors and a website’s co-ordinator that I used to write articles for- at this point I want to go hang myself.

The issue isn’t that I was hacked- it happens to the best of us. The Viagra bit is pretty embarrassing, but again what can you do? The fact the email had no subject heading, and was just a link is annoying, but at least it wasn’t porn? No this isn’t the issue. But the email I received a few days later was definitely the issue.

Apparently the website co-ordinator (who I’m deliberately not naming, and deliberately not giving you a link to the site- because it’s just embarrassing for both of us) hadn’t checked my apology email and sent me this:

‘Hello Morgan,

Haven’t heard from you for a while but I trust all is well.

As you know, we’re a student site, so an article about Viagra isn’t something we’re looking for.

If you have any more ideas please email me again.

Regards….’

I nearly fell off my chair. I scanned my emails again hoping for another one from her saying ‘oh, just saw your other email!’

But no, nothing.

Awkward.

And damage control time- I replied with a lovely emailing, explaining the situation and explaining until I was blue in the face that I didn’t want to write about Viagra.

Note to all: Don’t open spam.