Have you seen the latest tourism campaign for the Hunter?
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Magda Szubanski has been enlisted as the face of the region.
A Facebook page called Memewhile in Newcastle has apparently been contracted exclusively for the marketing campaign.
We note that locals commenting on the post have expressed their disappointment that Stockton, West Wallsend and Toronto didn't get a guernsey on the campaign poster. There was also sadness among the good citizens of Beresfield, Argenton, Raymond Terrace and Morisset that their suburbs missed out on selection.
Tourism Ideas
Speaking of tourism, bright ideas are being sought at Port Stephens to improve the "visitor experience".
Entrepreneurs or businesses looking to expand are being asked to submit their ideas to a new incubator program [it should be said that they have to cough up $99 to join the program].
Topics reckons the program - which is called "The Port Stephens Visitor Economy Start House" - could do with some ideas for a slightly shorter name.
Port Stephens mayor Ryan Palmer said the aim was to turn "smart business ideas" into reality.
"It could be a tour or activity, an event, marketing, technology, hospitality or something completely different" he said.
"So long as your idea supports tourism or operators in Port Stephens, I encourage you to apply."
The program, which runs from May to September, will help participants refine their idea, test its viability and create connections with industry experts and mentors.
Wonder if Magda will be a mentor?
Silver Lining
This from the Glen Fredericks, of the Department of Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining.
"With the Hunter mosquito population nearing biblical plague-like proportions, you can use it to your advantage. When you have the urge to slap someone you feel deserves it, do it and shout 'mosquito!'."
Days of Our Lives
Eunice from Belmont was pleased to receive a free four-minute timer in the mail from Hunter Water.
Like the sands in the hourglass, these are the days of Eunice's water-saving life.
"You just stick it on the tiles and watch the sand run through while you are in the shower," she said.
Problem is, Eunice can't even see it without her specs.
"Cute idea though. Reminds me just by being there," she said.
Old School Punishment
Herald journalist Lisa Rockman asks whether it was legal to throw chalk and chalk dusters at students during class in 1986.
"I've always been curious, that's all ... no class action pending or anything," she said.
We remember a few teachers in primary school - also in the '80s - who gave pupils the cane. One teacher lifted that thing behind his head and smacked it down with vengeance onto the edge of the fingers of kids aged about eight to 11.
We also recall a neighbour giving his own kids the cane around that age. Surely that's not legal now?
The federal government's Institute of Family Studies says NSW law states that "physical punishment by a parent should not harm a child more than briefly and specifies the parts of a child's body that can be subject to force".
The Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) 2001 amendment did not entirely remove parental capacity for corporal punishment nor explicitly ban the use of physical force towards children, but it did introduce strict guidelines on what is acceptable.
The amendment states that force applied to "any part of the head or neck of a child or to any other part of the body that results in bruising, marking or other injury lasting longer than a short period is unreasonable".
Corporal punishment was banned in government schools in NSW in 1990. The ban was extended to non-government schools in 1997.
Day-care providers are also banned from using corporal punishment.
Share your memories of corporal punishment at topics@newcastleherald.com.au.