The news is real..

Sometimes it's hard to understand the reality of news. As a news reader I must admit that sometimes I distance myself from what I am reporting - as if I am just telling a story.

Well this week the news hit home. 

On Sunday I reported that a 21 year old male was in ICU after a rugby injury, he has since passed away.  

This news followed me spending my Saturday in the emergency room with my boyfriend who had received a head knock at footy and split is head open. Black eye and stitches aside; he is okay (thank god) but I have never been so worried or scared.   

He'd kill me if he heard me say, "it's just a game!"..but is it really worth it?

I send all my thoughts and best wishes to the family of Halley Appleby for their terrible loss.

Sport is great and fun but great care needs to be taken when playing!

Week ending 17th July

Just incase you’ve been living under a rock, Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott have been battling against each other harder than ever these past few weeks. Gillard’s push to introduce the Carbon Tax into Australians homes has been keeping Tony Abbott on his toes as he visits Australia’s most important mining and industrial sites to campaign against the Tax. This week Gillard was in Brisbane where her announcement was interrupted by environmental protest groups accusing her of being a poor leader. Despite negative feedback and protests towards the policy, Julia Gillard is not budging when it comes to the Carbon Tax scheme and ensures that it is necessary if the nation wants to see a change in the environment. 

The Queensland Reds paraded through the city streets on Monday afternoon after taking home their first ever Super Rugby title last Saturday night. The 2011 Champions received the keys to the city from Lord Mayor Graham Quirk with Anna Bligh in support. Crowds of over two thousand fans lined Brisbane’s CBD to show their support and celebrate the Reds historic win. 

Last months introduction of ‘hoodie free zones’ in Wynnum and other areas of Brisbane has attracted strong criticism, forcing a major rethink. Police said the area would become a "hoodie-free zone" to help stop armed robberies, warning the clothing item had become the "standard uniform" for armed robbers and was helping undesirables to conceal their identity. Now, police officers and the Wynnum and District Chamber of Commerce are planning to change the name from "hoodie-free zone" to something else, responding to a backlash from some sectors of the community.

A footballer is fighting for his life after a freak accident during a rugby union match at Ashgrove yesterday. Halley Appleby had a promising football career, but last night lay in the intensive care unit at the Royal Brisbane Hospital with suspected spinal injuries. The 21-year-old University of Queensland hooker reportedly suffered a heart attack after a tackle in the A-grade clash against home side GPS. Friends and family are by his side while they wait for news in the next few crucial days and are using his Facebook page to send messages of hope and support.  

Week ending 2nd July

A New South Wales police officer has warned his Queensland counterparts a ban on hoodies at late-night businesses could fail as it did at a suburban shopping centre on his side of the border. Police on Brisbane's bayside intend to introduce a ban on hoodies in businesses regularly targeted by armed thieves next month. Offenders wore hoodies to conceal their faces in almost half of 14 armed robberies that have occurred in the district since January. Under an initiative to cut the crime rate, Wynnum, Cleveland and Lota shopkeepers will be encouraged to ask customers wearing hoods to remove them when entering a store. If successful, the one-month trial will be extended across the South Brisbane and Oxley police districts.

A second case of the potentially deadly Hendra virus has been confirmed in Queensland. A horse became ill at a property at Mount Alford on Friday, south of Brisbane, and was euthanased. A second horse fell ill ill on June 20 and was euthanased, but it is not clear yet if it too had Hendra. Officers from Biosecurity Queensland and Queensland Health will speak with people who treated the animal to determination whether anyone may have been exposed. The incident is about 70 kilometres away from where another horse died of the virus last Sunday. Two properties where that horse stayed, in Kerry and Biddaddaba, also south of Brisbane, are under quarantine. Biosecurity Queensland said there are no links between the Beaudesert and Mount Alford cases.

Bob Irwin has refused to confirm if he will run for the crucial Brisbane seat of Ashgrove at the next state election, but says if he does it will be under a Queensland Party banner. The environmental campaigner and father of the late Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin was expected to announce on Friday whether he would take on Labor party’s Kate Jones and Liberal National Party leader Campbell Newman in the seat. Mr Irwin and Queensland Party Leader Aidan McLindon said they would jointly campaign to amend the Animal Cruelty Act of 2003 to prohibit inhumane methods of killing sea turtles and other marine life.