Jan 9 2019

The value of a smile

Posted on January 9, 2019 by admin

I recently got in a spot of bother on Facebook for taking a casual swipe at the amount of pouty profile pics on my friends’ feeds. Although it was totally tongue-in-cheek, my status got some 100 comments, with a couple of people suggesting I was “unfairly judging” and “damaging (their) self-esteem”. It did (eventually) blow over with only a handful of acquaintances sending me to Blockdom, but nevertheless, it has me wondering just when a traditional smile went so out of Vogue.

Having recently polled a few particularly pouty mates, “not liking their teeth” is the most common reason given for all the Blue Steel poses. All of them have teeth, yet they claim they’re not white or straight enough to be Tinder-worthy. This, despite the fact I’ve had numerous night’s out with these ladies, and they’ve never looked more sexy than when they’re laughing.

Don’t get me wrong, I can see their point. With all these naff filters making the rounds, it’s far easier to take a pouty pic nowadays, than it is to take something natural. It’s a trend I’ve deliberately resisted, despite some anxiety over my own teeth. Thankfully my views seem to be shared by the majority of men out there as my aforementioned post was given the thumbs up by 100% of male respondents.

Like most people in their thirties, I’m paranoid about the colour of my teeth. Although I don’t drink tea or coffee, having vowed to never drink white wine again, and switched to red, my gnashers are now decidedly less Hollywood, and more Dallas. Yet as I have sensitive teeth, the thought of bleaching them frightens me, and given the state of our finances, Craig is almost certain to leave me if I nipped to Harley Street to have them laser-whitened. (… I’m saving this particular “can I have…” until he slips a ring on my finger!).

I’m also not a massive fan of my two front teeth. I think they stick out a little, and are wider and longer than the rest of them. I’m pretty sure this can be corrected via a few cosmetic appointments, but again, until my wedding day, I can cope with the quirkiness of them. Hey, if it’s good enough for Madonna, right?

So am I just more blasé about my appearance than my mates? Or maybe I’m just more comfortable in my own skin. Or maybe, just maybe, my teeth aren’t that bad.

I don’t want people to think I’m not an advocate of cosmetic dentistry. Far from it. In fact, one of those big front teeth I’m not so keen on, well it’s a crown. Yep, due to an alcohol-fuelled misadventure in my teens, I once famously sat on a picnic bench so heftily it flipped up and whacked me full frontal in the face. Thankfully, a quick emergency call to Daddy for some cash the next morning saw me pounding my mobile for a cosmetic dentist to fix my cracked tooth that day.

The whole experience opened my eyes to the miracles that dentists perform day in and day out. We’d all be forgiven for thinking that when a tooth decays, cracks or slips out of alignment, that little can be done. After all, we all know someone who seems beyond redemption. But the sheer quality and availability of dental services out there today, means no smile can’t be fixed or transformed. My wishlist may still be just that, but when I win the lottery, I’m booking myself into the dentist’s chair, getting a boob reduction, and hiring a personal trainer the very next day.

Yet still, Facebook is full of lies. We turn to our best side, avoid anything below the shoulders to hide those pesky lbs we’ve put on, and keep our mouths closed. Turn on some Disney-esque filter and we have flower halos above our heads, our eyes and lashes have been enlarged some 20%, and a cute animal nose sits atop ours. I struggle to make out who half my friends on Facebook are thanks to Snapchat filters!

So I’m sticking by my guns. I’m not judging anyone, it’s not my place to tell you what you post to Facebook, Instagram or anywhere else. But I’m bringing smiles back. Big, wide, eye-creasing smiles. My smile, that is unique to me. So no one, even when I eventually change my surname to Craig’s, won’t know who I am, and just how happy I am being me.

What do you guys think? Partial to the odd pout? Let me know in the comments

xxx ‘Til next time! xx

Dec 18 2018

The Biggest Privacy Scandals of 2018: Win a 50” Samsung 4K TV with HDR

Posted on December 18, 2018 by admin

I wouldn’t like to guess if we’ve behaved enough this year to get the winning lottery numbers from Father Christmas, but I’ve got my fingers crossed nonetheless. And, reflecting back on this year and some of the huge tech scandals we’ve seen, I’m definitely in with a shot! There was actually a whole host of naughtiness going on, from both government and private enterprise all over the world. Sweeping legislation saw our privacy coming under new threats from the most unlikely of places.

Take for example, the Facebook scandal in early 2018. Remember hearing about how our data was being mined and sold to Cambridge Analytica, affecting some 87 million people? This major breach seemed to trickle downwards, with dozens of large businesses being named and shamed in the press for similar transgressions… just check out this infographic by pioneers in the fight for digital privacy since 2013, BestVPN.com.

Infographic created by BestVPN.com

I remember the faff of having to sort my own GDPR out for this blog. I ended up paying someone to do it for me out of sheer frustration. At the time, our inboxes were literally inundated with emails from companies begging for us to opt in to their newsletters. When the deadline was upon us, the sigh of collective relief was audible - finally we’d get clutter-free inboxes. Yet, guess what? I’m still receiving just as much spam as before, from big companies who really ought to know better.

There’s also a new privacy news story that I expect to get lots of coverage as we head into the New Year. In April 2018, the Golden State killer who terrorised people in the California and Sacramento area from 1974 to 1986, was caught and arrested thanks to online DNA and genealogical databases. Investigators ran the killer’s decades-old DNA through genealogical websites and found relatives with matching segments of DNA. They then followed clues to individuals in the family trees to determine whether they were potential suspects, and triangulate the killer’s identity.

This development was welcomed by many, after all, Joseph James DeAngelo murdered 12 people and raped 51 others. Yet, this could set a dangerous precedent if this data falls into the wrong hands. In fact, the unusual manner in which the Golden State Killer case was cracked has sparked much debate.

Privacy advocates are concerned that popular companies such as 23andme & Ancestry leave the door open to sharing a customer’s genetic information with law enforcement, and beyond. They say that doing so represents “Orwellian state overreach” or, even worse, that the imperfect technology involved puts innocent people at risk. There has also been grumblings that genetic testing sites sell “purportedly anonymised” genetic data to third parties, typically to drug makers. Expect more on this in 2019…

On a lighter note - how about winning a 50 Inch 4K Samsung TV?

Enough of all the naughtiness, I’m here to share the news that BestVPN are giving away a 50” Samsung 4K TV with HDR - just in time for Christmas. Donated by the VPN provider NordVPN, this amazing prize will be winging its way to one very deserving winner very soon.

With stunning 4K quality picture, it boasts impeccable visuals and plenty of smart TV features to satisfy all your entertainment needs. This state-of-the-art TV could be yours if you can answer a single question involving the infographic above - just check out BestVPNs Naughty or Nice list for yourself, and enter via Gleam

Good luck!.

Nov 7 2018

How Live Streaming Has Taken Over in 2018

Posted on November 7, 2018 by admin

Digital entertainment is constantly evolving and over the past year, we’ve seen a lot of big changes. There are constant changes to social media platforms, gaming experiences and video streaming services. But one that has had the biggest impact is streaming and live streaming. On average, people subscribe to around 3.1 streaming services and that number is likely to rise as it gets more advanced. We’ve seen many different industries adopt streaming as a service and now everyday people like you and I can use it too.

Our smartphones, tablets and laptops now give us the power to live stream anything we want, whenever we want. We can also watch other people’s streams from all around the world on a variety of topics. TV streaming alone has seen viewing figures rise to 212% globally this year, and for good reason. From the world of online gaming to mommy vloggers online, streaming has taken over the Internet. Let’s dive in and discuss how it has become so popular and how we can expect it to take over the mainstream.

Source: Pexels.com

The Rise to Popularity

Streaming services have become so popular for one big reason - the audience. Live streaming lets you reach a huge audience in an instant. As soon as a stream begins, you have the potential for thousands of people to be tuning in to watch. On the other side, if you’re watching a live stream, you get to tune into something entertaining as it happens, instantly.

There are a lot of appealing aspects to both making your own live stream or just watching them. It’s an authentic way to observe and document events as they happen or even just people’s lives. One of the most notable ways live streaming got popular within the past couple of years is via online gaming. Twitch is a platform where people simply live stream their gameplay and people can watch them. That simple concept has evolved to a level where many major industries are implementing it.

It found its way into the mainstream again for people who enjoy playing in online casinos. Playing casino online now has live casino options where players can play games live and even take part in live tournaments with other players from around the world.

Now, it’s made its way into more mainstream services that we use every day. Over two billion people have watched Facebook Live broadcasts and Instagram Live became huge this year too. Recently, a mother-to-be live streamed herself giving birth on Facebook to document the experience and show others that giving birth isn’t as scary as it’s often portrayed to be.

Source: Pexels.com

Making it a Career

It may seem like a crazy concept, but people are actually turning live streaming into a career. YouTube offers creators the chance to make a lot of money if they become successful, and their live streams can help them make a living. There is a huge market for family vloggers on the platform, with users like RomanAtwoodVlogs and Shaytards having millions of subscribers each.

There are more and more kids who aspire to be like YouTubers and popular live streamers when they get older. If they don’t want to be YouTubers, chances are they’re interested in streaming platforms like Twitch where they can literally play games for a living.

There is, of course, a bizarre side to live streaming. Something that has become incredibly popular is the South Korean trend of ‘mukbangs’ - an eating show where people tune in to watch someone eat incredible amounts of food. That’s really it and they can make insane amounts of money from it.

Source: Twitter.com

What’s Next?

Realistically, there aren’t many people who are going to make live streaming into their career. But it is a new and interesting form of entertainment which we wouldn’t have believed to be possible just a few decades ago. The sky is the limit for live streaming; what began as a way to watch people playing games has shifted to watching people’s everyday lives, eating shows and so much more.

With live streaming evolving so rapidly, we can’t be sure of the direction it’ll take next. People will find a way to utilise this tool and turn it into something great. One thing is for sure; it isn’t going away any time soon.