Could this be the end for the Easter bunny?

Can you *imagine* Easter without chocolate? Whether you're a chocoholic or not, the holiday just wouldn't be the same without a cocoa bunny wrapped in fabulously shiny foil. Sadly, growing cocoa has become a difficult task for the small family farms in developing countries that supply 90% of the world's cocoa.

With benefits to these families at an all time low, and fewer of them choosing to grow cocoa as result, the industry is facing a potential long-term shortfall in global supply of cocoa - supply is down, prices are up, farmers are fading. GASP. Equally as sad is that this price rise does not benefit the farmers providing our Easter gold, who are additionally experiencing rising costs associated with production and damaged crops.  

It's a pretty sad bunny story. 

Fortunately, there's a system that has been developed to offer farmers and workers in developing countries a better deal and improved terms of trade. You might have already seen or heard of Fairtrade but not be familiar with what it means or just how important it is to angels such as our very important cocoa farmers. 

Fairtrade is about better prices, decent working conditions and fair trades of term for farmers and workers in developing countries. Chocolates that carry the FAIRTRADE insignia contain cocoa sourced by suppliers who have paid a Fairtrade Minimum Price to small farmers across the developing world. When you buy Fairtrade, farmers receive greater benefits and incentives, more cocoa is produced, supply is stronger, prices remain fair, the chocolate bunny does not become extinct. Everyone wins. 

The awesome part is that it's not hard to buy Fairtrade and eat ethically this Easter. Coles have stepped up this year and will be stocking the Coles Fairtrade Chocolate Bunny ($2.50), and you can get Chocolatier Australia Fairtrade range at David Jones, Woolies, Oxfam and Coles. Even select IGAs will stock the Absolute Organics Fairtrade Easter eggs. Of course, more choice is always better so if you want to see more of the Fairtrade range in retail for next year, support them by signing their petition. 

Look out for the Fairtrade logo when you're shopping for Easter goodies and help support the industry that brings it to us in the first place. Long live the chocolate bunny! 

 

 

"You don't Uber?!"

It’s been a tumultuous relationship between myself and Uber. When the suave taxi alternative first launched in Melbourne, I signed up with gusto. What a fabulous idea; chauffeured vehicles slightly more expensive than taxis with vastly improved service for less than a private driver. But as with anything new, it came with teething problems. Confirmed bookings would be miraculously cancelled with the little black car on the virtual map simply disappearing from its route towards me. My fare to the airport was considerably higher than reasonable and as estimated on the app. One of the few times that one of my booking was actually successful, my chauffeured vehicle was a clunky Ford Fairlane. For the extra price tag, this simply wasn’t going to do. 

As the popularity of the app inclined, people raved about how good it was. While I was still catching taxis, friends would ask quizzically, “why don’t you Uber?!”. I would offer the feedback of my own experiences objectively which others were surprised to hear. I started to think I’d been Uber rejected. In the end, I accepted the fact that Uber and I were just never going to work well together. I deleted the app. I hailed yellow cabs. 

Fast forward 12 months, and with the emergence and success of UberX, I was curious once more – and determined to make this relationship work. Reinstall app > Login. Only I couldn’t remember my login password. Nor could I remember the password to the email registered on the system to reset the password. I tried re-registering but as I still had the same phone number, it would only recognise me as an existing user and divert me back to login screen. Kill me. Of course, the times I would try doing all this was always at the actual time that I needed a ride somewhere. Which means I was also invariably running late. I continued to hail yellow cabs.  

This went on for at least another 6 months, with friends always ordering the Uber instead of myself. Now I felt like a failure and a sap. How could I be so incompetent with an app that everyone else loves? With frustration at its peak, I decided the only thing left to do is simply get my shit together; I accessed my old email address and password, reset my Uber login, and hey presto – I was ready to Uber once more. 

Since then I’ve travelled with UberX around four times. It’s amazing. Our relationship is stronger than it’s ever been. Living in the heart of the CBD means that I can book the car from my city pad and by the time I’ve found my keys and negotiated the stairs in heels, the driver has arrived. We drive, we chat, I drink their water, they offer me Stardust lollies. We arrive, we bid each other adieu, I hop out, they depart. A receipt is sent to my email and I rate the driver on the app. So much time is saved in this entire process. For someone who is perpetually late, this is highly valuable. The cars and the drivers feel safer, cleaner and are more polite than many of the yellow cabs I’ve been so loyal to all these years. It’s also cheaper – a bonus for humble little business owners such as myself. 

Sure, I appreciate that not everyone is happy with UberX. But for now, I’m in. 

Uber - let’s drive. 

Intention, serendipity and a comfy couch

It’s funny what can manifest when you set your intention on something. Months ago, I was coming back from a short stay in regional Victoria and dropped into Mornington for a wander and some lunch. Naturally, this included shopping. On meandering through a gift store, I saw a round, cushy armchair that would fit perfectly into my new city pad. Surprisingly, it turned out to be a bean bag but was very comfy and a good size for curling up in. I cataloged the armchair in my brain for future retrieval when I was ready and, actually, didn't think about it again.

That was until months later when, by sheer coincidence, Ambient Lounge connected with me via Twitter about a special offer after reading that I’d moved to a new abode. This little divine intervention worked out to be the perfect reminder for me and the push that I needed to make a decision on something for my living room - ahhh, the power of social media.

Admittedly, when I first remembered it was a bean bag, it conjured evil memories of the filling process: pesky beans determined to escape any kind of captive bag, fleeing erratically to hiding spaces that are invariably difficult to get to, only to roll out weeks later to say hello. Then I recalled how hard it can be to get out of a beanbag once you’re settled in - especially after a few vinos. Nonetheless, I threw FOBO (Fear Of Beanbag Ordeal) to the wind, opting for a chocolate Butterfly Lounge seeing as I had no trouble escaping its grasps in Mornington - albeit sans wine.

Indeed, my new beanbag armchair sits around the same height as any other normal armchair, with two sections for beans to give it a mouldable base and a firm back. My FOBO was entirely appeased thanks to their FunnelWeb filling system: simply connect internal zip from bag of beans to internal zip of armchair case, tip, transfer, disconnect, zip. Hey presto, minimal spillage (unless you poke a hole in the bag of loose beans which I highly recommend against…some quick needle and thread action saved the day for me).  

Once all filled, the few runaway beans vacuumed, wine poured, I sat curled up on my new armchair watching the world go by from my balcony. Bliss. The armchair is light and ideal for moving wherever you want it to be and I find it super comfy for reading - as someone who seldom stops, my Butterfly Lounge has become as much a form of relaxation therapy as a stylish piece of furniture for my home.

Thanks for the rescue, Ambient Lounge - serendipity at its finest! 

Psssst - my red hot tip for readers eyeing up an Ambient Lounge: use Facebook20 to get 20% off! You're welcome :) xo

LMM mention: Ambient Lounge asked if I’d be willing to share my experience of the butterfly lounge with my readers, to which I happily obliged. I absolutely love it. Thanks again!