Happy Thursday! You’ve found your way to Five Great Reads, your weekday morning wrap of interesting stories. I’m Rafqa Touma, filling in for Guardian Australia’s lifestyle editor, Alyx Gorman.
If you are after breaking news, check out the Guardian Australia live blog. If not, I’m glad you’re sticking around. Today we take a trip to New York City, recap the Brit awards, and find a funny-shaped tree frog in a Queensland shower.
1. Grace Tame and Brittany Higgins at the press club
The National Press Club hosted Grace Tame and Brittany Higgins for a joint address on Wednesday. With sharp and damning words, the 2021 Australian of the Year and the Liberal staffer who triggered parliament’s #MeToo reckoning put politicians on notice.
Guardian Australia’s political editor, Katharine Murphy, shares some key highlights.
Notable quote: “Last year wasn’t a march for acknowledgment,” Higgins said. “It wasn’t a march for coverage. It wasn’t a march for language. It was a march for justice. And that justice demands real change in our laws, as well as in our language, in our national culture, as well as our national conversation. That starts with the prime minister – yes, some of his language last year was shocking and, at times, admittedly, a bit offensive. But his words wouldn’t matter if his actions had measured up. Then, or since … I didn’t want his sympathy as a father. I wanted him to use his power as prime minister.”
Further reading: Grace Tame claims she received a “threatening phone call” in August last year warning her not to criticise the prime minister, Scott Morrison.
2. Brit awards recapped
Ed Sheeran turns screamo, performing his hit Bad Habits with British metallers Bring Me the Horizon. While Adele performed I Drink Wine, cross legged on a piano. At this year’s Brits, “rock’n’roll’s not dead, but it might need resuscitating”, writes Guardian’s deputy music editor, Laura Snapes.
For those who missed the live event, Snapes recaps and rates all of this year’s live performances.
Further reading: female-fronted acts won 10 of 15 overall awards in the first Brits ceremony to retire gendered categories.
3. How to get enough calcium from food other than milk
For strong, dense bones, cow’s milk is an excellent source of calcium. It is also an excellent source of protein, vitamins (A, B2, B12), and minerals (phosphorus, potassium, zinc, iodine). But, for a number of reasons, many people don’t drink cow’s milk. (I personally opt for soy, although I hear potato milk is on its way.)
And while experts say “drinking milk in moderation in line with recommendation” is the way to go, there is good news for the milk-avoiders. You can get the calcium and nutrients you need from other foods. Here’s how.
What products should I add to the shopping list? Tofu, canned fish with bones, green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds, cheese, yoghurt and calcium-fortified plant milks.
4. Amazon of New York City real estate
If any Australians are looking to make a dramatic move to New York City, be warned. Its rental market is dire. The Guardian has a whole series to prove it. Today, Kathryn Lindsay writes on StreetEasy, the “Amazon for real estate”.
The real estate site is easy to filter and use, hosts every listing in the city, and is there for every part of the renting or buying process – from shopping around to the moment a new key-holder walks through the door of a new home.
Notable quote: “StreetEasy might as well be the city’s entire real estate business … But as StreetEasy has revolutionised the city’s real estate, its success hasn’t gone unchallenged. As is the case when a company disrupts a market, winners and losers abound – and sometimes trade places in the process.”
How long will it take to read? About three minutes.
5. Funny-shaped tree frog hiding a Nerf gun dart
In her beach home near Townsville, Queensland, Annie O’Brien and her two boys found a green “funny-shaped” tree frog in their shower. Her first thought was that the frog had eaten a lip balm. Soon after, however, it was revealed that the cylinder lodged inside the found frog was actually a foam dart from a Nerf gun.
A late-night call to a snake handler ended with a trip to the emergency room. There, using a teaspoon to pry open the frog’s mouth, the dart (which was about the same length as the frog’s body) was successfully removed.
Notable quote: “I grew up in the UK so when you see things like this you go, ‘Oh my God, that’s so wild’ but when you live in Australia for 20 years, it’s like ‘What are we doing with this frog at 9 o’clock at night?’,” O’Brien says.
