013: Keshigirl

This week we are joined by the ever-elegant and gorgeous Keshi from KeshiGirl. Her dulcet tones and sweet stories of boys, friends, family and food create a wonderful and admirable picture of a strong woman who values the good and simple things in life.

Her blog is a colourful diatribe of her life in Sydney, Australia and feels more like you're catching up with your best friends for a great all-night chat than reading a blog.

BV: Keshi, thanks so much for taking the time to have a talk with me. It's great to have you here at BloggerView. I love the style of your posts when you get on a roll. It seems you cover many topics in the one post and aren't afraid to talk your mind however long it may take to get there. Do you think about the structure of your posts before you write or are you more of a 'go with the flow’ girl?

Thanks Pete, it’s my pleasure to be here. I don’t really think about the structure of a post. I just write whatever comes to my mind. Often I write about something that took place recently in my life or a topic that I’d love to get feedback on.

But generally it’s my conversations with the walls so, I’m pretty unstructured and because of that I can sound quite wayward sometimes… he he. To me blogging isn’t about being ‘nice’ or seeking ‘popularity’. It’s about giving a voice to my heart so Keshi tells it like it is. :)


BV: It seems like you have built a very strong community around your blog. Can you tell us how important it is to have people around you (be it online or close in a geographic sense) that support you and keep coming back to your blog?

I have a pretty busy blog I know! I value people and their opinion a lot. I like feedback because I believe it teaches you new things and makes you think in a different angle – it sets you free from your comfort zone. All in all, there’s power in knowledge and that knowledge comes from connections. I value people online or not, for without people you’d be nothing, no matter how great a person you are.


BV: Being the very attractive girl that you are, no doubt you get your fair share of attention from the opposite sex. In fact, I've read a few posts where you tell some great stories about the dumb shit us blokes can do in the face of a pretty girl. What makes boys do dumb shit?

Haha… thanks for the compliments Pete! I think boys are generally more impulsive than girls are. It’s good in a way because it really may get them what they want. Blokes take action spontaneously when they see something they like. In that process they can make a fool of themselves, depending on the individual, that is. But as long as it isn’t a tasteless act, it’s OK. I love witnessing blokes in LOVE :). Sometimes dumb can be beautiful.


BV: Music plays a very big part in your life. You talk frequently about your love of music in your posts. Can you share a time where music has inspired you so much you posted about it?

Yes, you’re absolutely right there! MUSIC is what’s running through my veins and keeping me alive. If not for music, I seriously believe I wouldn’t be here today. Music has retained my sanity on many occasions and it is the only unconditional friend I have ever known. Therefore I dedicated this post to music a long time go:
http://keshigirl.blogspot.com/2005/09/introducing-my-best-friend.html

That post explains how I feel about music and how my life has a deeper meaning because of it.


BV: You say in your blog that the walls can sometimes have better listening powers than anyone else. Why is that?

Simply because the walls aren’t human. Humans tend to judge you even before you have finished telling them your story. They question you, belittle your conscience, sometimes they just hear; not really listen, and they misunderstand you half the time. Don’t get me wrong, I aint saying all humans are like that, but most are. However, the walls; they just listen… and after you have told them your story, they are still neutral towards you and I like that quality in them. I then leave them with a feeling of being understood and a weight lifted off my chest... not with an additional load.


BV: I love your rantings about the, as you say, I-think-it's-cool-to-be-an-empty-head trend that is all over the media with the likes of Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan etc. If these girls shouldn't be in the limelight, who do you think should be? What would they wear? How would they act? What would they look like?

Well, first of all they are in the limelight for a reason. People who become stars for all the wrong reasons are a scary thought but unfortunately that’s the way show business works these days. These girls are bad role models to younger women of today but then again, it all depends on the individual, doesn’t it. There’s the sane girl who knows what she’s doing and then there’s the insane girl who has no clue. So in the end you shouldn’t really blame the stars for your actions but yourself.

Who do I think should be in the limelight if not for Paris Hilton kinds? Well how about Audrey Hepburn? Because she was truly beautiful on the inside as well as outside. That’s what women need to realise… that your beauty doesn’t come from the clothes you wear or the cars you drive or the number of men you sleep with or the bone-protruding body you aim to get... true beauty comes from within your soul and then the rest shall follow.


BV: I've asked this of a few people here at BloggerView and I always enjoy hearing their answers. What's the thing you love most about the people that comment on your blog?

I like the diversity of their roots which in return contributes to the diversity of the thoughts on a topic. I have a huge number of commentors from all over the world, and that results in a very sacred knowledge/values repository. And of course I get to make friends with all kinds of people from around the globe, without having to travel… that’s the ultimate gift I can ever receive right? :) I realise that there are so many beautiful hearts in this world… that gives me hope and has retained my faith in humanity amidst the chaos that this world is in today.


BV: Well, that's it. Keshi, thanks again for taking the time to answer some of my questions.

Thanks Peter, it’s been a pleasure talking to you!

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If you liked this interview BloggerView also recommends:-
Steph from Much Ado About Sumthin!
Allan - Are You My Wife?
Drew - The Crochet Dude

Coming up this week: Boys, friends, family and food… it’s KeshiGirl

You may have noticed the BloggerView office fell a little quiet for a couple of weeks. There is a good reason for this and that reason is called everyone-in-the-house-sick-for-fucking-weeks-itis.

Yep, the dreaded lergie hit our house with a vengeance. This was an angry lergie. It was like our lergie hadn’t been fed for months - years even, and came to our house in a whirlwind of snot, phlegm, sneezing, coughing and all the other wonderful things that come with the ‘flu.

Now that we’re all on the mend, we are starting to see the sunshine again. I can’t think of a better girl to lead us into the warmth of the midday bloggy sun than KeshiGirl. Swing by later this week when I talk to KeshiGirl about her life and her blog.

012: Dave - UK Copper

It's refreshing to read a blog that gives real-life accounts of the world the author lives in. There are many blogs on the net today that fluff about and create stories and embellish the truth to get readers, hits or publicity. David from UK Copper is not one of these authors.

His blog is a strikingly accurate and stinging account of the modern police force in the UK. His dry wit and humour has many people following his blog and his book Wasting Police Time has been released to rave reviews.

BV: Firstly Dave, thanks for joining me on BloggerView to answer a few of my questions. My brother used to be a copper here in Australia, and he told me part of the reason he left the force was that "I'm sick of dealing with the dregs of society". I've heard a few of his stories over a few beers and some of them make your hair curl.
Before you joined the force, were you aware the depths of degeneracy the human race can go to?

I wouldn’t like to say that I see degeneracy on a wide scale every time I go to work, it's more mundane than that. I suppose that before I joined the police, I thought that people called the police for more significant matters than they actually do. I certainly didn't think I'd be dealing with a bank robbery every day, I just thought I would be dealing with criminality, as opposed to stupidity. That said, I do see drug addicts and their way of life; the intravenous injection, the blagging, the begging and the thievery sickens me, as does the benign neglect of children whose parents are either too stupid or lazy to do their parental duty.

BV: As I mentioned earlier my brother joined the force. The reason he did was, he used to work at a petrol station and was held up at gunpoint during a graveyard shift. This obviously scared the shit out of him and he vowed to stop the types of people who did this. What was the conduit for you joining the force?

I wish I could say it was something dramatic. Sadly it wasn't. I worked in a big auto plant for many years and before that was at university. I had always been interested in crime and justice and the police were recruiting at that time, so I applied. I've always favoured an interesting job rather than a well-paid one (good job too).

BV: Your blog focuses on highlighting the sometimes-farcical red tape and rigmarole that the average UK copper has to go through in his line of duty. I'm sure most of my readers don't know what it's like to have your hands tied like this. What's it feel like to not be able to do your job properly because of this admin nightmare?

It's a massive shock when you join up, but I found a way round it - to actually embrace it and laugh about it. Seriously though, if I ever thought about it I would shudder, especially as up to 80% of my time is spent doing it. In the end you're a professional, so you do what's expected of you, even though you know it's a waste of time.

BV: For all the bad points about being a UK copper, there must be something that you love about the job? Can you share with me what that is?

Yesterday I had a fight with a drug dealer, found some drugs on him and sent him straight to jail. A few weeks ago I chased and caught someone stealing scrap metal from a workshop. I've successfully investigated frauds worth tens of thousands of pounds. I've helped people drive to locations by using my local knowledge. These are all things I enjoy doing and things that make the job worthwhile. It comes down to catching crooks and helping people - that's what is worthwhile. It doesn't have to be the crime of the century either.

BV: I have recently interviewed Stephen J. Dubner from Freakonomics and he said to me that the point in his book that created a lot of controversy was the correlation between the legalisation of abortions and a drop in crime rate. Do you think he may have a point here?

I haven't read the book, so I can't comment specifically on the theory, although the crime rate correlates to lots of things. My experience is that criminals commit crime for two reasons: 1- It's easier than working for a living and 2- You're unlikely to get caught and punished. So, if you're bone idle and have little regard for authority then I suppose you're more likely to break the law. Sadly, all of these theories about crime have little impact, I suppose you could say that the crime rate has risen along with the number of excuses experts dream up for those who commit it.

BV: If you could create a system to deal with crime quickly and efficiently, how do you imagine this working? Eye for an eye, bring back public floggings perhaps?

There are no easy answers unfortunately. We cannot deal with crime and simultaneously address the conflicting demands of on the one hand liberals who want fewer and easier punishments and most of the public who want criminals in jail more often and for longer. One thing's for sure though: you will not deter criminals by being easier on them.

BV: Between all the paperwork, enquiries and mundane daily grind of being a UK copper, there has to be a few thrills and spills. Has there ever been a point in your job where your adrenalin is running 110%... tell us about this day?

I caught a sex-offender once. Sadly, I can't go into too many details, but involved a foot chase and of all the people out and about looking for this guy, it was me who found him. There's nothing like the chase to make things all worthwhile. I also remember on one occasion running after a guy who had stolen a CD; we must have gone a mile or so before he gave up and when he did, I said, "Bloody hell mate, I hope you're tired 'cos I'm f***ing knackered."

BV: The police are here to stop crime; we know this, it’s part of our lives. The age-old question of how do we prevent crime comes up again and again by governments, family groups and other organisations. As someone who deals with crime and the people who perpetrate these crimes on a daily basis, what's one thing you think we as parents, bloggers and general punters could do to help you prevent crime or do your job better?

1. Your kids don't need expensive toys or holidays. They only need one thing: YOUR TIME.
2. Get married, buy your own house and don't get drunk too much.
3. Buy a gun.
4. Don't believe the government.

Thanks so much for joining us this week Dave, you’ve provided a fascinating insight into being a cop in the UK.

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If you liked this interview BloggerView also recommends:-
Steve Lacey - Random Thoughts
Stephen J. Dubner - Freakonomics
Drew - The Crochet Dude