6 June 2024 - Saturday Squiz

Give us a week packed with high-stakes politicking, and we’re like a pig in mud - happy, relaxed, and feeling just a bit grubby… This Saturday, if you’ve got a special occasion outfit throwback, a favourite indulgent treat we need to know about, or anything else you want to share, hit reply.

⏱️ Reading time: 7 minutes

🎧 Get the Weekly Wrap podcast with Larissa Moore and Claire Kimball

🤷‍♀️ IDK: Soup could become our thing now we know you can just add tortellini…

This week's top stories

As we said, it was a politics-rich week…

Streem (radio, print and TV mentions) - 29 June to noon 5 July

1. Should he stay or should he go… - That is the question surrounding the US President’s candidacy for another term in the White House after he put in a poor performance in last Friday’s debate against Republican challenger/former Prez/convicted felon Donald Trump. So far, he’s digging in… Note: Biden will be interviewed by (our crush) George Stephanopoulos on America’s ABC.

2. Crossing the floor all the way out the Labor door - The Western Australian first-term senator has quit her party after falling out over Palestinian statehood. As for what’s next, PM Anthony Albanese says he hopes her departure doesn’t charge up the ‘Muslim Vote’ movement, saying faith-based political parties will “undermine social cohesion”.

3. UK Labour’s big win - It’s huge, actually… Incoming PM Sir Keir Starmer’s party is set to double its representation in the parliament with Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives suffering one of its worst-ever defeats. Former PM Liz Truss has lost her seat - she says “we haven't delivered sufficiently on the policies people want.” That’ll do it…

4. Getting grassy at the Grand Slam - As week one at Wimbledon wraps up, no Aussie has made it through in the singles. Also bowing out, men’s great Andy Murray has played his last pro match, and he paid tribute to his wife with a story about vomit. Eww…

5. “An extremely confronting incident” - A 56yo Townsville woman and 2 German women in their 20s and 30s died on a stretch of the Bruce Highway 8km north of the town of Gumlu, between Bowen and Townsville on Sunday. The Greyhound bus collided with a caravan being towed by a 4WD - police are investigating whether the bus was on the wrong side of the road.

S’Quiz me real good…

Reckon you know why McDonald’s isn’t serving all-day breakfast anymore? Have a crack at the Squiz Quiz.

Picture of the week

Posh and Becks celebrated 25 years of marriage by pulling their thrones out of storage and slipping into their iconic purple reception outfits. They still fit…

Question of the week

It was farewell to the 23/24 financial year this week, so we asked Squizers - how do you approach tax time?

We had a feeling that Squizers were fairly organised folks, so it’s a pat on the back for the majority of you getting your taxes in on time. Our best wishes to those who’ve been stuffing their receipts into a shoebox…

Savvy… - “It depends if I owe them or they owe me!”

It’s your dosh - “Get it in straight away. My tax return is better in my pocket than the ATO’s.”

Procrastination stations - “I always loathe finding all the information and receipts at tax time. I put it off as long as possible."

Squiz Recommends

Reading - More a novella than a novel, Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan is set in Ireland in the 80s. It tells the story of Bill Furlong and his struggle with the Catholic Church. Shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2022, the writing is sparse and beautiful. Strong recommend.

Buying - A friend put us onto artisanal chocolatier Ms Peacock on a road trip through the Southern Highlands in NSW. The chocolates are delicious and the packaging is gorgeous - and they ship around Australia. It’s World Chocolate Day tomorrow, so go nuts. We sampled thoroughly - this is our pick.

Watching - Austin on ABC iView. Michael Theo, the fan favourite from Love on the Spectrum, stars in this heartwarming tale of a cancelled children’s book author meeting the neurodivergent son he never knew existed. Funny, familiar (it’s set in Canberra), and the episodes are under 30 mins. It’s a winner all round.

In the Kitchen

Cold weather = warming meals and this spicy Italian sausage and tortellini soup hits the spot. You can use any pre-made tortellini, and the leftovers are excellent.

What we Squized this week

News Club on some big elections. The US, UK and France have all been in the headlines this week, and to cut through the noise we curated a list of 4 reads to give context to what’s going on. Catch up on the newsletter here, and click here to get News Club in your inbox weekly.

Your Squiz Shortcut to the Future Made in Australia policy. It’s the Albanese government’s roadmap to turning Australia into a renewable superpower - but not everyone is convinced. In this Squiz Shortcut, we get you across the policy, how they see it working, and what critical minerals have to do with it. Have a read or a listen here.

Squiz the Week

Saturday - Get your green and gold on… The Wallaroos take on Fiji at 4.45pm followed by the Wallabies v Wales at 7.45pm. Both games are in Sydney and broadcast live on Nine 

Sunday - NAIDOC Week begins - this year’s theme is ‘Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud and Proud’. And this is your second reminder: it’s World Chocolate Day 🍫 

Monday - It’s the anniversary of the first publication of the Wall Street Journal, which began in 1889. And we hope you don’t find any nasty lunchbox surprises as Queensland schools return for Term 3 

Tuesday - Ash Barty makes a return to the court for a friendly doubles match at Wimbledon - the exact time for the #BartyParty is TBC

Wednesday - It’s Nikola Tesla Day, marking the birth of the inventor, engineer and futurist (and the man behind the name of Elon Musk’s car company…)

Thursday - Stand-up comedian and actress Ali Wong begins the Australian leg of her live tour - she’s here until 23 July 

Friday - Boulia Camel Races are on in outback Queensland. And after going out for a million end-of-week drinks, it could be time to mark World Kebab Day…

Double-Tapping

Light painting - who knew that was a thing? These animations are created using quick moves and a long camera exposure. The time it must have taken…