Good newsagent. Have bought gifts here when I didn't have a chance to get them anywhere else and…read morethere's a good range of novels and art supplies as well as the usual suspects.

This newsagency is secretly also a gift shop. It's bailed me out a few times when I've remembered…read moresomeone's birthday party on the day of the event. The gift shop section is viewable from the store front and occupies its own little room. The range of gifts here aren't extensive but they seem to nicely cover all bases. I recently had to buy a gift for my mother at the last minute, and picked up two modern-art-esque wire cat statues for around $30. (The best thing is look like they might be expensive, a big bonus for all Scrooges.) On the other hand, there's kids toys, board games, and presents for yobbo mates (yard glasses included, of course) and - causing me to raise my eyebrows - Golliwog dolls, on occasion. The card range is decent, and even though around 90% of humorous cards in general are anything but, there's a few funny ones here. There is also the rest of the newsagent with the standard stuff common to larger newsagents. It's really the gift shop part I like, and the earring selection at the front counter. Local designers sell their wares here and there's some very cool and unique stuff at cheap prices (around $10 for a pair of earrings). I find the staff to generally be on the frosty side, but then again I much prefer this to someone jumping all over me.

This is a fairly large newsagent offering the usual range of stuff that such a store does;…read moremagazines, cards, tiny notebooks, paper, pens, lotto tickets and plenty more. The selection is huge. It's a particularly great place to go if you're hunting for greeting cards, with a whole wall of Hallmark cards available.

Now, even though McDowall is generally considered 'the sticks', it doesn't mean that you have…read moreabandon all the culture and trimmings of an inner city lifestyle while you're out there. Places like New Paramount News make things like high end magazines easier to obtain. 'Yes!' your inner voice exclaims, you're not so isolated that your only choices of literature are either Woman's Day or Women's Weekly. For your general girly type of magazine, you can get your mits on some Frankie, Oyster, Monster Children, Fallen, Code, and Dumbo Feather (which I've only seen distributed at select inner city stores, so I was quite impressed). If you're after a more specific magazine, you've got two aisles to peruse that house magazines on a variety of subjects including architecture, craft, high art, to extreme sports, road tripping, fishing and gaming. The other thing that really impressed me about this newsagents is that they have a section which sells local people's handmade wares. There's some handmade local birthday cards for sale as well as some beautiful locally handmade semi precious jewellery on display. What a newsagents! Not only do they do they give people in the severe northern suburbs a wide range of 'literature' choices to choose from, they also support their community in their own commercial ventures. Do drop in if you find yourself in McDowall. It's not just your ordinary newsagent.

I love channel 9 because I got to do a video school and learn production and on camera and writing…read moreetc and had a tour of the place. I felt intimidated every god dam single time I went I was nervous and I never told them how nervous I was. I look back and think it so funny now. I shouldn't because I suffered badly from a panic attack disorder that completely ruled my life and it was painful and lonely. But I was nervous of literally everywhere like university, on the train, walking alone etc in my 20s. I wish they would have a reunion or meet up. I loved that so much. I grew up loving tv stations so much as a child. I would recommend the video school for anyone but back then there was not half as much connections to join groups who wanted to make a production. I think I wanted to work on a shopping channel or be Australia's Oprah (as a laugh and I think not likely LOL) or be the make up artist for the beautiful weather girls as a child I just loved them so much as a child and the beauty pageants and telethons. I really wanted to work in tv ads and we made a student ad that was my script. I loved all the old aussie tv ads on youtube and video clips for music. If life were like a kaleidoscope of ads and video clips what would I be ? a razzamatazz ad or something fun from the 70s , 80s or 90s with a lot of colour. I think when I did the first channel 9 course I did not know what I wanted other then experience and making a tv commercial for a chocolate bar with my script. but by 1999 I did the next one on camera and my icons then were shopping channel Cecilia Yates and Deborah Hutton.

I am a loyal 4zzz subscriber and have been for a number of years. My favourite show is Concept…read moreWarning, Fishin in the Morning with Fisherman Dan and I was lucky enough to be Dan's weather girl one Sunday morning a few months back! Dan has now moved to Tuesday mornings at 5:00am, and as a dedicated fan I set my alarm each Tuesday and drag myself out of bed to listen to his show - Johnny Cash, Frank Zappa and The Ramones regularly featuring (their music of course). There is something for everyone! The Zed's Poet Society mix it up on Tuesdays with early era rock, jazz & blues, grunge, heavy metal and punk. On Wednesday nights you can catch Dykes on Mykes Davina and Ruth (their show is a hoot) and on Thursdays tune into Bhudda and Ben - the Brown Couch Men, featuring loads of local muso's. Sunday mornings you can chill out with Knoxy and his Jazz session - this session is a seriously good hangover cure. The Zed's is a not for profit community run radio station and as such relies heavily on its subscribers for funding, so if you love local music and aren't currently a subscriber - you should be!

In some way, you can thank Gough Whitlam for 4zzz. On December 8, 1975, 4zzz made it's first…read morebroadcast as the first community FM broadcaster in Australia, and 36 years on, they're still getting local music out to the local people via the air waves. Yes! 4zzz has it's home in the very uniquely painted building on Barry Parade, Fortitude Valley. 4zzz is a non for profit community radio station that promotes local Brisbane and Australian music, and does so on little funding outside of charitable donations. One of the best things I could ever tell a Brisbane local to do is subscribe to 4zzz. You're helping community radio and local music, and they provide awesome incentives to join up. Whenever they're giving away free tickets, for some mysterious reason, your chances are high at winning what's on offer. Lets leave it at that. Triple Zed are responsible for promoting a lot of local gigs through events they hold during the year, one being Dub Day Afternoon, held at the Jubilee Hotel, just up the road. A lot of gigs going on in town have ticket discounts if you're a 4zzz supporter too. I'm not patriotic about much, but I have to say, I want to put my hand over my heart in reverence when I speak or refer to 4zzz. Tune in on 102.1 FM.

I come here for dinner every fortnight and each time it only gets better. I almost wanna live in…read morethis place because it's never failed to surprise me

It is a good place for all your lotto and mags and papers and coked drinks and chips and moreread more