The Guardian from London, Greater London, England • 384

What we read in Pravda The bear that drank too much 00 Pathos abounds in the amazing tale of Potapych, a bibulous bear from Moscow For about a third of its -year life, Potapych has been boozing. As a bear-cub, he was bought by a successful businessman who wanted to impress his friends with his haughty manners, and they kept the bear in his villa. Though, later, the businessman was imprisoned, and the bear stood in the villa with his caretaker, uncle Misha Uncle Misha was a drunkard, so Potapych took to alcohol, too. Potapych even got accustomed to drinking from a glass. In the evening, the bear was usually drunk and sometimes went out and followed people.

In the morning, he had a hangover and uncle Misha gave him something to drink again. Local people preferred to avoid meeting the bear. Afterwards, the bear even started to attack people. Therefore, workers of the zoo of the State Cinema Fund, feeling sorry for the bear, decided to take Potapych. Uncle Misha made a farewell banquet for his booze companion; therefore, the bear was completely drunk when the Sloshed vidanya: the perils of drink zoo workers arrived to take him.

The next morning, Potapych had a hangover and was depressed. He did not want to cat. The workers of the zoo were afraid the bear would die decided to gradually reduce the dose of alcohol in the bear's daily ration to break the animal of the bad habit. At first, the bear was very weak, though later he cheered up. After a month, the bear was cured of his alcoholism and turned to milk Zoo worker Tatyana Yarkina says that the bear's psyche is disturbed, so she needs to keep paying constant attention to the animal.

However, she is optimistic about its future and considers Potapych to be a good bear. From pravda.ru, Oct 31 What we read at the Cuss Control Academy website Keep your cussing in control Swearing too much? 6 Stop complaining. Before you Consider some expert guidance start griping or whining about on how to contain your cursing something, remind yourself of a very important reality: noone 1 Recognise that swearing does dam- wants to hear it! Why would they? age. You really don't win an argu- 7 Use alternative words. English is ment by swearing.

You don't prove a colourful language, but chronic that you are smart or articulate. You cursers repeatedly use the same don't earn respect or admiration unimaginative words Take time to Swearing doesn't get you hired, pro- develop your own list of alternatives moted or romantically connected. to the nasty words you now use. 2 Start by eliminating casual 8 Make your point politely. Take swearing.

Be more descriptive the time to make your point in a instead of using word to mature and convincing manner. describe everything. 9 Think what you should have said. 3 Think positively. A positive mental After you shout an expletive, simply attitude not only eliminates lots of say the tarner word you wished you swearing, it brings you contentment had said Think of how you could and brightens your personality.

have phrased the statement. 4 Practise being patient. When 10 Work at it. Breaking the swearstuck in line or in traffic, ask your- ing habit might prove to be no self if a few more minutes matters. easier than losing weight, giving Be honest does it really matter? up cigarettes or correcting any 5 Cope, don't cuss.

Consider even other habit. It takes practice, the smallest annoyance a challenge, support from others and a true and feel proud of yourself for taking desire to be a better person. care of it cheerfully and efficiently. From www.cusscantral.com Hard to avoid Natalie Imbruglia How bashful Beth from Neighbours has grown up. The diminutive Aussie is no longer the darling of Ramsay Street, nor even the tortured pop pixie of Torn.

As her new album, White Lilies Island, proves, Natalie Imbruglia is now a serious singer-songwriter who doesn't mind suffering for her art To Neil McCormick in the Dally Telegraph on how making the new record almost tore her apart: "There were times when people close to me said, 'Maybe you shouldn't be doing this. It's not worth it. You're I There were moments when I thought, 'I can't I was so consumed by it. I kept trying to finish it, but what do you do if it's not good enough? I decided to keep going because I want to be an artist, I want to be a songwriter, I want to create something I can be proud of. And this is it." To Kathy McCabe in the Sydney Sunday Telegraph on the dynamics of gender in rock'n'roll: "My fantasy is that I would love to be a male rock star in a band.

I don't think women should try to be like male rock stars they should be how a woman would be as a female rock star, like Chrissie fantasy Hynde. is not But to Niels be Chrissie Hynde my it's to be a man." Celebrity catchup Southampton's finest, Craig David, knows he's more than a mere person. "I do think the name Craig David is a brand. If you dent the brand then you fall and it's very hard to bring that back. If you do something detrimental to your career, the next thing you know there's another guy in town with another brand that's coming through." (NME, Nov 3) Kelly Brook has been asked to audition for the next Bond film, but even her stint playing a pole dancer in a play in London has not To Samuel Lee in the Singapore Straits Times on the relative artistic merits of TV and pop: "I definitely prefer being known as a singer than as a character in a TV show.

There's a difference in someone coming up to you and saying, 'Natalie, we love your than screaming, 'Beth, why aren't you in Perth with To Vicky Allan in Scotland on Sunday on her inner darkness: "I think I've always been attracted to melancholy and romantic notions of sadness because I used to make what call suicide tapes, morbid songs to make myself cry. I even used to, when I was younger, cry over fantasy boyfriends who had dumped me when they hadn't even dumped me. They weren't real boyfriends. I did it even before anyone had ever dumped me." To Alan Jackson in the Times on her premonitions of international pop stardom: "It was like I'd been given a blueprint. I had this terrible argument with one of my sisters one time.

She was saying she couldn't figure out what to do with her life and I was like, 'Don't tell me that! Don't tell me you don't know what you were born to To which she replied, "I've got news for you. Half the world doesn't know what it was born to That came as a big, big, shock." Stars reveal all is convinced her of the magic of theatre. "I can't understand why people get so deep about it. It's just acting after all. I guess some people live for their craft.

I live for Dolce Gabbana." (Maxim, Nov) Celebrity life is finally getting to Brad Pitt: "What kind of achievement it if someone looks good? I've always felt it was a trap I feel like the woman walking down the street with construction workers yelling at her I fill some void. I am the void that fills the void." (Hotdog, Dec) November 10 The Editor 15.