Go away, Ice Bucket Challenge
Hi, my name is Debbie Downer and I hate the #IceBucketChallenge.
Don't get me wrong.
I 100% support the message behind the campaign and the funds being raised for ALS but let's face it, the challenge is now nothing more than a fad.
And we can thank bikini clad celebrities for that.
Granted, most celebrities have actually donated to the cause - Leonardo DiCaprio reportedly gave a whopping $100 000.
Katy Perry took the Ice Bucket Challenge on a pirate ship dressed in a bikini and Naomi Campbell took the challenge while laying seductively on a yacht - in you guessed it, a bikini.
Just about every star you can think of (Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears) has done the challenge.
But after all that water-wasting fun, how many of you reading this actually knows what ALS is all about? How many of you who participated in the #IceBucketChallenge have actually donated money? How many of you are are just trying to be trendy like your favourite celebrity?
ALS stands for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. It is also referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease. You can either donate to ALS or Motor Neuron Diseases (MND) or dump a bucket of ice over your head and not donate or you can do both - many people just dump ice on themselves. So basically to avoid donating, you have to down yourself with a bucket of cold water. Really? How sweet of you.
The challenge received major media attention in the US in May and now the UK and even South African celebrities are taking part.
Everyone from Top Billing presenter Jeanie D to Joost Van Der Westhuizen (who suffers from MND) and even the Sharks and Springboks took part - and thumbs up to them for actually donating to charity.
But let's get real, most local stars are not making any donations - sorry, not sorry. Very few actually mention that they have donated in their videos. They very well may have, but if it's not on Google, it didn't happen. *Sips tea*
It would be awesome if local celebrities revealed what donations they made at the time of doing their videos.
And now even ordinary people are going gaga over the craze, in the UK three-year-old Scarlett-Rose Davis' challenge went viral after she can be heard swearing when the cold water drops on her. Seriously? A three-year-old!
Even a pink suitcase took the challenges - yes that happened people. Celeb-loving teens and young adults all over the world are also taking the challenge - some with disastrous results...
Charlie Sheen might be a bit unstable but at least he took the Ice Bucket Challenge by dumping $10 000 dollars over his head. Matt Damon took the challenge this week, using toilet water to highlight the lack of clean water in developing countries.
Maybe I am just annoyed with these Ice Bucket Challenges filling up my social media timelines but if I see one more, I will personally ship all challengers to Iceland. Let's see how they like that.
ALS has received a huge donation boost thanks to celebrity challenges, but we say put your money where your bucket is wannabes.
Here's a link to find out more about ALS.
Educate yourself (if you can break away from watching all those challenges for 'charity').
*Our new weekly column Time for Tea takes a look at celebrity news making headlines. So grab yourself a cuppa, and join the conversation!