Some Human Stuff
The first night up at the Welcome Flat hut I got out the minnie speakers I brought (they're about the size of a deck of cards) and set them up on one of the kitchen tables at the request of the Danish boys. I asked around a bit to make sure no one would mind and then put on some Coltrane. We sat around a while and played some card game that seemed to be a combination of war and shithead and texas hold'em. Most of the Kiwi guys were outside drinking vodka coke (yuck. The last time I drank vodka coke was with Josh Clisby in his kitchen after school in the 9'th grade or so. NOt because we liked it you understand, but because we could somehow get away with it without anyone knowing. I'm pretty sure we both thought it was retched stuff.) and joking with each other. Then one of them came in and said, "Excuse me, could you turn down that awful stuff? Some of the lads outside are a bit put off by your, (then he imitated the sound of Coltrane's horn with his mouth!)" So I of course told him to get fucked. No I turned it off, said, "All you had to do is ask, didn't mean to offend anyone." And then had a half hour psychotic episode in my head in which I expounded to all the "offended lads" outside about their lack of taste/culture. I calmed myself by rationalizing that anyone who thought Coltrane was awful wasn't someone I wanted a lot to do with anyway.
The other day here in Queenstown while walking from reception to the stairs with Chris I noticed a potatoe on the ground. A great big washed potatoe, so I said, "Hey there's a potatoe on the ground." Chris looked at the potatoe and said "Ay (pronounced like I, meaning yes)" and kept walking. Later I noticed someone had picked the potatoe up off the ground on the ground floor and placed it on top of the firehose on the 1'st floor. Which I found even more bizarre.
Aussies call a round of drinks a "shout", as in "Who's shout is it? Oh it's my shout." Also when someone has bought you a drink they've shouted for you.
Kiwi's say "sweet az" when something's just fine, kind of like we use "right on" or something along those lines. I'm still not sure if they're saying "sweet ass" or "sweet as" but it sounds like sweet az. They also say "no worries" at times when I couldn't possibly imagine there being a worry. Like when asking a bar person for a beer the bar person will respond with no worries. They also distinctly do not say "fush and chups" for "fish and chips" in my experience. What they do say, oddly, is "Fish and chips." I've been waiting to hear someone say fush and chups, and no one has. I'm unsure where the viscious fush and chups rumour comes from.
Last night I had more to write today but as usual I've forgotten it, so more later when it all comes back to me.
posted by jts @ 3:33 PM
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