When In Rome...
The language for today isn't necessarily slang, but anything in general that is a little different than how we say it.
Bin = garbage can
Sunnies = Sun glasses
Swimmers = Swim suit
Diary = Planner/Agenda
Brekkie = Breakfast. Never heard this one said but I see it on posters and have been texted it.
Good on ya = well done or nice job
Sheila is not a thing, thankfully. Although most people have a hard time figuring out my name at first because it's too similar. It usually takes about 3 tries for them to get it right.
Please note these aren't necessarily words that are used by everyone all the time. I have heard or seen them at least a few times though. Now that I'm getting used to the language I'm finding a lot more similarities to the US then I originally thought since I've picked out the oddities and can now recognize them.
Have is used instead of take quite a bit. "I'm going to have a shower." or "Go have a nap if you're so tired."
Keen is the word around here. I hear it all the time (and have started to say it quite often myself).
"Oh I am so keen for the beach right now."
"Are you going out tonight?" "Nah I'm not keen."
"I cannot be bothered" is another one I hear a lot. My favorite was today when we walked to a building that is very close to our apartments... "Ugh, I cannot be bothered to walk right now. Will you give me a piggy back?"
Also, I tried Vegemite. Anyone who hasn't heard of it, it's basically yeast in a jar. It's a thing here. My friend slapped some on some bread for me and I thought "When in Rome..." and tried it (now it should be noted there was only a very small amount of this on the bread). I gagged and barely managed to chew and swallow. Worst. Thing. Ever. If you ever travel here and someone offers you Vegemite, just say no.
Clothing
With it being a foreign country, there's obviously going to be a difference in clothing (I mean there's even differences in the way people dress depending on where you are in the US). While Mom was here we were finding it very amusing how much 80's dress is around. It is perfectly acceptable for men to wear short shorts (not necessarily quite as extreme as "back in the day". When I say short I mean somewhere around mid thigh, but definitely something I've never seen on a guy in the US). Many of my friends do, but many of them wear shorts of similar length to what's acceptable in the US and you see all lengths in between. Really short, high waisted shorts are popular with some of the ladies. High waisted skirts are quite popular too. But for the most part, everyone dresses very different. It seems like everyone is always trying to do their own thing. I've been having a lot of fun myself, I've been quite fortunate enough to have multiple friends let me borrow their clothes :)
That is all for now. The New Zealand post is kicking my butt. I cannot be bothered to sort through photos from 3 different cameras at the moment considering it's our O-week (orientation week) and there's tons of stuff going on both day and night pretty much all the time. Classes start on Monday. I'm pretty sad about that considering it means I only have 4 months left here. I'm really enjoying everything and it's going to be really hard to come back home in July (although I cannot wait to see my family and Jessica's new house!!!!!). I'll keep working on New Zealand and hopefully have it up soon.
Bin = garbage can
Sunnies = Sun glasses
Swimmers = Swim suit
Diary = Planner/Agenda
Brekkie = Breakfast. Never heard this one said but I see it on posters and have been texted it.
Good on ya = well done or nice job
Sheila is not a thing, thankfully. Although most people have a hard time figuring out my name at first because it's too similar. It usually takes about 3 tries for them to get it right.
Please note these aren't necessarily words that are used by everyone all the time. I have heard or seen them at least a few times though. Now that I'm getting used to the language I'm finding a lot more similarities to the US then I originally thought since I've picked out the oddities and can now recognize them.
Have is used instead of take quite a bit. "I'm going to have a shower." or "Go have a nap if you're so tired."
Keen is the word around here. I hear it all the time (and have started to say it quite often myself).
"Oh I am so keen for the beach right now."
"Are you going out tonight?" "Nah I'm not keen."
"I cannot be bothered" is another one I hear a lot. My favorite was today when we walked to a building that is very close to our apartments... "Ugh, I cannot be bothered to walk right now. Will you give me a piggy back?"
Also, I tried Vegemite. Anyone who hasn't heard of it, it's basically yeast in a jar. It's a thing here. My friend slapped some on some bread for me and I thought "When in Rome..." and tried it (now it should be noted there was only a very small amount of this on the bread). I gagged and barely managed to chew and swallow. Worst. Thing. Ever. If you ever travel here and someone offers you Vegemite, just say no.
Clothing
With it being a foreign country, there's obviously going to be a difference in clothing (I mean there's even differences in the way people dress depending on where you are in the US). While Mom was here we were finding it very amusing how much 80's dress is around. It is perfectly acceptable for men to wear short shorts (not necessarily quite as extreme as "back in the day". When I say short I mean somewhere around mid thigh, but definitely something I've never seen on a guy in the US). Many of my friends do, but many of them wear shorts of similar length to what's acceptable in the US and you see all lengths in between. Really short, high waisted shorts are popular with some of the ladies. High waisted skirts are quite popular too. But for the most part, everyone dresses very different. It seems like everyone is always trying to do their own thing. I've been having a lot of fun myself, I've been quite fortunate enough to have multiple friends let me borrow their clothes :)
That is all for now. The New Zealand post is kicking my butt. I cannot be bothered to sort through photos from 3 different cameras at the moment considering it's our O-week (orientation week) and there's tons of stuff going on both day and night pretty much all the time. Classes start on Monday. I'm pretty sad about that considering it means I only have 4 months left here. I'm really enjoying everything and it's going to be really hard to come back home in July (although I cannot wait to see my family and Jessica's new house!!!!!). I'll keep working on New Zealand and hopefully have it up soon.
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Keep experimenting...