Ok I'm gonna leave you with a linguistics lesson. This is how you know if you've lived in true Australia. I learned most of this at the bar when I gave out a blank look to a request. Huh?
1. Stubby=a bottle of beer as opposed to a can
2. Stubby holders, eco holders, coolers=the foam cover that goes around a can or bottle of beer to keep it from warming too quickly when you hold it...Aussies are crazy about them
3. TEDS=Toohey's Extra Dry...a common beer in Oz
4. Flat white=coffee with milk
5. Long black=black coffee
6. Short black=espresso
7. Always roll a Cooper's stubby before serving it to mix the residue in the bottom
8. EFTPOS=using a credit card to pay
9. Petrol=gas
10. Hot chips=french fries
11. Tomato sauce or just sauce=ketchup
12. Meat pies, pasties, and sausage rolls are a common meal choice for Aussies
13. Capsicum=peppers
14 Ordering something with the lot (like a hamburger)=an egg and bacon go on it
15. Lime, soda, and bitters does not mean a lemon-lime bitter soda but a mixed drink (yeah did that one wrong once)
16. Squash=lemon soda called Solo
17. Lemonade=Sprite
18. Shandy=mixing a "lemonade" and a beer
19. Cuddles=hugs
20. Quad bike=four wheeler
21. R.F.D.S.=Royal Flying Doctor Service
22. Ta=shorthand way to say thanks
23. No worries=used in numerous ways but some common ones are for saying thank you or no big deal
24. Reckon=means how you think about something..."do you reckon we need more VB in the fridge?" or "I reckon that's a good idea."
25. Sheila is rarely used to refer to women...it seems kind of derogatory...like saying "my old lady" is in the car
26. Jumper=sweater or cardigan or sweatshirt
27. Thongs=flip flops
28. Swag=a canvas personal tent that a person uses to camp outside and put around a sleeping bag...lots of Aussies use swag as they travel around
29. Toastie=toasted sandwich
30. Spot on=you're absolutely right
And many more that I'm forgetting at the moment...sometimes I'd just say this stuff like it's second nature! Usually I'd get a few laughs or amused smiles from the guests. Of course I'd be laughing first...best way to keep some sanity when serving.
Here's a typical way I'd learn some of this lingo:
"Can I have a pair of TED's thanks." (Aussies always end their requests with thanks. It was usually one big slur of words with thanks being the period on the end and I would think..."Thanks? Thanks for what? I haven't done anything yet and I have no idea what their saying in the first place!")
"Excuse me...you want a pair of what?!" (With the accent, it sounded like tits and I had no idea what a TED's was anyhow)
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The ancedotes of a Aussie Bartender
Hello all my dear people!
Here is the promised longer blog, as I have only been able to fill you in sparingly in the last six weeks. I have arrived in Sydney. Tara and I giggled like preteens upon seeing each other and I'm sure our hostel roommates were thinking American girls truly are as they seem on reality TV. But Tara and I have come to care less about such misconceptions. We're exuberant about life! We ate rice cakes and drank Starbucks coffee and tried to piece together some understanding of our lives at William Creek. Here's some wispy strands of thought:
1. William Creek was a worthy adventure. I was telling my dad...this June/July has been the craziest it has ever been at W.C. because of Lake Eyre filling and there was a team, an alliance, that came together with a mission to see it through. We came from the Australian countryside, the French Brittany region, the American Mid-west, the Australian east coast and city (later to be joined at the end by Germany, Canada, and French Canada). Our bond came out of marathon days where the occasional soft touch or g'd on ya mate could restore your crumbling stamina. We had a community, an international family. And for that alone I know W.C. was an experience of a lifetime. Slowly the fellowship broke apart and moved on...but that June and July of 2009 we had victory.
2. It can be very frustrating to be thrown into a new experience and find you are not being yourself no matter how desperately you are trying to regain that peace of personal portrayal. I told Tara at the beginning of all this that I just felt stilted and wasn't able to communicate in my usual manner. Slowly, as I became accustommed to William Creek and the work, I found my core me coming out again. It was relief to feel me again!! Adriana, the boss and friend, kept introducing me to people and telling them that I suite my name (so reassuring because I felt somewhat like I was failing at that for a bit). I was laughing and dancing and teasing and making connections.
3. But beyond finding my bearings, I also learned new things about myself. While I was making beds one morning and listening to Death Cab, it hit me how much traveling puts me in my element. I need to forge my way into new places and find victory in more William Creeks. I want to collect the stories of people I befriend, add my own, and write it all down. I want to share my writings! I want to visit the homes of my new friends. There is nothing like traveling to the Outback, meeting tourists from all over the world, to realize how humanity is fluid and flowing. I find the wider my world, the more solidarity I feel, and the greater hope I have for our freedom. I think I will move to another country again. Soon. Anyone with me?
4. William Creek helped me see some personal beauty, a truth that is so hard to hang onto in our slippery world of beauty and standard.
5. If I had a gold coin for everytime someone asked me where I was from, how long I've been in Australia, how in the world did I find William Creek, and where will I be traveling next...I might not have needed to work at all =0)
Next adventure: Tara and I bought a greyhound bus pass that goes from Sydney up to Cairns on the east coast. We can get off and on as many times as we want within the next 45 days. We leave tonight for Newcastle, about 2 1/2 hours north from Sydney. We will be in Brisbane on August 17th. Abby will join us. And we'll keep going. We'll fly back down to spend a few days in Sydney with Abby. Then, we're hoping to go to New Zealand after she leaves on Sept. 1st. Soooo....here we go!!!
Here is the promised longer blog, as I have only been able to fill you in sparingly in the last six weeks. I have arrived in Sydney. Tara and I giggled like preteens upon seeing each other and I'm sure our hostel roommates were thinking American girls truly are as they seem on reality TV. But Tara and I have come to care less about such misconceptions. We're exuberant about life! We ate rice cakes and drank Starbucks coffee and tried to piece together some understanding of our lives at William Creek. Here's some wispy strands of thought:
1. William Creek was a worthy adventure. I was telling my dad...this June/July has been the craziest it has ever been at W.C. because of Lake Eyre filling and there was a team, an alliance, that came together with a mission to see it through. We came from the Australian countryside, the French Brittany region, the American Mid-west, the Australian east coast and city (later to be joined at the end by Germany, Canada, and French Canada). Our bond came out of marathon days where the occasional soft touch or g'd on ya mate could restore your crumbling stamina. We had a community, an international family. And for that alone I know W.C. was an experience of a lifetime. Slowly the fellowship broke apart and moved on...but that June and July of 2009 we had victory.
2. It can be very frustrating to be thrown into a new experience and find you are not being yourself no matter how desperately you are trying to regain that peace of personal portrayal. I told Tara at the beginning of all this that I just felt stilted and wasn't able to communicate in my usual manner. Slowly, as I became accustommed to William Creek and the work, I found my core me coming out again. It was relief to feel me again!! Adriana, the boss and friend, kept introducing me to people and telling them that I suite my name (so reassuring because I felt somewhat like I was failing at that for a bit). I was laughing and dancing and teasing and making connections.
3. But beyond finding my bearings, I also learned new things about myself. While I was making beds one morning and listening to Death Cab, it hit me how much traveling puts me in my element. I need to forge my way into new places and find victory in more William Creeks. I want to collect the stories of people I befriend, add my own, and write it all down. I want to share my writings! I want to visit the homes of my new friends. There is nothing like traveling to the Outback, meeting tourists from all over the world, to realize how humanity is fluid and flowing. I find the wider my world, the more solidarity I feel, and the greater hope I have for our freedom. I think I will move to another country again. Soon. Anyone with me?
4. William Creek helped me see some personal beauty, a truth that is so hard to hang onto in our slippery world of beauty and standard.
5. If I had a gold coin for everytime someone asked me where I was from, how long I've been in Australia, how in the world did I find William Creek, and where will I be traveling next...I might not have needed to work at all =0)
Next adventure: Tara and I bought a greyhound bus pass that goes from Sydney up to Cairns on the east coast. We can get off and on as many times as we want within the next 45 days. We leave tonight for Newcastle, about 2 1/2 hours north from Sydney. We will be in Brisbane on August 17th. Abby will join us. And we'll keep going. We'll fly back down to spend a few days in Sydney with Abby. Then, we're hoping to go to New Zealand after she leaves on Sept. 1st. Soooo....here we go!!!
Monday, July 27, 2009
quickie
I've left the Outback!!!!
Unfortunately I'm using borrowed Internet and still don't have much time to catch up to all the emails and facebook posts, etc. I will try to get back "online" soon. Here's the quick update.
I fly early tomorrow morning to meet Tara and Sydney (finally to be reunited!). We'll sort out our plans of the next day or two and then I think we'll start heading up the east coast toward Brisbane, spending Tara's birthday on the beach (naturally). Abby will join us as well for part of our east coast trip. I'm so excited!!!
I definitely have stories to tell but that will just have to wait...
Keep yours coming though!!!
Unfortunately I'm using borrowed Internet and still don't have much time to catch up to all the emails and facebook posts, etc. I will try to get back "online" soon. Here's the quick update.
I fly early tomorrow morning to meet Tara and Sydney (finally to be reunited!). We'll sort out our plans of the next day or two and then I think we'll start heading up the east coast toward Brisbane, spending Tara's birthday on the beach (naturally). Abby will join us as well for part of our east coast trip. I'm so excited!!!
I definitely have stories to tell but that will just have to wait...
Keep yours coming though!!!
Friday, July 10, 2009
S'more Please
I literally have about five minutes for this post before I have to head full speed into our afternoon rush. The espresso machine has mourned my absence for the last half hour while I sorted through all my email I'm quite sure. Life has taken on a whole new frenzy this last week, as school holidays here in Australia began, and droves of families went on the great trek across the "Red Desert."
Brief life stories:
*Fourth of July was duly noted by Tara and I. We made s'mores for all our Aussie friends, an American bonfire tradition they had never heard of, or to our decryment, ever partaken in. We had supplies specailly brought in from Coober Pedy, a good two hour drive away. They loved them and were quite fascinated as I tutored them on the importance of the golden brown "mallow." Adriana let us use some of her sparkler supply in a 30 second fire frenzy to commerate our Independence.
*Last night we celebrated Adriana and Nev's (the owners and the bosses) third year of being at William Creek. The French girls cooked crepes and quiche. We presented them with a handmade card and some gifts. They were quite surprised and delighted. Naturally, we popped the champagne and I tore up the dance floor with an assortment of nationalities, genders, and age groups. The joy was flowing and couldn't keep my feet from tapping it out!
I hope to get back on sometime today or tomorrow to give some more funny ancedotes but as for now I must attend to my bar "wench" duties. Thank you to all who have been sending me emails and messages. I will hopefully get a chance to respond soon. Your love is being felt!!!
Brief life stories:
*Fourth of July was duly noted by Tara and I. We made s'mores for all our Aussie friends, an American bonfire tradition they had never heard of, or to our decryment, ever partaken in. We had supplies specailly brought in from Coober Pedy, a good two hour drive away. They loved them and were quite fascinated as I tutored them on the importance of the golden brown "mallow." Adriana let us use some of her sparkler supply in a 30 second fire frenzy to commerate our Independence.
*Last night we celebrated Adriana and Nev's (the owners and the bosses) third year of being at William Creek. The French girls cooked crepes and quiche. We presented them with a handmade card and some gifts. They were quite surprised and delighted. Naturally, we popped the champagne and I tore up the dance floor with an assortment of nationalities, genders, and age groups. The joy was flowing and couldn't keep my feet from tapping it out!
I hope to get back on sometime today or tomorrow to give some more funny ancedotes but as for now I must attend to my bar "wench" duties. Thank you to all who have been sending me emails and messages. I will hopefully get a chance to respond soon. Your love is being felt!!!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Heli Ridin' Through Reality TV
One of the main activities in William Creek is airplane or helicopter flights over Lake Eyre. The helicopter piolets are good friends of ours...really they are like staff here too...and Mark took Tara and I for a flight a couple of days ago. Absolutely fantastic! We cruised at about 1,000 feet and got to see the majestic red desert for hundred of miles in all directions. About 15 minutes into our flight we saw blue stretch out on the horizon. Lake Eyre is quite the phenomonen. Water runoff from the north of Australia comes down (every 30 years or so ) and fills the lake, which is below sea level. This causes salt to rise up from the ground as well, making it a salt lake. Fish eggs that have laid dormant for years hatch and birds from the coast fly hundreds of miles to eat the fish. How do the birds know??? One of those mystical mysteries. So, we touched down on an area that used to be covered with water a few weeks ago (the water is receding feet upon feet by the day). Tara and I tasted the left over salt and took in the opportunity for a photo op. Don't worry we have video coverage of our adventure too. Mark even swung the helicopter like you would when rounding up cattle...ariel rollar coaster!
Otherwise, our days stretch on for lifetimes. We've been here for over two weeks but it feels like months and a blink of time all at once. I think we should have a reality tv show based on our time here. It's intense community between about 10 0f us plus the piolets down the way and all the crazy tourists. Vinci, Caroline, Tara, and I sometimes joke about where the camera men are hiding. The show would be some twist between Big Brother and Real World. All the intensity can cause quite the tense moments and exhaustion can always fray even the most laid back person. I try to laugh often. Sometimes Tara and I don't even get a chance to talk until bedtime (we share a bed =0) )...we're like a funny old couple sometimes. We're each other's sanity so often! When she's gone for a week, it will feel like I'm in purgatory...hahaha. Ok a little dramatic. I'm not looking forward to it that's for sure! The thing about our reality tv show here though, is that everyone is so loving and we care for each other. My massaging talent has been found out. Leon and Diane reckon I have healing power. =0)
Who will be kicked off the desert oasis next? Guess you'll have to tune in to find out....
Otherwise, our days stretch on for lifetimes. We've been here for over two weeks but it feels like months and a blink of time all at once. I think we should have a reality tv show based on our time here. It's intense community between about 10 0f us plus the piolets down the way and all the crazy tourists. Vinci, Caroline, Tara, and I sometimes joke about where the camera men are hiding. The show would be some twist between Big Brother and Real World. All the intensity can cause quite the tense moments and exhaustion can always fray even the most laid back person. I try to laugh often. Sometimes Tara and I don't even get a chance to talk until bedtime (we share a bed =0) )...we're like a funny old couple sometimes. We're each other's sanity so often! When she's gone for a week, it will feel like I'm in purgatory...hahaha. Ok a little dramatic. I'm not looking forward to it that's for sure! The thing about our reality tv show here though, is that everyone is so loving and we care for each other. My massaging talent has been found out. Leon and Diane reckon I have healing power. =0)
Who will be kicked off the desert oasis next? Guess you'll have to tune in to find out....
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