Love, Poetry and Revolution - Saturday 27th April 2024

May is approaching fast,  yet the tendrils of winter are still upon us.  I'm trying to stick to wearing T-shirts, but it's becoming a challenge.  (N.B. Not just T-shirts, ofc.)

In sharp contrast to the missing spring weather here, 'Married At First Sight Australia' brings a lot of sunshine, be it from Sydney, the Gold Coast, Perth or wherever.  As many of you know, I am a regular viewer, in fact, you might even say I am a 'fan' (Steady on!)  There are some solid reasons for this (see me to discuss), but I won't write about those reasons here.

Instead, I am going discuss some of the phrases that appear to be common parlance amongst Australians of a certain age, or maybe all Australians. (I could write about the fact that men don't seem to wear socks with shoes, but I'll skip that. Just an observation.)

'It's not my jam': You might think this is a phrase to be used in a kitchen. I don't really like jam (though I do like marmalade), so it's a phrase I'm sure I could use in this context.  However, it means something like 'I'm not interested in that', 'that's not behaviour that I endorse',  or perhaps it's equivalent to the phrase 'It doesn't float my boat'. (Don't get me started)

'One Hundred Percent': This is fairly self-explanatory, though is often used in a non-mathematical context.  Over the series it has become an annoyingly ubiquitous response to any question to which you could reply in the affirmative.  The overuse of this answer began to make it seem disingenuous.

'Give me the tea' or 'spill the tea':  A disturbing phrase, especially for those of us who don't drink tea, but prefer coffee. As with the previous reference to jam, the context of this phrase does not relate to the kitchen.  In fact it means, please update me with all the latest gossip/news.  Should you be in Australia when someone asks you to do this, please be careful if you are drinking tea at the time. Don't take it literally. Seriously, don't.

'He's a spunk' or 'He's really spunky': To be honest, I still don't know what this means.  I do, however, know what it doesn't mean.  Based on the fact that the woman who used this phrase about her designated partner never got to know him in the Biblical sense, it doesn't mean what I might have assumed.

Last, but not least... 'You've thrown me under the bus':  This one is the most concerning, especially if you don't fully understand the meaning. If you are planning a holiday in Australia, don't be put off by unnecessary fears about public transport.  For starters, everyone who said they'd been thrown under the bus by their partner seemed physically none the worse for it. No tread marks. No apparent injuries.  Emotionally it was a different story, though. I believe the meaning is something along the lines of 'you've surprised me with your revelation, which was both unexpected but also hurtful'. The origin of the phrase is still concerning. Does it originate from an incident during which someone was pushed under a moving bus by their partner or best friend?  I think we should be told.

My bucket of choice phrases runneth over.

Yesterday a bunch of school friends and I went on a country walk, culminating in lunch in the pub we started from. You couldn't drag a coach and horses through it.  It was a good walk (almost five miles) with good company, and was graced with dry and occasionally sunny weather. In sharp contrast to today.   In the background, planning is underway for another school reunion later in the year.  I have been asked to put together a playlist for the seven years whilst we were there, though I have been told expressly to choose pop hits and songs from popular bands/albums of the period. I was told not to select any of the weird stuff (I didn't really understand the implication) or anything modern. As if!

There's no change here on the E front, and therefore nothing to say.  Eternity. A word I'm beginning to fully appreciate.

Our friend who's a pharmacist has come to the rescue again and sorted out a couple of things for us, one for me and one for E. Much appreciated.

Q remains in mainland Europe, though she's now returned to Amsterdam from Sweden.  Next stop, the UK, but not today.

Time for more decluttering I think.

Rae Morris /  'No Woman Is An Island'  / 'Rachel@Fairyland'

[[Rae Morris is a friend of Sean O'Hagan, and sings on the latest High Llamas album, 'Hey Panda', and that's how I found myself here.  I'm exploring the album still and also enjoying it. (Yes, that is Blackpool. She is from there.)]]