Dripping…

Now THAT was unexpected. One minute, I was as happy as Larry, the next being rushed off in a meat wagon and now hospitalized indefinitely.

Cop A Gander At These Rippers Too...

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    Monkeying Around With Shared Kobe Steel(e)s

    Of the many commonalities shared by Australia and Japan, perhaps one of the quirkier ones is that both countries are home to a Kobe Steele known for monkeying around. Australia’s Kobe Steele founded the Orangutan Foundation International Australia (OFI Australia), and was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2021 for her services to conservation and the environment. Japan’s Kobe Steel Ltd., meanwhile, monkeyed around in a far less noble way, falsifying inspection and quality data on steel, aluminium and copper products for years, affecting hundreds of customers and resulting in billions of yen in fines after causing one of Japan’s most significant industrial quality scandals in recent…

  • Back on the Bike

    For a variety of reasons decent riding hadn’t been possible yesterday, but today it was back on the bike. Apart from the theft and vandalism, Kangaeroo also had an appointment. And worry about impending punishment from work had kept him awake nearly all the previous night, mustering a depressive low that thwarted crawling out of bed and plunging in the cold and dark to ride. Should have done it anyway, so the later regret also had a compounding effect on the low. Kinda living in fear, anger and resentment at the moment. Thank God for cycling! Getting on the bike provides a lift. There’s a lot for Kangaeroo to be…

  • この言葉本当にオージー英語で大活躍Bar None？

    「バー」じゃない？オーストラリア英語の Bar Bar と聞くと、多くの人はお酒を飲むバーを思い浮かべます。 ところが、オーストラリア英語では bar にまったく違う意味がいくつもあります。 例えば、 “I won’t have a bar of it.” これは 「そんな話、お断り。」 「絶対に受け入れない。」 という意味になります。 また、昔は自転車のハンドルやフレームに人を乗せることを bar と言うこともありました。 子どもの遊びでは、「先に bar! と言った人が権利を持つ」という意味で使われる地域もあります。 つまり bar は、一つの意味だけでは理解できない、多義語なのです。 文脈を読むことが何より大切になります。 Strine 単語 Bar 意味 文脈によって意味が変わる表現。 代表的には、 例文 I wouldn’t have a bar of it. 「そんな話には絶対に乗らないよ。」 日本とのつながり 日本語にも「かける」のように意味がたくさんある言葉があります。 英語も、一つの単語が複数の意味を持つことは珍しくありません。 辞書で最初に出てくる意味だけを覚えると、本当の英語は見えてきません。Barはchuckやcrackなどに並べてオージー英語で大活躍動詞の一つ。「禁止する・通さない」、「自転車の二人乗り」、「権利を出張する」「唾を付ける」などとして使うことがある。文脈を読む力こそ、オーストラリア英語を楽しむ近道です。

  • Rav-AGE!

    Getting old is not much fun, nor, as the late, great thespian Bette Davis once famously said, it’s not for sissies. But I’ve becoming increasingly conscious of age over the past few weeks. My eyesight is going: quickly and rapidly. I’m seeing less in the dark and rain, vision is cloudy and peripheral vision untrustworthy. Arthritis in my hands is making even the most minor of tasks a tough one. And my professional life, such as it is, is slipping from disaster to disaster. All these things are adding up to fill me with fear and trepidation, which has become paralyzing, and even worse, kept me away from one of…