friends

I have always considered the opposite of friend to be enemy. But in Sydney they think that it is acquaintance.

Here are some extracts from my dictionary:

friend
noun
1 a close friend companion, soul mate, intimate, confidante, confidant, familiar, alter ego, second self, playmate, playfellow, classmate, schoolmate, workmate; ally, associate; sister, brother; best friend, kindred spirit, bosom buddy, bosom friend; informal pal, chum, sidekick, crony, main man, mate, buddy, bud, amigo, compadre, homeboy, homegirl, homie; archaic compeer. antonym enemy.

ORIGIN Old English frēond, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch vriend and German Freund, from an Indo-European root meaning ‘to love,’ shared by free

• a person who is not an enemy or who is on the same side : she was unsure whether he was friend or foe.

working from home

Being in the telecommunications business, I have always thought that we should encourage people to telecommunicate as it would be good for business. So I was somewhat surprise to find people at work being against working from home. I think that we should encourage all forms of telecommunication as it would get people used to it and then drive up business. 

A few weeks back I discovered that people in Sydney have some bizarre misuse of this term which probably explains their unexpected dislike for working from home. The people from work say things like "It'll never happen". The people I spoke to said that working from home was infact just another way of saying - we stayed out all night, probably met someone we liked and stayed at their place. One would guess that this was probably after a night of sex. 

up a tree

I think that people who take the simple term "up a tree" and think "up a skirt" are full of shit. Again wrong for two reasons.

"Looking up at the Eucalypt" by yewenyi [?]

the french

I have walways thought of the french as being people from france, or those from other places, who have french ancestry. I still think this. But unfortunatey there seems to be many racist people here who think that being french is a synonym for cheating on your partner. Now this is wrong in at least two ways and I refuse to think like this.

Karaoke

Well I have my first real Karaoke experience with me singing songs. I was quite please with my singing, it is as good as it has been since my voice broke and I sang in the Coretto at school in most of the major protestant churches in Melbourne. One thing I thought was very unexpected and actually quite cool and I guess not surprising was that there were some songs with totally unexpected words. We had a version of Killing Me Softly that had lines like take you clothes off (if I have the right song). Very amusing. Clearly there are the "other" Karaoke songs. ;-)

like...

Another simple error of assumed grammar. People, including myself say I like this. But, I always assume the do like construct where as people here assume the I am like construct. Endless confusion. Just because I like things does not mean that I am like them. Nor do I expect others to need to be like this. So saying that I like piercings, does not mean that I want a piercing, or that I think you should get one. This is just the same as saying that I like a football team means that I was to be a football player or that I think you should be a football player.

• I (am) like
• I (do) like
  

Chinese and Chinese

When people in Sydney talk of liking the Chinese, they mean the government of China. When I speak of liking the chinese, I mean the people of Chinese ancestry, such as myself. Anyone who knows anything about Chinese culture would understand the importance of ancestry. But apparently not Australians and Americans. I would have something to say about Jews and Israelites as an analogy, but I will not for now. But I say this, I insist on being on my own side and that means I will be honorable to my ancestry.