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POMS, POMS, POMS!!!!

February 7th 2010 22:47
Having lived in Pom-land after 2.5 years, and now
london double decker bus
're-transported', I thought I might start off with the whole origin of the word Pom or Pommy as Australian slang for a Brit.

Everyone has their own version of where they think the term came from, the better known usually being one of theses three:

a) Prisoner of Mother England
b) Port Out, Starboard Home, dealing with the physical position the English would take on a ship to and from Australia.
c) Prisoner of Her Majesty

Each of these acronyms is exactly that - an acronym. The problem there being that acronyms themselves did not start developing until World War 1, and didn't really take off widely until WW2, so most experts will agree that Pom therefore is not an acronym.

There is however another widely accepted version by those 'in the know', being that the word is short for 'pomegranate'.

pomegranate
So why pomegranates, and what's the connection to English people?

In a country like Australia where rhyming slang has been a part of the nation's history and culture, 'pomegranate' is believed to be rhyming slang for 'immigrant'. Coupled with this was the fact that when the English would emigrate to Australia, for the first few months at least, in the harsh Australian heat, their cheeks would turn a rosy, round, pomegranate red!
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world map geography free

The stereotypical differences between Aussies, Brits, Americans and Canadians.

[ Click here to read more ]
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The ORIGINS of GOLF

May 31st 2009 08:21
Lorena Ochoa Number 1 golfer
Lorena Ochoa, currently World No.1 female golfer.
The origins of golf can be a little murky as some researchers claim they have discovered references to a form of golf from Egyptian hieroglyphics, while in China, Chui Wan ("chui" = striking and "wan" = small ball) a game of driving a ball with a stick into holes in the ground, was first mentioned in records from the 11th century.

The Dutch game also seemed to have an early version played with a stick and leather ball, while the Scottish game of 'goulf' was mentioned in two ancient laws prohibiting its play.

[ Click here to read more ]
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STRANGE AUSTRALIAN RACES

January 26th 2009 10:50
Australia
Australia hosts some strange races and sporting events. Here's a quick rundown of a few.

1. The Cockroach World Championship - Brisbane
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The Things PEOPLE Actually SAY!!!!

November 5th 2008 10:00
Question: If you could live forever, would you and why?
Answer: 'I would not live forever, because we should not live forever, because if we were supposed to live forever, then we would live forever, but we cannot live forever, which is why I would not live forever,'
--Miss Alabama in the 1994 Miss USA contest.

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Vehicle Registration Tax Disc Excuses

October 1st 2008 14:12
OK so I'm guessing that the UK vehicle Tax Disc system is akin to the Aussie vehicle registration system although the similarities with the system (other than the MOT=Pink slip) ends there.

old car bmw
So while I pull my hair out waiting for my insurance certificate to arrive which I need to get the disc, which by the way they promised to send me guaranteed, to arrive on the last day of my tax disc's validity, and didn't arrive, I thought I'd have another trawl through the DVLA website or RTA equivalent.

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The Questions People Ask!

July 16th 2008 10:30
koala
Having been asked the other day whether we, as Australians, live in actual houses? (As opposed to what I don't know - tents perhaps???) I've decided to list some of the most common questions asked by visitors to Australia as were pointed out recently by one of our tourism websites.


Q: Does it ever get windy in Australia? I've never seen it rain on TV. How do your plants grow? (UK)
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Jokes Guaranteed To Offend

April 16th 2008 08:25
George W Bush shocked
What is a Yankee?
The same as a quickie, but a guy can do it alone.

[ Click here to read more ]
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One SHIP Of A Coincidence!

February 3rd 2008 23:30
Some coincidences and incidents in life are just so bizarre it beggars belief!
However such strange coincidences do occur, but still you cannot help but shake your head and wonder.

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With so many people living all over the world and with so much of our planet consisting of water, if you had to make a guess at the world time zone in which most people live, where do you imagine it would be?
World map free

You not only have to balance out water and land versus population, but also where those populations actually exist, that is to say that while it's fine to say that Australia only has 21 million people as the Australian Bureau of Statistics is now claiming, the majority live along the coastal areas due to the inhospitable nature of Australia's arid interior.

[ Click here to read more ]
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Santa Claus/ Father Christmas/ St Nicholas/ Kris Kringle, whatever name you call him, this is one man of which it can be said he has many names.

Depending on the country you're in, he could very well be called more than one name. In Australia he's usually referred to as Santa Claus, but occasionally other names pop up.

[ Click here to read more ]
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Christmas Turkeys & Christmas Dinners

December 14th 2007 00:05
turkey
In both the United Kingdom and the United States of America, turkeys are the currently the main choice for Christmas dinner.

In fact, before turkeys became popular in the UK, it was the custom to eat goose. Then during one particular Christmas, British monarch Henry VIII decided to try a turkey dinner.

[ Click here to read more ]
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Still On Hiatus

November 5th 2007 10:47
Hi all, thanks to our internet provider who has not been providing internet, our temporary hiatus has become much longer than expected. I've managed to squeeze a few moments out of somebody else's internet for this post, but I won't have much more for at the earliest half a week, but hopefully by this time next week at least.

So the facts I give today will be a brief fun-down of where we're at personally.

[ Click here to read more ]
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You might think the English language to be the same world over in English speaking countries, but not so.

The range of variations is quite wide between say Australian English, British English and American English.

[ Click here to read more ]
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