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from Sydney Wednesday, March 08, 2006 - 19:20 (Agree/Disagree?) I know what you mean... It's even harder in a country like Australia where we have a smaller population and a even smaller tight knit culture... A list of certain true dinkum aussie things every aussies is required to know about or have done...unless they were born in a bubble... dude I still don't know the words to the australian anthem...even though I've lived here all my life. I've never been to "the big day out" (massive rock festival that travels all over australia and has been going for over 13 years now and most people have been at least once if not more...) or been to "schoolies" (a right of passage every aussie teenager around the country...takes part in after high school....a massive event where you burn your school books and get fucked up for a week on the gold coast) I have this fucked up part american/canadian/english accent... the gets questions all the time... I still say dude or man sometimes instead of "Mate" which is almost a sin over here.... as you call everyone mate. However, I feel worse for kids who grew up in Asian countries and are of Asian race and citizenship... I know someone who grew up in Japan etc... and when they left it was hard as they couldn't even speak their own fucking language!!! who much would that suck being japanese and having lived there most of your life and having to explain to people why you only speak english... It's taken me four years to get to the point where I can blend in enough to get by...but I have loads of catching up to do.... (reply to this comment)

From neez Thursday, March 09, 2006, 00:14 (Agree/Disagree?) Don't worry, I'd say most ppl here dont know all the words to the anthem. Just watch the footy sometime. If you haven't been to a big day out, definately put it on your to do list. It's gotten bloody expensive though lately. Even without drugs. Schoolies, like the Gold Coast in general, is overated. Your accent(NO I HAVENT FUCKING BEEN TO AMERICA OK!) will fade with time. The occasional use of "dude" and "man" is quite common, depending on who you hang around of course. Australia, and especially Sydney, has a diverse range of people, and not everyone talks like Steve Erwin. Thank crikey. p.s. When you said "A list of certain true dinkum aussie things" I think you meant to say 'true blue' or 'fair dinkum' :P She'll be right mate.(reply to this comment)

from porceleindoll Thursday, February 09, 2006 - 21:01 (Agree/Disagree?) I just found out what Buffalo wings are last week. But it may have to do more with living in Japan than being raised in the group, hehe! (reply to this comment)

From porceleindoll Thursday, February 09, 2006, 21:04 (Agree/Disagree?) I have no clue about music from 1985-2000. People ask me about a group, and I just don't know, I hear music from that time period, doesn't do a thing for me. But put on something from 80-3/85 and it's so 'natsukashii'. I can name a grand total of 1 song from the 90s--I'll make love to you by Boyz2Men. How sad is that!(reply to this comment)

From Thursday, February 09, 2006, 21:20 (Agree/Disagree?) What does "natsukashii" mean?(reply to this comment)

From Natsukashiisan Friday, February 10, 2006, 09:22 (Agree/Disagree?) "Natsukashii" means nostalgic.(reply to this comment)

from Baxter Thursday, February 09, 2006 - 16:09 (Agree/Disagree?) You can baste an egg? (reply to this comment)

From Phoenixkidd Friday, February 10, 2006, 08:34 (Agree/Disagree?) Yup just by pouring hot grease over the top while it's frying sunnyside up (reply to this comment)

From Baxter Saturday, February 11, 2006, 18:56 (Agree/Disagree?) ohhhh..... Doesn't sound too healthy!?(reply to this comment)

from Big Sister Tuesday, February 07, 2006 - 21:09 (Agree/Disagree?) I know that you lived in an isolated community and all, but I do think that is "foods I missed growing up" is one theme you have in common with most Americans. When it comes to food, lots of Americans live in isolated communities, even now! When we travel around the US we can still find lotsa new stuff to eat. Here’s a list of foods I never heard of until I was in my twenties when I began to travel around and try all kinds of regional specialties. Some regional foods you mentioned, like Buffalo wings, clam chowder, ranch dressing, sour dough bread and rye bread have spread around the country but started in a particular part of the US and took years to become more well known. Some of the regional or seasonal specialties have remained more local because of local ethnic populations or supply sources. At any rate, here are foods that were new to me as an adult. How many of these have you heard of? Sour dough bread (San Francisco) Cappuccino (Seattle, San Francisco, and of course, Italy) Hawaiian style pizza (ham and pineapple) Collard greens (American South) Grits (American South) Egg Cream (New York City) Matzo Brei (Yiddish) Kimchee (Korea) Head Cheese (Polish) Lutefisk (Norwegian) Red Beans and Rice (New Orleans) Green corn tamales (southern Arizona) Arrugala Mahi mahi It’s It (San Francisco) Sushi (Japanese) Curly fries Ollalieberries (California) Poor Boys (Louisiana) Hush Puppies (American South) Fry Bread (Native American) (reply to this comment)

From Phoenixkidd Wednesday, February 08, 2006, 07:50 (Agree/Disagree?) I didn't mean this post as a cultural introduction series, every American has that when they go abroad! Instead I meant this to be a forum on stuff that is common place here in America, that we ex-2nd gen being American citizens did not encounter when growing up as a child! Arrrghhhh (reply to this comment)

From Big Sister Wednesday, February 08, 2006, 12:02 (Agree/Disagree?) Oh sorry, I was not so clear in my post. I meant these were foods I found IN THE UNITED STATES that I had not encountered growing up in my little section of America. Everything on the list was offered to me by other Americans as foods that are common place in their region of the country. I realize that you feel embarassed about not knowing stuff, but my point is that happens to many Americans-if they travel around the US- because American food is so diverse and regionally influenced.(reply to this comment)

From Ne Oublie Wednesday, February 08, 2006, 08:20 (Agree/Disagree?) Who's to say what 'normal' culture or parlance is? Isn't that the beauty of multi-cultural society? There's no need to feel disadvantaged for not knowing those foods or terms. It's only the very narrow-minded who would make an issue of someone not knowing what they consider to be 'common knowledge'.(reply to this comment)

From nibbles Friday, February 10, 2006, 19:52 (Agree/Disagree?) "the beauty of multi-cultural society" - Puleeese. The point made by PhoenixKid is correct because although most of us lived overseas it wasn't the culture of the countries we experienced often but "TF" culture, which by its very nature kept us on the fringes of rather than experiencing the actual culture of the countries we lived in. Regardless of whether someone lived in PI, India, Thailand, Europe, Australia or the US, the common food culture was a diet of expired cans of food, scrambled/ powdered eggs, home made yogurt, stale mongo beans etc, - that’s TF's food legacy. Thankfully for me I did get to enjoy local culture's to some degree. In some ways I think we can put our 'lack of food knowledge' down to the economic status our parents created for themselves. – The poorer you are the more vulnerable you are and the more power can be exercised against you. TF tried to create that mentality, a poor mentality in order to disempower and keep control. In most respects my childhood was below the poverty line, the only reason why I'm not obese from McDonald’s etc is because Berg's nutrition doctrine was for expired rather than 'fast' food. On a somewhat separate topic, it is still debatable in my book whether "multi-culturalism" is "beautiful" or at least whether it is "more beautiful" than alternatives. (reply to this comment)

From Phoenixkidd Monday, February 13, 2006, 07:56 (Agree/Disagree?) Nibbles you are right on! The culture I experienced, was neither Japanese or American it was Cult Culture. I knew of many Japanese foods but not all. When I first left I applied to be a waiter in a Japanese Restraunt, Taking advice from my Uncle that I should try a job where I would naturally "fit" coming from Japan and all. I really didn't know a thing about sushi though, since I ate it only a few times in Japan, because it was quite expensive food!! I remember at age 12 while cooking for the large Osaka School that Japanese consider it awful to serve tofu for everyone on a tray and put soya sauce all over it, before putting it in a bowl or plate for personal consumption. So many people I talk to as soon as I mention Japan (which I try not to, but be my looks it comes up alot) immediately try to identify and ask me questions about Japanese cartoon characters, Kawasaki motors, or language questions, and I am totally stumped. Most everything I learned about Japan, has not come from me growing up in Japan, but by reading magazines and articles from TIME, or other journals in English! So I feel inadequate at times, but have learned to MOVE ON! --Good Luck to you wherever you are. (reply to this comment)

From afflick Wednesday, February 08, 2006, 17:56 (Agree/Disagree?) My list: (I left TFI at age 24, so my list begins there) cell phones: 25 credit reports: 26 credits (for university): 24 lemon drop shots: 25 That Noah's Ark has in fact not yet been discovered: 30 The scientifically reported age of the earth/universe: 29 the differences in ideology between Republicans/Democrats: 27 the locations (in the US) of Harvard, Yale, Cornell: 29 (reply to this comment)

From Lance Saturday, February 11, 2006, 15:57 (Agree/Disagree?) I had been out of the cult for about two months when I was having a conversation with a UT student and they mentioned that they were up all night writing a paper. In my ignorance I replied with: "O, are you a journalist?"(reply to this comment)

From Phoenixkidd Thursday, February 09, 2006, 06:08 (Agree/Disagree?) Thanks Afflick! Great Stuff, alot of people have their parents to talk to when it came to stuff like taxes, credit reports, co-signing etc...we had none! (reply to this comment)

From Sydney Wednesday, March 08, 2006, 19:26 (Agree/Disagree?) Yeah I didn't even know how to vote in my country when I turned 18...much less that I had to register first (a few months ahead of turning 18) and that it's illegal not to vote in my country....you will get fined if you don't. oooppps... missed the last election because I had no Idea. (reply to this comment)