quicko: exercise? pants

It seems to be a bit of an (entirely too-long-lasting) fad here that girls are wearing those tight, black (or leopard print, or whatever) exercise leggings as pants -- with nothing over them.  Men shouldn't wear speedos, but, really, girls also shouldn't wear leggings by themselves either.  Just an awkward look all around!

quicko: what not to wear

"Less is more doesn't apply to men's togs*." -- Advertisement (for what, I have no idea) in Sydney

So, so agreed.

*Vocabulary lesson of the day:  togs = bathing suit.  As do bathers, cozzie (cozzy?), swimming costume and a probably an assortment of others.

quicko: a dressing gown

AKA a bathrobe.

quicko: the secret's not out

There is no Victoria Secret in Australia!  I really don't know why not, and I'm a bit distressed about it.

quicko: pantyhose

America, 10.  Australia, 0.

Sheer (ha!) number of pairs that worked from each country recently.  Possibly slightly biased.  And approximated.  Artistic license, for goodness sake!

But really.  American pantyhose are that much more sheer (i.e., look better and don't get as crinkled around the ankles, giving you that elderly doddery lady look).  They get runs (er, ladders) pretty much all the time, so I regard them as one-time use creations, but they're so much cheaper, it works out about even.

Which might lead you to argue that the numbers should be, say, 10-10.

But you'd be wrong.

Because American pantyhose are better.  Artistic license, case closed.

update: THAT hat

Avid readers may remember ages ago, around November 2010, there was a particular incident involving a particular hat and a particular friend.  Nearly two years you've waited for photographic evidence of what precisely that very precise hat looked like, and now you finally have it.  Or at least as close as you can come.  Though you may recall that the particular incident was particularly unsuccessful, the particular friend's particular parents purchased the precise hat.  I'm now pleased to finally be able to give you a very accurate picture of a very precise hat:

Particularly worth it, wouldn't you say?

quicko: sizes

I don't think I've mentioned this before and it's bordering on a bit obvious, but there are different sizes of clothing here as to in, well, other parts of the world.  I think shoes are roughly the same (though there's a distinct proclivity away from half sizes here), but tops, pants, bras, etc. are done on different systems.  Thank goodness I'm really just more of an eyeballer to begin with.

quicko: bonds

Bonds is the Australian every household sort of brand of underwear.  More specialized (I think?) than Marks and Spencer, and probably a little more ... casual.  It's certainly no Victoria's Secret, but presumably a bit more affordable.

quicko: blunnies

AKA blunt stoned work boots.

quicko: stubbies

Dual meaning:  1., n, a kind of beer.  2., n., a kind of short shorts for men.

quicko: sloppy joe

Sloppy joes have utterly different meanings in America as in Australia.  In America, they are (obviously!) drippy meat sandwiches that make a huge mess.  In Australia, they are (shock!  horror!) a sort of sweater along the lines of track suit material, but not wool.

Either that or one of my co-workers has a family with very creative names for their clothing.

I'm not quite sure which.  Any other Australians want to back her up on this one?

quicko: clothing

Two observations here.

First, skinny jeans are in. Oh help.

Second, it's a huge faux pas to wear sneakers (aka trainers) with jeans. What else, you may ask, do you wear sneakers with? Evidently protocol only calls when one is wearing the trakkie daks (track suit pants), or possibly when one is engaged in a vigorous outdoor sort of activity, like bushwalking (which, incidentally, is more or less taking a hike anywhere outside the city center).

quicko: school uniforms

School uniforms are a bit of a hot topic in debate classes, and I daresay reality, from time to time, but growing up I certainly never wore one. It was only those snobby Catholic schools that did, right?

Here they're normal. Every kid wears one. And it's adorable to see the little boys hopping on the buses in their straw hats -- yes, straw hats -- and blue check shirts. Or maybe plain blue ones. Or maybe white ones, depending on the school. They're all matching, though, if they go to the same place.

The poor girls look terrible in them, though. They have to wear these uniforms fairly high up in the academic ranks, and none of the girls look good in them. At least they suffer together. Bless.