Kiwi Lingo

My new job has taught me some interesting new lingo.  The family has lived previously in Italy and Spain, and the mother is Italian and speaks it with Victoria.  So I've been keen to learning some Italian (which is quite similar to español) and kiwi lingo.

Victoria has a kiwi accent, and it's adorable, but it is also incredible to hear her fancy Italian.  She is wonderfully polite.  I feel embarrassed because I say "What?" a lot, whereas she says "Pardon?".  It sounds so much nicer.  There are some words that I've just now learned.  For example, we had to 'tidy' up the 'rumpus room'y yesterda.  Which means to 'clean' up the 'play room'.  A closet is called a 'wardrobe' and a garage is pronounced like it rhymes with carriage.  So I'm constantly learning new things to say and before long, Bret and I are convinced that we'll be able to use some of the slang.

We recently got library cards for ChCh public libraries, and we rented the first season of Flight of the Conchords.  The comedy show has been running on HBO in the US and is about two kiwi men who have just moved to New York to continue their band success from NZ.  But really, they aren't very successful.  Their names are Jemaine and Bret, and they pronounce Bret like 'Brit', and sometimes I can't help calling Bret that.  The show is silly, and the men break into song during everday situations, mimicking popular bands.  All I can remember is last summer, when Jody and I went to NYC to visit our friend Rachel, she kept asking, "What time is it?" or "Do you know what time it is?", and every single time I would fall for it and tell her the actual time, and she would say, "No, it's business time!" which was a redundant recitation of a Flight of the Conchords video, which she wouldn't let me forget!  I haven't come across that episode yet in the DVDs but when I do, I'll FINALLY know what she's talking about!