Verse And Worse

Random Wit, Errant Rhyme. Not A Literary Crime

I went to college with Theodore Toohey
He had red hair and was nicknamed Bluey
He dated a brunette who was rather cluey
And she started called him "Ratter" Touille

Dying Embers Of The Day

Only One More Sunset Until Summer

Photograph copyight: DAVID McMAHON

I shot this a few hours ago, at dusk yesterday. Let me explain. I live in Australia, where it's Friday morning, while it's still Thursday in the United States, Canada and Europe. And while the rest of the world is gearing up for winter, we celebrate the first day of summer on Saturday.

Confused? Yep, I thought you might be. And just to prove that we are a happily topsy-turvy race, we have a special name for blokes with red hair. They're called "Bluey". No, I'm not kidding you. That's why Sir Richard Branson's Australian airline is called Virgin Blue, even though its planes are red. You can't get more Aussie than that, mate!

Red-Letter Daze

Aussies Aren't Really Colour-Blind, Mate



There was an interesting aside from Montana-based Ms Creek in a comment she contributed to my post Krusty The Crown. She sounded a bit puzzled when she said that an Australian bloke she once knew, used to refer to her as ``Bluey’’. Yep, that’d be right. Anyone with red hair is traditionally called Bluey here. Pretty logical, isn't it? Same reason a six-footer is called ``Shortarse''. Same reason a colleague of mine used to call me ``Curly''.

Other great Australian nicknames are ``Colt 45’’ for a big bore; ``Hurricane Lamp’’ for someone who’s not very bright; and ``Barrister’’ for a drinker who is always at the bar.

And Sir Richard Branson, whose latest revelations about joining the mile-high club can be seen at The Sun, showed his corporate nous when he brought his airline to Australia. The airline, which started flying in May 2000, is called Virgin Blue – because its planes are red.