As I did a you know you´ve lived in Spain when.... list not long ago, this list, taken from smh.com.au and being aussie day and all, is a necessary addition to this blog.

How do you tell if you are a true Aussie?

1. You know the meaning of the word "girt".
2. You believe that stubbies can be either drunk or worn.
3. You think it's normal to have a leader called Kevin.
4. You've made a bong out of your garden hose rather than use it for something illegal such as watering the garden.
5. You believe it is appropriate to put a rubber in your son's pencil case when he first attends school.
6. When you hear that an American "roots for his team" you wonder how often and with whom.
7. You understand that the phrase "a group of women wearing black thongs" refers to footwear and may be less alluring than it sounds.
8. You pronounce Melbourne as "Mel-bin".
9. You pronounce Penrith as "Pen-riff".
11. You believe the "l" in the word "Australia" is optional.
12. You can translate: "Dazza and Shazza played Acca Dacca on the way to Maccas."
13. You believe it makes perfect sense for a nation to decorate its highways with large fibreglass bananas, prawns and sheep.
14. You call your best friend "a total bastard" but someone you really, truly despise is just "a bit of a bastard".
15. You think "Woolloomooloo" is a perfectly reasonable name for a place.
16. You're secretly proud of our killer wildlife.
17. You believe it makes sense for a country to have a $1 coin that's twice as big as its $2 coin.
18. You understand that "Wagga Wagga" can be abbreviated to "Wagga" but "Woy Woy" can't be called "Woy".
19. You believe that cooked-down axlegrease makes a good breakfast spread. (Vegenmite!)
20. You believe all famous Kiwis are actually Australian, until they stuff up, at which point they again become Kiwis.
21. Hamburger. Beetroot. Of course.
22. You know that certain words must, by law, be shouted out during any rendition of the Angels' song Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again.
23. You believe, as an article of faith, that the confectionary known as the Wagon Wheel has become smaller with every passing year.
24. You still don't get why the "Labor" in "Australian Labor Party" is not spelt with a "u".
25. You believe that the more you shorten someone's name the more you like them.
26. Whatever your linguistic skills, you find yourself able to order takeaway fluently in every Asian language.
27. You understand that "excuse me" can sound rude, while "scuse me" is always polite.
28. You know what it's like to swallow a fly, on occasion via your nose.
29. You understand that "you" has a plural and that it's "youse".
30. You know it's not summer until the steering wheel is too hot to handle.
31. Your biggest family argument over the summer concerned the rules for beach cricket.
32. You shake your head in horror when companies try to market what they call "Anzac cookies".
33. You still think of Kylie as "that girl off Neighbours".
34. When returning home from overseas, you expect to be brutally strip-searched by Customs - just in case you're trying to sneak in fruit.
35. When working on a bar, you understand male customers will feel the need to offer an excuse whenever they order low-alcohol beer.
36. You know, whatever the tourist books say, that no one says "cobber".

The Australianitas and 8 odd seppos.

For one night only the Americanitas and 1 odd aussie gang turned into the Australianitas and 8 odd seppos. As we had an Americanitas event for Thanksgiving, I thought it only fair to have an event for Australia Day.

The invite read, Australians all let us rejoice cause we are young and free, which taken directly from our national anthem, can easily be translated as lets have a big party and get pissed cause we don´t have a liver problem or kids yet.

We started the evening off at my place, where with all the australia themed stuff Mum has sent me over the years, everyone agreed that if I was an american I would be a redneck. There was my full sized flag and my australia flag fairy lights, my australia flag handbag, and of course I brought out the old australia flag tattoos. (Thanks Mum!) I made a big poster that had lots of australian slang words for people to learn. It was fun to hear the americans saying "He was a good root" and "Rack off hairy legs" I taught them what a seppo was, and for the spanish boyfriends I told them they were "bloody wogs". Racism Fun times.

I couldn´t think of an australian cocktail so I made caipirinhas, using both lemon and limes to make the green & gold, green & gold straws and the old australian flag on a swizzle stick. With Bernard Fanning, The Herd and Ben Lee playing in the background, I think the americans got a feel for the australia day spirit. Having it during the day, listening to the Hottest 100 on JJJ and adding a bit of cricket would have made it more authentic but with the time difference, the fact that its winter and that no-one knows what the hell cricket is, made these things quite impossible.

I also made the americans try vegemite baguettes which I decorated with some little aboriginal flags, they were quite a hit and thankfully didn´t have anyone running for the toilet for a vommie which is what Marcos predicted they would do. (He HATES vegemite, can´t even smell it. BAD boyfriend) Sarita is here with the vegemite. She particularly liked the word "clacker" from the slang list although hasn´t quite learned how to use it, asking everyone "hows your clacker?" Is there any other way to use this word other than "stick it up your clacker" ?

Marcos unfortunately couldn´t celebrate too much with us as the following morning he was running a half marathon so he was steering clear of the caipirinhas and on the orange juice, he did however put on a tattoo and kept it on for the race the next day showing his solidarity in his sleeveless running top. ZEXY QUASI AUSSIE!

After the little cocktail do at my place, we went for tapas, OK OK not very australian I know, but if I had an oven I swear I would have made meat pies, lamingtons, anzac biscuits etc but without an oven what the hell can you do? NADA!! So tapas it was, followed by a little dancing and a lovely well deserved hangover the next day.

VIVA AUSTRALIA!