Well, mom said I could only have an elephant if I cleaned out its cage every day
As a merry fundraising exercise for Red Nose Day, everyone at the office was invited to bring in one of their childhood pics, for the hilarity of identity guessing to ensue. This* was mine. I was told it was way too easy.
This I assumed to be because of what my grin did, and still does, to my big fat round cheeks. Possibly also because I am rather vocal about my fondness for cats, the bigger the better. But slowly it dawned on me that it was, perhaps, more about the most classic of misbegotten South African stereotypes. "Is that your dad?"€ was the first odd question. Later, someone actually said, "So you had a pet lion!"
Yes. Yes, growing up in the suburbs, I had a pet lion. Didn'€™t you? Oh no, sorry, this is England. So you probably had a deer, then. Right?
_____
* Taken at a circus, as if you didn't know
This I assumed to be because of what my grin did, and still does, to my big fat round cheeks. Possibly also because I am rather vocal about my fondness for cats, the bigger the better. But slowly it dawned on me that it was, perhaps, more about the most classic of misbegotten South African stereotypes. "Is that your dad?"€ was the first odd question. Later, someone actually said, "So you had a pet lion!"
Yes. Yes, growing up in the suburbs, I had a pet lion. Didn'€™t you? Oh no, sorry, this is England. So you probably had a deer, then. Right?
_____
* Taken at a circus, as if you didn't know
2 comments:
A bit like me being asked in Switzerland whether we have elephants roaming freely in Cape Town. But then these were little kids asking the question!
And being taken seriously at work when I complained about the crocodile infestation in our swimming pool.
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