Topic: Lost In Translation

[AmandaSue]

I just thought I would pass along a funny story and ask about a term.

Yesterday I was interviewing a woman in New Zealand via Skype. Her accent was, of course, very thick. But, I had been able to understand her until...I asked her what they kept Kiwi eggs in while they were in the field. She replied giving me great information but she kept calling the container a "chili box" (at least that's what I heard). I kept taking notes because she was still speaking and I didn't want t interrupt, because it was obvious that I should know what a chili box is.

After her explanation she asked "Would you like to see the egg box?" I could have kissed her through the screen!  She pulled out the egg box. It's a cooler.

That's when I put two and two together. It wasn't "chili box" it was "chilling" or "chiller" box. I'm still not sure because of the accent.

So there is my story about different vocabulary across the big blue. And if anyone knows whether is it chilling or chiller, please tell me!

[KMT]

Googling < cooler new zealand chilling box > brings up a bunch of results, including "chilly bin."

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/chilly_bin

Interesting interview, I'll bet, too! (I'm very interested in birds.)

[AmandaSue]

Haha. I just looked at my notes and I have written "chili burns".  So I think you are right KMT. It must be chilly bin.

[macdibble]

I'm a Kiwi. We call them chilly bins (pronounced chully buns according to our Aussie counterparts but they call them Eskies so what the hull do they know?)

Yes, it's an insulated foam box... usually with handles for the purposes of carting cold food and beer to sports games.

:D

[macdibble]

Oh and if you are confused when I say I'm a Kiwi, then you'll probably need to know what the three types of Kiwi are and luckily I had an article published on that very topic in Hullabaloo Magazine:

http://members.optushome.com.au/brenmacd/kiwi1.pdf


(Also the plural of Kiwi is Kiwi - the magazine got that a little wrong but you don't have to. It's not an English word so it doesn't follow English pluralisation structure, altho in general speech, especially about human Kiwi it does.)

[AnneB]

oooh! I knew what all three of them were! I'm so proud of myself!

Going forward, I shall call our Coleman cooler a chilly bin in your hono(u)r, macdibble!

[macdibble]

Yay! Corrupting the world... one person at a time!

Do you know about Jandals?

[JulieM]

Oh, things can get so lost in translation! Can I share a similar story? When I was a zookeeper, I was telling some Americans about Tasmanian Devils and said that the animals eat meat. The visitors then asked me how the devils managed to breed. I explained the process, and was then asked: "but how do they manage to breed when they eat their mates?" When I asked them which crazy person had told them that, they said ME!  (Apparently "meat" sounded like "mate", but of course that's utter nonsense.)

[macdibble]

Absolute nonsense, when you say Mate it sounds like Meayyt, not Meat! 

[AnneB]

I had to look up Jandals, but I like the term a lot better than flip-flops or that other word that turned into underwear back in the mid-90's!