I have seen similar lists over the years, but this one made me stop and think about things 'back home' and say a quick prayer for many people I know still living in Zim ... and if some of them mean absolutely nothing to you, find a Zimbo to explain what you missed out on in life!
You played "Bezant" at midnight, full of Castle and ended up in the rockery
You shot every snake you saw even though you knew they were essential to the balance of nature
You argued that Castle was for men and Lion was for kids and pommies
You still refer to felt-tip pens as Neos
You still have Wrex Tarr's LPs
You remember Christmas beetles
You played in a sand pit and on the jungle jim
You remember Jacaranda trees in full bloom, followed by the Flambouyant trees
You still remember the taste of Mazoe Orange Juice
You still refer to an expert as a "fundi"
You still say "braai" instead of "barbeque", "kopje" instead of "hill" and "gomo" instead of mountain.
You had waffles and ice-cream soda in the Barbours tea-room whilst your mom had tea and a toasted and buttered fruit bun.
The following names mean something to you: "Archies", "Sandros" "Bretts" "Le Coq D'or" and "the Tube"
You sat at Castle Corner and don't remember who won the cricket
match
You were there when the "chicken farmer" beat
You think the "All Blacks" are the Zim tennis team
You thought that an evening at the Reps Theatre was the height of culture
You still call a Mongolian restaurant a "Manchurian"
You loved the Choc 99’s from the Dairy Den
You know at least one person who has streaked at the Harare Cricket
grounds
thought the
You wore Bubblegummers for the first years of your life and Toughees thereafter until your old man thought you were ready for vellies
You cleaned out the stocks of Liqui Fruit, Nik Naks and canned drinks in
You cannot be convinced that anyone other than Lions Den Butchery made the best biltong in the world
You spent 5 glorious days on a houseboat on Kariba, more than once
You own at least 5 different Colmans and they are all decrepit
The best day of your life was when your Dad gave you a 22 to replace that underpowered peashooter of a pellet gun
You see absolutely no use for sun cream
You always thought Simon Parkinson should pack it in and when he did you nearly cried
You owned a pair of blue or red patapatas
You had breakfast at Wimpy at the country's only
You had to wait for yonks to get your metal ID disk
You freewheeled down any sort of hill to save fuel; you remember petrol rationing coupons
You watched many a movie at the Mabelreign or NiteStar drive-in
You remember when Noreen Welch laughed on national TV and got sacked
You knew someone no matter where you went
You swam in a gala at Les Brown swimming pool
You remember party line telephone and had to listen for your ring before you could answer the phone
You thought Chicken Inn burgers were the best in the world
You remember the socializing that went on in the early petrol queues
You knew Neil at the cricket
2 comments:
What a fun read! I totally remember several of those things!My favorite being:
Jacaranda Trees in bloom,
Mazoe Orange juice, waffles and ice-cream soda at Barbours (special treat my grandpa Robert Smith)choc 99, Reps Theatre, Drive-In, Rex tar with Jamisie Bondi, Noreen Welch cracking up on TV & Wimpy!
Good times! Good Memories!
LEAST favorite:
Christmas beetle crawling down my ear in the middle of the night! Mom and Dad thought i was being murdered...VERY painful!!!
I lived in Funa Zonke and remember the Eskimo Hut by the Showgrounds,Centenery Park,Malemi Dam and Matopos.Happy days that i miss.
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