African heritage reflections

Lately I've been missing my family, but I got an email update this morning from my aunt and it inspired me to write a little blog on all the lovely terms that I want to use, but can't because one I have a Canadian accent so it sounds horrible, and two because most people won't get what I'm saying. Here are a few of them (some of which my mother has been using for years):

• bokkies - little boxes/pots
• bakkie (pronounced bucky) - small pick-up truck
• "Ag, shame!" - term use when anything goes wrong, or is cute, etc usually denoting a sympathetic feeling
• woofie - term used most often by my aunt to describe dogs
• stompie - small end of something, most often used to refer to the butts of cigarettes
• Tot Siens - goodbye in Afrikaans
• "Foertsek!!!" - basically the equivalent to "Buggar off!"
• designer - term used most often by my aunt to descibe anything fancy
• braai (pronounced br-eye) - barbequing meat over an open fire of hard wood
• pommie - term used to refer to Brits (prisoners of mother England)
• Mugabe - dictator who is ruining the state of Zimbabwe (oh wait, we can all used that one - had to get a jab in there)
• mealie - green corn
• robot - traffic light
• podkos (pronounced pot-kor-ss)- snacks
• sarmie (pronounced sah-mee) - sandwhich
• naartjie (pronounced nar-chee) - name for a tangerine
• Bobotie (pronounced buh-boor-tee) – traditional South African dish made with minced meat and curried spices, with an egg sauce which is poured on top and then baked.
• muti (pronounced moo-tee) - medicine (usually referring to liquid forms taken orally)
• slops/slip-slops - flip flops/thong sandals
• cozzie/togs - swimming wear