PSA To Non-Aussies — Australians Are Sick To Death Of Being Asked These Questions

Sincerely — an Australian.

Reddit user u/natpatel101 took to the trusty digital streets of the Ask An Australian forum to ask: "As an Australian, what are you sick of being asked? 🤣". Here are some suggestions that fellow Aussies are exhausted of hearing...

Will they ever stop? Probably not.

1. "How do you say the word 'No'?"

@woketwink / Via Instagram: @https://www.instagram.com/woketwink/p/C0ZaEKzuUVW/

— u/Tushdish

The "Naur" meme feels like it took off with the infamous line from H2O: Just Add Water — "Oh no, Cleo the condensation!". But the exaggerated spelling and pronunciation was never really coined by the people saying it (Aussies), just by people hearing it (the rest of the world). You can stop anytime you like!

2. “Can you say it now?”

"How about we try 'get fucked' instead 😂?"

— u/optimistic_E

3. "Do you need to swear so much?"

@tastelessbaker

🎉 1 MILLION 🎉 French Toast 4-6 slices brioche bread 4 eggs 6 g cinnamon Pinch of nutmeg 6 g salt 40 g light brown sugar 60 ml milk 60 g heavy cream Butter, condensed milk, bananas for topping #frenchtoast #recipe #bread #tastelessbaker #swearing #aussie #baker #1millionfollowers #breadtok

♬ original sound - Señor Kane

@tastelessbaker / Via tiktok.com

"No, but it helps..."
— u/Xags

It's a part of the culture, and sometimes it feels so engrained into our vocabulary that swearing is second nature. You'll get used to it.

4. "Do [you] have a FlyBuys/Rewards card?"

@laredgar

do u have a woolies card xx

♬ Up by Olly murs. - ⭐️

@laedgar / Via tiktok.com

For any non-Aussies playing at home, these are loyalty cards used at two of Australia's major supermarkets — Coles and Woolworths. You can also use them at affiliated petrol stations and department stores like the happiest place on earth, Kmart!

5. "How ya garn?"

— u/Archibald_Thrust

6. "Is there a bridge between Australia and New Zealand?"

BuzzFeed Australia

— u/Broad-Pangolin6224

Okay here's a sexy little movie pitch. Working title: Bridge to Aotearoa!

It's kinda like the 2007 smash hit, Bridge to Terabithia, but without all the sad bits and with more New Zealand humour. Someone greenlight it, then I'll think of the plot. You can put Josh Hutcherson into it, he can whistle a song. 

7. "Tasmanian here. All I ever heard about was the devil, and even I got sick of spinning ridiculous lore about this creature."

Warner Bros. Entertainment/ / Via youtube.com

— u/ThroughTheHoops

The portrayal of the Tasmanian Devil in Looney Tunes and Space Jam might have something to do with this...

The real question we should be asking is: "Why does the devil get all the love?"

"Bring back the Thylacine please."

— u/P3t3R_Parker

Forrest Galante / Via youtube.com

8. "Why is your national anthem so short?"

Jajah-sireenut / Getty Images

"Only happened once, but someone asked me why our national anthem is so short. They thought 'Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi, Oi, Oi!' was our anthem."

— u/matchstick_yeet

9. "Are you guys 'upside down'?"

Fanmio / Via giphy.com

"There are interesting questions about [Australia's] remoteness from Europe and North America, and about our seasons being opposite. But questions about being 'upside down' usually come from a place of ignorant incuriosity."

— u/ptolani

Is this Stranger Things? 

10. "Vegemite — is it chocolate?"

BuzzFeed Australia/Woolworths

— u/Padamson96

The only appropriate response to this question is to pull out your emergency Vegemite jar — something that ~every~ Australian has with them at all times. Let them find out for themselves!

11. "How do you deal with spiders?"

Would you believe these silky sheets are actually spider webs that formed in Australia pic.twitter.com/BuSB6GCoyY

— Historic Vids (@historyinmemes) February 3, 2024

Twitter: @historyinmemes

— u/relativedistraction

"Easy...My kids name them and then get concerned if they aren't in their usual spot." 

— u/SnooRobots5051

You can encounter them anywhere so, my advice? Just make one of them your household pet and maybe, when other spiders come around, they'll defend you.

12. "How do you survive the snakes?"

@robertirwin

So this was a first for me…

♬ original sound - Robert Irwin

@robertirwin / Via tiktok.com

"If you leave the snakes the fuck alone you're even less likely to get bitten, it's really not a big deal. We're not spending all our time fighting off hoards of snakes."
— u/SammyGeorge

13. “Do you ride kangaroos/emus as a method of transportation?”

Johncarnemolla / Getty Images

"You would too if you'd ever tried riding an echidna."

— u/pwgenyee6z

Why does this make it sound like the Australian rite of passage is to go kangaroo/emu shopping with all of them gathered up like cars in a sales lot? Please...touch grass. Also if you really want to know about what our wildlife is like, take a look at the Great Emu War. 

14. "Do you want to leave a tip?"

Imagine if there was more tipping culture in Australia, like how would you even incorporate collecting tips into a routine. I would be so confused 😭😭

— Asphyxia😈🦠 (@asphyxiadq) April 1, 2020

Twitter: @asphyxiadq

"No dickhead, make your boss pay you properly - I’m already paying $30 for my avocado toast and coffee."

— u/maid_of_micheif

15. "Do you have electricity?"

Mashable / Via giphy.com

— u/Potential-Fox-4039

Pardon, sir?

16. "Why do you say 'throw another shrimp on the barbie'?"

BuzzFeed Australia

— u/MissyCobain

"I am yet to have met anyone that has ever thrown a shrimp on the barbie."

— u/Mental_Gymnast23

ICYMI, we actually don't say that! Shrimps are called prawns over here.

17. "Have you ever seen a kangaroo?"

Liudmila Chernetska / Getty Images

"Yes we see them, they're pests. Very large ones, but pests still."

— u/Ok_Anteater7360

"And no, we can't ride them..."

— u/natpatel01

18. "Are you from Sydney?"

Pop_jop / Getty Images

"No, Perth." 

"Where's that?"

— u/lulubean1407

Actually, there's seven other states and territories that feature other capital cities. You'd be surprised. 

19. And finally, "When the next season of Bluey is coming out?"

@OfficialBlueyTV / Via x.com

— u/BigMitch91

What questions are you sick of being asked?

Share them in the comments below!