Funny, strange, upsetting, pleasing, inspiring, frightening, touching ...

Topic 115 Funny, strange, upsetting, pleasing, inspiring, frightening, touching ...

23 April 2021

1. What do you find funny? Example? Is your sense of humour different in some way from Australian humour?

2. What kind of things do you find strange? Examples? Why do you think these things are strange?

3. What upsets you? Why don't you like this experience?

4. Tell us about some things which please you (... now, sometimes, always, a past experience ... )

5. Some people are easily inspired. Others are not. Has anything (or anyone) every inspired you? What usually inspires people?

6. A phobia is a situation or animal that a person is very afraid of. Some people are afraid of spiders (arachnophobia). Some people are afraid of heights (acrophobia) ... and so on. Do you have any phobias? How can you cure a phobia?

7. If something is 'touching', that means you feel sympathy or affection or gratitude. For example, if a child gives you an unexpected gift, you might find that act touching. Have your emotions ever been touched like this? How did you react?

8. Australians will often test the character of people they know or meet. This is test works by teasing or even insulting someone a little, but it is (usually) a joke, not vicious. For example, my neighbour just bought a very small motor scooter. (He already has a big SUV). I said "that looks like a dangerous machine". He laughed at my sarcastic joke. That was the correct response. He knew I wasn't being nasty. He passed my Australian cultural test as a decent guy. In many other cultures, a person would be angry and insulted by my comment. They would fail the Australian cultural test. Have you been tested by teasing in Australia? How did you react?

9 What is a 'sobering' experience which you have had? A sobering experience is something which forces you to face reality quickly instead of dreaming. For example, maybe you thought you were very clever, then you failed an exam badly. That would be a sobering experience. [The dictionary meaning of sober is the opposite of drunk].

10. What do you find exhilarating? If you are exhilarated you feel very excited and pleased.