Not entirely. The Common Wombat is the ultimate curmudgeon. A solitary
and foul tempered burrowing beast, short, fat and hirsute (which is why
I took it as my totem). Tales abound of people who built a house on a
seasonal track and found that the wombat simply went straight through
it when he returned without using the doors. They are compact, solid,
well equipped for digging and very, very determined. A big male can run
to 45-50kg and they are bad tucker (taste notsogood).
The mating ritual is short, loud, effective and pretty much
indistinguishable from a fight. It results from a casual or accidental
encounter and the initial foreplay involves first determining the
opponent's gender in order to decide whether rape or grievous bodily
harm is on the agenda. Afterwards they both leave immediately for
different pubs. They don't write, call or pay maintenance. Not all
vegetarians are nice, PC, new age types (Hitler comes to mind).
The rarer Hairy-Nosed Wombat is much more sociable. Perhaps that's why
it's rarer?
I find any animal that uncute to be quite irresistible. You couldn't
keep one as a pet unless you were prepared to concrete your yard and
accept some very challenging behaviour. Gotta respect that.
Oh, and to get back to the start of this thread, I took a quick look at
the book in question today. I'm definitely a 'stickler.'
Andrew'F
On 16/06/2004, at 1:05 PM, Earl Dunbar wrote:
> He got to the root of it, eh?
>
> On 6/16/2004 at 12:49 PM Wayne Harridge wrote:
>
>> Great explanation Nick, I didn't want to attempt it in this forum.
>> ...Wayne
>>
>>> Nick Wilson <toona@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>> I have just found this thread. I do think that the Australian in joke
>>> has passed most by.
>>> An Australian edition would be called 'Eats, roots, shoots and
>>> leaves'. This is traditionally ascribed to the sexist Wombat male.
>>> 'Root' in Australia can mean the sexual act, as a verb or noun, sort
>>> of like 'screw' I think. So the meaning is VERY different if you
>>> apply
>>> 'root' in that way. It has to be a male Wombat because of the
>>> 'shoots' bit.
>>> Presumably they leave straight after being fed and serviced to get to
>>> the pub.
>>>
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