A JP-worthy conversation

I take a bus to center of town somewhere around three times a week. Sometimes to get groceries but more often than not, it is to visit the hardware store to buy yet another tool or some minor home repair item. (Yesterday I bought a doorhandle for what was my fourth replacement since moving in just over a month ago. How many doorknobs have you had to replace in a lifetime? Only five more sets and I will have completed every door in the house.)

What made a recent bus trip JP-worthy was meeting a young man in edgier than the usual Japenese-black outfit. When he said his name was Ramone (not a common name here) I exclaimed "Ah the Ramones!" with little expectation that the word would mean anything. Instead he started rattling off bands like The Smiths, The Pogues, Morrisey, and some more obscure that I would have to go back to 1988 and ask Gary Poppe about. He talked about either a record store or a concert he'd gone to in the country's capital some years ago. (Does anyone know if The Ramones over had an Asian tour that include some of the less popular destinations?)

This was a conversation that I could have bluffed my way through in the US but what made it more remarkable was that most of it was in the local language. And I followed most of it!

Next bus trip, I'll keep my eyes open to see if I can find a Parrot Head.

Today's language lesson: The local word for rock musician or band is "rocker."