Another SSStory

[cdybedahl]

Rupert smiled. "Yes, it's very old you know. I believe it was built over one hundred years ago. Mr. Rogers from the Council owns it; it's been in his family for years."

Right... I'm betting dollars to doughnuts that the story I got was written by an American.

Comments

[kannaophelia.livejournal.com]

Could be Australian, you know. European settlement here wasn't much more than two hundred years ago, and while I think I remeber that literally millenia ago there were aboriginal buildings here, building permanent structures wasn't really a climate-suitable lifestyle, so...

A hundred years for a building really does seem very old to me. Seeing buildings that were centuries old in Uraguay was a surreal experience.

[cdybedahl.livejournal.com]

My prejudices say that Australians generally have a greater awareness that other countries are different from their own, but of course you may be right.

For me, "very old" when it comes to buildings pretty much starts at 500 years or so. "Old" starts at 200 or so. My experiences of the English (coming mostly form my former girlfriend and her family and friends) says that "old" would be 500+ and "very old" probably Roman. And I feel a rant trying to get out, so I'll save the rest for a post of its own.

[kannaophelia.livejournal.com]

Buildings 500 years or more old... makes my head hurt. ::g::

And I'd like to think you're right about Australians being more aware of the differences, but experience would suggest that perhaps not. ::g:: What was the fandom?

[cdybedahl.livejournal.com]

The oldest reasonably intact building I've been in (as far as I can remember offhand) is the old senate building in Rome, at about 2000 years or so.

For the fic referred to in my post here, Buffy. Giles most certainly wouldn't refer to something as a new as a mere hundred years as very old.

Most of my contact with Australians haven't been in fandom, but on bofhnet.