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MATES and FRIENDS

A mate generally means, for many cultures, someone you partner up with to share life - and mainly to do so for a lifetime. Of course, there are variations of that coupling but in Australia, the term mate signifies a very close, non-sexual relationship - almost like being joined to a sibling. To be a mate down here in Oz means you are more than a friend. To use an American term, a mate is a special buddy. It's also a general term used in a greeting such as, "G/day mate - how you goin'?" As being a mate is so respected, something of that respect is passed on in that greeting - even to a stranger. For Lee, the Englishman (Pom), calling someone mate in England does not quite hold the same reverence. So to hear his perspective of Aussie mateship, now he lives in Australia, is quite refreshing. But what of friends, is there a difference? And what about Femship, can a guy be a mate with a woman without intimacy? ... And do Australian women have mates? It's an interesting topic and boys get right into it.

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