funny how

vegemite kid

vegemite kid
Written by Cathoel Jorss,

One’s German companion begins to assimilate. He is working his way through a jar of Vegemite, observing that it contains the exact same colouring as Coca-Cola: 150c. “The trouble with Vegemite,” he says, scraping the traces of its oily residue into his gullet to clean the butter knife, “is it kind of contaminates the knife. You really wouldn’t want it to end up in the strawberry jam.”

“Ugh,” I say, “no,” thinking of my brother with his webbed feet who used to eat one big bite of his toast with Vegemite and then four tiny bites of his other toast with honey. But Vegemite and honey, like honey with soy sauce, is in a special class of its own. We are on our verandah where the morning sun slants across the houses and I am gazing dreamily at the near corner of our block, a shady spot under the camphor laurel, where the rusted star picket has trapped a flapping shard of paper. “In Germany of course,” he says, “some people eat liverwurst with marmalade.” I put my cup of tea down and stare at it. The milk has turned it to the exact colour, pinkish and intimate, of liverwurst. Life is disgusting and here we are in its midst, chewing and swallowing, digesting and turning everything to shit. Sitting so pretty and containing all the world in minute, pulsing, cellular form, thinking our slow morning thoughts and and gazing at the sun.

6 comments on “vegemite kid

  1. jennifer jackman says:

    Nothing, I tell you, is wrong with vegemite and raspberry jam on the same piece of toast. Nothing!

  2. Cathoel Jorss says:

    Wow, your mind must be broader than mine, Jennifer! However I dare you to extend that devil-may-care adventurousness to liverwurst+jam. If you try it, let me know.

  3. jennifer jackman says:

    I will take you up on that challenge: think of it Cathoel as a version of hard cheese and accompaniments eaten with fruit paste…not such a terrible leap to liverwurst and jam! I love liverwurst actually, bet I’ve never had the ‘real deal’ though. I’ll let you know if i survive experimentation

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