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Did he just call me ‘aunty’?

By Catherine Toth Fox • April 23, 2011 • Musings, The Daily Dish

There are moments in life when you realize, ah, things have changed.

I had that moment yesterday at the vending machine near my office.

I had only brought enough change to buy a Diet Pepsi — the campus has a contract with Pepsi, otherwise I would have gotten a Diet Coke — but the machine was out. I tried to get my change back, but it didn’t work. So I stood there, annoyed that I’d have to choose between a bottle of water or Hawaiian Punch, neither of which had the caffeine I needed.

Two male students in their 20s were standing near the vending machines. One had heard me exhale in irritation and asked what happened. So I told him. Then came “the moment.”

Fifteen years ago he might have come over, offered to help in some way, maybe sacrificed his last $1.40 to get me the Diet Pepsi I so desperately wanted.

Instead, he said, “Ho, that sucks, aunty.”

I have officially lost it. Whatever “it” was.

It’s not the first time I’ve been called aunty. All of my friends’ kids call me that. And, I’ll be honest, I call a lot of people that, too, men included. It’s a way for me to get over the fact that I’m no longer “sister,” as a memorable column by Lee Cataluna once lamented. I’m aunty now. I need to accept it.

Still, it was hard to hear yesterday. Though I think if he had ponied up two bucks, I would have quickly forgiven him.

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Catherine Toth Fox

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2 Comments

  • Reply Dean Masai May 3, 2011 at 1:46 am

    Ouch! Well, to me, you don’t look it, and you certainly don’t act it. But the situation kind of reminds of the movie, “40 Carats,” which just played on TMC last night. It’s the movie about the relationships and age differences. Everything works out in the end — at least in the movies ….

  • Reply Dean Masai May 3, 2011 at 1:48 am

    Nice blog, BTW ….

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About Me

About Me
Born and raised on O‘ahu, Hawaiʻi, Catherine Toth Fox has been chronicling her adventures in her blog, The Cat Dish, for more than a decade. She worked as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i for 10 years and continues to freelance—in between teaching journalism, hitting the surf and eating everything in sight—for national and local print and online publications. She’s currently the editor of HAWAIʻI Magazine.

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