Out on the town?

Reader question:

Please explain this sentence, particularly “on the town”: Brunch was invented to satisfy the “day-after” appetite of those who were out on the town until dawn.

My comments:

Brunch, a combination of breakfast and lunch, was at the beginning designed for people who had missed their breakfast and therefore had a big appetite at lunchtime.

They missed their breakfast because, the previous night, for all night (until dawn), they had a lot to drink and perhaps got drunk – “day-after” implies that they were having what is called a hangover to recover from.

At any rate, “out on the town” is the idiom that gives us the idea that they had a good time drinking and partying.

Town, as in downtown or township, refers either to the business district of a city where shops, cinemas, beer and coffee bars congregate or to a township surrounded by farming areas, the countryside.

Well, apparently in the countryside, if farmers want to do a little shopping, watch a movie or have a drink at a bar, they have to go all the way up to the town.

This is how going out on the town becomes synonymous with singing, dancing, drinking, partying or just relaxing after a long day of work – generally enjoying oneself and having a good time.

Here are a few media examples of what happens while people are out on the town:

1. EVERY smartphone user knows the dread of seeing their battery percentage plunge into single digits.

But the fear of running out of juice while out on the town could soon be a thing of the past.

Car manufacturing giant Ford is partnering with London start-up Strawberry Electric to offer pedestrians the ultimate mobile phone pit stop.

A total of 20 Ford “smart benches” will be placed around the British capital, which offer the public free solar-powered mobile charging and 24-hour wifi access.

All services offered via the benches will be entirely free, allowing users to charge portable devices including tablets and cameras either wirelessly or plugged-in.

The benches will be wifi hotspots, too.

Director at Ford Smart Mobility, Europe, Sarah-Jayne Williams said: “At Ford, we believe the city of tomorrow should make people feel happy, safe and connected, so we’re looking at how streets could be designed to serve a full range of activities.

“Walking, along with driving and riding public transport, is part of how people get around in a city like London and Ford Smart Benches complement perfectly the increasingly connected lives we now lead.”

- Ford’s city centre ‘smart benches’ will save you if your smartphone battery is dead or you’ve run out of data, TheSun.co.uk, September 27, 2017.

2. Protecting your castle

Under what is commonly referred to as the “Castle Doctrine”, Hawaii allows you to defend yourself with deadly force when you are in your home (aka your castle), or your workplace.

You are justified in using deadly force if you believe it is necessary to protect against death, serious bodily injury, kidnapping, rape, or forcible sodomy.

It is important to keep in mind, however, that you are not justified in defending yourself in this way if you are the one who provoked the situation. In other words, punching a guy and then shooting him once he decides to retaliate is not a justified use of deadly force.

Standing your ground

While you are allowed to protect yourself when inside your home. When you are out on the town, that is a different matter completely.

Use of deadly force is not justifiable if you know you can avoid using the deadly force by retreating with complete safety, surrendering an item demanded by the other person, or complying with a demand to not do something (that you aren’t legally required to do anyway).

What this means is that if you are at a restaurant and run into a situation where you are threatened with serious bodily injury, you have a duty to retreat if it’s possible to do so safely, or to give in to the demands of the person threatening you with harm. Better to let the police handle the situation and avoid harm to yourself if possible.

Of course, even with all these laws on self-defense, you should always use your best judgment to decide what type of force is appropriate. Just because you are allowed to use deadly force doesn’t mean you have to. Taking any life is always a serious decision, and may not always be necessary in order to end a threat to you and your loved ones.

- Hawaii State Gun Law, PewPewTactical.com, May 13, 2018.

3. If you had an Olympic medal-the first gold ever won by your country, no less-you could be forgiven for letting it go to your head just a little.

Yet, two years after his dream win at the Rio Olympics, swimmer Joseph Schooling seems to have his head firmly screwed on.

It’s a remarkable fact, given that he is just 22 and became a national hero overnight (or, more precisely, 50.39 seconds flat; which is the time it took him to beat Michael Phelps and set a new games record for the 100m butterfly).

The swimmer has been road-testing his newfound fame at the University of Texas (UT) at Austin, which has been home for the last four years. He competed for the school’s prestigious swim team as an undergraduate and, although he officially graduated with an economics degree last year, is still wrapping up his coursework. He will continue to train there for the foreseeable future.

Harper’s Bazaar Singapore sat down with the Olympic champ during our poolside cover shoot in Los Angeles, where the unassuming star charmed the entire production team with his affable, obliging attitude as he modelled a pair of BOSS Swim shorts for the Bazaar video-his favourite item from his capsule collection with Boss, for whom he is the first Singaporean brand ambassador.

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“I’m a huge tequila guy,” he grins. But this world-class athlete knows when to lay off the partying.

“You can do those things, but at the right time and place. If you’ve got a big meet coming up, you can’t. After a big meet, on the weekends, if you want to go out and have fun with the guys… We’re people also.”

So does he get recognised when he is out on the town or on campus?

“Yeah, you get stares and stuff. But it's sweet, and everyone’s been respectful about it. They don’t make you feel uncomfortable.”

Especially so when it’s attention from girls, he hints impishly.

But while he concedes that being an Olympian does give him an advantage (“I guess… yeah, it does. It does.”), the social savvy star also concludes: “You’ve got to really pay attention to what the girl is trying to get out of it.”

It turns out this is a perennial topic of discussion with his parents, Eurasian businessman Colin Schooling and accountant May Schooling, who is Chinese.

“Mum and Dad drill that into me because they know I’m horrible about that; because I like to have fun,” he chuckles. When it comes to dating, “They told me just chill, be more aware and know the world isn’t as sweet as you want it to be.”

“If a girl’s agendas are not the same as yours, that’s when it starts getting tricky,” he notes.

- Joseph Schooling on talent, tenacity and tequila, AsiaOne.com, May 20, 2018.

About the author:

Zhang Xin is Trainer at chinadaily.com.cn. He has been with China Daily since 1988, when he graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Write him at: zhangxin@chinadaily.com.cn, or raise a question for potential use in a future column.