LIFE OUTSIDE THE TENT (CHEW SOCK ON THE ROOF WITH A LOUD BANG)

in the spare room
and the mossies are rampant
somehow the little buggers are squeezing in around the screens
insect kamikaze pilots, wreckless specimens
hurling themselves fearlessly at my defenceless flesh
come to fill up on my vegan blood
and blood sports, my seedlings,
are one thing i can't stand...
anyway, back in the O2 tent
after a chew-sock spent with the outlaws / inlaws
over at changmonim's place in gaebong
j's sis, minja, and her hubby
turn up unexpectedly with their 2 daughters
(h's cousins, yoora and jeewoo)
we tuck into some hearty chuseok fare
changmo has got me in some delicioso green bean pancakes
from the local market, bless her soul
(worth the admission price in themselves)
deep-fried mushrooms and courgettes
veggie buckwheat noodles
yummy mountain vegetable side-dishes
sticky purple rice with beans in it
marinated tofu
who says it's hard to be vegan?
dive-bombing moquito hits its target
fireseed's compassion for all sentient beings is rapidly crumbling
don't know what it is about these occasions
might well have a lot to do with stuffing
unusually large quantities
of tasty and wholesome but heavy food
down my gullet
but fireseed always come down
with an acute case of sleeping sickness!
may also be the shock of being unceremoniously chucked out
of my O2 tent
all that colloquial korean zinging about
the tv blaring out its holiday vacuous entertainment specials
but at some point i manage to escape the food and din
to take h and yoora up onto the roof to see the full moon
and the sea of tranquility
(fireseed startin' to get real fond
of these handy rooftop vantage points)
our lunar friend does not disappoint
as round and bright as i can ever remember
'why is it round tonight?' asks h, intelligently
daddy wishes he'd paid more attention at school
we climb down and the whole family
heads down to the local norae bang
korea's answer to kareoke
the funny thing about norae bang is
i always hate the idea of it
but always ending up enjoying it
of course it's naff as hell
locked in a room with the in-laws
thumbing through a book of hits
by musical heavyweights of the likes of cliff richard, westlife and englebert humperdink
(not a trace of bowie or bolan)
horrible digital echo on the mike
which amplifies every flat note and mistimed entrance
about 10 times
four tv screens showing the same bizarre visuals
always out-of-sync or totally unconnected with the song
the mock 96% score out of 100
which you get even if you don't sing anything!
and yet, and yet...
it somehow brings everyone out of themselves
changmonim does a heartfelt and surprisingly well-sung rendition
of some 60's korean ballad
minja and hubby do a slightly off-key duet arms linked
the kids shake the tambourines and have their turns
even my feeble attempts
at some jaurim and a couple of korean folk songs
gain nuff respect from changmonim
to get her asking j why i can't speak korean
when i can sing in it!

after leaving changmo's place
and taking leave of the outlaws
la famille watton take in a kids' play at a little teatro in hongdae
'mr wolf and one little pig'
mainly in english
a confusing musical take on the trad story
with pretty much zero plot
but some expressive acting by the main character
then we brave the hoards of trolley-pushers
at the world cup stadium super
to pick up a yoga mat
and a new bubble thingy and some plants
for our aquarium
can't say fireseed's completely relished his unfamiliar role
as aquarist...aquatist?
a good/bad number of the little friends
we inherited from the previous owners
have since gone to their little fishy graves in the sky
then alarmingly one day out of the blue
the bubble thingy just stops
and the water starts stagnating
thought our little aquatic companions
were all gonna bite the dust
but against all odds, there haven't been any more fatalities
fireseed been doin' his level best to clean the tank
and scrape off the algy with a toothbrush
fireseed, not renowned for his pet-pampering skills,
feeling quite proud of himself...

"sunday morning
praise the dawning
it's just a restless feeling by my side
early dawning,
sunday morning
it's just the wasted years so close behind"

be proud of yourselves, two, deer readers!
laters
f