Sweet shit, scam artistry and bloody murder...
I know I promised to tell you all about GoStop... well, in a nutshell, it seems it may have originated in Japan, and was originally called "Go Dori" (five birds), after one of the high-scoring hands that can spell a victory. Instead of the familiar four suits of 13 cards found in Western cards, this deck has 12 suits of 4 cards apiece. The suits are flora-based, though one has gotten the Korean name "Ddong" (turd) based on the turd-shaped black blob from which it's little blue or purple flowers grow. The most interesting card of this suit features the prerequisite life-giving turd, and in the background, what appears to be a flaming rooster or turkey flying out of the setting sun - a phoenix?
The cards are tiny, and made of some type of stiff plastic - much thicker and heavier than Western cards, and ideal for throwing one on top of another to produce a satisfying "Ddak" sound. The sound is so satisfying it is even mimicked in the popular on-line versions of the game played by many Koreans for virtual cash. Follow the link above to see one Western dude's interprestations of the rules. I'll refrain from trying to explain the rules here; you'll just have to swing by my place with some beer and cajole me into teaching you first hand.
One question that continues to nag at and puzzle me, what's with the deepset cultural phenomenon of the Korean fascination with turd? It appears in their games, in their childhood doodles, in their children's books, and in their folktales. Yeah, we have our Hankie the Christmas Poo, and children everywhere get guilty giggles out of mentioning or depicting their poopoo...
but a card game?
And then there's Kwon Jung-Seng's touching childhood tale, colorfully illustrated by Jung Seung-Gak, "Puppy Poo", which tells the story of a lonesome puppy-turd's enlightenment as to the meaning of life. I am not making this up. Then there's the deeply disturbing traditional tale of the sweet shit, scam artistry and bloody murder recorded as "Sweet Dung, the Cake-Tree, and the Bugle of Life" by Jung In-Sub in "Folk Tales From Korea". Who'da thunk a poor man finding a honeycomb while out cutting wood could result in a local nobleman blowing a bugle up the ass of his brutally slain wife?
I wonder if the omnipresent doo-doo has anything to do with the high concentration of farming (now in decline) on such a small amount of fertile land - most of Korea being mountains. Anyone who's smelled a rice paddy in mid-summer might back me up on this one. Wash those carrots reeeal good.
Now, just so I don't leave off with the wrong impression. I love it here. The fact that the adults share the childhood fascination with poo, especially in the form of a card game, tends to make my facetious self feel deeply at home. The love of drink and grilled meat tends to enhance this warm fuzziness.
The cards are tiny, and made of some type of stiff plastic - much thicker and heavier than Western cards, and ideal for throwing one on top of another to produce a satisfying "Ddak" sound. The sound is so satisfying it is even mimicked in the popular on-line versions of the game played by many Koreans for virtual cash. Follow the link above to see one Western dude's interprestations of the rules. I'll refrain from trying to explain the rules here; you'll just have to swing by my place with some beer and cajole me into teaching you first hand.
One question that continues to nag at and puzzle me, what's with the deepset cultural phenomenon of the Korean fascination with turd? It appears in their games, in their childhood doodles, in their children's books, and in their folktales. Yeah, we have our Hankie the Christmas Poo, and children everywhere get guilty giggles out of mentioning or depicting their poopoo...
but a card game?
And then there's Kwon Jung-Seng's touching childhood tale, colorfully illustrated by Jung Seung-Gak, "Puppy Poo", which tells the story of a lonesome puppy-turd's enlightenment as to the meaning of life. I am not making this up. Then there's the deeply disturbing traditional tale of the sweet shit, scam artistry and bloody murder recorded as "Sweet Dung, the Cake-Tree, and the Bugle of Life" by Jung In-Sub in "Folk Tales From Korea". Who'da thunk a poor man finding a honeycomb while out cutting wood could result in a local nobleman blowing a bugle up the ass of his brutally slain wife?
I wonder if the omnipresent doo-doo has anything to do with the high concentration of farming (now in decline) on such a small amount of fertile land - most of Korea being mountains. Anyone who's smelled a rice paddy in mid-summer might back me up on this one. Wash those carrots reeeal good.
Now, just so I don't leave off with the wrong impression. I love it here. The fact that the adults share the childhood fascination with poo, especially in the form of a card game, tends to make my facetious self feel deeply at home. The love of drink and grilled meat tends to enhance this warm fuzziness.
posted by Mr. Matthews at 11:43 PM
1 Comments:
You know what would make this "Go, Stop" game interesting? You could bruise the crap out of everyones' wrists if you won, wouldn't that be fun? Speaking of crap... nice expose on the poo. Appreciate that.
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