i wore flip flops to the coup

i spent the morning listening to music and thinking. around one when the sun finally broke through the rain pregnant clouds, the i met zach for a trip to the coup. roads leading to the government buildings were blocked off with barricades and soldiers whose AK47s were lashed with yellow ribbons. tourists and locals alike milled around two impotent tanks, strewn with flowers and yellow strips of cloth. lame news channels moved around, anchor tethered to video camera, trying to frame the tanks, soldiers and Buddhist wat backdropping the sight. soldiers dressed in fatigues attempted stoicism, but were soon wooed by the luxury of quick fame. a few snapshots, nothing to indicate history’s thumbprint just yet, and after a few minutes the coup lost its appeal. driving away, the traffic lined up to be turned away by policemen. a young mother on a scooter indulged her son, who was dressed in camouflage.

i met my friends at the coffeshop, and we joked about sex and bad American movies, the word “tossel” as a euphemism for penis, and the number of converse shoes owned by one of our group (60). late in the afternoon, i accompanied Patrick to the train station, bewildered at the tenderness i feel for a friend i barely know.

the city today was crossed by dusty-heeled men and women in cuffed jeans and tshirts. lepers begged on the sidewalks, and the stench of street cart food choked my path. prostitutes teetered down Soi 11 in miniskirts and stiletto heels; i passed the same one three times, from early morning into the late afternoon. tall and slender, she wore a tight white miniskirt and white spandex top, and she looked utterly lost. the workers are still operating their crane in the building site next door, and the painters have painted an entire side of the hotel. nothing at all suggests there has been military law enacted, save the headlines 6 inches tall screaming COUP! rather, it’s become a buzzword for us: Would you like some coffee? How about a coup? and, Did you know there’s been a coup?

As the sun sets on my first coup day, I’m drinking Chang soda water and wondering where to go for dinner. Tomorrow may very well be back to normal, even more than the “abnormal” day today.