UCTV/Myung Mi Kim/Robert Hass/Some Glamazon

UCTV runs Lunch Poems.

You can also find the various poetry readings from this series on YouTube.

I was watching it on UCTV yesterday (it's a few notches up or down from EWTN) and it was a reading by contemporary Korean poets (all women).

The poets would read their poems in Korean and then another poet would read the English translation.

I recognized Myung Mi Kim (I'm a fan) immediately when she stepped up to read for a poet whose name already eludes me.

It was funny, because if you've read her you know that MMK's work is complex, challenging political discourse somewhat after the manner of Oppen (say, if Oppen and Mei-mei Berssenbrugge married on the page).

And the poet for whom she had been chosen to read was a bit of a Korean Glamazon, immensely popular in Korea.

It's not fair to judge a poet on the basis of a few poems only, but the poems chosen anchored around rather transparent metaphors like female makeup rituals (the poet name-checked Estee Lauder and a few others to remind us of her "worldliness.")

I wouldn't say that Myung Mi Kim cringed when she approached the task; she was a trooper.

But there was a dark cloud over her as she knit her brows and began reading the first poem.

I smiled in my bed. It was wrong to smile.

As she read, the Korean Glamazon stared at her the way a cat studies its kitten approaching the masterpiece of "the kill" for the first time. "Is she understanding the genius of my work?" the Glamazon's furrowed brow said (no translation necessary).

When the noble sacrifice was accomplished, Robert Hass took the opportunity to be just a little bit naughty.

He made a wry comment to the effect that anyone who knows Myung Mi Kim's work must have enjoyed the particular pairing of poet/translation-reader which had just occured.

I believe the word is schadenfreude. But with a twist of commiseration.

I suppose he was counting on the "subtlety" of the (clearly commiserative) statement not making it across the English-Korean linguistic divide.

Because if it had, I'm not too sure the Glamazon might not have attacked the elder poet (and not without provocation).

One gets the impression her hair and her makeup would have remained perfect throughout the attack, and probably even through the booking process (that is, unless she has some sort of poetic diplomatic immunity.)

It would have been so funny if she had turned to Hass and said in perfect English, "Excuse me? Are you calling me a FUCKING CUPCAKE?"

And then R.H. could have slurped his fingers in a provocatively annoying way to answer her question and given a critical estimation of the worth of her poetry at the same time.

Wouldn't that be fun?

Terror on the streets of Lunch Poems.

Myung Mi Kim did her civic duty.

But poetry is not a civics class.

Stop pretending that.

One last immature comment about that reading: Hass reminded everyone that Korean names are presented with the surname first.

So when HWANG INSUK was introduced, we were all mentally transposing this to INSUK HWANG, which of course is funny.

It is so.

Well, if you're immature. And you probably are. At least a little bit.

They should send Mike Rowe out to document that poetry is not a civics class for an installment of DIRTY JOBS.

And he should spend the entire installment in cubicles fuming.

That's a dirty job that many poets do.

Also, I have always touted ZeFrank's website as one of the best on the web (see my blogroll).

I see he has made it to one of the Disney Channels and has his own national children's show now!

Congratulations, Ze! You deserve it.

I remember emailing him back when I lived at the apartment before I lived here, and how he always gave personal (and funny responses) to everyone's email.

And he must have gotten a shitload.

Anyway, I was happy to see him raking it in.

He's made a lot of people happy.

Now he'll do that for a lot more.