Is That a WLF in our Backyard??? How did that get there???

If you read my blog a little regularly, you might have read about the humongo snail that Loca found by our front door. Huge snail. Snail on steroids. The snail that ate Saigon. Big.

Well the other morning, Loca was doing a quiet, informative bark. I thought it was her, "I really want to be out in the sunshine" bark, but when I came downstairs, she was at the back door. Hmmm. That's unusual.


I looked out the door and saw...what is that? Could it be? It kind of looks like one, but how did it get in our backyard?

I opened the back door and yes, it was, a weird looking fish! I'm not talking a goldfish from some kid's tank. I'm talking 6 inches long, lots of fins, prehistoric looking thing that is probably served in local restaurants. I immediately looked up to the sky! Why?!? Did I think it was raining fish? Did I think that fish were falling from trees? Not sure, but that was my first reaction. Honest to God.



My second reaction was to see if Weird Little Fish was alive. A little kick and it wiggled its tail. Hmmm. A live fish near my back door and we live far from a water source. There was no water trail, so he didn't squirm his way from the Mekong River. Was it going to be someone's breakfast and it made a run for it? So many questions for 7am on a Sunday.


Our teeny tiny backyard area is walled off on all sides. There's no way Weird Little Fish could have gotten there on his own volition. I think one of our neighbors threw Weird Little Fish by our back door! Ha! Maybe it's a Vietnamese custom for long life and prosperity. I hope it doesn't mean "This fish is rotten! We can't eat it for breakfast. Throw it near the round eye's back door. She'll think it's a symbol of long life and prosperity. Silly round eye!"

So what do you do with a live, orphan fish? I pondered the humane thing to do. I considered a rescue mission, but we don't have a fish tank. Even if I was able to keep it alive, where would I eventually put it? I decided to let nature take its course. Had I came down 15 minutes later, the fish would have been dead. Who am I to mess with his fate?

Sorry, Weird Little Fish.

3 comments:

Shazza January 26, 2010 at 1:30 PM  

That ... is ... CRAZY!!! Another reminder that we foreigners never really know what's going on. One mystery after another... Very funny story!

Meegie January 29, 2010 at 9:54 AM  

Hey Collie - Definitely a WLF - for what it's worth i remember my mom telling me about these weird fish in Asia that could travel on land as well. they were a little scary and somehow dangerous but of course i can't remember anything else that she told me about them. - go figure!! any who - fun story and of course I read on and really enjoyed the rest of your blog.

Just fYI - I am actually reading another book - I just thought you should know that :)

Fish and Bicycles February 13, 2010 at 4:10 AM  

What a bizarre thing to happen! Have you figured out anything at all about how the WLF got there since you posted this?

Say, Col, we got back from Costa Rica on Monday, and I had to let you know that I thought of you and your blog the entire time I was there.

That said, I'm sorry to say that I thought about you every time I used a bathroom, where I read signs that said, "Please do not flush toilet paper down the toilet. Please place it in the trash can."

It was an amazing trip, and it made Laurel and I think more and more about how much we'd like to live in another country.

Current Time in Saigon, Vietnam

About Me

My name is Colleen and I currently live in Saigon, Vietnam. (aka Ho Chi Minh City) I have a husband, Mike, and 2 children. Our son Aidan is 14 and our daughter Brenna is 11. I am the elementary librarian at Saigon South International School. I love to read, be outside, play any sport that's going on, hang out with friends, and laugh.

What I'm Reading Now:

  • Picture Perfect by Jodie Picoult
  • Buddhism for Beginners by Thubet Chodron