Back from the center before sundown. Did some groceries and checked out the Christmas bazaar outside the Coliseum. A good place to shop for decor instead of at Divisoria. Someone bought a really big Santa Claus. There were puto bumbong ovens too.

I saw a few charming creches in little houses made of pinewood, with roofs, pillars, back walling, and floors, but decided to pass on them because, like all Christmas decor, everything will just end up as so much junk. Christmas decor is the primary evidence that the Christmas season is ephemeral.

Also passed on the fat black cats at Clipper because I know that they will eventually get misshapen and look horrid.

Bought three bottles of paraffin oil at the hardware store. When I went to the cashier I saw Aldrin, a Sitio Catacutan neighbor and visual artist, there. He was about to pay for carpenter's measuring tape and then saw me as his salvation. He begged and pleaded with me to pay for his measuring tape. It didn't cost much, and so I did. How much does it cost anyway to make one person happy for an afternoon?