Merry Christmas

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Today was Christmas here in the Slowlane. Last night we went walking in Recife Antiguo and looked at all of the Christmas lights, which are still up, and the New Year's lights, which have just recently been put up. Then we drove home in the rain with enough time before bed time that we could stuff stockings. We were a little short on stockings this year (read "none at all") and so we borrowed a few from a friend who already had made good use of hers this year and then we made the rest. It is amazing what you can do with a two-liter soda bottle and some tissue paper. You can't quite make it look like a sock, but you can make a very festive receptical that can hold all sorts of goodies.

We were also a little short on wrapping paper this year (read "just enough to make two-liter stockings and to wrap three gifts") so we made our gift wrap with printer paper and crayons. I saw several people sneaking their gift wrap in amongst their presents so that it would avoid the trash.

The other thing we were a little short on this year was water. Water comes to houses every other day. On your water day, you fill up your cistern, and hope that it lasts until the water comes again. With 10 people taking a bazillion showers and dirtying 60 bazillion dishes that must be washed, we ran out of water. Maybe we should have rationed everyone to two teaspoons of water that they could either drink or take a shower with.

But we were not short on time, nor food, nor laughs, nor gifts, nor leg wax (A new family tradition?). A merry Christmas, indeed.

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