No, not those voices in my head. I mean that loud, off-key singing of Christmas songs on the videoke machine. Yep, that can only mean that the day of days has indeed arrived in the Philippines. Merry Christmas to you!

I got into the spirit of the season last night with a holiday pub crawl during which I sweetened up those hard-working bargirls with some chocolates. The Candy Man strikes again! I did Cheap Charlies, Alaska, Alley Cats, and finished up at Queen Victoria, feeling no pain. The gals there were having their Christmas party, which featured them singing their favorite karaoke songs. Suffice to say it’s good that they have other ASSets to attract customers.

Yesterday afternoon I got my fourth rabies shot, only one more to go! I also went to the mall and picked up my new eyeglasses. I want to have better vision in 2020. Ahem. I also went on a quest to find the ingredients for my traditional holiday treat–Aunt Pat’s Recipe World Famous Fruit Salad. I’ve been stymied by my lack of success in finding two key ingredients: sour cream and shredded coconut. You’d think that in a country that grows and exports coconut (buko as they call it here) that should be easy. Well, not if you want it from a bag at the grocery store. Instead, I need to go to the outdoor market, buy a fresh buko, and have them slice it up for me. So, that’s what I’ll do–once I find some sour cream. The two supermarkets I checked yesterday were “wala” (out). Maybe for New Year’s.

Anyway, I’m attending a Christmas dinner this afternoon at a fellow Hasher’s house here in my subdivision. I volunteered to bring some dessert. During my failed supermarket search I decided Plan B would be a pie. Now, my favorite holiday pie is pecan. Pumpkin is a close second. And in a pinch, I can be happy with apple. Of course, the only thing I found in the frozen food section (you didn’t think I was going to bake one from scratch, did you?) was peach. So, peach it is!

I also baked up a batch of brownies and I’m bringing along some vanilla ice cream. Oh, and a tin of Danish-style butter cookies. So, there’s your dessert!

I asked Ed how he was preparing the turkey–oven-baked or deep-fried. He told me that he’s grilling it. That’s a new one on me. I’m assuming it will a rotisserie type deal, but we shall see.

And finally, in keeping with the spirit of the season: