Merry Tacky Christmas

It's officially the Christmas season (I am a stickler and firm that Christmas should not be mentioned/celebrated until December 1st). I love Christmas even though I'm not religious: the tree, the pretty lights and decorations, the "spirit of giving", popcorn, carols, holiday chocolate...

We are going back to the US for the holidays (leaving in 9 days actually), and will be there until January 9th, so the bulk of the season and little R's first Christmas/New Year will be at my parents' house. I am very happy about this, not only because I love my family and would feel really sad to be away from them at this time of year, but also because Christmas in Singapore is pretty lame.

They do actually celebrate Christmas here: it's even a public holiday. There are Christmas decorations up everywhere, and carols play in most stores. However, Christmas here is basically a holiday commemorating shopping and materialism (very important values/activities in Singapore, so in a way it makes sense they need a holiday for them). People in the US complain about the holiday's commercialization there, but obviously they haven't been to Singapore and seen the real thing in action.

Perhaps because Christmas is completely divorced from its "deeper" meaning, it is also incredibly tacky. The photos are of typical Christmas decorations (in this case, at our local mall) and make my eyes hurt just looking at them. It's really difficult to get non-tacky decorations, actually (although they are available at a steep markup for the expats).

I gave up and bought a fake tree (pine trees are at a premium at the equator) and silver tinsel for the first time ever. My self of a year ago would have been appalled and made many snide comments. Maybe it's a good thing though, since in general I could afford to be a little bit more broad-minded.

Progress:
--Exercise: Went for a walk in the Botanic Garden (maybe 1 hour? fairly slow pace though).
--Diet: Breakfast: Focaccia with goat cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinegar; Lunch: Focaccia with goat cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinegar; Dinner: Pork xiaolongbao (a kind of dumpling), boiled green bean and pea salad with garlic (yum!), vegan peanut butter cookie. Drinks: bubble tea, calamansi juice (a kind of citrus fruit from SE Asia), and Sprite.
--Other: Drank 8 glasses water.