THE DEEPEST OCCIDENT

On Christmas Eve, the streets empty out and people head home. Which means that the few remaining pedestrians are either off their rocker or drunk. I observed a gentleman across the street arguing with a hypothetical person, while I was waiting for the bus. He was vehement, and strongly opinionated. And felt very much put upon. By the hypothetical person.

Two young ladies dressed scantily, like sexy dominatrix Santa, walked toward me, passed, and presumably kept on going, getting further and further away. I did not swivel my head to check. The Sfas Emes teaches that one has control over what one sees, or chooses to see, and what one hears or chooses to hear.

Consequently I can clearly remember the shade of red. All other details are hazy.
Maybe there were pom poms.
I'm not sure.


Sometime after I had left for Christmas eve dinner my apartment mate returned home from the graveyard, where she had gone to pay respects to certain relatives. I do not think that that is a firm part of Cantonese American Christmas tradition, just her personal innovation. It was raining. Her bus back had talkative crazy and smelly people on it; also not part of any Cantonese American tradition, just the luck of the draw on a cold wet Christmas Eve in San Francisco. My bus had two Muslim women passengers and their children, and a loud man dressed in glitter. A little earlier in the day I had seen 'Patches' (a raggedy angry local eccentric) on a different bus.

Many of the residents of San Francisco are Chinese or Latino. Most of the loonies here are painfully white. Little Asian and Hispanic kiddies must get a queer impression of American society, especially around the holidays.

"Mommy, why is that man talking loudly to no one?" "Hush, my precious, it is part of Anglo culture. Strange and mysterious indeed are the customs of Caucasians, particularly when they can see dead people!"

Whatever you do, don't pick sides in arguments involving people who aren't visible.
There is no right or wrong there, and nobody is a winner.
It isn't black or white. Just shades of grey.
Technicolour tie-dyed grey.

聖誕快樂，大家！




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