i just can't help it. i have to let it out. what the hell happened to the tradition of christmas carolling, pinoy style?! i mean, i missed the whole thing, damn it!!!!!

there were no makeshift tambourines and drums this year. hell, i never even heard a decent "carolling" in the past 9 nights! okay, save for that one time a group of teens knocked on our neighbour's gate and sang a christmas song, that's the only carolling experience i had for this christmas season. they even had a guitar and although they sounded more like they're whining than singing, i liked it! i heard them sing a christmas song and it was great.

i miss hearing annoying kids running through our streets once it gets dark. you'll hear them screaming all at the same time, arguing about which house they should go to. the sunset was their cue to get their wire-and-bottle-caps tambourines and their coin-filled cans.

none of the kids who knocked on our gate this week sang a song. that's the most disappointing thing, really. they just knocked and yelled, "Mamamasko po!!!!!!" well, kids used to sing 3-5 christmas songs and they SING even if their lyrics were all screwed up!! you can tell they're enjoying it!

and are the kids getting materialistic now? i remember last year, instead of giving coins to every kid who carolled, i handed out treats. i should have known they didn't want them. my bad, it wasn't halloween. i just thought it would be nice. obviously, it wasn't. they had this look on their faces as if i were playing a nasty joke on them. some of them even snickered in front of me!! oooh, those brats!!!!

really now, what's going on with our kids??

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well, i couldn't shake off the thought that the whole carolling thing has now become an excuse for some just to beg for money.  hnh! what better time to become a beggar than during this season, right?

i know christmas is more about giving. it somehow becomes entirely different when you hand someone the remaining bread on your dining table and they tell you they prefer you hand them cash (thank you!) and then they return the bread to you.

i'm flawed, i'm fully aware of that. i know christmas is about giving selflessly; it's just that a huge part of me don't want to be a willing instrument for other people to go on with their bullshit. what irks me the most is that they have the gall to use the holidays to extort money from other people.

and please, don't tell me i need to feel more love for other people. it's driving me nuts, right now. BUT on the lighter side, i did enjoy the celebration. i did.