Hot Christmas

This is my fourth Christmas in Oz and I’m still not used to wearing sandals and a summer dress, going to the beach, and being content with no more than a salad “feast” on that Christmas Eve. Last week-end we put together the Christmas tree, huddled the fake snow together at its base, and hung the “icicles” on the top branches. All this under the air conditioning unit, since there were over 92F (33 Celsius) outside! The city is decorated with holiday lights, red and green, but they’re invisible most of the time, because the sun sets late, close to 8PM, when all shoppers have gone home with the gifts they bought and the only shops open are those selling alcohol… It’s dark after 9PM and the lonely Santas and Christmas lights brighten the path of those rushing to go home. I imagine a very sweaty Santa dressed in thick layers of fur-trimmed clothes landing by our tree to deliver melting chocolates and a pair of skates. Roller blades maybe...