(no subject)

My first day in Xela, back in September, I met a nice local fellow named Walter. Walter sells necklaces around town, carrying them looped over one arm while trying to drum up business. We had a nice conversation that first day I was here (I was in the park reading and he came by to try to get me to buy, and we ended up chatting for a while.) All along, I've been telling vendors what I told him that day: I'm here until December and I'm not buying until at least the end of November. So whenever I see Walter, or any number of the other vendors around town who have gotten to know me, they ask if I'm buying yet, and I say no.

Except, I look at the calendar and see that we're in the end of November. And they all seem to have had the same realization, too, as the hard sell tactics have sprung into being in the last week or so.

So, I'm totally happy to buy from these folks, but the trouble is... from some of them, I only want to buy one or two small things, and after all this buildup of months and months, I worry that won't go over too well.

When avoidance strategies backfire. Ah well :)

(no subject)

The next US citizen to complain to me about US politics and then tell me they don't bother to vote gets socked.