Sparkling joy

Netnet Camomot .

DISPLAY the word “sale” in any store or store aisle and that’s enough to catch the attention of the rabid bargain hunter. Goodbye, Marie Kondo. Goodbye, KonMari. Shop pa more.

A sale is God’s gift to women who love to shop. But with Kondo now advising them to keep only the item that sparks joy, do they think twice, thrice, a million times before finally buying anything? At least, I have a friend whose shopping habits seem to follow the KonMari method even before it became every spring cleaner’s bible. His practice of purchasing an item only when the old one is beyond repair, has somehow rubbed off on me.

Travel, though, inspires the Pinoy tourist to shop, in case a particular item is not available or is more expensive here in Pinas or in his hometown, thus, the need to buy it while he’s on vacation. But that has been kind of “solved” by online shopping.

Shopping for clothes is now simpler with my color choices that have been reduced to black and navy, with a few reds, whites, and ecrus for occasions that have dress codes, e.g., Attire: Red with gold accessories. Still, the minimalist rule is to avoid occasions that require new clothes.

I could hardly tell which of my clothes are old or new since most of them look the same—same color, same style. And most probably the exact same item as the other because I tend to forget the clothes I already have. This is when I begin to understand Mark Zuckerberg’s preference to wear a grey shirt and jeans daily. And now you know why offices and schools have uniforms.

Aside from practicality—no need to buy new clothes for each semester or year—a uniform is also for branding. One look at a uniform and you already know what school it belongs to. That’s why some schools don’t allow their students to wear their uniforms in malls. And also in mini-movie houses?

Still, despite the bad press that Cagayan de Oro’s mini-movie houses are receiving now, they’ll continue to attract students, with or without—gasp!—their uniforms, and also curious customers who want to learn how this kind of business can thrive. And then, like the lechon manok phenomenon years ago, the curious will also open their own mini-movie houses. To infinity and beyond!

As malls and retail stores continue to close in the US, more is not always merrier. When shopping for, say, clothes, the more brands, styles, and colors to choose from, the more confused the shopper becomes. That’s why the shopper learns to reduce his choices to particular brands and stores, only to realize their styles are all the same. Like K-pop stars who all look the same. Or the sun, moon, and stars wherever you are in the world: same sky. Except perhaps for the Northern Lights.

Each country does have its own charm, tourist spots, cuisine—even memories have a “belonging” to a particular place, with the memories more on the friends you were with rather than the places you visited.

Shopping, however, may steal precious time that you and your friends could have invested on bonding with each other. But shopping can also be one form of bonding with them. Confusing, eh? Hehe.

Much like Kris Aquino’s on-and-off retirement from social media—so confusing. In her recent social-media comeback, a basher commented on the way she has been making a big deal of her autoimmune illness, and this was her reply: “Common sense ha, the longer I stay unhealthy, the less likely ang 2022. Pero kung papasukin, handang handa.”

That’s Election 2022, in case you’re wondering.

Then, she went on to post her “5 platforms personally experienced & survived: healthcare as a patient, taxation from 32 years of honest payments, education from a mother’s perspective, the justice system & the family code (gets nyo na), and smaller scale entrepreneurship.”

Is this for the presidency? Hmmm.

But it was then Senator-elect Imee Marcos who was asked about her own 2022 presidential plans in an ABS-CBN interview a few weeks ago, and she replied, “Si Bongbong hindi pa nga makaupo ng Vice President eh, President pa? Wala, may bad record ang Marcos eh.”

Uh. What bad record? Paki-explain. Labyu.

In that same interview, Marcos said, “Sa akin talaga, strongest presidential candidate for 2022 is Mayor Sara. No ifs or buts about it.” She was, of course, referring to Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

Imagine these three women representing their respective political dynasties, er, families—Aquino, Marcos, Duterte—in 2022. Do they spark joy? Hmmm.