2 women in our neighborhood die from Covid

Two elderly women in our neighborhood died from Covid in the past week and a woman on the street behind us is hospitalized with the virus, All three were unvaccinated. This information comes from our ward's government representative. I witnessed no music, drum banging  or loud processions for the deceased as usually occurs when someone dies here. In the "new normal," some family members get together for a meal and drinks, but no large gatherings are permitted. I heard that the government got the bodies of the two women who died at home and handled the cremation. Meanwhile, the people across the street from us tested negative after 14 days and had their red "Covid is here" sign removed. Three more signs on our street were removed and another popped up. I believe there are five signs in all on our street. One house down the street from us, which has some rough folk living there -- the woman laughed pretty hard when my daughter crashed on her bike and bloodied her knees -- put their Covid sign on a small trash can that's not easily visible. I wouldn't expect much else from this crowd, which is also the group that laughed at me when I wore the shield. Anyway, there are 15,000 to 17,000 new Covid cases here a day, which I know pales in comparison to the United States. No variant is named in Vietnam, but I suspect Delta is still making the rounds with Omicron coming later. I've always felt they're a little behind the times here.
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It doesn't look or feel like Christmas in Bien Hoa. It's not just the 90-degree weather. Before Covid (B.C.?), Christmas was picking up steam, especially with retailers. Now, some of the stores have decorations, but there's been a definite drop-off. Makes sense. If you can't give your mom a proper, traditional burial, why would you care about a Western holiday? The big mall and markets are eerily empty. Joanna and I went shopping on Wednesday at the largest and only "real" mall in town and it was too quiet. No lines, no hustle, no bustle. Nonetheless, I'm trying my best to instill a little Christmas spirit into our house for my daughter Joanna and son Elijah. Joanna has been coloring Christmas-themed pictures, which I hang on the wall near our tree. I keep adding ornaments and lights to the tree, even if it's tiny and artificial. Or ecologically and economically friendly, depending on your perspective. Christmas doesn't mean a lot to my wife even though she's Catholic; Tet is what matters to her and that holiday will be quiet this year as well. Elijah isn't too interested in Santa yet, but he'll kick our Christmas balls all over the house. 
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I dropped my Apple laptop down a flight of stairs and even though we've tried to get it fixed, it
hasn't been the same. We bought another Apple laptop but the new one (really, it's pre-owned) isn't quite right, either. So both have been returned to the shop, and I'm working on a PC now, which is a little tricky for me. So I now have a legitimate excuse for any mistakes in my blog. I've also struggled to get lessons together for Joanna on the PC, but we're on Christmas break anyway. Christmas coloring continues, but that's pretty much it. 
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I want to sincerely wish everyone a safe, healthy and very happy holiday season. I know so many people who step up in difficult times like we're enduring now and do the right thing for others and themselves. I don't expect anything different this holiday season, and that can give all of us reason to celebrate.