Candles are a peculiar thing. Especially here in China. The use of candles generally is reduced to the purpose of shedding light in the case of blackouts which happen every once in the while (though admittedly, rather rarely). So, finding pretty candles to decorate your home with can turn into a rather challenging quest.

When putting up my Christmas decoration a couple of weeks ago, I didn’t realize that I was in for another challenge. The problem: On my shelf I had a pack of red candles, which I had gotten last year for my advent “wreath.” Little did I know that the candles in that pack were actually the ones I had used last year already. In other words, they weren’t new. ‘Bummer,’ I thought to myself, ‘now I have to make another (whole day) shopping trip into the city just so I can get more candles.’ Well, I was able to combine it with some of my other Christmas shopping and errands. So it wasn’t actually that big of a deal. But for the future, note to self: Never assume that candles in a box are all new when they sit on your shelf. Always check well before the Christmas season to make sure you have the candles when you need them!