On the 23rd Day of Christmas.

Yesterday was my last time to hunt for Sparkle the elf before she heads back to the North Pole on Christmas Day.

With plans to head out for Long Beach tomorrow — spend a relaxing night in a hotel, drive over to granddaughter’s place Christmas morning to watch the great grandson open his Christmas gift, meet his new weeks old sister, yesterday’s grocery run was built around what I could eat so as to not get sick ……… meals I could fit into the hotel’s little refrigerator, heat up in the microwave. Consequently, I needed a few food storage containers to replace those which had outlived their usefulness.

Last few times I checked the corner market, they only had those heavy glass containers in stock. So, after yesterday’s workout, I drove a few miles over to the next nearest store in the chain, hoping to kill two birds with one stone — do my regular grocery shopping and also find the needed lighter microwave safe containers at that location.

Not only did I find what I was looking for, I was able to elf hunt in unfamiliar territory.

Interesting name for an elf.

After two passes through the market, even checking what I could see of the check stands — which was the back, and not seeing anything, I got in line to pay for my purchases, telling myself that, before I left, I’d check the front of the check stands.

Sure enough, there he was.

Had Elfonzo not been so tucked in with all those decorations, I’d have spotted him when I first walked in, because I did initially scan that check stand.

I’m a little disappointed — not because of how Elfonzo was hidden, but because, with a name like Elfonzo, I’d expected more than the normal elf character. I was expecting something with a little more character, outfitted more rico suave befitting the name, like Snoop’s elf fits its name.

So, that’s it for the 2023 Hometown Elf Hunt. Christmas and the elf hunt will be a distant memory when I return on Tuesday.

Happy Holiday Y'all.