What can I say? I’m a taker

Published on December 11, 2007 By Draginol In Blogging

There's something wrong with me. I know it. I can pretend otherwise but I just don't get excited about Christmas anymore. And the reason? I'm selfish. I like getting stuff.

I am not really big on personal consumption. I'm notoriously cheap. And thanks to my wife, we (as in she and I) tend to be quite generous on gift giving. And why not? We're blessed to be able to afford to give to our family and friends.

But I like getting presents. Not just any old presents, but presents that have thought put into them. I don't care if they cost nothing or cost a lot, I like presents that show that the person gave some thought to it.

For instance, a friend of mine at work gave me a gourmet hot chocolate kit. I love hot chocolate and that was really thoughtful. But that's the exception rather than the rule.

Do you know what I usually get? Gift cards to Best Buy, Amazon, or other places. I get lots of gift cards. Not to be ungrateful but gift cards are the worst present of all for me. I'd rather just get a card with a hand written note than a gift card.

When I say that I don't want gift cards since they're essentially just money transfers – except more restrictive – the response I get is "Well I don't know what to get you, you could just buy anything you want anyway." Which makes me wonder why they got me a gift card then. I guess what I'm looking for is thought. I guess I have it easy when it comes to presents, I can buy people nice things because I can afford it. It's easy to just buy something expensive because you know they'll probably like it. But a book that I didn't think of or some little gadget that I didn't know about or some little item that just shows that some thought was put into the gift is what I'm looking for.

But I suppose it doesn't matter, Christmas is really mostly for the kids anyway. Bah humbug. J

Comments (Page 2)

Frogboy

on Dec 11, 2007

Hmmm..interesting. However, I have to ask (since I'm evil): how much thought do you put into the gifts that go to the people that are giving you the generic gifts? And by that, I mean "you" not the "we" of you and your wife.

I put virtually no thought into them.

Like I said, I'm a taker.

But that aside, if I'm spending 10X more on others than what I receive and people say "well we don't have your kind of money so we can't get you the kinds of things you guys get us" then why not substitute it with thoughtful gifts instead?

I think it's an either / or thing. If you don't want to spend much money on gifts, then be thoughtful. If you don't want or don't have time to be particularly thoughtful then you probably end up spending more on gifts.

When I was a kid, I put a lot of thought into gifts. I didn't have much money so I had to think carefully about what I got someone.

A thoughtful gift would be (for example) a book called "the lazy environmentalist". That's thoughtful. It took thought to do that. A non-thoughtful gift would be a gift card to Blockbuster.

Frogboy

on Dec 11, 2007

I know that I don't fall in the list of generic gift cards considering I still have nightmares from making that dang Stardock fan lamp last year. I'm never making another one of those- so yours is unique! lol

I'm looking at it right now. That was an awesome gift.

Jythier

on Dec 11, 2007

Thoughtfulness is, and will always be, worth more than any money you could muster to pay for a thoughtless gift.

foreverserenity

on Dec 11, 2007

In your case Brad, I can understand your not liking the gift cards. I guess too people (just generalizing) would think that they don't know what to get for someone who basically has everything. I've heard that said a lot and I think it's an overused phrase myself. I agree that it's the thought that count and knowing the person, one should know what might be of interest to them. Then again, there's also the feeling of being intimidated that maybe the present purchased might not be appreciated enough because it might not be liked or if the value to the buyer doesn't seem to be that much. It's a win/lose situation I guess. I always say if you get a gift, no matter how much you hate it, be thankful, that's what I tell my kids!

Taranis

on Dec 11, 2007

I Love gifts cards!

I prefer games or game accessories (Board Games, PC Games, Video Cards, Keyboards) for gifts and I don't want someone going out and buying me some crappy game like Wheel of Fortune for my PC or some kind of ultimate Checkers hybrid board game, I want to pick out my gifts! I can understand if you have the means to buy anything you want that gift cards are pretty much worthless to you, but for someone like myself that is on a budget, gift cards allow me to purchase those items that I've been looking at all year and buy them without guilt!

KarmaGirl

on Dec 13, 2007

I'm looking at it right now. That was an awesome gift.

Yeah...well..you're getting a gift card to Panera Bread this year.
KarmaGirl ducks

Texas Wahine

on Dec 13, 2007

I think it would be really intimidating to buy a gift for someone who is wealthy. You don't want to come off as cheap, but you can't afford to buy them something that probably fits the quality and expense of items they are used to. And what can you buy for them that they don't already have?

Although I think gift cards are not the answer. I mean, do you really need $25 slotted for a meal at Chilis? Can't you buy a meal at Chilis yourself...if you do actually want to eat there.

I think cookies are the answer. Homemade cookies. Even rich people like cookies.

Jythier

on Dec 14, 2007

I think cookies are the answer. Homemade cookies. Even rich people like cookies.

Second!

Gene Nash

on Dec 15, 2007

I think cookies are the answer. Homemade cookies. Even rich people like cookies.

Not super flexible, super hot, super skeletal '80s yoga chicks. They hate cookies.

people say "well we don't have your kind of money so we can't get you the kinds of things you guys get us" then why not substitute it with thoughtful gifts instead?

So, basically it comes down to the old "time or money" equation. They don't have the money so spend the time instead.

I think where I have a problem with gift cards (and I do, btw -- but no-one should let that discourage them from so anointing my mailbox) is that I was raised that you don't tell people how much you spent on a gift. (Which is where the "I don't have your kind of money" B.S. should also fall apart.) I was taught it is tacky to leave the price tag on a present. Whenever I see a gift with the price tag on it, I consider it a major faux pas. Now, what is a gift card, but a walking, talking, redeemable price tag? Talk about not keeping the price of the gift a secret!

It riles my sensibilities.

cactoblasta

on Dec 16, 2007

I always try and reach for the bizarre. It's very, very unlikely that the person you're buying a present for already has a cane toad that's been stuffed and dressed in a hunting jacket with pipe.

Or buy them a snow dome but take out the picture of whatever and replace it with a crayon drawing of their face, stick figure style. (crayon because it's water proof)

Or hollow out a book with a tedious title - an old dictionary or law textbook is appropriate - and then fill it with unlabelled clear plastic packets of wizz fizz*.

Nothing says rich like a book full of blow, but if you can't afford that wizz fizz is still pretty awesome.

Granted, they may not like it, but it's hard to say no thought went into a present like that.

*I don't know if it exists in the US, but it's like this white powder that, when you put it on your tongue, fizzes a little. You eat it out of a paper packet with a little plastic spoon. It's the bomb.

Gene Nash

on Dec 16, 2007

wizz fizz*.
...
*I don't know if it exists in the US, but it's like this white powder that, when you put it on your tongue, fizzes a little. You eat it out of a paper packet with a little plastic spoon.

I've never seen that here. We used to have something called "Pop Rocks," though, which was similar, except they were brightly colored granules, not powder. If wizz fizz is faux cocaine, Pop Rocks were faux crack.

Gene Nash

on Dec 16, 2007

It riles my sensibilities.

And seems tacky.

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