This year I got an electric shaver and I'm super happy.
Why not, I'll throw in this year's birthday presents too. From my sister, I got a soda machine which is awesome. It makes seltzer and then you can add syrup or crystal light to make soda. From my parents, I got a laptop. (Budget, value for your money laptop). This year's birthday present was a way bigger than usual but I really needed it and I'm broke. I never had my own brand new laptop before, I just inherited my mom's old laptop when she got a new one and it was about 4 years old when I got it and then I had it for another 6 years and although it was dying for a while and had life prolonging procedures several times, this year it was just painful. I think that 10 years is already a great lifetime for a laptop.
For previous birthdays: A recurring gift that I would ask for most of the time was a bag/purse or a pretty watch. Occasionally it's a coat. What else? Sometimes technology. One year it was a DVR and that was awesome and now that we have it everyone loves it. A smartphone was a gift (droid incredible). There were mp3 players. I didn't have much music on it but I liked listening to the radio on my commute.
Amusingly, my first mp3 player (the kind that runs on a battery) has long since died and I've gotten a new one (only to find out that although it's more advanced the battery life is vastly inferior) and recently while cleaning I've found my sister's mp3 player packed somewhere far away with other. You see, parents usually don't have the slightest clue what to get my sister and getting her whatever they get me seems to be as good a guess as any. (They've certainly done worse) So just don't tell her about the mp3 player I rescued because she's just going to put it away somewhere and completely forget about it.
Why not, I'll throw in this year's birthday presents too. From my sister, I got a soda machine which is awesome. It makes seltzer and then you can add syrup or crystal light to make soda. From my parents, I got a laptop. (Budget, value for your money laptop). This year's birthday present was a way bigger than usual but I really needed it and I'm broke. I never had my own brand new laptop before, I just inherited my mom's old laptop when she got a new one and it was about 4 years old when I got it and then I had it for another 6 years and although it was dying for a while and had life prolonging procedures several times, this year it was just painful. I think that 10 years is already a great lifetime for a laptop.
For previous birthdays: A recurring gift that I would ask for most of the time was a bag/purse or a pretty watch. Occasionally it's a coat. What else? Sometimes technology. One year it was a DVR and that was awesome and now that we have it everyone loves it. A smartphone was a gift (droid incredible). There were mp3 players. I didn't have much music on it but I liked listening to the radio on my commute.
Amusingly, my first mp3 player (the kind that runs on a battery) has long since died and I've gotten a new one (only to find out that although it's more advanced the battery life is vastly inferior) and recently while cleaning I've found my sister's mp3 player packed somewhere far away with other. You see, parents usually don't have the slightest clue what to get my sister and getting her whatever they get me seems to be as good a guess as any. (They've certainly done worse) So just don't tell her about the mp3 player I rescued because she's just going to put it away somewhere and completely forget about it.
What did you get for Winter Solstice/Yule/Christmas/Hanukkah/Winter holiday of choice?
I always get really great presents from my parents. That's because I'm the one who figures out what would be a great present for me, I let my parents know, and then they know what to get me. This applies to my birthdays of the last several years and this year to christmas. (Just to be clear, this is a pretty recent tradition, only when my parents became very comfortable financially) It sounds kind of bad, but it's really awesome getting what I actually want instead of something like expensive perfume- and I used to get perfume (or smelly lotions) practically every year.
Unfortunately, I'm the only one in my family who can do this, for everyone else we have to guess. I would say I'm pretty good of thinking up great presents for other people. What a lot of people do is think of great presents that they themselves would appreciate as opposed to what the other person would like. This works only if the two people in question have the same preferences and wants.
I also don't think a gift has to be useless, why is it constantly being reinforced on tv that a gift can't be something the person would ever buy on their own? Maybe it should be of a higher quality /degree of luxury than an everyday totally practical purchase but it shouldn't be useless.
So: what did you get?
I always get really great presents from my parents. That's because I'm the one who figures out what would be a great present for me, I let my parents know, and then they know what to get me. This applies to my birthdays of the last several years and this year to christmas. (Just to be clear, this is a pretty recent tradition, only when my parents became very comfortable financially) It sounds kind of bad, but it's really awesome getting what I actually want instead of something like expensive perfume- and I used to get perfume (or smelly lotions) practically every year.
Unfortunately, I'm the only one in my family who can do this, for everyone else we have to guess. I would say I'm pretty good of thinking up great presents for other people. What a lot of people do is think of great presents that they themselves would appreciate as opposed to what the other person would like. This works only if the two people in question have the same preferences and wants.
I also don't think a gift has to be useless, why is it constantly being reinforced on tv that a gift can't be something the person would ever buy on their own? Maybe it should be of a higher quality /degree of luxury than an everyday totally practical purchase but it shouldn't be useless.
So: what did you get?
This message last edited by Vivien on 27/12/2011 at 05:16:58 PM
Presents!
- 27/12/2011 04:16:42 PM
1565 Views
I received a GPS unit for my car.
- 27/12/2011 04:33:40 PM
1162 Views
Did you get your egg separator?
- 27/12/2011 04:38:04 PM
1024 Views
I did!
- 27/12/2011 05:08:36 PM
1106 Views
Ha! Just make sure you wash your eggs before cracking them.
- 27/12/2011 05:33:52 PM
978 Views
What? Why would you wash an egg? I've never heard of this. 
*NM*
- 27/12/2011 11:33:57 PM
619 Views
*NM*
- 27/12/2011 11:33:57 PM
619 Views
This is news to me too.
- 28/12/2011 12:30:00 AM
1049 Views
Ha, don't listen to me, I know nothing about this.
- 28/12/2011 01:36:34 AM
980 Views
That's a relief. You can't eat raw egg in this country anyway, so I don't need to change any habits.
- 28/12/2011 10:37:47 AM
909 Views
Is there a law?
- 28/12/2011 03:29:39 PM
981 Views
What I mean is that everybody considers it unsafe to eat raw eggs.
- 28/12/2011 06:37:17 PM
951 Views
It is suggested in the US that you cook the yolk to solid too.
- 30/12/2011 11:58:10 AM
884 Views
That sounds ridiculously over-cautious to me.
- 30/12/2011 05:48:56 PM
952 Views
Me!
- 27/12/2011 05:08:51 PM
991 Views
I'm scared of those.
- 28/12/2011 07:14:55 AM
1015 Views
- 28/12/2011 07:14:55 AM
1015 Views
That logic is interesting 
- 28/12/2011 06:06:48 PM
1586 Views
- 28/12/2011 06:06:48 PM
1586 Views
It's often the best plan. I've got a nice list I let Tim pass out to people. 
- 27/12/2011 05:23:08 PM
969 Views
- 27/12/2011 05:23:08 PM
969 Views
Boiled egg and toast soldier set???
- 27/12/2011 05:32:15 PM
886 Views
I kid you not.
- 27/12/2011 05:37:49 PM
1470 Views
That is hilarious. 
- 27/12/2011 09:18:42 PM
1215 Views
- 27/12/2011 09:18:42 PM
1215 Views
I got an ipad.
- 27/12/2011 05:51:39 PM
1055 Views
Awww awesome.
- 27/12/2011 05:57:53 PM
1025 Views
No but
- 27/12/2011 06:56:50 PM
1059 Views
I didn't ask for it.
- 27/12/2011 07:06:47 PM
985 Views
Re: No but
- 27/12/2011 07:19:51 PM
962 Views
You must share ways to make it more useful.
- 27/12/2011 07:09:18 PM
977 Views
Use Calibre (or other, similar, software) to convert PDF to MOBI.
- 27/12/2011 08:08:26 PM
951 Views
Hm.
- 27/12/2011 09:07:48 PM
1048 Views
A lump of coal.
- 27/12/2011 06:26:43 PM
833 Views
Re: A lump of coal.
- 27/12/2011 07:43:16 PM
1023 Views
Which Перелетные птицы?
- 27/12/2011 08:40:48 PM
1034 Views
Everything I wished for 
- 27/12/2011 07:39:17 PM
913 Views
- 27/12/2011 07:39:17 PM
913 Views
You had a foursome with Scarlett Johanson, Angelina Jolie and Jessica Biel? *NM*
- 27/12/2011 09:40:13 PM
559 Views
I got a suit.
- 27/12/2011 08:40:40 PM
946 Views
My Immediate Family will celebrate Little Christmas on New Years Day...
- 27/12/2011 09:11:36 PM
902 Views
Camcorder + case + SD card, coffee grinder, ball bearing maze puzzle with money trapped inside.
- 27/12/2011 11:40:52 PM
999 Views
Anastasia doesn't tell you what she wants?
- 28/12/2011 12:29:31 AM
1076 Views
It can be difficult, but only if you don't know what you're doing.
- 28/12/2011 01:18:31 AM
983 Views
I didn't see that one!!
- 28/12/2011 07:11:10 AM
905 Views
I think accessories are wonderful. And I had a kickass gift season.
- 28/12/2011 04:36:21 PM
963 Views
My Christmas gift: my 6-week old son slept for 6 hours straight through the night. *NM*
- 28/12/2011 01:26:12 AM
532 Views
a Pressure Cooker ...
- 28/12/2011 02:41:00 AM
969 Views
What does it do?
- 28/12/2011 02:43:58 AM
959 Views
It makes meats n veggies super tender ... faster than average ...
- 28/12/2011 03:25:38 AM
1046 Views
That's awesome..
- 28/12/2011 03:35:41 AM
940 Views
The newer ones are much safer, so long as they are cleaned and maintained ...
- 28/12/2011 03:42:15 AM
897 Views
I love mine for brown rice. It cuts cooking time in half. No explosions in 2 years. 
*NM*
- 30/12/2011 12:07:20 PM
554 Views
*NM*
- 30/12/2011 12:07:20 PM
554 Views
The vodka fairy was very good this year.
- 28/12/2011 02:10:21 PM
1043 Views
*NM*