Gifts still trickling in (2/16/04)

The presents are still arriving for my birthday. That is one good thing about raising a daughter who is as chronically late about sending gifts as I am. Packages tend to dribble in for the better part of a month. It took me most of my lunch hour to unearth the latest offerings from within miles of bubble wrap. It’s the only thing good about living so far away from her.

After the last box has finally made it to my house it is time to go to my mom’s for the February birthdays and start all over again.

There are five or six of us in my family who were born in the nastiest month of the year. I’m not sure about the number because I can’t remember when my newest sister-in-law was born. I gave her a card last weekend just in case her real birthday is anytime soon. She looked at me as if I were nuts so I assume it isn’t this month.

The hard part about February is not driving through snow and ice or the endless dark days when the sun doesn’t shine. It is trying to find whatever toy my nephews want for their birthdays. So far I am on the lookout for a Tek Dek Dude or a Beyblaster. I have no idea if I’ve spelled these things correctly. I think they are action figures, otherwise known as dolls for boys, but I’m not sure.

If I can’t find either of these I will try to get something incredibly messy for them to play with. That’s the great thing about being an aunt. I can get messy toys and don’t have to deal with the resulting chaos. I do get nasty looks from their parents but that doesn’t count. I go home at the end of the day and leave it all behind.

Maybe I should get my one nephew a new toy guitar. It seems their cat got its toe stuck in his old one. My brother had to dismantle the guitar to separate the cat from the neck of the contraption. The cat hobbled for an hour or two, took a nap then forgot about the whole ordeal. It will take a few days longer for the scratches to heal on both my nephew and his mother. I wonder if they make cat-proof guitars?

I also have to find something for my other brother. When he was a little boy it was easy to buy for him. He was happy with anything made by Tonka, whether it was a truck, car or whatever. Now I tend to get him socks. One year I got him a gift certificate for a fish. I didn’t think a real fish would survive being placed in wrapping paper and sealed with miles of tape.

I’m hoping to do better this time and have a trip to the hobby center planned where I intend to get him some grown-up toys. I may be out of luck as grown-up toys tend to cost more than I’m willing to spend. Or maybe he will get more socks.

I am difficult to buy for this year as I really don’t want or need anything. If I would request one present that I would really appreciate, it would be the ability to be less frazzled at the end of the day. It simply isn’t worth it to get upset about things I can’t do anything about. As that can’t be found in any store, I guess I’m out of luck.

I haven’t put in any requests for things this year and can’t even come up with any real suggestions when I am asked what I want. This doesn’t mean that my brothers can avoid buying me presents. It simply means that they are on their own and I lose the right to complain if they get me something strange. Not that this has ever happened before …

Why is it that some people always give good presents and others give what can politely be called unusual gifts? I find it easy to shop for my mother and daughter but almost impossible to shop for anyone else. Even when I get people exactly what they asked for, I sometimes get that what-were-you-thinking look.

It might be because my mother, daughter and I share interests and tastes in many things. Give either of us a plant of any kind and we are happy. It doesn’t matter that all three of us already have more plants than we have room for or that we murder most of the plants we receive. Any non-plant gifts we give each other are equally easy to find and equally appreciated.

The rest of the family is much harder to buy for. I can spend hours looking at boy toys and no matter how careful I am, or what my reasoning is, I will purchase the one thing that they are sure to hate. If it is something they like, then they will already own five of them so I can’t win.

We try to give presents that reflect the likes and dislikes of the recipient. When we fail, it only goes to show how little we really know about each other. This tends to make the whole process more of a minefield than it needs to be.

Wish me luck on my shopping trips for the guys and if anyone knows where or what a Tek Dek Dude is please let me know.[[In-content Ad]]