With Christmas around the corner, what are the best gifts you’ve ever given / received?
Funny how I’ve turned into my dad and tell people don’t buy me anything for Christmas. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve told my mom that, no, I don’t need more sweatpants.
I told my aunt who kept asking that I wanted hand soap (the nice foamy ones) and she said she wants to get me something nice. Took a couple weeks to convince her that’s the best gift she could give me.
Now that I’m in a spot where I can afford pretty much anything I need, I’ve been thinking about what I actually want for Christmas, and there isn’t anything financially possible.
I think purchasing experiences is better than objects. I’ve been taking my family out to restaurants and have been told I’m spending too much money, but I think a few thousand a month on experiences with family is easily worth it.
Used to be a big “compound interest” guy, but there’s not much I can’t do with $10M in 50 years that $20M would unlock.
I’m thinking of setting up a scholarship fund or non-profit next year in honor of my grandparents. Would be easy to ask for donations to that instead of gifts for my birthday / Christmas. Selfishly, lets me say “hey I’m the president of a non-profit” and still to good to the community.
Anyways, back to gifts. Best gift I can think of was my dad got a glass cube that you set on top of a light, and it was my mom and grandpa in the cube. When illuminated, it shows them smiling. Was shocked when I googled how much it was, but I understand it now. You can’t put a price on making the people you love happy.
Back in '95, my parents told me that I couldn't have a Playstation. They didn't believe in it, they said, so they weren't getting me one, and neither was Santa for that matter. Sure I played some NES, Genesis, and SNES at friends' houses, but in their house, that wasn't going to fly.
What they couldn't have predicted is that my Grandma, who didn't even know I wanted a Playstation, would run into one of her best friends while out shopping for Christmas. Gram noticed that her friend was getting her grandson a Playstation and took a flier that I would like one as well. I wish I could remember my parents' irritation as I tore the paper off that beautiful box, but I was so happy I couldn't take my eyes off it.
To this day, Gram's my favorite.
I didn't get a PS2 for Christmas after my friends all started getting them (I was the first to get a PS1) and I threw a massive temper tantrum. Got the PS2 in March for my birthday. Thanks for that memory of seeing the PS2 box under my parents' bed. Same feeling, couldn't take my eyes off it
The 1994 Nerf Ballzooka
I can totally see this for you
lol
Hot Wheels Slimecano - forever goat'd
I get excited for new socks. Lame, I know
A Kaiba yugioh deck when I was 6. Many Christmases have come and gone, but I'll never forget that excitement and joy I felt at finding that under the Christmas tree. Really makes me think sometimes, something that was $15 brought such joy and yet we spend hundreds of dollars on meaningless things that don't bring us much joy -- makes you really think about rationalizing spending to stuff that really moves the needle in quality of life
I never learned how to play yugioh but was obsessed with collecting cards. Remember I had taken over half the living room with my layout before we got a dog and I had to move them
Damn those are the mems! Life is pretty good now but really miss those days of being a carefree kid
Sax-A-Boom. I can’t do justice explaining how awesome it is so Jack Black will:
I second buying experiences instead of objects.
During a family holiday in London where my parents and siblings were all able to get together in the same place (unfortunately, a rare occurrence for my family as we are all dispersed across the world), my dad surprised me with a visit to No 1 Savile Row in Mayfair. He brought me there so I could create my own bespoke suit. Though I ultimately ended up with a tangible, physical object, I must say it was just as much of an experience (e.g. interacting with master artisans, learning the jargon, the history, pageantry, etc.)
Though this wasn't actually on Christmas, by the time the suit was ready for me to take home it was close to Christmas, so it effectively became a Christmas present.
In terms of absolute excitement, probably the gaming laptop my parents bought me when I was 14. I spent way too much time on that thing but it had a significant - though not all positive - impact on my life.
For usefulness, I have an old Sennheiser headset that my parents bought me around when I entered highschool. That exact headset (with a few rounds of new earcuffs and pads) has survived the teenage years, college, interviews, and I still have it today. Really great quality and has held up better than most things I own.
Most special is an audio recorder that my grandmother gave to me when I was a little kid (6 or 7) not long before she died. It only has one message, and that is her saying "I love you Al, good night." As far as I know, it's the only recording of her voice in existance and I've since made copies on my phone and computer to preserve it as best as I can.
I got a chocolate fondue fountain machine
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