Yesterday I ventured to the mall to finish off holiday shopping. I avoided going after work or on a weekend but I was still expecting to fight with large crowds and I was not disappointed at all. However, what I did find amazing was at 4PM on a week day how many business men there were standing around in stores us men don’t belong in looking uncomfortable and confused. Some with their mouths hanging open, some with the look of fear painted on their face, and others like a deer in headlights just standing at the entrance-way to a store.
I popped my ear-buds in, selected a nice playlist on my iPhone and prepared myself to body-check anybody who got in my way. Thankfully I made it through the mall without harming anybody, made my purchases, and escaped unscathed both physically and emotionally; or so I thought.
The moment I had the car in gear my brain began to race. What if she doesn’t like this gift? The gift is multiple pieces that all go together, if she doesn’t like the general concept she wont like any of the gifts. I’m still not 100% certain about my selections but I know it is the thought that counts and I put a lot of thought into this. The part that is screwing with my head is in recent conversations she has mentioned how she wants something in this general theme; but what she asked for differs from what I selected. We’ll see when Kate and I exchange gifts.
On the reverse side, it has been brought to my attention that I am a horrible person to shop for. Due to my meticulous product research habits I make it very hard for people to buy things for me. When there is something I want, I research the hell out of it and know exactly what make and model I want. As a geek I am especially picky about my electronics. I feel horrible about this because it makes it so hard for people like my wife and inlaws to buy gifts for me. I am used to my family where the gift is usually a check or a gift card which puts the task of picking out a product on myself.
When we discussed this last night Kate brought to light two specific examples. First was a case for the iPhone. She said that she wanted to get me one, and saw one she liked, but she knew that I would only want the case I picked out and that I’d not use a case I don’t love 100%. She’s right, I am difficult about things like this. I know what I like and I don’t properly appreciate what I should. She further made this clear to me by explaining that she had purchased a rechargeable battery set for me that included a car charger as she knows I often forget to charge the batteries for my camera. This was a great idea, and I should have been thrilled. But when she brought up rechargeable batteries in casual conversation I said how I need specific ones for my camera due to it’s awful power consumption problems. While my reasoning is right and sound, I feel horrible that I can’t just be happy about random gifts people buy me.
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