It's the holiday gift buying season again, and once again, I am up against the gift buying conundrum: how much is enough, for each person? To add to the confusion, most of the people I buy gifts for have birthdays in December or early January - my father, 12/9, my sister, 12/18, my step-father, 12/24, my mother, 1/8.
And then, there's my mother's favorite line: "don't spend your money on me - buy something for yourself"... and we all know how well that works. I can just imagine what would happen if I really did buy something for myself instead <shudder>.
And, of course, there's the joys of asking people what they want. My sister is easy; we don't talk to each other (her choice) so she gets a card - more than I get from her most years.
My father couldn't care less - for years, I've been going to see him, or he's come to see me, and then we go shopping. He finds something he wants, and I buy it; I find something I want, and he buys it.
Then there's my mother... who asked for a digital scale - like I could get away with just that if I wanted to. And my step-father, who wanted a set of socket wrenches to replace some that were stolen... except that when I called my mother to see if a particular set was suitable, they'd gone shopping and now he wants a tool bench - brand and model number specified, price fully known... what's the point of that? On top of which, when I called about the socket set, which was on sale at Sears for $70, I was told that that was way too much to spend on him, and I should get the tool bench for $30... this, for a man who married my mother when I was 27, and cosigned my first mortgage when I was 29, who bought my first computer (at a cost of $1600, in the early '90s)... But how much is enough?
Does anyone else have these problems, or is just me?
And then, there's my mother's favorite line: "don't spend your money on me - buy something for yourself"... and we all know how well that works. I can just imagine what would happen if I really did buy something for myself instead <shudder>.
And, of course, there's the joys of asking people what they want. My sister is easy; we don't talk to each other (her choice) so she gets a card - more than I get from her most years.
My father couldn't care less - for years, I've been going to see him, or he's come to see me, and then we go shopping. He finds something he wants, and I buy it; I find something I want, and he buys it.
Then there's my mother... who asked for a digital scale - like I could get away with just that if I wanted to. And my step-father, who wanted a set of socket wrenches to replace some that were stolen... except that when I called my mother to see if a particular set was suitable, they'd gone shopping and now he wants a tool bench - brand and model number specified, price fully known... what's the point of that? On top of which, when I called about the socket set, which was on sale at Sears for $70, I was told that that was way too much to spend on him, and I should get the tool bench for $30... this, for a man who married my mother when I was 27, and cosigned my first mortgage when I was 29, who bought my first computer (at a cost of $1600, in the early '90s)... But how much is enough?
Does anyone else have these problems, or is just me?
