Christmas Shopping

Christmas was once a time of year I looked forward too, but sadly being 21 the whole thing has turned on its head for me. Where once I got a fortune in gifts at Christmas, I am now working at a loss instead of profit each year, enduring aftershave gift sets and such twaddle, (the crap end of the adulthood stick :razz: ). The only problem is that, earning a proper wage this year I'm not actually sure exactly how much of my precious cash to part with. I get around ?700 a month, which isn't exactly the largest figure, and I was considering ?150 budget this year, (which will be the first I year I get anything but token gifts) for everyone all together. Is this figure too much, or too little? What does anyone else normally spend? Is buying gifts based on the ammount you reckon other people will spend on you miserly? Damn these festive family politics. Discuss.

There is so many things to take into account that it would be hard to suggest anything really. 150 sounds good if that is what you think sounds good. Don't fall into the trap of feeling pressure to buy things, that is just the greedy advertisers getting to you. Be strong.

I'll be going tomorow :biggrin: Gotta buy presents for my mum brother and girlfriend :biggrin:

Christmas sucks and should be outlawed.

I don't buy presents cos it costs a frigging fortune to buy for 3
sisters, 1 brother and my 2 parents (and no, not even half/step bro's
sisters.. my real family), let alone my 3 best friends and various
other hangers on.

The pit will get it's present soon enough though, let's wait and see what HL2 mp options are available first :wink:

<DIV class=quote>
<DIV class=quotetitle>? quoting Gwil</DIV>
<DIV class=quotetext>(and no, not even half/step bro's sisters.. my real family),
</DIV></DIV>

That's a terrible thing to say! Even if you don't get along with someone stating that they are not real family is pretty hurtful. Hang your head in shame! Go on, hang it!

I'm not getting for aunts cousins etc I'm sticking to:

2 parents - ?20 each

3 Siblings - ?20 each
3 Nieces - ?50 between em.

I agree with Gwil, Christmas does indeed suck. I wouldn't worry too
much about getting presents Mephs as anyone who thinks your friendship
needs to be validated with trite trinkets isn't worth having as a
friend. That's the excuse I'm using anyway. :wink:

Gwil said:
(and no, not even half/step bro's sisters.. my real family),

That's a terrible thing to say! Even if you don't get along with
someone stating that they are not real family is pretty hurtful. Hang
your head in shame! Go on, hang it!

I'm not getting for aunts cousins etc I'm sticking to:

2 parents - ?20 each

3 Siblings - ?20 each

3 Nieces - ?50 between em.

pffft :razz: you know what i mean :smile: when i tell people i dont buy presents
because of my enormous immediate family they presume i mean step
sisters etc... even so, if I did have step sisters they wouldn't get
any presents either :razz:

not even now i'm rich is anyone getting a cent out of me :smile:

My sister and I buy joint presents for our parents, but since she has a
full time job and all, she tends to pay the vast majority of the costs.
Since the majority of my income comes from my parents (my student loan
pays a single month of my rent, whoopee!) its kinda them thats paying
for their gifts anyway :smile: That said, they do get pretty decent stuff,
normally around ?80 worth each? I tend to get my sister something like
a DVD or the like, while she normally gets me a game or something
around ?40.

I told my family I am not celebrating christmas this year. I feel much
lighter without carrying Santa Clause and his bag ass-raping reindeer.

I say, 150 is a good amount. you can get some good stuff for 150 quid. also, if you come across a couple and you don't want to get one gift for each of them, get them one gift for the both of them like a fine box of sweets or something.

And yes sadly after a certian age, you get rubbish like aftershave sets and other such drivel. It's because you are not a kid so they don't want to get you an immature gift and insult you, but you are not old enough for the more "over-the-hill" gifts like covers for golf clubs or other stuff. It's like you're too OLD for toy trains and too YOUNG for toy trains. I feel your pain.

<DIV class=quote>
<DIV class=quotetitle>? quoting Vash</DIV>
<DIV class=quotetext>I told my family I am not celebrating christmas this year. I feel much lighter without carrying Santa Clause and his bag ass-raping reindeer.
</DIV></DIV>
you're very funny. are you GETTING any presents this year? or just not GIVING them.

I tend to get lots of games, CD's and films to be honest, which isn't
bad by my reckoning! I do tend to find myself with a year's supply of
toiletries too however, but its something to scratch off the shopping
lists so can't really complain :smile:

If you're getting crap presents, you're not giving enough good ideas... :razz:

<DIV class=quote>
<DIV class=quotetitle>? quoting Nickelplate</DIV>
<DIV class=quotetext>And yes sadly after a certian age, you get rubbish like aftershave sets and other such drivel. It's because you are not a kid so they don't want to get you an immature gift and insult you, but you are not old enough for the more "over-the-hill" gifts like covers for golf clubs or other stuff. It's like you're too OLD for toy trains and too YOUNG for toy trains. I feel your pain.</DIV></DIV>

Heh...how childish do I feel after that comment (26 years old and getting an Xbox for Christmas :wink: )
Sad thing is in Lincoln, they have speakers on top of all the lamp-posts in the town centre and are piping Xmas music non-stop. It really is quite disturbing.

I don't think X-boxes are childish... :smile: Wow, in our area of the US, we don't have a town that DOESN'T have the "breen propaganda speakers" and the Christmas music playing. OY!

THIS YEAR, i am prod to say that i am not getting crap gifts! I am getting $200 deducted off the cost of my Laptop i am currently paying for, and I am getting a really nice backpack! SWEET! It's too bad santa already told me what i am getting. :biggrin:

P.S. I expect at least 2 toiletries sets and some sort of wide tie and a movie.

Do like me: no friends, no girlfriend ... no expensive christmas ! woojay !

nah, seriously.

Sometimes people really are much more happy with small things, or
things you made yourself. Discover the inner artist. Paint something.
Write a song. Or end up thinking up all kinds of stuff, but buying too
much presents after all, like me.

It may sound ungrateful, but I'd be more than happy just to have a traditional Christmas dinner. My parents have done more than enough for me over the years.

<DIV class=quote>
<DIV class=quotetitle>? quoting Adam Hawkins</DIV>
<DIV class=quotetext>It may sound ungrateful, but I'd be more than happy just to have a traditional Christmas dinner. My parents have done more than enough for me over the years. </DIV></DIV>
Hell that doesn't sound ungratefull at all. Atleast you admit that your parents do a lot for you. There's a lot of other assholes out there who can only keep asking for more.

I'm like Adam, Christmas stopped being about the gifts several years back. I think I was 15 or so at the time. I still get other people things, but I don't really even like receiving gifts.

My parents absolutely hate it, since they always ask me to come up with stuff I want, and I almost always tell them that I don't really need anything. They feel the need to get me something that I'll love, which they usually end up doing anyways. I really appreciate the little things. I would hate to think someone bought me something insanely expensive just because they felt pressured to by society.

Monqui said:
My parents absolutely hate it, since they always ask me to come up with stuff I want, and I almost always tell them that I don't really need anything. They feel the need to get me something that I'll love, which they usually end up doing anyways.

Same here.

Although, I enjoy getting crap I can't really buy on my own at the moment, I like getting other people things they'd enjoy as well. (Getting my dad a DVD player, since he constantly bitches about one not being able to watch DVDs. Also, it plays DixV and almost every DVD-R format.)

I'd actually rather spend time with most of the people I know.

If I ask for anything, it'll either be a new motherboard or a big 5-lb. jar of pistachios. But either way I'm getting $400 from my grandparents, whoohoo! And I don't think I'm gonna get much for my friends in the way of presents, and definitely not my parents or brothers since they're just not worth spending $50 on a video game for or, God forbid, buying craft materials for my mommy.

I big 5-lb. jar of pistachios.

See this kids? THIS IS STYLE !

Pistachios are what Christmas is REALLY about.

starts cracking open shells and devouring sweet yet salty pistachios within

<DIV class=quote>
<DIV class=quotetitle>? quoting Hugh</DIV>
<DIV class=quotetext>a big 5-lb. jar of pistachios.</DIV></DIV>

I think with all this talk of pistachios and other equally sane gifts we've forgotten the meaning of Christmas: A large man who breaks into houses once a year (I had an uncle like that once :razz: ). At least it'll be a good couple more years before I have to let THAT fat gimp take the credit for gifts I buy. I don't know how most parents put up with it. I wash told when I was 5 years old that there was no Santa because my mother couldn't afford much (actually, it turned out a very merry christmas, she got money, but t'was a debtful new year) but it hasn't affected me....much.
This is not a debate about the existance of Santa, we all know he's real.

I've just got bk from town, I got my mum a couple of dvd's and some of those bubble bath things and for my gf, well I can't say, she watch's these channels :razz:

I don't shop much on Christmas. Tell everyone you luv them :wink: . Your mom will hug you, your girlfriend will kiss you, you'r dad will hit you for being a perv etc. :razz:
Nah, really, besides a few small gifts, i don't bother myself too much.