The routine of gift-giving has just gotten worse. Jim just moved to a new group at P&G that consists mostly of women. As one could guess, though logically not fathom, they all felt the need to give random Christmas presents to him on Monday. He toted home gift certificates, chocolate towers, photo albums, etc. and looked at me expectantly. At least said women were thoughtful enough to do this all on Monday so I had a day to return the “favor”. And so, being the married woman I am, I head out Monday night to shop on behalf of Jim for presents for people I’ve never met and know nothing about.
Why do we get in these gift cycles. Does anyone really want to spend the time, money and effort on buying gifts for co-workers, long-lost friends, distant relatives? What does this accomplish? NOTHING GOOD. It starts the dumb cycle of gift-buying for the next 20 years as no one wants to be the first one to be rude and not return the gesture.
Yes, Christmas has gotten WAY too commercialized and the new traditions have nothing to do with “the meaning of Christmas” – they have to do with the required, auxiliary gift-giving routines everyone follows.
2023 Year in Review: Tough breaks, but it’s all right
10 months ago
2 comments:
Preach it sister!
I, thankfully, can fall into the guy category and can pass off lame excuses that no one gives me any crap about. However, you should have let Jim pass the same excuse off at work. At the very least, you should have picked a typical guy gift, like a gift card or something. All you've done now is raise the bar for him. They're going to expect birthday, mother's day, etc, gifts from now on, and they'll be looking at them critically if you chose well for christmas.
Sucks being a thoughtful person at times, no?
Yeah OK. Guys are guys, but that is no excuse for laziness. I applaud your good manners in making sure to return the "favors". And while it my be a payne in the arse, it really shows your maturity for giving gifts to those whom you don't really need to.
As for Tom, the best gifts are not about the money you spend, but the thought and effort that counts the most. The most treasured gifts are from the heart and often homemade! (Idea, go to Michael's. Buy a plain wreath and lots of trimmings. Decorarte it up. It is inexpensive but you took your own time, they will cherish it more knowing you did it yourself)
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