How do you feel about birthday presents?

I like to give them. It’s nice if I get any.

I love to give them but not get them. I prefer to ignore my own birthday.

It’s all good.

I like getting gifts. It means that for some period of time, be it short or long, I was thought of. Someone took some time to think about what I might enjoy.

Truth be told, I’m usually a lazy gift giver. I go for giving cash or cash equivalents often.

I despise birthdays! I feel awkward and disingenuous. I do not do well in thinking of what to give on birthdays, probably because I know that I am supposed to give something. I’d rather do it on my own for my own reasons. I dislike receiving gifts. I am the only one in my family who feels this way.

I like giving and getting gifts. I absolutely love shopping for other people and then seeing their reaction to what I got them.

As a kid, getting presents for my birthday was super exciting (especially since I rarely got toys and things outside of my birthday and Christmas), but as I’ve gotten older, there’s less I want and I don’t necessarily expect anything from anyone, although I probably will get a few things (from my parents and my boyfriend guaranteed). :P It’s also an excuse to buy many classical CDs.

Giving gifts on birthdays is just as fun and I still do it for my closest friends. :)

Free shit, hand it over. Fuckin A.

Making someone happy? Priceless.

As long as I like the gift, which I usually do. I’m getting 6 new CDs for my birthday in a few weeks! ^^

I’d rather spend time with a friend and have them show they care about me with emotion than have them spend money on me.

@Seaofclouds Just wondering how you feel if they don’t like the present you got them? I have gotten lots of presents in which I had no interest at all, but had to fake interest and gush over them.

When my sister says that, it isn’t so much that she doesn’t want a present as she doesn’t want it to be some big thing where she has to act thrilled no matter what, and then when she never uses it they get all hurt because she didn’t say that she’d rather have something else because they would have returned it, and then the next year she tells them she’ll never wear that sweater so they spend the next hour crying in another room…. Or they give her a gift about the loving embrace of Jesus (she’s not Christian) or a kid’s geology set (true story, and she in her twenties and not a geology fan…) or they expect her to give them as nice/expensive a gift as they gave her on her waitress salary.

I love buying gifts for family and friends, but I don’t like buying under the duress of time, JUST to show up with something.

So, what usually happens is, I’ll find something that I feel is perfect for someone, buy it and stow it away for an appropriate occasion. Then, I’m lucky if I can FIND the danged thing when it comes around.

Presents for me? I’m always overwhelmed to be thought of in that way. My grandmother used to say that my kidneys were too close to my eyes.

I like to get them, I like to give them; that pretty much sums up how I feel about them. And I give them to people even if they say they don’t want them. What business of it of theirs if I give them a present or not? :- )

@lillycoyote Atta girl.

@MIssA :-)

I really don’t care if I get them. It’s always nice to be pleasantly surprised, though. I LOVE birthdays. It seems really important that we take at least one day out of the year to celebrate our lives. I am usually more enthusiastic about other people’s birthdays than they are themselves. lol.

I accept all offerings. One of my favorites was a package of plastic canvas that was found at a Charity Thrift Store by my son. It was practically free to him, but much appreciated by me.

I don’t care if I get a gift or not, although I do like when people remember my birthday. Well, I’ll take it a step farther, I actually prefer not to start the whole gift giving thing with friends, because then I feel I need to get them a gift on their birthday, and it is just easier to not start the cycle, unless there is a party or something. If I actually say, “I don’t want anything for my birthday,” I mean it. However, if someone seems to really want to get me something and just doesn’t know what I might like to receive, instead of leaving it to chance or having them worry what I would like I will provide them with a short list at various price points to take the pressure off of them, and so I don’t have to pretend I like what they bought me.

Growing up my family was not much for surprise gifts, and I don’t handle the situation very well.

@plethora I guess I’ve been lucky so far because it seems like people have always liked what I got them. So either they were really good actors, or I’ve done well so far. I take my time picking out gifts and try to get things that I believe they would enjoy. I don’t by random things just to give a gift.

If someone didn’t like what I gave them, I imagine I would be hurt because of the amount of thought and effort I put into picking out gifts. I’d be more upset with myself for picking a crappy gift than I would that they didn’t like it though.

I won’t force others to give me a birthday present. Of course I wanted it but I just won’t tell them.

Always give presents… don’t usually expect to get them but am always excited when I do.

Most of my adult life since I first married, there was never money or the inclination to celebrate my birthday or purchase gifts for that occasion.

My wive’s birthdays were remembered and presents were given. Funny about that.

In my current marriage we celebrate our birthdays together, although often buying gifts are beyond our financial means.

@Dr_Lawrence It sounds as if both you and your wife have the simplest and most precious of gifts…each other. Good for you.

Every birthday is a reason to celebrate in our family, but we usually have family gatherings, which include home cooked meals, or the birthday person’s favorite restaurant. I really hate being 500 miles from the rest of the family, but my local extended family has grown to nine people. Four other members flew up for Hubby’s birthday in March.

In San Diego, nearly every one was born in February, so we have a huge February birthday party every year. There are presents for the kids, but the adults just enjoy the time together.

@YARNLADY I know what you mean about hating being away from people on birthdays (and even other holidays). My husband’s birthday was last week. We celebrated by talking on the phone for a few minutes. I sent him a birthday party in a box for him to enjoy with some of his fellow soldiers. It had brownies, icing, candles, birthday plates, birthday hats, birthday napkins, and even goody bags (my son’s idea). Since we live about 1800 miles away from our families, we don’t get to celebrate many special occasions with them in person. Getting together with family has always been my favorite part of any special occasion.

I’m in a bit of a dilemma. My niece just celebrated her 18th birthday and must have a car for college in the fall.Seems like a pretty obvious gift choice, except that I don’t want to appear a show-off.

I love giving presents. I love getting presents. Actually, I like everything about birthdays, from the attention to the cake, even if it isn’t my birthday! Birthdays have been a lot more fun since we had kids, because their enthusiasm for what they consider one of the best days of the year is hard to resist!

As for the presents themselves, I am easy to please and only feel uncomfortable if I think someone went overboard with the gift. My mom is often guilty of that, and doesn’t even try to hide the fact that her motivation is to give the best birthday (or Christmas) present in the family. For birthdays and Christmas, she will ask me several times what everyone else is giving the kids, then be sure to outdo them. I now tell her I don’t know what others are doing. I have to be careful not to mention anything I’d like to have for myself in the few months leading up to Christmas or my birthday unless I want her to buy it for me. Once I briefly mentioned wanting a KitchenAid mixer, and she got it for me for Christmas. I love it, but I wish she hadn’t spent that much AND I wish she hadn’t asked me three times if it was my favorite gift. She did the same thing with an iPod a few years later.

@Seaofclouds Thank you. I’ve always wanted to ask that question…:)

If I’m able then I love to give them! I love giving b-day parties where I can spoil someone with tasty goodies, champagne, friends over and presents, hopefully a few things they’re not expecting or had put out of mind but that I remembered. For myself then I love to receive gifts if I’ve got a partner but aside from that then just an acknowledgment of my b-day from a few friends is good stuff. I’m easy and predictible for b-days- a nice meal, flowers, champagne, romance and maybe something silky soft or hard sparkle shiny.

I think I die a little bit every time someone sings Happy Birthday to me. The glaring spotlight, the watching for your reaction, the pressure to blow out every candle on the first blow, the “should I just stand here and smile or what?!” dilemma… it gets to me. Also… I don’t mind getting b-day presents but I hate opening them in front of people for the reasons listed above.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land Have you talked to her parents about the car? And are you sure she can have one on campus during her freshman year? Some colleges don’t allow freshman to have cars on campus. If you talk to her parents and they are find with the idea and you really want to do it, I say go for it. Don’t worry about what anyone else thinks.

@Seaofclouds She’s going to a community college and living with me while attending. Her parents are out of the picture on this (mother is dead, she’s estranged from her father). I’m paying the insurance, registration and upkeep. The car belonged to my late wife, has been sitting in the garage since her death, only 3000 miles on it. I’m concerned that an 18 year old young lady driving a 2010 Mercedes S400 might be seen as ostentatious, or misinterpreted as a gift from a “sugar daddy”, possibly harming her reputation.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land I see. Are you currently driving a different car? If so, could you possibly let her have the car you are currently driving and you could keep the other car for yourself (if your car isn’t as nice as the other one). If not, I say don’t worry about what other people think and do what you feel is best! She’s lucky to have such an awesome uncle. :-)

@Seaofclouds I wanted her to have it because it’s rated one of the safest cars in the world. My older M-B would make about the same impression on people. You’re right, it’s her safety that matters, not what people think.

@stranger_in_a_strange_land
How about this:
Give her the usage of the car but don’t gift it to her. It’s kind of the same insurance wise if she’ll be the primary driver but in emotional and social sense then it will still be yours. This isn’t that big a deal but it will give her some pause to keep acquaintances from wanting to take advantage of being able to cruise about in a hot car by her being able to honestly say, “sorry but it’s not mine, it’s my uncle’s car and I use it for school.”

@Neizvestnaya That’s a very good idea. I may save on insurance by doing it that way also.

It would be nice to get a birthday gift, because I am tired of giving them. (adults)