Do you like surprises for Xmas?
- Thread starter Miss Chicken
- Start date
I generally don't like surprises *at all*, let alone for Christmas.
I love surprises. Unfortunately, I am very difficult to surprise. I tend to over anaylze everything and usually end up deducing what the person got me based on little comments throughout the months prior to Christmas, the size and shape of the gift, how they react when I tell them what I want, etc. All those little clues. I take too much notice to the things going on around me and I am too good at figuring things out. 
I am also really particular about things. I am kind of OCDish and if something isn't just right I can freak out. I don't freak out on people who give me gifts I don't like, but I can't help feel a sense of disappointment. For example the colors and exact styles of items matters a great deal to me, and I can't depend on anyone but myself to know what my complicated tastes are. So usually if someone gets me a gift that wasn't on my list, I won't like it.
It is very rare that someone not only surprises me, but gets me a great gift that I didn't even know I wanted. In fact, I can only think of one time when that happened - when my parents got me a dollhouse when I was about 7.
I am also really particular about things. I am kind of OCDish and if something isn't just right I can freak out. I don't freak out on people who give me gifts I don't like, but I can't help feel a sense of disappointment. For example the colors and exact styles of items matters a great deal to me, and I can't depend on anyone but myself to know what my complicated tastes are. So usually if someone gets me a gift that wasn't on my list, I won't like it.
It is very rare that someone not only surprises me, but gets me a great gift that I didn't even know I wanted. In fact, I can only think of one time when that happened - when my parents got me a dollhouse when I was about 7.
So everybody, what were your best surprise presents (received), that were totally unexpected and you really loved them? Especially from your childhood, if you can remember back
I remember getting a lovely little music box with a dancing ballerina. I really loved it.
My sister once received a beautiful "Wizard of Oz' book. I wished I had got it instead of her as I really loved it. It was illustrated by Libico Maraja and I bought myself a copy of the book this year from eBay. I am now collecting books illustrated by Maraja. I have three with a fourth on the way.
Illustration from the book
In the past several years, I've taken to asking for a surprise on my gift list which my Mom always asks for around Thanksgiving. You see, in the years after I stopped believing in Santa, especially in High School and College, I was able to figure what most of my gifts under the Christmas Trees were. It got tiresome, especially with no small children around so it didn't really feel like Christmas. So around the time I started my first career few years back, I asked my parents for a surprise (which they were afraid to do since I might dislike it). They generally did ok now, especially last Christmas when they got me a spanking new Nikon D-40 camera . It was totally unexpected.
. It was totally unexpected.
A surprise gift, especially a good one, is nice, but it's not a huge deal for me. I can still appreciate a gift even if I know what it is beforehand. In fact the anticipation of finally being able to put it to use makes you like it more sometimes.
Plus, I was always pretty good at guessing what a gift was, even if they try and camouflage it in larger or oddly shaped boxes and throw the weight off. Though I don't really do that anymore... mostly.
Plus, I was always pretty good at guessing what a gift was, even if they try and camouflage it in larger or oddly shaped boxes and throw the weight off. Though I don't really do that anymore... mostly.
A white as snow rocking pony.So everybody, what were your best surprise presents (received), that were totally unexpected and you really loved them? Especially from your childhood, if you can remember back
As usual, that Christmas I was sick with the flu, so I only had the strength to get out of bed, in my mum's arms, to go and sit on the pony for a few minutes before going back to bed, exhausted, but oh joy! I loved that pony so very much, it provided me with endless hours of entertainment.
I don't like surprises very much, I prefer to make a list of things I need/want and then let the person choose what to get me from it.
I have been pleasantly surprised by a few surprises (pardon the iteration), but then again they came from someone who knows me very well.
I love surprises on CHRISTmas!
One of the few people whose taste I trust did not disappoint & gave me a smashing bottle of wine. It's older than me, so not only a nice surprise, but it also makes me feel young!
One of the few people whose taste I trust did not disappoint & gave me a smashing bottle of wine. It's older than me, so not only a nice surprise, but it also makes me feel young!
So you're not vintage quite yet.
I don't really care that much what I get for christmas. I don't see christmas gifts as an unique opportunity to get things that I desperately want. So, if someone gives something to me then I will be happy about the fact that this person likes me enough to make the effort to get me a present.
Surprise gifts can be very nice, but when I receive something that I totally hate I always feel a bit guilty (for lack of a better term) about not liking it. But if I'm given a really ugly scarf that doesn't go with my complexion and makes me look sickly I won't wear it.
Therefore gifts that are coordinated beforehand tend to be a safer bet to make everyone happy.
My brother is the absolute worst in this department. He demands to be surprised and scolds everyone who might drop a hint, but if he doesn't like a gift he will tell you in no uncertain terms and criticize you for not making a better choice. And he never tells you what he might like!
Ah, the social pressures of gift giving!
Surprise gifts can be very nice, but when I receive something that I totally hate I always feel a bit guilty (for lack of a better term) about not liking it. But if I'm given a really ugly scarf that doesn't go with my complexion and makes me look sickly I won't wear it.
Therefore gifts that are coordinated beforehand tend to be a safer bet to make everyone happy.
My brother is the absolute worst in this department. He demands to be surprised and scolds everyone who might drop a hint, but if he doesn't like a gift he will tell you in no uncertain terms and criticize you for not making a better choice. And he never tells you what he might like!
Ah, the social pressures of gift giving!
Uh, the answer here is gift vouchers. It's a universal present. Or better than that, those other vouchers you can spend in like every shop, you know the ones, with the monarch printed on them.
He hates vouchers, since those require him to bother going to a shop and pick something. And he would miss out on the instant satisfaction of having his present on Christmas Eve. Did I mention that he is 24 years old and not say, 4 years old?
My parents are having a terrible track record. They keep getting us huge gifts that there is no way we can get in our car much less have room for in our apartment.
Last year it was a gas grill they just showed up with one day, this year upon going home my mother got a recliner for $20 that really doesn't fit in here at all and we just got in the car.
Last year it was a gas grill they just showed up with one day, this year upon going home my mother got a recliner for $20 that really doesn't fit in here at all and we just got in the car.
Shoot, for all that grief, I'd get him something terribly useful and practical (read: not a toy) and when he complained about it flat out tell him that buying gifts for him is not worth the aggravation, so he'd better appreciate that I got him anything if he ever wants another present from me.
I got a surprise I didn't want last night -- we're not traveling to see the extended family this year. I'm pretty bummed about it.
I prefer surprises. It's always tempting to ask for something or make a list, because there are so many books that I haven't gotten yet, but I still like being surprised. The thing that really motivates me to create a list is to avoid duplicates-- I really hate telling people that I already have what they gave me-- but I'm still holding out.
This isn't from my childhood directly, but relates to it in a way. Several years ago, my brother gave me the DVD set of Here Comes The Grump, which was one of my most favorite cartoons back in the 60s; I was completely surprised because I didn't know that it was on DVD and never really expected such an obscure show to be released.So everybody, what were your best surprise presents (received), that were totally unexpected and you really loved them? Especially from your childhood, if you can remember back
