Once again, it’s time to give my husband a gift and I don’t have the least idea what to do about it. (Well, actually I do have the least idea…he was bitching yesterday that he couldn’t find any socks. But that’s a last resort).
For various reasons, it’s very hard for me to buy him a gift. If he wants something, he either buys it right away or it’s far too expensive to consider seriously or he has so many criteria for the item that he’d need to buy it himself. He’s actually returned just about anything I’ve ever given him.
So, can I just have some good general ideas about man-gifts? And if you are a man, what would you buy yourself if you were going to blow fifty dollars or so?
Money is easy. Time is hard. One of the best gifts my wife ever gave me was a large predator field class in Yellowstone Park. She arranged for someone to cover my time at our bookstore and everything. I wouldn’t have set that up for myself – the usual guilty feelings about spending precious time off away from the family – but it was an absolutely awesome few days mixing classroom time with field observation of bears and wolves.
Perhaps there’s something he really enjoys that you aren’t into, or some activity you think he’d enjoy more if he went by himself. Maybe a concert, a play, lessons in something (crafting, homebrewing, a sport)? If you have kids, offering to watch them while he does some activity can be a biggie.
Something that he would never buy because it is overpriced. Depending on what he likes, there has got to be some top-end item that he would never buy for himself. Buying it for him gives permission to be extravagent. My wife took me out for a very expensive meal - never going to happen except for a special occasion.
Something that he is too lazy to look for. As InvisibleWombat says: “Money is easy. Time is hard.” Track down that obscure item he wants, even it is socks
Speaking as a guy, if you wander around that site long enough, you’ll find SOMETHING that’ll make you go- huh… that sounds like a cool but completely extravagant thing that I wanted.
how about a walking tour of somewhere, they used to have ‘fishing’ and ‘hunting’ expedition arrangers in the outdoorsy magazines. Contact one, and see if you can set up a ‘camera safari’ for him? they get groups together and fly them to a lake or hunting lodge in the middle of nowhere, in absolutely beautiful surroundings … just instead of a fishing rod or a gun he can take a camera [unless he would like to hunt or fish?]
mrAru would absolutely LOVE something like that =)
If you can set that up for fifty bucks, I’ll take three, please.
My default gift is an iTunes card, or something similar.
If he’s an avid hiker, a few pairs of good hiking socks would be pretty appropriate.
If he has a favorite TV show, a DVD set of one or more seasons of that show might be good.
My wife and I have given each other gift certificates in the past for, essentially, time – you can redeem the certificate when you want a day to yourself, away from kids, chores, responsibilities, etc. You can also create gift certificates for other, uh, grownup-type activities.
My dad never knew his favorite thing to do was curl up in front of the TV in his jammies and luxurious bathrobe, until I bought him a luxurious bathrobe.
Not super expensive, probably $30, from JC Penny’s.
I haven’t given him a gift since then because I am now officially out of ideas
