# If You Could Have Anything You Really Want for Christmas... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 2, 2010, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603 "2010-12-02T00:34:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2010, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/61 "2010-12-03T15:14:42Z")
I wish I had a job where I was permanent; one with actual health care benefits for myself and maybe my wife & kids. One that had sick days & let you use your vacation when you needed it. One that wasn’t shift-work 3-11pm or 11-8pm, where 2 years of my kids lives disappeared from me in the blink of an eye. I wish my kids were proud of me instead of thinking of me as some guy they see for 15 minutes a day 5 days out of 7. I wish I had a method or a way to pay for my kids college other than to rub my neck & tell them they need better grades for scholarships. I wish that it would be resolved that if I do have talent, other people would see it too… or that if I didn’t, that I would finally find a way to dispel the illusion/delusion. I think that comes under peace on earth, although I’m not sure I’m quite that bad yet. I wish I had a way to pay for a replacement vehicle for when one dies; I know one will and it will probably be in 2011. I wish I had the means to redo the kitchen that should have been redone in 1993. I wish my friends all had jobs. I wish all the people in my country would get up off their asses and work harder toward hiring people and increasing the standard of living for the greatest number of its citizens as well as pushing for adequate judicial dis-incentives toward Boards and Officers who intentionally move our country’s jobs and taxable assets over-seas. I wish everyone in my country understood that without a truly thriving middle class, both upper and lower, we as a Nation cannot stand. That all Steve Forbes money will mean Nothing if there isn’t a place left where he lives to spend it or a 911 that answers when he needs it. Nation first, economic ideology second. But if I can count my blessings too, let me do so and let me please have the wisdom to appreciate them. To be fair and honest, a cat crawled up into my lap, crossed her front paws & purred as I typed this. It would be a small start and possibly a minor miracle, but maybe when you read this it would be nice if yours did too. Happy Holidays! ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2010, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/62 "2010-12-03T15:22:11Z")
For someone to buy my house. We had a buyer flake out on us a couple of weeks ago; she was supposed to have closed December 9. We aren’t hurting financially, but we’re expecting our first child in March and every month I pay for that house, I feel like something’s being taken away from her. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2010, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/63 "2010-12-03T16:27:30Z")
Mental health or someone to pay off my mortgage ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2010, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/64 "2010-12-03T17:10:55Z")
Long life with good physical and mental health for my wife and her parents. ---
**Author:** ![Sodalite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@Sodalite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sodalite)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2010, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/65 "2010-12-04T06:04:51Z")
> [@Sodalite](#): > > Perfect health for my Mom and myself. > > A car. A Kia Rio 5 would be perfect. That or some other small-medium hatchback. > > Money. I would settle for $1,000 but if I could get $5,000 I would take it. > > Somebody else to clean our house and do all the stupid, annoying crap my Mom wants done every day. > > A new pair of jeans and two or three sweatshirts, in nice colors, that actually fit. > > A way to lose weight that didn’t cause me terrible pain. Add a job to the list. I got fired/quit last night. It was a long time coming. I should have left 5 years ago and I would have if I thought I was good enough to do any better. ---
**Author:** ![BaneSidhe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c5a1d2/32.png) [@BaneSidhe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BaneSidhe)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2010, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/66 "2010-12-04T06:10:18Z")
I’d like to have a less-achy body. But what I really would like is a weekend in a secluded cabin with my hubby, no one to bother us and nothing to do. ---
**Author:** ![Enuma\_Elish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5e9695/32.png) [@Enuma\_Elish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enuma_Elish)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2010, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/67 "2010-12-04T08:06:14Z")
Yup. A friend who ‘gets’ me. Male or female, doesn’t matter. All my life, I’ve been surrounded by people who assume the worst about even the most innocuous comments that come out of my mouth. It would be nice to have just one friend who knows that I not only don’t wish evil on everyone, but I actually want the best for people, even people I don’t really like. Oh, and also that friend would understand that going to a movie implies actually sitting quietly and absorbing the movie, not sitting in a darkened theatre and having a conversation . ---
**Author:** ![ratmanizhere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b5ac83/32.png) [@ratmanizhere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratmanizhere)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2010, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/68 "2010-12-04T18:55:39Z")
See my Dad just one more time to tell him “I’m sorry” for something that happened a long time ago that caused us to stop talking to each other before he died. ---
**Author:** ![Sodalite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@Sodalite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sodalite)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/69 "2010-12-05T06:27:00Z")
> [@Sodalite](#): > > Add a job to the list. I got fired/quit last night. It was a long time coming. I should have left 5 years ago and I would have if I thought I was good enough to do any better. Now add a new oil pan for my Mom’s car, the only one we have since my car died a year ago. Please let it be tomorrow so I can go home. I’m stranded at a friend’s place an hour from home because of a fucking pothole that I hit trying to turn onto an unlit road in the rain. I realized something was seriously wrong about 30 minutes later when I smelled burning oil. When I got out and looked the oil was running out in a steady stream. I made it to a mechanic 15 minutes before they closed. They’ll try to get the part in the morning but it’s Sunday and most part places are closed. I can’t sleep. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Woodhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Miss\_Woodhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Woodhouse)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/70 "2010-12-05T23:24:15Z")
Money. Lots o’ money. Or alternatively, a good agent for my songwriter husband (who is very good, but life circumstances have prevented him from trying to sell any of his work and will prevent him from doing so for the foreseeable future.) Oh and free dental care for the next 10 years. That includes braces for the kids who have sadly inherited my small jaw/big teeth issue. ---
**Author:** ![Sodalite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@Sodalite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sodalite)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2010, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/71 "2010-12-07T08:30:20Z")
> [@Sodalite](#): > > Now add a new oil pan for my Mom’s car, the only one we have since my car died a year ago. Please let it be tomorrow so I can go home. I’m stranded at a friend’s place an hour from home because of a fucking pothole that I hit trying to turn onto an unlit road in the rain. I realized something was seriously wrong about 30 minutes later when I smelled burning oil. When I got out and looked the oil was running out in a steady stream. I made it to a mechanic 15 minutes before they closed. They’ll try to get the part in the morning but it’s Sunday and most part places are closed. I can’t sleep. It seems my job request may have been answered. My boss called me on Sunday and said that she was sorry and that she needs me to come back. I need the money very badly. The difficulty, stress, and frustration… not so much. The car should be fixed on Tuesday. I’m supposed to call her and talk to her about returning after that. We’ll see. This has been one Hell of a weekend. ---
**Author:** ![Nocturne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9fc348/32.png) [@Nocturne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nocturne)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2010, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/72 "2010-12-08T07:31:47Z")
The only thing I want this Christmas is to hear “I love you” from the person that I love. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2010, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/73 "2010-12-08T08:30:46Z")
This great technological advancement from the world of young adult science fiction, The Hunger Games. At one point in the Capitol Katniss gets out of the shower and gets her hair dried, smoothed, and detangled instantly by putting her hands on a bar. Someone invent this thing, please. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2010, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/74 "2010-12-09T21:13:56Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > This great technological advancement from the world of young adult science fiction, The Hunger Games. At one point in the Capitol Katniss gets out of the shower and gets her hair dried, smoothed, and detangled instantly by putting her hands on a bar. Someone invent this thing, please. [http://www.flowbee.com/](http://www.flowbee.com/)😛 ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/75 "2010-12-09T21:17:29Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > [http://www.flowbee.com/](http://www.flowbee.com/)😛 Well, let’s see where I went wrong. Her hair, which was long, and wet, and tangled, becomes dry, tangle-free, smooth, and STILL LONG. The other thing, which I have about as much chance of getting, is a computer with a fairly big hard drive, doesn’t have to be anything special really, the kind of computer you could get in the mid-1990s, maybe a 386, running, say, Windows 3.0, with WordPerfect 5.1+ and DriveSpace, and not connected to the Internet. ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2010, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/76 "2010-12-09T22:26:55Z")
A perfect condo (that I could afford with no problem) with a woodland backyard where I could put bird feeders & get some unusuals to visit. This condo would also have a wood-burning fireplace and a big kitchen and lots of storage and a deep bathtub and a screened-in porch. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2010, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/77 "2010-12-09T22:53:14Z")
> [@bup](#): > > A full-ride scholarship for my son for whatever college he gets into. I first read that as a “ **bull-ride scholarship** ” and thought, “That would be pretty sweet.” Either to win the lotto and get anough money to buy a house outright or a girlfriend. ---
**Author:** ![poet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@poet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/poet)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2010, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/78 "2010-12-09T23:04:23Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Financial security. A recording suite, fully stocked with pistachios and Haagen Dass Rum Raisin. Oh, yeah, and a lifetime supply of Drambuie. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2010, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/79 "2010-12-09T23:15:54Z")
A perfect girlfriend. About five-eight, great body, amazing eyes, long hair. I want her to have a fantastic sense of humour, an excellent job, and to like baseball, video games, golf and sex. Oh, and have her have rich parents who really like me, as long as we’re dreaming. ---
**Author:** ![Angel\_of\_Doubt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7cd45c/32.png) [@Angel\_of\_Doubt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angel_of_Doubt)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2010, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603/80 "2010-12-10T00:57:28Z")
For all of the above 🙂 Enough financial security for me and W. to buy our next house and boat, (and xtra house on the lake, just for him), and maybe enough left over for funding my own cat-rescue operation or to endow a local one. Does that count as a two-fer? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-could-have-anything-you-really-want-for-christmas/562603.md?page=5)