It’s less than two weeks away? Let’s generate some ideas.
Mrs. L likes Steve Earle, Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark—I think she has all of their stuff, but maybe someone has knowledge of a similar artist? I once got her a Nanci Griffith and she didn’t care for it. Nancy has a nice voice etc. but Mrs. L is about the “storytelling.”
She’s also into yard work, travel, cooking. I could send flowers to her at her office but it would be nice to be more clever and unexpected. Thing I got her that really went over big a couple years ago: a ukulele (she already plays some guitar).
Budget: $100 would be ok, more if it’s a fantastic suggestion. Thoughts?
Post your ideas for gifts other posters could buy and/or elicit suggestions for what to buy your significant other.
I’ll cast a vote against the chocolate covered strawberries marketed by Shari’s Berries.
It seemed like a quick and easy thing to purchase online, so I placed an order two years ago. I had read an ad that sounded like a good deal, but man, the attempted up-sell was painful.
What began as a $19.99 special offer soon inflated. Oh, you want your gift to arrive on or before VD? Expedited shipping is extra, unless you upgrade, blah, blah, blah. My final gift was ~$60 and it wasn’t all that.
Then, before the berries even arrived, the emails began. Place another order now and it’s 90% off!
It took months to finally put an end to daily spamming.
I’ve gone that route. Agree, the whole delivery of flowers/sweets direction is full of extra charges and all that. I once ordered some flowers from 1-800 FLOWERS and they arrived all the way from Atlanta (to mom in Illinois)…dead. All in all it’s quite a racket for those folks.
Recent thing I bought her that she kinda likes: a Bearcat scanner. It picks up transmissions by police, fire dept, etc.
We’ve had a few great VDs at MadMex, a Mexican restaurant that offers an anti-Valentines dinner special each year.
You are invited to bring your soon-to-be ex for dinner. There are great specials and background music consisting of break-up songs. You each get your own dessert (no need to share) and at the end of the meal you get separate checks.
We like to play it up and the servers join in. Server asks, “Would you like another drink?” “I would, assuming she doesn’t pitch a fit!” That kinda thing.
A quick reminder your town’s best caterer/restaurant, is trying to stay afloat without venues to service being open and gatherings limited to a handful of people.
Most have taken to delivering their very high quality, best foodie loved goodies to your door! Like an expensive restaurant it isn’t always cheap (but there’s always a range!), certain it will be outstandingly delicious.
It’s not dinner ‘out’, but she doesn’t have to cook it and it’s not just standard order in.
Dress for dinner, put on some lovely music, set the table with flowers and the fancy china, serve and clear plates, then make coffee.
Easy peasy, no cooking or real hard work and you look a smooth freaking Devil.
Since she does lawn work a lot, she has a bunch of Ryobi battery powered stuff. Maybe a lantern for when the power goes out or a rotary tool like a Dremel (she got a small one, Dremel brand, which was too wimpy).
She loves Battlebots (seeing them IRL is a bucket list item). Tee shirt, mug, something.
I’m not sure it would be her cuppa but I heard an interview on NPR while driving home. Although Ben Harper is a grammy winner, I hadn’t heard of him. It turns out he and his mother Ellen put out a disc together. Here’s a mini documentary about them.
If Mrs. L likes it, well, there’s a book Ellen wrote…
Dinner “in” is an interesting idea. This year V.D. hits on Sunday. I wonder what local places will be offering.
