Buying a gift for a guy is so easy: you just need to find something useful. It can be a home repair toolkit, it can be a good camera, or even a set of the latest action flick DVDs. Bringing a birthday gift was never any easier. The same, unfortunately, doesn't hold true for the ladies.
Once in a rare while, it so happens that a sudden object catches my fancy when I am not actually looking for a gift. At these moments, I just know that it will be the perfect gift to give to the lady in question. The price of the object doesn't matter then: it can be the cheapest thing around but it is always the gift. But I am rarely so lucky.
The 'useful-gift' syndrome keeps rearing its ugly head and lands me in the most embarrassing situations. Sample this: in Scotland, I was in a superstore looking around for cosmetics to give to my sisters. I entered the section, where two other girls are going through the aisles and comparing notes, and I stood there flabbergasted. I mean, lip gloss, lip polish, lip stick, and some other lip -Xs of a thousand shades and colours made up just one rack. And a million mirrors with posters of a thousand models that made you feel as if you were inside a rainbow! Right then, I could literally feel my ears going red as I was sure that the two girls were watching me with some obvious amusement due to my confounded look. Aarghh... I couldn't take it any longer --- I imagined my sisters wearing some of the shades of lip stick and nail polish which I saw there, and decided to pick them and ran out of the section as fast as I could go. Whew! I just felt like I was surreptitiously stealing something that day in those aisles. Thank God my sisters actually liked the things I brought! :)
Initially, I used to get these 'useful' things home for my sisters as their gifts. However, the mutual gifts between them almost always consisted of soft toys, 'cute' and 'cho chweet' trinklets and such stuff, which basically set me mad, because I never understood the phenomenon. Inevitably, all the girls I knew right from my college, when hunting for a gift to give to another girl, would come up with something like that. I pondered and pondered, looked through a thousand gifts a lot of girls had given each other, or the gifts the so-called cute guys/ boyfriends gave to their girlfriends, and finally discovered the secret!! And bless your stars, because you shall be privy to the same today...
The idea is very simple: go and look for the most useless thing you can find, but make sure that it looks good. It can be a teddy bear, it can be a long chain of crystal hangings, it can be a little fluffy bird that chirps "You're cute!" whenever you press its sides... and voila, you have the perfect gift!! Somehow the gift expresses thoughtfulness, an everlasting quality, and undying love for the reciever in question. And boy, did that work!! My sisters suddenly discovered that my annual or biannual trips back home did not bring back just assorted pen sets or multi-coloured highlighters; now they began getting Scottish scout caps or baby Hamish-es. The more stupid the gift/animal looks, the more cooing noises you get to hear when you give them away. Hah --- I finally know how to please the ladies!! ;)
Once in a rare while, it so happens that a sudden object catches my fancy when I am not actually looking for a gift. At these moments, I just know that it will be the perfect gift to give to the lady in question. The price of the object doesn't matter then: it can be the cheapest thing around but it is always the gift. But I am rarely so lucky.
The 'useful-gift' syndrome keeps rearing its ugly head and lands me in the most embarrassing situations. Sample this: in Scotland, I was in a superstore looking around for cosmetics to give to my sisters. I entered the section, where two other girls are going through the aisles and comparing notes, and I stood there flabbergasted. I mean, lip gloss, lip polish, lip stick, and some other lip -Xs of a thousand shades and colours made up just one rack. And a million mirrors with posters of a thousand models that made you feel as if you were inside a rainbow! Right then, I could literally feel my ears going red as I was sure that the two girls were watching me with some obvious amusement due to my confounded look. Aarghh... I couldn't take it any longer --- I imagined my sisters wearing some of the shades of lip stick and nail polish which I saw there, and decided to pick them and ran out of the section as fast as I could go. Whew! I just felt like I was surreptitiously stealing something that day in those aisles. Thank God my sisters actually liked the things I brought! :)
Initially, I used to get these 'useful' things home for my sisters as their gifts. However, the mutual gifts between them almost always consisted of soft toys, 'cute' and 'cho chweet' trinklets and such stuff, which basically set me mad, because I never understood the phenomenon. Inevitably, all the girls I knew right from my college, when hunting for a gift to give to another girl, would come up with something like that. I pondered and pondered, looked through a thousand gifts a lot of girls had given each other, or the gifts the so-called cute guys/ boyfriends gave to their girlfriends, and finally discovered the secret!! And bless your stars, because you shall be privy to the same today...
The idea is very simple: go and look for the most useless thing you can find, but make sure that it looks good. It can be a teddy bear, it can be a long chain of crystal hangings, it can be a little fluffy bird that chirps "You're cute!" whenever you press its sides... and voila, you have the perfect gift!! Somehow the gift expresses thoughtfulness, an everlasting quality, and undying love for the reciever in question. And boy, did that work!! My sisters suddenly discovered that my annual or biannual trips back home did not bring back just assorted pen sets or multi-coloured highlighters; now they began getting Scottish scout caps or baby Hamish-es. The more stupid the gift/animal looks, the more cooing noises you get to hear when you give them away. Hah --- I finally know how to please the ladies!! ;)
"Buying a gift for a guy is so easy"
ReplyDeletewhat crap! It never is easy. First you have to get into the "guy mindset" and start thinking like him. To me power tools and gadgets hold no fascination. Yet somehow they seem to appeal to men. And puhleeze...it always makes you go bankrupt. But you pick out a cheap trinket with a heart sign for your gal and she'll be elated and treasure your gift because it shows like you care. Pretty simple :)
On the contrary I feel buying something 'suitable' for a guy ain't that easy either...coz there is limited stuff n that too xpensive given their passion for gizmos n gadgets.-Ms NMA
ReplyDeleteBuying gifts are a pain and a nuisance. Full stop.
ReplyDeleteOMG -Hari I agree with you. Why the heck I should spend my money , time and efforts ( 100 times)other then I/ ME / MYSELF...LOL
ReplyDeleteHey Buddy - you will be surprised...may be your sis are kidding you and just cooing and aahhaing over your gifts...in your face....( all those gifts might be relegated to the back dark store...not to be seen...oops...)
Better ask them what they want...! Never ever assume...nah not with ladies!!
You are single - right !! Hmmmm....!!
M, there... there exactly is the fallacy: that you give something in itself conveys that you care --- what you give shouldn't matter. And not necessarily all 'guy' gifts are expensive --- try hunting for the footpath ones! :)
ReplyDeleteMiss NMA, it is really so easy, believe me... all you need to do is to look at the right places! :)
Hari, well, I don't completely agree. But yes, they can get annoying at times.
R, it looks like you misunderstood what Hari said.
Well u seemed to have unlocked one of the mysteries of the universe...tho just keep in mind, women are unpredictable, so dont end up in hot water someday by keeping them in the same yardstick.
ReplyDeleteyour shubhchintak (yeah)
sky :)
So true,bhai !!!
ReplyDeleteha ha ..bhalo training hoyeche tar maane tor...biye tiye kobe korchish ??
ReplyDeleteSudipta, actually you don't have to interpret my comment seriously... It was partially tongue in cheek :-p
ReplyDeleteOh, god. Here I am explaining myself. :-o
Although I agree with M on "get into the mindset", but then I do think as Sudipta said that "you give something in itself conveys that you care" and gift whatever I feel is good.. And I feel it should not be very difficult to buy gift for the ladies, if the same thought is extended :)
ReplyDeleteThat's you written all over this post, bro! And that "footpath" reply was the icing on the cake... Bingo!! And yes, what seems useless to you, might be very useful to a girl --or a lady, for that matter. Remember all the junk Ma used to store up (--not that she's gotten anything near to getting over that habit--) back home..saying that it might come in for use some day!! ;) Anyway, I couldn't agree with one point Miss(?) M made: that boys' gizmos make you go bankrupt.. What about a half-brand body lotion..?? That'll burn a hole in your pocket large enough to fit three gizmos to the one lip-stick!
ReplyDeletehehehe. A very interesting post, liked it. :)
ReplyDeleteThough I should say that understanding what to buy for a gal/guy, comes to me easily. :)
@ arunava
ReplyDeleteoh yes, guy gifts do burn a hole in your pocket. But you can get away with a dozen roses or a box of chocolate for ten dollars and still score with a girl. You don't have to get her name brand body lotion :)
@M,
ReplyDeleteNeither do you have to get a big gadget for your guy... ONE little (but useful --and there lies the bottomline-- ) pen will please him enough.. :)
yaar its not so difficult..n you shud always have a list of gen. gifts..:)
ReplyDeleteits actually very simple--you need to understand that women attach deep sentiments to gifts...so it may seem like 'any other mauve colored lipstick' to you but for your sis it would be 'the time bhaiyya spent almost an hour looking for the perfect gift for me' wala tohfa, samjhe? personally I think that for me it all depends on my mood--sometimes even a beautiful shiny pink rose makes me happier than a big diamond ring. hmmmm, now that just sounded good in my sleepy mind, nahhhhh, gimme the diamond anyday! ;) wish you luck in finding the 'perfect' gifts for all the women in your life!
ReplyDelete'phull' agree with u... for guys, u remember one of the buggers hav a bday tomo and so u rush out.. find wats available and buy it.. u gift-wrap it if he is nt very close to u, or u do not, if he is very close.. that is all..
ReplyDeletebut for gals, they seem to take a liking to 'anythin tat is cute' as one of my frnds so succinctly put it.. i can't for the life of me, judge which is cute and which isn't... but if u think u hav got the art of gifting things to gals, then way to go..!!
Jewelry is the safe bet;-P fake or real, doesn’t matter:-)
ReplyDeleteTry diamonds. They never fail. :)
ReplyDeletehaha....really funny man...."the more useless the gift..the more..."...
ReplyDeleteP.S: Found the link to ur blog from ur edulix siggy, im "kuchcha" on edulix.
u kinda got it about the gifts for girls..almost there..but
ReplyDelete"Buying a gift for a guy is so easy"
For heavens sake...are u outta ur mind!!!even guys try to escape wen i ask them gift ideas for other guys!! :-/ A tip though: take along a girl wen buying a gift for another one...it generally helps.. :)
Sky, oh yes of course: I'll keep that in mind. Remember, it takes a village to make something 'cute' :)
ReplyDeleteVarun, so true!
Wanderlust, keno, keno??? :O Oi kotha bolte nei... amar mato lok dekhe sekhe, alada kore training laage na :D
Hari, too many vectors and dimensions in my head, sorry about that! :P
Maithily, unfortunately, extending the concept might include careful browsing through millions of soft toys or cute items. Would the gift be really worth the torture? :D
Arunava, the word is Ms, my dear... you are still to learn the ways of the world! :) And don't you dare argue with the ladies on this blog --- they're always right! :D
Syrals, thank you! :) And you can automatically think of gifts for guys/gals?? Lady, you should actually advertise your talents and charge money for consulting!!
M, we shall reserve our comments upon 'scoring with a gal' :D
Pallavi, ahh... the magic formula! Of course, of course!! Watches, clothes and other apparel --- there is always an easy way out!!
Life lover, for the Nth time --- what exactly is mauve?? :-\ And here I have yet another lady on the hunt for diamond rings... whoa, that brings back a thousand memories!!
Bhuvanesh, welcome onboard, sire! You put it very aptly: one of the 'buggers' usually get their birthdays, and you go out and get stuff wrapped :) But I have found the secret, sir... I really have :)
MommyOf2, hmm... again, an expensive option but I am sure that is something worth trying out. Thanks for the tip! :)
Anumita, if only... or let me paraphrase my answer this way: "If diamonds were as plentiful as pebbles, one wouldn't stoop to pick them up".
Ak, kuchcha sir! Welcome!! :) Nice to know you here.
Di, so, you do admit that the magic formula works for girls, don't you? Refer to intellectual discussion between M and Arunava above for more tips about guys' gifts. Taking the girl along is a good idea in theory: in practice you might end up doing endless strolls of the 'cute' aisles! :-\