Technically, between five and ten to family members. I think I am giving more than twenty though if I can include my coworkers. However, I work in the Northeast United States and its made very clear, holiday gifts - OK, Christmas gifts - never.
My wife and I don't get each other gifts because she understands that 1) I don't like giving/receiving gift cards (feels like a cop-out) and 2) if there's something I want I probably went out and bought it already. Unfortunately the rest of our families have not upgraded to the hassle-free Christmas so have to get lists from siblings and parents/in-laws.
@plastrd Gift cards are okay to get you out in a pinch, but everyone I know has grown far too dependent on them. If Bobby gets his brother and sister each a $50 Visa gift card, and they both give him a $50 card and each other a $50 card, what did that accomplish? Getting them a card that "forces" the recipient to spend it on themselves (e.g. a day spa or round of golf) is moderately better if it is something that he/she really likes to do, but still it just seems pointless.
I historically have enjoyed exchanging Christmas gifts with loved one, but if we are going to do this gift card merry-go-round, it makes more sense to just skip that part.
@DrWorm This is exactly why my brother and I stopped buying each other gifts for Christmas and birthdays. I spend X on him, he spends X on me. Waste of time and money for both of us.
@mikedt@plastrd Although it may net to zero, there's more to it than that. The $xx you didn't spend on your brother is just there, in your bank account... nothing different about it. The $xx you spent and the $xx he spent, and you traded... thats different! Thats a dinner out, or movies, or a trip to the book store... or just a generic visa-type gift card that you may feel more willing to spend on something you want...
Or just redeposit it into your account... meh. But you had a chance to talk to and exchange gifts with your brother ;) Merry Christmas!
I have been walking around without shoes, leaving trails of blood, hoping people get the hint what to get me for Christmas. It worked last year with pants.
About 17 now. And it's not just one gift each, it's several. I love Christmas. 13 of those people come for what we call Christmas version 2. Wrapping paper a foot deep. I also believe wrapping paper is a lot more fun than gift bags.
Between siblings and nieces/nephews I hit 10, so 15 once you count in coworkers who I can inflicts things upon / give things to and they already know ahead of time its gonna be weird. Because the gift you expect is boring.
Christmas has always been huge for our extended family. Although gift cards have become a staple (because when we ask folks for ideas, where they used to tell us stuff more often than not they now ask for gift cards). So be it, but that doesn't absolve them from unwrapping at least a couple of screaming monkeys, some anti-monkey-butt powder, some Sweet's chocolate orange sticks, and some maple sugar candy.
Traditions new and old must be maintained ;)
Disclaimer; I'm a happy customer of Sweets but no other connection ;)
Six: mother, brother, best friend, beloved ex, my awesome boss and his fabulous wife. You'd think so few'd make it simple, but actually the pressure I put on myself to make sure that the few presents I do give are ridiculously fantastic and perfectly personalized is unreasonably high. Ugh. Slightly freaking out about it right now, actually. I usually have their shit locked down by this point in the year, but this year my brother is the only one I've got figured out yet. (His 30th is coming up and I'm doing a combined xmas/bday gift of a week-ish trip for him and a friend of his choice to some village in bufu rural georgia where they can hike the blue ridge mts, maybe hunt and/or shoot a bit, and have a day of driving tanks and playing construction machines as child-he was obsessed with Sherman tanks and dump trucks and the book Mike Mulligan And His Steam Shovel, so what better way to celebrate his 30th than getting to do what child-him would have peed himself over, right?! Oh my gods, I am so the best sister. And as the best sister, I obvs won't let him forget it.)
Do I count myself? At any rate the answer is somewhere between zero and one.
@nogoodwithnames spread holiday cheer on good karma with this.
@nogoodwithnames I'm in your boat.
@elimanningface I made a donation in your name!!
Technically, between five and ten to family members. I think I am giving more than twenty though if I can include my coworkers. However, I work in the Northeast United States and its made very clear, holiday gifts - OK, Christmas gifts - never.
Too many to others, but enough to myself...
My wife and I don't get each other gifts because she understands that 1) I don't like giving/receiving gift cards (feels like a cop-out) and 2) if there's something I want I probably went out and bought it already. Unfortunately the rest of our families have not upgraded to the hassle-free Christmas so have to get lists from siblings and parents/in-laws.
@plastrd Gift cards are okay to get you out in a pinch, but everyone I know has grown far too dependent on them. If Bobby gets his brother and sister each a $50 Visa gift card, and they both give him a $50 card and each other a $50 card, what did that accomplish? Getting them a card that "forces" the recipient to spend it on themselves (e.g. a day spa or round of golf) is moderately better if it is something that he/she really likes to do, but still it just seems pointless.
I historically have enjoyed exchanging Christmas gifts with loved one, but if we are going to do this gift card merry-go-round, it makes more sense to just skip that part.
@DrWorm This is exactly why my brother and I stopped buying each other gifts for Christmas and birthdays. I spend X on him, he spends X on me. Waste of time and money for both of us.
@mikedt @plastrd Although it may net to zero, there's more to it than that. The $xx you didn't spend on your brother is just there, in your bank account... nothing different about it. The $xx you spent and the $xx he spent, and you traded... thats different! Thats a dinner out, or movies, or a trip to the book store... or just a generic visa-type gift card that you may feel more willing to spend on something you want...
Or just redeposit it into your account... meh. But you had a chance to talk to and exchange gifts with your brother ;) Merry Christmas!
I have been walking around without shoes, leaving trails of blood, hoping people get the hint what to get me for Christmas. It worked last year with pants.
@PocketBrain we talking feminine products?
I'm Buddhist and my wife is Christian so is basically just my wife and the kid that I mentor with Big Brothers.
About 17 now. And it's not just one gift each, it's several. I love Christmas. 13 of those people come for what we call Christmas version 2. Wrapping paper a foot deep. I also believe wrapping paper is a lot more fun than gift bags.
Between siblings and nieces/nephews I hit 10, so 15 once you count in coworkers who I can inflicts things upon / give things to and they already know ahead of time its gonna be weird. Because the gift you expect is boring.
I'm making cookies this year. It's always a hit and doesn't break the bank - plus I get to eat cookies...
@Thumperchick I hope we get to make monster cookies this year ;)
Christmas has always been huge for our extended family. Although gift cards have become a staple (because when we ask folks for ideas, where they used to tell us stuff more often than not they now ask for gift cards). So be it, but that doesn't absolve them from unwrapping at least a couple of screaming monkeys, some anti-monkey-butt powder, some Sweet's chocolate orange sticks, and some maple sugar candy.
Traditions new and old must be maintained ;)
Disclaimer; I'm a happy customer of Sweets but no other connection ;)
Six: mother, brother, best friend, beloved ex, my awesome boss and his fabulous wife. You'd think so few'd make it simple, but actually the pressure I put on myself to make sure that the few presents I do give are ridiculously fantastic and perfectly personalized is unreasonably high. Ugh. Slightly freaking out about it right now, actually. I usually have their shit locked down by this point in the year, but this year my brother is the only one I've got figured out yet. (His 30th is coming up and I'm doing a combined xmas/bday gift of a week-ish trip for him and a friend of his choice to some village in bufu rural georgia where they can hike the blue ridge mts, maybe hunt and/or shoot a bit, and have a day of driving tanks and playing construction machines as child-he was obsessed with Sherman tanks and dump trucks and the book Mike Mulligan And His Steam Shovel, so what better way to celebrate his 30th than getting to do what child-him would have peed himself over, right?! Oh my gods, I am so the best sister. And as the best sister, I obvs won't let him forget it.)