For some people, giving presents is a chore. Not necessarily because they’re cheap and dislike spending money on gifts, but mostly because they have a hard time thinking of something interesting and/or useful and/or affordable that the other person will like. It must be really boring being like that. Myself, I think I do have a natural talent for giving presents. It’s like a hobby of mine. I really enjoy the challenge of coming up with something memorable and interesting, and I must confess I’m a little competitive as well.

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It really gets me going, when people come out and thank me for giving them the best present ever. And that’s not necessarily the most expensive present. One time I offered one of my college buddies a single pack of his then-favorite ramen noodles, and he was absolutely ecstatic. Another time I offered 30 pounds of sugar cubes and the person was actually quite amused with the originality of the idea (“I guess I’ll never have to buy sugar again, eh?” – to which I replied “that was sweet of me, wasn’t it?”), except when she realized she would have to carry all that sugar back to the car (which she had parked a good half-mile away).

And I don’t always buy cheap off-beat presents, mind you. Sometimes I go out of the way to buy expensive off-beat presents as well. Right now, I’m looking for radar guns as my next idea for a present. I have a friend who keeps getting speed tickets and who also claims he can throw a baseball faster than any professional player. Well, I guess we’ll just have to check out the facts using the brand new radar gun I’ll get him for his birthday!