Accidentally Mis-Managing Christmas Gift Expectations
I'm chronically in pain over getting people Christmas gifts. 2014 was a good year for me, and last year was relatively okay too.
Except for the minor problem that I accidentally got my brother a super cool Christmas present.
Like always, I had no idea what to get anyone, so I Googled for "top Christmas gifts for grown brother," or something like that. I fell into an Internet hole and found myself on a page suggesting drones.
Sounds swell, but also expensive. Then I found the best rated "starter drone" for $49.99 and decided that was good enough. My brother used to like remote controlled cars and planes, and drone are pretty much adult versions of those. Boom -- I'm sold.
I mailed it to my parents' house, which my mom harassed me about a lithium battery that might explode (spoiler, it didn't). And then I wrapped it. Gift season over.
Flash forward to Christmas morning, and my brother rips off the paper. I'm already making excuses that, "I had no idea what you wanted," and then something remarkable happens..
Everyone around the room gets excited.
Apparently drones are kind of a big deal. He does that thing where he starts to ignore other presents and play with mine. I'm pretty hyped now too, because this was a totally random find. Soon, he's buying it accessories, charging its batteries, test flying it in the living room and then shooting a 10-minute long video later titled, "Drone's first Christmas."
I hit a home run on that gift.
And now I'm screwed this year. How do I top that? Or -- managing my own expectations -- at least meet that standard. Okay, fine, I'll settle for just not embarrassing.
So far, my Google search has suggested a man bag, beard ornaments, a globe and etched bourbon glasses. Apparently 2016 is the year of the hipster? I asked around work, and a guy told me to give him an envelope of singles for him to hit the strip club. Yah, no.
Since Google and work friends let me down, I tried Twitter. and this is how that went:
....Great. I'd ask for more suggestions but I'm scared.