Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with present

What gift(s) could I request for Christmas that would make my life more interesting, social, or creative?

Kirn — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 02:41:00 -0800

What gift(s) could I request for Christmas that would make my life more interesting, social, or creative? I've been asked by my mother for suggestions of what she could get me for Christmas. Recently I've realised that I spend too much time reading books, watching movies and playing video games, and not enough time doing creative or interesting things, attending cultural events, or being sociable and meeting new people. This is particularly daft as I live in the interesting city of Brighton, an hour outside the even more interesting city of London.

What gift(s) could I ask for that would help me to have a more interesting, social, creative 2010? There's infinite interesting stuff happening in London (and Brighton), so what would give me an excuse to see/do more of it? There's infinite new creative activities I could get involved in (none of which I really engage with currently) so what would give me an entry into them? What would get me out the house? What would get me outside my comfort zone? What would bring a bit more culture, a bit more social scene into my life?

Absolutely any and all suggestions welcome, I'd love a wide grab-bag of ideas. Thanks!

Looking for a colorful desktop nameplate

yersinia — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:41:06 -0800

Looking for a colorful/artsy name plate to sit on an office desk. Does such a thing exist? If so, where? And if not, what might be some possible substitutes? I'd like to get this as a gift for someone who was recently promoted-- one of those desk name placards seemed like a nice way to recognize the person in their new role. The job is in higher-ed administration, so not a very formal working environment; her office is filled with lovely, colorful objets-d'art, and I was hoping I could go beyond the usual blah Lucite/marble/brass/wood rectangles and get a colorful or otherwise artsy and unusual nameplate holder that'd fit into the existing decor. Bonus points if engraveable, and/or possessing a math-y or abstract theme or feel.

I thought such a thing should be easy to find-- heck, I'd like one. But after combing pretty much every single website in this list and on the Gift Wiki, I've had zero luck. Does anyone know if this kind of nameplate exists? And if no, does anyone have any ideas for creative substitutions-- personalizeable, colorful, office-desktop-appropriate-- that might serve the same purpose?

Help me give my husband a 40th birthday he'll never forget

geekgirl397 — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 11:05:02 -0800

Good "experience" gift for my geek husband's 40th birthday? My husband turns 40 in a few days. We already have too much "stuff" and he's not very materialistic in any case. We're both geeky techies, and he loves music. Last year I bought him a great guitar, and he's already taking guitar and voice classes.

I want to buy him a great "experience" that he wouldn't treat himself to and that will be special and memorable.

We don't have any kids and we do go out fairly often - although I'm not a night owl so it tends to be quiet restaurant meals etc. We already have a 3 week trip planned over the holidays, but that is to visit my family in England.

I'm thinking something involving vehicles and speed - he likes to drive, but we live in Chicago and don't travel much by car (and have a small city car in any case). He did some flying in his youth - in another life, if he had had better vision he would like to have been a fighter pilot. He's a slightly reformed risk-taker, and I'd like to give him a taste of his reckless youth in relative safety.

One thing I thought of was maybe a session in a race car at a track .. I've done some searching on this and found some packages sold at the Chicago Speedway but I don't know how good they really are and it quickly gets very expensive.

My budget's a bit flexible but ideally I'd spend less than $1000 - but if I were to go more than $200 or $300 I'd want to be sure it was really worth it.

His birthday's coming up in just a few days, but as long as I have the gift planned I don't think it's important that he "redeem" it before then or before our UK trip.

All thoughts and ideas welcome!

Help me wrap and present delicious but frozen food.

anderjen — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:24:16 -0800

This Christmas, I'm giving everyone the gift of delicious and healthy home-cooked meals, but I'm blanking on how to wrap and/or present them at the Christmas Eve festivities. Everything will be pre-frozen, which probably rules out putting them by the tree with the other gifts, and the only other solution I can think of is leaving them in my car and letting everyone take theirs on the way home, which is lame. There must be a better way. As I'm picturing it, everything will be frozen and packaged into reusable Gladware-type containers. Once frozen, are there any cheap ways of keeping them cold and dry to the point where I could actually wrap them and set them under the tree for a few hours until we get to the gift opening, and then again until people can get them home? I don't want anything to defrost too much, obviously.

The one thing I really do not want to do is buy each recipient a mini-cooler and ice packs because that kind of defeats the purpose of a low-cost/all-consumable present in my mind, and also there are 10 people, which would blow my budget.

If I do have to leave them in the car (which is a viable option, as I live in Minnesota), any cool ideas on what I could use or make to represent the meals for maximum effect? The rest of the gift will consist of other homemade treats and snacks, so there will be something open for sure, but the main meal is kind of the piece de resistance, so I'd like to make sure it doesn't get missed in a pile of wrapping paper.

I am certainly open to better ideas and suggestions if you have any. Thanks, all!

Gifts for my Conspiracy Theory Obsessed Friend!

batonthefueltank — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 19:05:41 -0800

Every year I am at a loss of what to get my best friend for Christmas. He is a man who really has everything. He likes electronic gadgets but they are usually fairly expensive, and he usually wants something very specific that he ends up buying himself. When I ask him what he wants, he hems and haws and just says, “Nothing, I don’t need anything.” I always struggle for material things to give him, so last year for his birthday I wrote him a very heartfelt letter detailing some lovely memories I had of him from our times together. He loved it!

He is not into reading a lot, but loves watching tv and movies. He loves science fiction and tv dramas. He likes movies like Contact, The Last Mimzy and Braveheart and tv shows like Battlestar Galactica, The Closer, 24, Big Love, Law & Order and Burn Notice. He listens to music by Van Morrison, Leonard Cohen and Jewel. He enjoys spending time with his family, and eating out. He is not very active at all. Every once in a great while he plays a game on the Wii.

His big interest of late is conspiracy theories (and the like). I am thinking that this may be the way to go regarding the gift(s). He is big into people like David Wilcox, Alex Jones, David Icke, Keith Olbermann and Ron Paul. He likes watching movies online about 9/11 truth, preserving the US republic, one world government, the Bilderbergers and radio shows about “The Creature from Jekyll Island.” His latest acquisition is the movie “Zeitgeist”.

I may just resort to a gift card or offer to take him to dinner, but I wanted to see if you all could help me come up with something creative. I'm open to any and everything in the $50-$150 range. Thanks!

Book recommendations for a new Christian!

schmoo — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 12:37:43 -0800

I'm looking for book recommendations for a young woman who has recently become interested in religion. Ideas please! I would like to buy my younger sister a book as one of her Christmas gifts. She is 19, and about four or five months ago was introduced to religion when she joined some college friends on a trip to Africa to do the normal Christian aid type work. She's since become more and more involved with the church and interested in religion - to the point that she was baptised a couple of weeks ago. The church is the most relaxed I've ever been to - it's in a purpose-built barn/hall, and they have a live band playing covers of modern songs. It's all very youth-orientated and all about friendship, community and fun. (I'm giving this information to try and give an idea of the kind of church/religion she's into. I'm not religious at all so apologies if I sound a little clueless.)

I would like to buy her a book for Christmas with some kind of spiritual/religious/Christian theme, to show her that while I'm not religious (and have probably been quite scathing about religion in the past) I respect her and am pleased that she's found this and that it makes her happy. However, I don't want to get herself anything with too strong a message - as I said she's only starting to be involved in the church, she's young, and I think she'd only be embarrassed by any too overtly religious gift as she knows how unreligious I am.

When I was younger I flicked through one of the Chicken Soup books at a friend's - I seem to remember that these had a vaguely religious theme to them, am I right? Something like this is what I'm looking for.

So - please give me your recommendations!

To sum up- I'm looking for

- nothing too strong in its religious message
- probably fiction, but non-fiction ideas welcome
- something appropriate for a 19 year old girl who loves going out, seeing friends, parties - all the normal teenage stuff!
- something well written, with an inspirational or thoughtful message.

Thanks!

Are there any Muay Thai themed xmas presents?

Silentgoldfish — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:49:29 -0800

My brother is going to Thailand for a 3 month Muay Thai training camp and I want to get him a themed or appropriate Christmas present. Any thoughts? He's already doing the martial art here, but is fairly overweight so is using the training camp as a sort of extreme weightloss thing as well since he'll be removed from all temptation.

I've asked some Thai people I know for suggestions but all they could come up with was that everything so much cheaper in Thailand there's not much I could get him that he wouldn't find much cheaper when he gets there.

So, Muay Thai themed presents, or something that would come in handy in a training camp! All I can think of are Tony Jaa dvd's but he's already got those!

What's a good non-geeky present for a scientist?

daelin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:12:49 -0800

GiftFilter: What would be a great present for someone who loves science, but not in a geeky/campy way? My boyfriend (a 2nd-year undergrad in biochemistry)'s birthday is coming up and I am completely stymied as to what to get him - the only thing he's really mentioned is that he would like something science/biology-related. The problem is that he's not into science in the geeky sort of way that would appreciate things like this xkcd shirt, giant microbes, or a periodic table shower curtain.

He doesn't read all that much, so books are so-so; I'd get him a subscription to Nature but he already has one. He has aspirations of someday having a basement lab, so the best idea I've had so far is putting together a gel electrophesis box for him, but a) it's a bit pricey and b) it wouldn't be of much use without pipets to load it with and actual gels to put in it.

I'm terrible at thinking of good gifts, so I throw myself upon the mercy of the hive mind. Any suggestions you can offer would be deeply, deeply appreciated!

Maybe someday he'll be my sex toy.

Anonymous — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:14:11 -0800

What to get my long-distance lover for Christmas? (NSFW) I'm female, he's male. We're in our late twenties.

He's usually dominant in bed, and we've had a lot of fun with that. He wrote an erotic story in which the female protagonist was dominant, so I know he likes that, too. That's something we haven't explored yet. We don't look to the BDSM culture for our fantasies (though there certainly must be some parallels), but tend to prefer our own. We're not into anal sex.

I would like to get him a toy he can play with while I'm away (which is usually, for the next year or so). I'm sure there's a lot out there, but I don't know what it is or where to look. Tell me everything!

Painting dolls from drawing?

Marky — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:13:52 -0800

I had an idea for my sisters Christmas present, help me make it... I want to paint some nesting dolls to look like my nephew, from age 1 to 8. I have plenty of pictures, but going from 2-dimension photos to 3-dimension painting seems to be a bit over my skill level. I've faked sketching by drawing "over" photos in Photoshop, but I don't think that would work here. I don't need photo quality, I just would like the dolls to be recognizably him.

Gift Ideas for my Super Girlfriend

moonroof — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:45:20 -0800

My girlfriend wants superpowers. What should I get her for Christmas? My girlfriend is pretty into Heroes. And X-Men. And Harry Potter, Piers Anthony novels, that superhero game on Facebook, and pretty much anything with people who have super or magical powers. I asked her want she wanted for Christmas several weeks back, and she said, "Superpowers."

Now, instead of taking a chance on some radioactive waste, I've decided to put together a little kit. I've already ordered a copy of this book and , and I want to put together a box of little things like a glove with magnets in it for magnetism power, a little handheld fan for wind power, etc., for her to "try out" different powers.

So, what other things can I put in this kit that will give my girlfriend super/magic powers? Budget-friendly a plus.

I think fuzzy dice are actually kind of cute

kerning — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 08:50:56 -0800

What's a good present to buy a 25 year old newly licensed driver? My female coworker is (maybe) getting her driver's license this weekend, after 25 years of begging rides from her friends. I thought it would be nice for my department to give her a little congratulations present, since we have done nothing but listen to her stories about her driving lessons progress for the past 6 months. But I have no ideas.

One hitch is that she actually doesn't have a car, nor does she have plans to get one anytime soon - she'll be relying on Zipcar when she needs to go somewhere outside of the city (DC). So we can't buy her the normal fuzzy dice/carmats-type present.

Anything Prime-eligible from Amazon preferred, or things I can get locally (NoVa/DC area).

Magically delicious.

cobain_angel — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 15:39:28 -0800

Help me send my friend in Ireland some very American things. Bobby's birthday is coming up, and I would like to send my dear Irishman some mail-resistant stuff that he wouldn't be able to find in Ireland in a store. An example is Lucky Charms, which he informs me, is NOT available in Ireland.

Any ideas?

absent anniversary

chronic sublime — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 04:06:52 -0800

Myself: absent during anniversary. Boyfriend: potentially finding gifts around the house. You: help me! I am going away for a short break next week, but it happens to coincide with my 3-year anniversary with my boyfriend. I also missed last years'; I was OS. This distresses me to no end, which is where you come in.

What potential "surprises" can I leave around the apartment for him to discover while I'm gone? They can come in the form of little notes, small gifts, etc, or a more elaborate treasure hunt. He has been very stressed at work lately, and want to potentially cheer him up when he wakes up/gets home. Preference for cheap/free/thoughtful, please!

Potential problems: we live together, and the living space is a cosy two-bedroom apartment. I will have a small window of approx an hour to plant all the goodies before I leave for the airport, but have plenty of time to myself in the week leading up to prepare.

I am a good writer, a not-so-good craftsperson, a mediocre musician, and a consummate purchaser of consumer goods. He is a geek with a wicked outdoors streak.

I can use Facebook or my mobile phone to send messages, if that helps to orchestrate anything.

Go crazy!

Present that will last forever?

kg — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 14:08:06 -0800

I'm looking for a present that would last for a long time. I'd like it to be something that's useful and very unlikely to break. Costing about £150. My Mum recently got married, and I gave her away and acted as bridesmaid. She tells me it's traditional to give the bridesmaid a present, so I benefit from this! I'd like it to get something that would last for a while.

I was inspired to ask this after seeing my flatmate has a good set of cast iron pots and pans. Something like that would be good, but obviously at the moment I don't need that.

The best man at the wedding (now my step-brother) got a new digital camera. Whilst that also seems nice, I'd like to have something that will last a lifetime.

I'm a student for the next year or so, and rent my house furnished, so don't need anything like that (but please still suggest things if it could be useful in the future!)

Sorry for the vagueness of the question, but I'll be around if anyone asks questions!

Rock Hammer 4 Kids

DU — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 08:15:55 -0800

Do budding geologists like rock hammers? I'm pretty into science but know next to nothing about geology. My 8 year old son collects a lot of "treasures" but chief among them is rocks. He also exclaims over interesting rock-based features (like stripes, crystals, shapes, etc) and asks me what made them (my answer is always either "volcanoes" or "magical pixies").

I've gotten him geo books at the library, but he mainly just looks at the pictures rather than reading them (much to his voraciously-reading parents' chagrin). Which isn't to say he isn't interested in gaining information, he just doesn't seem to be interested in gaining it via self-directed reading.

He also likes to take things apart. And crafts, but I really hate most "science craft kits" where you just pour some ingredients together say "wow" and toss it. A "make your own fossil" kit is out, in other words.

Putting this all together, it occurred to me he might like a rock hammer for a Christmas/birthday present. Google informs me there are more styles and features than I could have dreamed.

If you are/were a budding geologist, do/did you want this or something else? Is it maybe too specialized/detailed/adult and he could get the same effect by just using another, larger rock to bust stuff open? Or should I just get him a sledgehammer and some steel-toed boots? Or perhaps rock hammers have uses other than cracking rocks open that he'd enjoy/not enjoy?

THE Game, you just lost it.

cobain_angel — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:53:07 -0800

Help me find the perfect videogame for my boyfriend. My boyfriend's birthday is coming up. Recently, we were talking about his neverending quest for the perfect videogame, and I realized that would be a great present to give him. However, I cannot find a game tailored to his specifications. Below, his closest matches, in his words, and why they are not quite what he's looking for:

"The Sims 2 is pretty close, but it gets pointless pretty fast, and I get bogged down in making pretty things. 4x4 Evolution is another good one, very open-ended with good development, but I've played all it has to offer many times over. Also I get bogged down making stuff for that, but it's usually not supposed to be pretty. XD
EV Override is also a close one, but it's gotten tedious and it doesn't run natively in OS X. Starcraft is kind of good, but the pace isn't quite right for me. It's not open-ended, you're not really reaching for any kind of a goal. The missions are too long to be just little pieces of the progression, but too short to be a long-term commitment. It's very scripted and unforgiving.
Runescape is too simple and kind of pointless. Everything is too organized, like the system of weapons and armor. There aren't any real goals once you've finished all the quests, but the quests are too tedious and difficult when you're doing them. After that, all you can really do is try to level up and get rich.
So I want a game that's open-ended, with an ability to set goals. I'm really big on gradually gaining items and abilities, but in a way of my choosing rather than a strict ordered progression. Driving games are cool, but don't allow for too much creativity. Multiplayer can be cool, but I don't really prefer one way over the other. So I want a game that's semi-sandbox, but still has a steady gain of items/powers/money to buy said items or powers."

The things that come to mind with these descriptions are Spore and WoW. He's nearly done with Spore, and WoW doesn't really interest him. I'm not a gamer, so I'm not very well-versed in games like this. What does the hivemind suggest?

PS. The boyfriend has a Mac, a Wii, a PSP, and I think he might have an Xbox tucked in there somewhere.

The present that sticks together.

Anonymous — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 07:00:25 -0800

Anonymous-cos-they-might-read-it-filter: I want to make some cufflinks for my dad. What sort of glue do I want to bind things onto findings? What do I want for plastic and for metal (say, typewriter keys)? I can't weld or solder, so was wondering how other people made them.

Thoughtful wedding gift ideas

alice ayres — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 07:09:16 -0800

What would make a good, thoughtful gift for this newlywed couple? My boyfriend's childhood friend decided to ditch the plans for a planned desitination wedding in favor of quickly getting married this past weekend in a very small ceremony (<30 people).

Because of the quick timing (think: hey, what are you doing tomorrow morning?), we were not able to get a gift. After having met the couple for the first time, we would like to get them something thoughtful. I know money could and would help out, but would prefer that be a last resort or an add-on.

About the couple:
Late 20's
He's an aspiring football coach.
She's in the first year of her residency. I think she will be an OB/GYN.
They were in a quasi long-distance relationship, and it will continue to be a long-distance marriage for at least the next 4 years. They will be in the same state (NY), but one will be in NYC, and the other in upstate NY.

I am open to any suggestions because I don't have much to go on either.

Custom wine bottle and engraved wine glasses as gift? HELP!

jdlugo — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 09:07:35 -0800

I would like to give custom wine glasses and wine with a custom label as a gift to my SO...advice?? I have looked around the internet and have seen several places to get personalized/engraved wine glasses. Riedel seems the most common brand.

I'm just looking for some advice for the best place to get these or other's experience.

I would like the engraving to me two letters/initials but would be interested in having a simple image or saying engraved as well.

Are Riedel wine glasses the brand to go with? I'm looking to spend anywhere from $100-$200.

Additionally, I would like to give a wine bottle with a custom label. Any advice on how to do this? I am pretty artistic and could print something up myself. Can I just soak any bottle of wine in soap and water to remove its label to add mine?

Thanks!

Fine Liquor/Cheese, Aged 18 Years

nat — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:53:18 -0800

I want to find consumables that are aged exactly 18 years, and send them to northern California within 2 weeks. For a friend's birthday, I'd like to send some 18 year-old items. (No, he's not turning 18, the number is of personal significance for other reasons).

My first thought was to get some whiskey, e.g. Macallan's 18 y.o. blend. But then I realized other things age (cheese, wine, other kinds of alcohol) too.

Help me come up with ideas for what items might come in a variety aged exactly 18. Also I'd appreciate specific alcohol suggestions, too. Extra credit if you can help me find them from a retailer who will ship to Northern CA (as I can't exactly ship alcohol myself).

Budget could be up to 200$. Ideally, I'd like to find several smaller items so that I present some variety; I'd be okay with one really great item though. I'm in Boston, but I don't know if any brick+mortar stores here will ship from here to CA.

What should I get as a graduation present for my sister - quickly?

Kirn — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 14:19:22 -0800

What should I get as a graduation present for my sister - quickly? My sister is about to graduate from university/college and is hoping to work in mental health. I've only got a couple of days before I go up to see her so I need to pick up a little present quick - I was thinking a really nice book would be ideal, but I wasn't able to find one just browsing. (Ideally it'd be both a beautiful hardback book and something appropriate to the occasion - about life after university, or life in your early to mid-20s, or something..) However I only have a couple of days to get this, so speedy suggestions much appreciated!! Not only books, anything else as well (I was also thinking a nice pen or journal or something) but something I can probably pick up where I am (Brighton, UK) without having to order online. I was thinking up to about £40-50 or so but don't let that be a factor in your speedy and helpful suggestions!! :)

What birthday present should I get my mother?

idyll — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 21:34:43 -0800

Birthday gift ideas for mom? My mother is turning 60 in just a month and my family has assigned me with the task of creating a present for her from all of our family members.

I have had the idea of having all of us write our wishes and memories in a book along with photos of us and/or our times together, but a lot of our family members have moved thousands of miles away. I am curious as to whether there are sites out there that allow you to do that and then they print the book for you?

Phrasing for a PR Person's Present Pen

eytanb — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:14:04 -0800

Latin Filter: As a present for someone in a PR-related field, I wanted to inscribe a variation of what Louis XIV would have inscribed in his cannons - "The Last Argument of Kings", implying that the pen is her weapon. What would you replace the word "last" with? Bonus points for helping out with the Latin. I have a friend who works in a PR-related field in the military. Needless to say, while she does love the work, it does not pay so well. Her job is soon coming to an end and I would love to get her something to show my appreciation for working with her. I was originally going to go with a pen with the cliched "The Pen is Mightier..." but then came across the Louis XIV "The Last Argument of Kings" and realized that switching with word "last" with something else (first? civil? optimal?) could make for a clever, thoughtful present.

I would like to get the quote inscribed in Latin, so if you have a killer suggestion and know how to say the entire phrase in Latin, I will send you wave upon wave of good karma for the duration of the week.

Where should I take my family for my parents' 60th birthday?

slide — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:24:44 -0800

Both of my parents are turning 60 in early 2010, and I want to take the family (my brother (25), me (29), parents (... 60)) on a week-long vacation. Where should we go? So I've been earning very good money for the past few years and am in a position to take the family on a nice vacation - no more than $10,000 or so all-in, but less is always fine. We've traveled together in the past - NW Canada, Virgin Islands, etc. - and we all get along well and generally have a good time. My mother is very activity-oriented and likes to be doing things (she always plans boat rides, atv tours, snorkeling, etc.). We're all in at least ok shape, but I'm really the only one who loves extensive hikes. I think the ideal vacation for us would involve interesting cities, some outdoor activities that are not too physically strenuous (snorkeling, 1-2 hours hikes to vantage points, etc), some museums or other cultural activities, great restaurants, places for my brother and I to go out after my parents go to sleep. I think my mother also gets a lot of pleasure out of telling her friends about the vacation both in advance and afterwards, so something a bit unique, but also something others have heard of enough to be jealous, would be ideal.

My brother and I have travelled extensively and don't really care if we speak the local language or if people where we're going speak english - I think my parents would prefer at least a decent tourist infrastructure. (my brother and I speak basic spanish)

Other constraints - the trip has to be about 7 days - so no absurdly long travel times - probably has to be the western hemisphere. They'd all be flying out of the southwestern united states.

I was thinking Argentina - but not sure if Jan-Mar is the best time of year to go - we'd all prefer decent weather. As a baseline though, my mother is willing to do Argentina though perhaps a bit skeptical. I was also thinking Peru might be fun.

My parents would probably prefer something like Hawaii, but they've been there before and I personally would prefer something a bit more exotic. I don't know much about central america - only spent time in Mexico's resort centers and border towns, Panama and several carribean beach resort type islands. In South America, I've only spent time in Colombia and Venezuela. So I need help! Any suggestions welcomed.

My mother has told me that her only wish is that we all go somewhere together for a week - she suggested Santa Fe. I'm the one pressing for exotic - so this has to be something I can sell my parents on.