*@!%*@ Christmas

so while i think it's great that i get to see some of my family this time of year, i don't like it when they force me to do a gift exchange.

I have trouble buying presents for people sometimes and i especially have trouble of thinking things that they can get me. it also is really lame when they make me come up with a list

This is all i could think of:

Cash to help with my physical therapy.

Propane Burner (70,000+ BTUs)

Gift Cards for household: Safeway, Target, Trader Joes

Gift Cards for computer: Staples, Office Depot, etc.

Gift Cards for brewing: Home Depot, Beer Beer & More Beer

Scanner for computer (old one just broke)

High Heat Gloves

Subscription to BYO magazine

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What am I forgetting?

Anything else you guys would suggest a non-brewer could easily purchase for a brewing fanatic? It has to be something reasonably priced, and it doesn't have to be for brewing, but i would prefer that

also, What's on YOUR list???

Look at my Avatar.

lol, "Look into my eye!"



my main problem is that i don't need presents...i can purchase what i need, unless it's a new car (which i'm not getting for x-mas)

if they're getting me gifts off my list...it's just stuff i was going to buy anyway...kinda pointless IMO

want any brewing books? people love to click-shop amazon, it is so easy.

I asked for hops from hopsdirect.com.

I've got kind of the same issue. My wife was saying "You should make a list before it's too late" and I honestly thought I could. I figured I'd be fair and do a "spectrum" from really expensive to meaningful and cheap...

I ended my list with "Barley Crusher" as the "cheapest" thing simply because I've really got everything else I want! Of course, I could always use hops, grain, yeast and that stuff but how meaningful is a gift that you don't understand, have no interest in and end up ultimately purchasing online anyway?

That said, my mother in law sent me an extract Christmas Ale kit. My wife said "Lets do it and age it for a year". Okay.

I think your list is good -- just as long as they don't get you a Mr. Beer kit ("Well, he likes brewing, I figured this was good.")

What I tell people every year:

"I have more than enough stuff, please donate the money to help someone who really needs it."

Maybe one of these years they'll respect my wishes.

I hate the commercialism of the holiday season too. Sometimes I don't buy anything and instead insist on taking them out for dinner/drinks or something.

Say you don't want to exchange. I have lots of relatives that we don't exchange with and both sides are more than cool with it.

i don't want anything. i like watching the kid open her presents in the morning, then i like to drink till it's time to go to bed.

I'm skipping a Holiday party Saturday because of the gift exchange. They make me crazy. Buy something for someone you don't know? Huh?

DeathBrewer said:

so while i think it's great that i get to see some of my family this time of year, i don't like it when they force me to do a gift exchange.

I have trouble buying presents for people sometimes and i especially have trouble of thinking things that they can get me. it also is really lame when they make me come up with a list

This is all i could think of:



What am I forgetting?

Anything else you guys would suggest a non-brewer could easily purchase for a brewing fanatic? It has to be something reasonably priced, and it doesn't have to be for brewing, but i would prefer that

also, What's on YOUR list???

Click to expand...

Buck up and go make a wish list at Austin Homebrew Supply

hey, books might be a good idea...why didn't i think of that



i've already read and now own How To Brew, Radical Brewing, Clone Brews and Beer Captured

Books are good.

Honestly, I agree with the "I'll buy it if I need it" sentiment. HOWEVER, the perfect gift, to me, is the gift that is slightly frivolous, something that you would like to have, but you would never justify buying for yourself. For example, here are some things on my "I wouldn't buy it, but it'd be cool to have" list...

GLASSES.
I'm not just talking pint glasses, I'm talking snifters for your barleywines and Pils glasses for your Pilsners, British pint glasses, American Pint Glasses, etc etc etc. A real collection of the right glasses for every style of beer you might ever make!

Refractometer.
They aren't really necessary. Hydrometers actually work better in a lot of cases. I can't justify buying one, but it'd be nice to have

Floor Corker
I don't make many Belgians and, even if I did, I could just cap them normally, but I guess if someone bought me a corker and some bottles, I would be inspired to brew more Belgians and I would enjoy that as a gift, even though I wouldn't buy it for myself.

Mash Paddle
My long plastic spoon works alright, but a nice mash paddle would be cool.

Coasters
I don't care about coasters, but if I had some authentic pub ones, that'd be awesome. I just wouldn't spend my money on them. But for a present? They're better than most things I would receive.

Beer
Go out and buy me the most expensive bottle of beer you can find. (Probably will be under $15... unless they happen to find Utopias). Yes. One bottle of beer will be a WONDERFUL present for me. Really.


Getting the picture? Again, it's just stuff I wouldn't go out and buy for myself... slightly frivolous, but very cool to have if you can afford it / justify it....

Christmas morning, for the past 20+ years, my SWMBO and I enjoy Bloody Marys starting EARLY ... its the only time of the year we buy hard stuff .. it really does smooth the day out !

Fill out an Amazon wish list and make everyone in your family do it too. That way you get what you want and so does everyone else. I make my family do it and it takes me about 10 minutes to do my Christmas shopping. In some families it's considered very bad manners to not have an updated Amazon wish list!

Even if you don't buy from Amazon, you will still know what everyone wants.

kappclark said:

Christmas morning, for the past 20+ years, my SWMBO and I enjoy Bloody Marys starting EARLY ... its the only time of the year we buy hard stuff .. it really does smooth the day out !

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lol, that's the way to do it! It's the Winter Solstice...the world isn't coming to an end...let's get hammered!!!!

For the family in general, we divide up into 4 groups, female kids and adults, male kids and adults. We draw numbers and do a sort of white elephant/screw your neighbor where person who draws number one goes first number 2 can select a new gift of steal person number 1's, etc. Kids groups go first, of course.

Nobody spends much, it's fun watching people lose things they want to keep, and it's fun to see people steal stuff back. We put a 25 dollar limit on gifts, you can go over, if what you want to give costs a little more-no biggie. It works. I gave 2 thick porterhouse steaks one year, they dug it. Another year was beer and a Hustler; went over big. My step-daughter had her nose in it for most of the day-made me wonder.... Last year was a big, folding lock-back knife and sheath. When my BIL got it everyone was envious-he kept it 'cause he picked late or last and nobody thought they wanted the little package! .This year, it's elk, buffalo, and other types of killer jerky, and a couple types of small sausages one with horseradish, the other is a cajon, from an awesome German meat shop in Frankenmuth. It's very brew friendly, and what guy don't like meat?

As for some close members of the family, they may want to do something just for you, without any expected reciprocation, so they feel out those around you and do like, gift cards or certificates at your hobby or clothing store-whatever.

It worked for us to just work out the plan before the holiday with everybody, long ago, and it's cheap, enjoyable and non bogus. Making it work for you makes it work out for everybody.

Last year I couldn't think of anything to give my aunts/uncles, cousins, etc. at the family get together. Its kind of a pointless exercise anyway because everyone just gives everyone else the same chocolates every year.

So when it came time for the gift exchange, I told them I gave $100 to the food bank instead.