when i ask for Christmas presents its usually please buy me this item specifically and if you dont want to buy that specific thing please tell me ill just get it myself no harm done.
but i nowadays need to know whats gotten and not gotten so i know what i can get myself versus outsource to better off family members.
I've kind of stopped caring about the gift-receiving aspect of christmas in recent years. So I mainly look forward to the family Raclette dinner on christmas eve and meeting some old friends who come home for christmas.
Just a nice easy Christmas and New Year, at home just me and my partner, no responsibilities, no social obligations, cozy pyjamas, playing games and relaxing together and generally living actual real life for a couple weeks instead of the constant treadmill.
I feel you. This is the second winter we’ve only been able to heat one room to at least 18C, and that’s not warm enough for my disabled ass. My electric throw blanket is on 24/7 though and is incredibly efficient - it costs less than 25p a day. I would highly recommend one if you can manage the upfront cost. Also wrist warmers are highly underrated imo - cheap, you can knit/crochet them yourself, your fingers are still free for touch screens and they seem to keep me warmer than just a hat alone. Wishing you more comfortable times ahead, friend.
I'm sorry you're going through that. I was there just a couple of months back and found some really good deals on heaters at my local thrift store. I found a plug-in radiator for $7.99 and a couple of small space heaters for about $5 each, which really made a difference.
Getting myself some replacement earbuds (specifically, Pixel Buds Pro). Batteries are toast in my (very) old Sony ones, and I've got a ton of Google store credit, so they're gonna cost me very little.
Peace and quiet. Someone else to clean and remember things. I'm tired of being the most responsible person. I'm not even that responsible, imo, but everyone else is worse.
I want to be able to participate at my friend's Christmas party. I am so broke I can't even bring food, no gift for anyone and of course everyone has gifts for eachother. I don't want a gift but I hate to be the "cheap" one.
I'm lucky enough to earn a comfortable wage so I tend to buy things that I want throughout the year.
Many people in my position seem to only want things that unfortunately cannot be gifted. More hours in the day. Less suffering in the world. More time with loved ones. Less global disarray.
I think I've written 3-4 different comments over the last 15 minutes here, and I don't know what the right thing to answer is, but I loathe to leave you hanging. To put things shortly, and not get too rambly, what little future I can see is shaky, and I hate the song & dance of the holidays. I need some time for R&R, and a change of pace from my daily life.
I just want to feel for a year, that humans aren't going to be the death of 70% (or more,) of all living things. Including ourselves, in the near future. Most of the people I know live like hyper-ultra kings and queens of olden times. Unthinkable abundance, quick or instant to obtain things, and often, a variety of things all of our great ancestors could only dream of. And yet... People seem to believe that it's not enough to have all of the things they do.
I just want to go ride my motorcycle, and not have to fit shit around everyone else’s shit and the mountain of jobs that need doing around the house (ie, never)
I am a working mom and will tell you - if you don't schedule time for yourself you won't get it. I prioritize sex and exercise into the schedule because if not, life and work will eat every moment. For 2024, schedule in 3 hours every weekend, or an evening or morning but every single week.
Realize that everyone is accommodating everyone else, they aren't doing it to annoy you. You aren't the center of the universe. But that doesn't mean you don't need time to recharge, plan it weekly in 2024 and let the schedule fit around you too. It will.
Leather jacket and gloves for when it's too cold for my denim jacket. A front mudguard for my mountain bike. I realise my comment is less wholesome and/or less depressing than some others. XD
Those are great choices, OP. I'd like a good cutting board, or a nice bottle of whiskey. By which I mean good tasting not crazy expensive.
We all want peace for Christmas but can't individually bring that about. And probably most of us also want things that are way too big to be reasonable gifts - plenty of impossible things. I know I do, anyway.
Yeah, I don't usually visit shops specifically for that. In fact even if I do visit a store that has those items, I usually forget that's even a thing I have to worry about. Dunno, it's just never on my list for some reason.
One of the only things I could think of that isn't super expensive would be a Dreamcast VMU (or two, only have 1 currently) and a US copy of Chu Chu rocket. Really not much I want that isn't expensive and I definitely ain't asking for expensive shit.
I do security research, but enjoy your sad little corner of the world where your perspective is tainted by the shit colored glasses affixed to your face.