Christmas Presents

I get to spread out Christmas over the next week. I get presents with my family (wife unt kinder) on Thursday, her family on Saturday, and my entire clan Wednesday/Thursday of next week.

I have Christmas with my wife and her family tonight. The Alien box set will be mine in about three hours.

So far I've gotten (to be edited):

--100 dollars from my grandparents

--chocolate in various forms

--a gigantic bookbag with lots of needed school supplies inside from my aunt, uncle and cousins

--3 pairs of silky boxers, a Meatwad T shirt, Hulk Hands and a new keyboard for my computer from Michele

--Monty Python and the Holy Grail DVD(2 disc) from my sister

--80's Pop Hits (3Cds) from my sister's boyfriend Chris

--80 bucks, X2, Planes Trains and Automobiles, Space Ghost: Coast to Coast Volume One, and The Italian Job DVDs from my mom. Also, lots of candy and a couple pairs of boxers and some socks.

--WWF Vengeance 2001 DVD-Where Jericho became the 1st Undisputed champ from a very good friend. Also got a Mankind comic.

--A very cool sweater from my roomate's parents

So far the list is:

$100 from Swykk's grandparents

Printer/Scanner/Copier/Fax from my 'rents

Underwear, a NIN dvd, and a Marilyn Manson CD (Antichrist Superstar) from Swykk.

A Coldplay CD from Swykk's sister and her boyfriend.

A Coldplay DVD, veggie cookbook, and CD holder from Swykk's mom.

Friendship centered nick - nacs from my best friend Lisa

And dare I forget the book from Verbal. I'll start reading that one soon!

Dakota is getting some pretty sweet stuff. Included is a Thomas the Train table, track, trains, and other add-ons. He's gonna be one hell of a happy kid.

A friend just spilled her guts on buying me the "To Live and Die In LA " dvd for christmas. That's pretty much all I know of for the moment.

Made out pretty damn good.

On the DVD front, I got:

ER: Season 1
24: Season 2
The Shield: Season 1
Oz: Season 1

And The Sopranos: Season 4 and Six Feet Under: Season 1 are on their way from Amazon.

Besides that stuff, I got a 50 dollar Borders gift card, 30 dollars worth of coupons for a Ritz theater (my favorite theater....I have enough coupons for 5 movies, which is pretty awesome). I got the standard socks, boxer shorts, a BUNCH of little colognes of all different kinds. A Far Side wall calendar...a hooded sweatshirt from my sister, 2 dress-type shirts from my sister, a sweater from my Mom.

Not bad, and even though I didn't get the Alien Quad, i'm just gonna buy it myself with gift cards/other christmas money so it doesn't matter.

This christmas was great.

My stuff:
Nautica and Tommy Hilfiger cologne up the ass.
A punching bag.
Tons of Nautica, Tommy, Fubu and Ralph Lauren shirts and jeans.
Towncraft slippers.

DVD wise:
Alien Quad.
To Live and Die In LA
The Big Lebowski
Basic Instinct Unrated
Blue Velvet
Rushmore:Criterion.
Army Of Darkness:Boomstick Edition

And Best Buy gift cards and other things I'm going to pick up in a hour at the Christmas gathering my family has.

The loot so far (am opening the rest tomorrow when my sister is flying in from Costa Rica):

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
Pirates of the Caribbean
One Hour Photo
The Matrix Reloaded
Black & White
Black & White Creature Isle
Power Player (this contraption that looks like an N64 controller but plugs into the TV and plays over 250 original NES games)
Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii
Nightmare Before Christmas Socks
Nightmare Before Christmas T-Shirt
Sweater from my mom
Oscar the Grouch slippers (sooooooo comfy)

My loot:

-Alien Quadrilogy, from my aunt
-beautiful flask engraved with "Cheers to Us", from my girlfriend
-Dave Matthews Band- The Central Park Concert, from my brother
-Bose MediaMate Computer Speakers, from my parents
-XM Satellite Radio for my car, from my parents
-Finding Nemo, from my parents
-Handmade scottish tartan scarf from Scotland, from my grandmother
-

What I gave:

Son: Handmade, two room castle set with figurines of wizards, dragons, cauldrons, knights, ghosts, ogres, etc.; memory chip for his GameCube and two games; a book

Daughter: Handmade, two room dollhouse set with furniture and figurines.; porcelain doll; a book

Braggarts...

You're just jealous. Haha

Canon EOS digital rebel camera (except my hairy ass online anyday now heeh)

A couple of photographers books
200 bucks
Two Towers extended dvd. FINALLY YAY

And some other misc stuff.

God damn I love this digital camera.

Woo..some lucky people here. Merry Christmas, everyone! Sounds like you all made out like bandits. Some really cool things have been mentioned.

I did quite well myself with two of my "happy-happy-joy-joy" favorites being Spirited Away and Finding Nemo. Yes, we all watched them both again, already.

The kids were the real haulers this year. My son racked up 5 new PS2 games from various people and my daughter was thrilled to receive the LOTR boxed set and more Miles Davis/Beatles. It's been a wonderful holiday and the day is not over.

Sounds like Social is another Coldplay fan! Cool.

Blo, the magic words are "handmade". How special, creative and thoughtful! I sure hope you share the pics with us if you have any.

Looking forward to reading more from all of the good girls and boys.

You're damn right!

I didn't really ask for all that much this year, plus my sister and mother usually get me unique gifts (and my mother injured herself last week), so this is what I got from my immediate family.

MOM:

• Eclipse Computer Light - It's an ergonomically-correct light that goes on the top of my computer monitor and is supposed to reduce glare and help your vision if you spend long hours in front of the computer.
  
• PC Magazine Technology 2004 Almanac
  
• A pair of silk boxers with rubber duckies and a few pairs of regular boxers.
  
• A gift certificate for one free session at the local massage parlor.
  

SISTER:

• Octodog Frankfurter Converter - You take a regular hotdog and place it in the device and it slices it up and makes it look like an octopus.
  
• A slightly mint MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE poster (w/ CHUD favorite Dolph Lundgren)
  
• A jar of Molinaro's Ristorante marinara sauce. It's a restaurant run by some people in the Buffalo, NY area with the same last name as me.

My sister told me last year that she refuses to buy me giftcards because she thinks they are too impersonal a gift. I don't agree.

OTHER RELATIVES:

• Money
• $50 Circuit City giftcard
• The Darwin Awards: Evolution in Action book
• Burberry London cologne and aftershave gel set

Max Payne 2 (PC)
Radiohead - Hail to the Thief
Radiohead - Kid A
Guns N' Roses Use Your Illusion I and II DVDs
Indy Jones Trilogy
$150 Gift Card to Future Shop
$50 Gift Certificate to Cole's/Chapters bookstore

Kick ass haul this year.

Final totals based on friends, family, and myself:

DVDs

- Cutthroat Island Region 2 Special Edition
- The Fifth Element Region 2 Special Edition
- The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
- Escape From New York SE
- Avalon
- Infernal Affairs 2
- Ichi The Killer
- His Girl Friday
- South Park Series 1
- South Park Series 3
- Bravo Two Zero
- Blue Man Group: The Complex Live
- The Fantasia Box Set
- Nightmare Sisters
- Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers

BOOKS

- The Book of Alien
- Alien: The Illustrated Screenplay
- Agitator: The Films of Takeshi Miike
- Ghosts of the Abyss

COMIC TRADE PAPERBACKS

- Alien: Female War
- Alien: Genocide
- Alien: Hive

TOYS

- Kubrick Matrix Reloaded Series 1 (complete set)
- Kubrick Minority Report Series 1 (complete set)
- Kubrick Universal Monsters Series 1 (complete set)
- Kubrick Universal Monsters Series 2 (complete set)
- Kubrick Punisher Figure
- Kubrick Indiana Jones Figure

- Konami Japanese ALIEN Candy Figures (sealed case)

- House of 1000 Corpses: Capt. Spaulding
- House of 1000 Corpses: Otis

- Hellraiser Series 2: Skinned Julia

- McFarlane's Queen Alien Boxed Set

I did okay...

Stuff:

Abercrombie sweater, shirt, and pants
Express pants
Socks
Scarf knitted by my grandmother
Victoria Secret Very Sexy cologne
Fossil wallet
The biggest Butterfinger I've ever seen
Trivial Pursuit Pop Culture edition (I'm already 2-0)
$40 Best Buy gift card
$50

DVDs:

Family Guy Vol. I
Family Guy Vol. II
Two Towers EE (Finally)
Bottle Rocket
Tenacious D: The Complete Masterworks
True Romance
Irreversible

I'm probably getting an iPod as a Xmas/birthday present in the next couple of weeks. And I'm getting a jacket whenever I find one I like, which needs to be soon because I'm cold.

My loot is a bunch of letters from charities that my family donated the amount they'd spend on me to.

Less tangible, but perhaps more satisfying.

Edit: oh, I DID get a gift set of 5 kinds of salsa from the gf, and her mom got me Willie Nelson's Red Headed Stranger on CD. Very happy with both of those. We haven't been to see my family yet, so I'll update.

So far, it's just stuff from the wife, and that was X2 - DVD, The Sopranos cookbook and Smackdown: Shut Your Mouth for the PS2. I've yet to see the in-laws or any of my family as I'm in a different city than they are. Plus I had to spend Christmas alone. How much does that suck?

Plenty, Momo. No one should have to be alone at Christmas. Sorry to hear that.

Django, you did okay? Heh.

This year worked out pretty well.

What I gave:

- Full kitchen knife set and blender for my sister.
- 2.4ghz phone and ugly red shoes for Mom.
- VCR, 12-pack of video tapes, two pairs of jeans and a box of cherry cordials for Dad.
- A remote-controlled Hulk car and pocket Simon game for my nephew.
- A vacuum cleaner for my aunt.
- South Park Season 2 DVD set for my uncle.
- Charlie Chaplin DVD collection for a friend.
- A Taco God baseball jersey, a chenille sweater, bottle of vanilla perfume oil and a Stevie Ray Vaughan box set for my girlfriend.
- 2 DVDs (Frequency, Risky Business) and a Taco God T-shirt for Matt Goldberg, a cool customer at life's swap meet.

What I got:

- 2 pairs of sweat pants, a bag of socks, a pair of Mr. Bill boxer shorts, A Christmas Story T-Shirt, a Nike shirt and a waffle iron from Mom.
- Two henley shirts from my aunt and uncle.
- A handmade pocket knife with Russian Mammoth Tusk fossil handle from Dad (I had no idea mammoth fossils could be purchased legally, but the COA says so).
- A kickass food processor, special beer bread mix, a Crown Royal gift set and a soon-to-be completed crocheted blanket from my girlfriend.
- South Park Season 2 DVD set from my sister and nephew.
- A used laser printer and new speakers and subwoofer set from a friend at work.
- 2 DVDs (The Birds, Midnight Express) from Avalon, my newest CHUD pal.

Note: SE, Widescreen. One of us had to make note of that! Don't want to risk beheading 'round here.

I'd be too ashamed to list full-screen DVD gifts, even from people I like. Midnight Express has both formats, in case I want to slum.

Another banner year in the Poulson household. I'm very, very fortunate to have the wife and family that I have.

What I received:

DVDs:
Pirates of the Caribbean
T3
Xmas Vacation (SE)
Vacation (SE)
Escape from New York (SE)
X2
Simpsons, Season 3

Misc
Two awesome Hawaiian/Florida shirts
A nice dress shirt
Stephen King's "On Writing" (hardcover)
Sports Illustrated: Fifty Years of Great Writing (hardcover)
A Laser Tape Measure (YES!)

What my wife and I both received (this shit is nuts):

DDR Ultra Mix w/ 2 dance mats for the XBox
Canon Powershot A80 digital camera
Toshiba 51" HDTV
$1200 in cash

Yes, this year was insane as far as material items go. We also got to spend the week with the wife's parents as they flew down (they are here until Saturday). It's been a wonderful holiday season!

Got my wife Buffy Season 1 and Mr. Show Season 3. A couple Anne Rice books for my niece and a History of Japan book for my nephew. I mailed lots of used kid's books to friends who have babies (6 total). For the little boy my wife used to nanny, a set of Universal Monster figures (Frankenstein's Monster, The Mummy and The Wolfman--got it half price at the Hollywood costume shop). And I organized a mix-CD exchange among my friends (for the 3rd year in a row).

Won't bore you with the various practical gifts I got, but my wife bought me The Best of Ernie Kovacs DVD and a biography of Ernie Kovacs. YAY!

Made ham, baked beans and homemade macaroni and cheese casserole. For dessert, I made gingerbread (not really popular with the rest of the family). Spent the rest of the day laying on the couch watching new DVDs and napping.

Worst gift I received: a New York Times recipe machine. WTF? Thanks, cousin . . .

A close runner-up: Smallville Season One on DVD. Never seen the show.

Best gift I received: some great luggage from my mom, which I really needed.

A close runner up: Some plain white hanes t-shirts I really wanted. As I get older, I'm getting too easily excited by mundane gifts.

Folks, what you GAVE is more important than what you got ...

I got some GREAT shit ... anyone who cares, email me and I'll tell you the most important thing I got ... and it cost about $14.95 -- but it is filled with history and family and SACRIFICE.

But what did you GIVE? What did you do to enrich someone else's day? That's where the rub is ...

I am not a good gift buyer and I had told my mother ahead of time that I didn't have anything for her. When I told her this, she mentioned that she had purchased some picture frames a couple of years ago so that my sister and I could go through the boxes of photos from our childhoods (since they aren't organized in albums) and choose our favorite photos, so that she could hang them on the wall. Because of her injury last week, she couldn't look for them since she didn't know where she had put them.

Anyway, when I was in Hallmark the other night getting cards for mom and sis, I found a pretty picture frame with roses and a message on it that said, "Mom, you have given me a lifetime of love". I went through some old photos and found some I liked of me over the years and scanned them into the computer, put them together in a small collage and into the frame for her. She loved it!

For my sis, I gave her a book that actor Gabriel Byrne wrote several years ago about his life and career called Pictures In My Head and also the new CD from the Barenaked Ladies (which she had hinted about). I also ordered an olive oil set that my mother pointed out from a mail-order catalog, but it didn't arrive before yesterday.

Anduril.

Most appropriate.

Blofeld makes a good point.

I helped my wife turn a cabinet and a bookcase into a GREAT kitchen set for my daughter. The bookcase became a fridge with blackboard paint (the greatest invention in the world if you have younguns) on two sides and the cabinet has a stove with real knobs and painted on burners on one side and a sink with a real (non-working) faucet on the other. She got the hardware from a plumber that had some displays he didn't need. Inventive lass that one.

We got my grandad a bunch of stuff to bake with. At the age of 70 he has discovered the joy of cooking and is quite the pastry chef.

My wife made a number of handbags for various female members of my family. Homemade stuff ROCKS. Last year I made and gave out some great hot pepper jelly . This year I was too lazy.

I gave the wife a bunch of candle stuff and a pair of sterling silver earrings from my trip to Dallas. She made my day by giving me a telescope. I've wanted one ever since I was 8 so that was really special.

Damn...I was wondering when the first mention of a sword would occur.

Nothing creative among my gifts and no creative that I gave. Seems I used all that energy up last year with gifts throughout the year.

I did get a book about Japan written by a former ambassador to Tokyo. Should be good reading.

- I gave my wife a 5 day vacation in the Keys over Thanksgiving (I went with her, of course!)

- I gave my parents a few little things they requested (they never ask for anything)

- I gave my best friend Flight Sim 2004, and his wife a $50 gift card to Best Buy

- I gave my in-laws a few little things they wanted (they, too, never ask for anything)

Holy shit. You all have rich families to get all the loot you got. My friends and family are poor so we agree to not buy presents for each other and just spend time together. I had friends over yesterday and we pretty much just got wasted on beer and pot.

Not rich by any stretch of the imagination. Just good at managing money, plus we saved a lot for this year's presents. Now it's time to have fun!

I don't know. Getting $1200 in cash would be great in and of itself. But on top of that, you got a shit load of DVDs and other loot. I've never known anyone who receives as much presents as you all have listed in this thread.

Beer and pot must be cheap in NYC.

It is. Believe me.

Haha. That would have been quite fun.

Okay, fine. Here's what I gave:

To my shadow, Yin Roy:

- Cyberhome 500 DVD Player
- Game of Death: Hong Kong Legends SE (DVD)
- Fist of Furty: Hong Kong Legends SE (DVD)
- Drive: Hong Kong Legends SE (DVD)
- Hero (DVD)
- Ichi the Killer (DVD)
- Shaolin Soccer (DVD)
- New Legend of Shaolin (DVD)
- Last Hero In China (DVD)
- The Twins Effect (DVD)
- Legend of Zu (DVD)
- 2 Fast 2 Furious (DVD)
- Slumber Party Massacre (DVD)

To my shotgunner, Joey Burns:

- Set of Japanese Exclusive Batman Kubricks
- Grand Theft Auto 3
- Evil Dead: Fistfull of Boomstick

To The Old Man:

- The Illustrated Encyclopeda of Railroad Lighting Volumes 1 and 2
- A Coleman Sports Watch
- Robin Williams: Live On Broadway

The Mother Django:

- Baby's Birthstone Necklace
- A Watch
- Barbie as Catwoman
- Sideshow's Michael Myers doll
- Beatles Sgt. Pepper Lunch box
- George Harrison's Brainwashed LTD ED Boxed set
- Best of Tim McGraw CD
- Freaky Friday (DVD)
- City Hunter (DVD)
- Little Women 90's version (DVD)
- Pirates of the Caribbean (DVD)
- Medicom Matrix Reloaded Neo Kubrick

And there's some things I got for people who I haven't seen yet. Not about to reveal them here...

Good to see those Team Django dues still paying dividends to this day.

umm....can I be your mother next Christmas? I love the gifts you got her and from the looks of what she likes, she sounds like a cool person.

Yeah. We like her...

My loot--

Throne of Blood
Rashomon
The Pythons (autobiography of Monty Python by the Pythons)
The Silmarillion
Elvis Costello's "Armed Forces" re-issue
Elvis Costello's "Get Happy!!" re-issue
A couple Usagi Yojimbo collections
No clothes!!! A first!

I feel bad now, especially compared to Django's giving out list. I didn't buy anything at all other than my wife's gifts, as she did all the Christmas shopping this year, even taking care of my family.

I just get really depressed around Christmas. Must have been that whole 'mother dying two weeks before' when I was 13. As such, I just don't get into giving or receiving gifts these days. I could give you a gold brick, and I'd still think you didn't like it.

Add to Anduril...

All four Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon figures.

The new Rainbow Six.

Hulk DVD.

X2 DVD.

Harryhausen's KALI statue.

Kingdom Hearts.

AND THE HOMESTAR RUNNER FIGURINE SET!!!

I see you jockin' me...tryin' to play like...you know me?

Custody of my Son and dinner at a very good friend's.

Nothing better then a gift like that Kronos.