Holidays and Happenings

Superstitions: There are a lot of superstitions and legends involving the giving and receiving of gifts. For instance it was at one time considered bad luck to give a pair of scissors or a knife as a gift because it was feared that the act would “cut” the friendship in half. Therefore knives were never given as wedding gifts as it was believed they would lead to a broken marriage.

Also never give anyone a pair of shoes as a Christmas gift because they would make the person you give them to walk away from you. When you give someone a gift of a wallet or purse be sure to put some money into it, even if only a coin, to ward off bad luck. At one time bakers would throw in an extra roll when you bought a dozen as a “gift” in case any of the other rolls were too small. This “gift” became known as the baker’s dozen.

If you are looking for a gift for someone who isn’t afraid of heights, has a good amount of daredevil in them, and doesn’t find anything wrong with jumping out of a perfectly good airplane, this is one gift that will earn you eternal gratitude.

This is just the holiday gift for that special someone who you know has always wondered how it would feel to just jump out of an airplane, let alone fall 10,000 feet. A single tandem sky dive session will run you an average of about $200.00 which includes instruction that runs about half an hour and one jump.

That is also what makes the tandem jump such a great gift, since it is a one-day event, you get the opportunity to see how much you really enjoy it without investing a lot of time and money learning to dive on your own, then if you complete the jump and find yourself wanting to get back up there and do it again you have the option of signing up for classes where they will teach you everything you need to know from packing your own chute to landing in your target.Â

All of us have heard at one time or another seller or buyer beware - but in this case, the saying now becomes gifter beware. Many of us give with the best of intentions, but never realize that the gifts we are about to give are truly nightmares - or worse - in disguise. No one ever means to make such a mistake, but these do occur and we are here to help you avoid these mishaps. The following are the six worst gift ideas ever to cross our paths.

The first and biggest of the six worst gift ideas ever to give is the item that tries to give a subtle hint for what you consider a needed change in this person’s life. We think this is a polite way of doing it, but all in all we cause more pain and trouble than it is worth. Some examples of these types of gifts are things like books for losing weight, an audio book on helping someone with their memory, or even a book on finding the right guy or girl. For the recipient, all they experience is you calling them fat, stupid, and unable to meet good people for relationships. The gift causes pain and depression - the opposite of the intention you had for it.

Craft gifts are available just about everywhere, from small craft shops to large malls, to state fair craft booths. You can buy them, you can make them yourself or you can give a craft kit and open up a whole new hobby for the people for whom you are buying. There are specific “holiday” themed crafts such as wreaths for Christmas or Halloween, straw scarecrows and corn husk wreaths for Thanksgiving or more general crafts like birdhouses and dollhouses complete with miniature everything, which can also make great holiday gifts.

Ceramics is a relaxing hobby that allows for great creativity and personalization. There is enough in the way of simple projects that even the beginner can put together a beautiful array of holiday gifts. You can start from scratch using poured pieces (green ware); cleaning, painting, firing, glazing and firing again or you can buy pieces that are already cleaned and fired (bisque) paint and glaze them.

Is your husband a NASCAR fanatic? Does your girlfriend count the days until it’s time for the Daytona 500? When your child hears the numbers 8, 24 and 48 does he automatically think Dale Earnhardt Jr, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson? Are more than half the products in your home sponsors of a NASCAR team? Are you looking for the perfect gift but just don’t want to buy another T-Shirt, hat or 1/24th scale car?

Give your race fan the thrill of a lifetime with a gift certificate to any one of a dozen race schools. For as little as $100.00 to several thousand dollars you will give a gift that will never be forgotten. Not even Santa could do better!

The holidays are a time to meet up with those you love and to celebrate your precious time together on the planet earth. All of us enjoy getting together with those we enjoy spending time with, and we appreciate the limited time we get to do so. However there is a sad side to our celebrating that many have no idea how to help with.

Every year there are those less fortunate souls who cannot afford to celebrate with their loved one’s. Many of these people don’t even have any loved ones left to visit, and thus they roam the streets alone. So many of us would like to show compassion and kindness to these people, but where do we even begin? How on earth can we make a difference in these people’s lives?

Often we grieve for our loved ones that have been lost. Sympathy for those who grieve is a natural human emotion. Sympathy cards make the sender feel better about their feelings of sympathy, and the receiver feels better knowing they are not alone. Especially in cases where a spouse, parent, or only sibling is lost, sympathy cards are very important in the grieving process.

Recently, my grandmother lost her last sibling. She is not terribly old herself, not even seventy, but there was thirteen years between her and her next oldest sibling. Because she is the last in her generation to survive, a sympathy card was especially important to her grieving process. A call of sympathy was equally important, because she felt very lonely. Without the sympathy of her family and friends, she would not have handled the sibling’s death nearly as well as she did.

Romance cards are no longer just for Valentine’s Day. Romance cards can be given to your loved one all year round. There are many occasions in which you might want to give someone a romance card. It may be the anniversary of when you met, a short term anniversary, or the anniversary of your first date. You can also give romance cards when you are sorry for something, and include it with flowers. Romance cards are also a great way to let someone know you are interested in romance.

There are many types of romance cards. Some are very sentimental, and include pictures of roses or other flowers, hearts, and fancy borders, and usually include a very heartfelt poem. Other romance cards are funny and romantic, and usually include a light-hearted poem or phrase with a funny cartoon drawing. Some romance cards are sexy in nature, and include pictures of sexy women, or a cartoon drawing, and a message that portrays what the person giving the card would like to happen.

Greeting cards are a great way to celebrate any occasion, or just let someone know you are thinking of them. You can find greeting cards for birthdays, anniversaries, missing you, valentines, thinking of you, friendship, mother’s day, father’s day, retirement, thank you, and any other occasion you may think of.

Anniversary greeting cards are very popular. You can find many types of greeting cards for anniversaries. Many anniversary greeting cards are specifically designed for the landmark anniversaries, such as five, ten, fifteen, twenty, twenty five, thirty, forty, and fifty. There are anniversary greeting cards to wife from husband, to husband from wife, to parents from son or daughter, to grandparents from grandson or granddaughter, and even from niece or nephew to aunts and uncles. There are also funny and sentimental anniversary greeting cards.

Not many people think about or discuss postcards anymore. Postcards are usually associated with travel. When someone takes a trip, they may say, “I’ll send a postcard.” Postcards are sold in most convenience stores and travel stops and are the lowest cost greeting card one can find.

The low rate on a postcard certainly makes it user friendly for even the lowest budget. Although the postal rates have risen, the postcard is still a mere twenty-four cents a stamp to send. Not a bad price to send a greeting to someone to keep in touch.