I thought it might be nice to share what you've been giving and getting this year.

I've done most of the family Christmas days, and so far I've mostly had vouchers to buy games with (but I'm waiting until January so I can get them nice and cheaply), but my parents did get me the coolest toaster in existence:

http://www.argos.co.uk/wcsstore/argos/imag...62UC132766X.jpg

It's so ridiculously butch and over the top that I really wanted it. Usually I'm not at all fussed with how appliances look, as long as they don't make my eyes bleed and they do their job then I'm happy, but this thing looks so gorgeously art-deco and steampunk I really wanted it. Very literally on that theme, they also got me the kettle:

http://www.argos.co.uk/wcsstore/argos/imag...67UC321958X.jpg

For about a second before it finished boiling a small puff of steam comes out at the bottom of the handle, which is very, very cool looking.

I feel very sad for liking a toaster and kettle this much, but style is style, you know?

I also got the box set of Jim Henson films (Labyrinth, Dark Crystal, and Mirrormask) which I was very happy about.

The favourite thing I've given cost me about two pounds. It was Sues' birthday a few weeks ago so I'm including this during the 'giving period' of Christmas. I was making a card for her featuring our toy bunny Mr Floppity ( http://www.matazone.co.uk/other/mr-floppit...pity-page1.html ) fighting with Godzilla in a cardboard city landscape. I got carried away and it became quite cool, so I printed out the image as a photo and got it framed.

What are your favourite things you've given/got this year?

That's a pretty cool toaster!

I'm not getting anything this year. I'm getting money instead. I just couldn't think of anything. I'm thinking of a video camera though. I don't know what else i'm getting because it's not Christmas yet.

Video cameras are cool, but don't normal digital cameras take pretty decent films these days? You should check out those options before you spend.

I forgot to mention: my present to myself is that I've written over 70,000 words on the first draft of my novel (71,005 to be precise). With the final target being 100k, I'm now 71% finished. Yay!

Hooray for book-writing! What's it about?

Our current camera is rubbish and Won't record sound. I'd prefer a video camera anyway.

Go Mata! I'm actually thinking about starting another one, currently.

I'm really excited this year...I just hope my parents didn't feel the need to get me more than what I wanted - I told that if they got me a computer, I didn't have to have any other gifts.

Anyway, I guess we'll find out tommorow.

This year my family have agreed that it's unecessary to buy presents for eachother unless there is something we actually need, so I am not getting anything this year. Nonetheless, I've still bought half the bookshop for my family.

I WOULD post about the really really cool things I bought my boyfriend but I know he will read this thread so you'll all have to wait until tomorrow to find out like him!

To get, I'm asking my family to experiment with me and take bucket showers for a week. Compared to our shower, which is powered by nuclear bombs and the tears of children and shoots out like 50 gallons a minute, it'll save a bunch of water and amuse me terribly. I've also asked for 15 lb free weights to buff up over break. I totally sound like Schwarzenegger, but I promise I smell nicer and am not married to someone who looks to be related to me. Also, I am not going to taiike ova AMERIKA.

I think the best present I've purchased was for my brother--a dart-gun kit made in China called the RUIN CRIME HOME SHOOTING KIT. It'll be fun to see if he finds it as funny as I did.

Mata, that is quite possible the most awesome toaster on the planet!!!!

Does it constantly ask if you want any bread based products a la Red Dwarf?



Why don't people believe me? She's mean I tells ya! Mean! ... although this opinion may change tomorrow

That's a really cool idea I would ask the same of my housemates, but our shower is powered by tears of the devil, doesn't have a head, and it would probably be nicer to have bucket showers than to use the shower.

This year I have bought my family generic Christmas presents of things they would like, although my older brother does get jellied eels from Walthamstow (Eaaaast Lahhndan) and my sister would be getting a perpetual calendar with pictures of oil paintings of sock puppets*, if I had remembered to wrap it and bring it to my parents' haus.
I got Wytu a trip for us to Paris, as well as some xkcd Actual Size!! stickers, and something else that he hasn't yet got.

My best Christmas present so far?

Sat round the dinner table with my parents, my older sister, my older brother and my younger brother last night, eating and chatting. With my sister and I both living in London, my older brother living about 12 miles from my family home and our crazy crazy social lives, it's pretty rare that we're all together.
What will be even better will be at my Granma's house on Saturday with my other grandparents, Wytu, my siblings and their partners, family friends and a childhood friend of mine and some of my brothers, for my brother's birthday. Awwww, soppy love moment


*It comes from Canada.

I bought myself a new digital camera for Christmas...

so now, once the battery is charged, I will finally be able to take a picture of the gift that elphaba sent me!!!!

Expect pictures after 5:00 EST...

On the giving side I am giving my mother a chance to meet a real aromatherapist and blend some oils that she likes... instead of the normal air fresheners that she likes... I hope she likes it...

I got a few cool wii games and another wii controller. Wahoo! Merry christmas everyone.

So, Christmas day.

A new hoodie.
A robe.
A down matress topper for my bed. (yay)
Ruby necklace (uber yay)
Fleece blanket
towels
some new techi-color looking t-shirts (whoo!)
and that was it. So I was sitting there watching everyone else opening their gifts...like "aw man...well the ones I got are pretty cool."

So my dad's like..."I thought there was one more somewhere around here... Hey Lou, what's this?"

And there, behind the sewing desk, was the most beatiful thing I've ever layed my eyes on.
Brand. New. Computer.
Flat screen. HP. 250 Gb harddrive.
I've been happy-dancing for the last hour.

My family rocks so, so hard.

That is pretty dope, voices! The Christmas sneak-attack is always a cool way to get stuff.

SPEAKER, you are good at presents. Nice one. How did your mother like her sweet gift?

Et Daria, they seem kind of hesitant. But there is now a bucket in my bathroom. It'll be a cool experiment.

(I got a classy shirt, a portable coffee-maker and the AP stylebook! Wahoo christmas!)

Ok, I got:
New guitar bishes! Well, it's technically at the post office right now, and will be picked up tomorrow, but still.
Another distortion pedal, with cool British Punk/Fuzz/Other effects.
$50 George's Music shop Giftcard
$50 Best Buy Giftcard
Guitar Strings
Money
Oh yeah, and that new Rubix Cube thing. It's kinda... er.. Lameish, but fun to play in the dark.

I have received some interesting presents this year...

A DVD movie - Blade Runner: The Final Cut
A new watch - one that actually tells me the right time
Cash
Gift Cards to damn near every store I frequent - Best Buy, Target, Wal-Mart, Sears, and.. Duluth Trading Co. <- this card rocks...
A book - What would MacGyver do?

She hasn't met with the Aromatherapist yet, but from what I can tell she likes the idea at least... So I'm hoping for the best!

I got a honeypot wool ball holder circa 1950 and a badge saying "Jam Sandwiches Forever" (my sister and I have a history of bizare gifts to one another), cookie cutters, a little fabric bag made by my granma with the note "An idea taken from a handkerchief satchet purchased in 1930 by Nana Richards [my granma's granma] for her only grand daughter", a copy of Not Expecting Fish- the poem anthology my mum was published in, and a whole host of other really lovely things that my family got me : )
Today has been lovely- we're about to have dinner and I'm in the Christmas haze- alcohol induced mellowness, started by cava with breakfast and will probably finish with a glass of Stones Ginger Wine before bed.
I'm glad everyone seems to have had a lovely day- merry Christmas to you all.

Edit- Yes I used the word lovely three times. I'm an English RP speaker. We do that. >_<

CASH! LOTS AND LOTS OF BEAUTIFUL CASH! *ahem*

Also Discworld Making Money and the Wit and Wisdom of Discworld.
A T-Shirt
CHOCOLATES!
A nut.
A satsuma.
...... and far too much obscure booze from around the world... seriously, it's like people know me too well.

Today was good. Bow down and acknowledge the brilliance of Terry Pratchett.

Happy Boxing day everyone, yesterday was tremendous and Ryn and I really had a nice day. Good hauls too!

By far my favourite presents were from Ryn: A Neil Gaiman signed copy of Dark Alchemy, a collection of short stories by many cool authors [Pic]. & POI!!! I finally have poi!!! (And a book on poi spinning)- They're a basic beginners with black and red tails and i'm going to have mucho fun practicing(Hap-poi x-mas)

We both posed our pressies for all to see as it saves lazy me from listing them (Ryn's & Matt's) we both hope that everyone had a really great day and enjoys the rest of the non-denominational festive December period ... So do Ryn's new puppies

We had a fabulous Christmas. We had Matt's best mate round plus my mum (my Dad was working- stupid bloody shifts!) We all had a fabby time- I got mashed on too much Sherry and I cooked a stonking Roast Beef dinner for everyone- aside from the spilled glass of Rose wine in the cabbage (which, once dried out and nuked tasted fine - yay for gravy) everything went off without a hitch. My Christmas pudding cheese cake went well (first time I've cooked one- telly recipe) and my bread rolls went down a storm as always. Matt took photos of everything which I believe he is putting up on facebook so if you fancy a look at the awesomeness of my bread roll crown or my breakfast please feel free! Hope everyone has as much of a good time as we did.

Love and Hugs to all

Ryn

P.S Wasn't Doctor Who cool?

Doctor Who was great Your slippers are very cool too!

My present this year was going to see Led Zeppelin on the 10th of December, so having already had that, I wasn't getting much on the actual day.

Nevertheless, a decent haul of dvds and books and a couple of t-shirts was pretty good.

As for giving, there was nothing particularly special, just the usual dvds, books, cds, toys, clothes, I'm a very boring gift-giver.

I did give myself an electronic drum kit, at a price far exceeding what I spent on everyone else combined, but that's 'cos I'm bad at resisting salesmen.

My best present that I gave was that I took my loveeer to see the Trans-Siberian orchestra.

Best present I got was Guitar Hero 3... which I got for myself... ...

I have to say I had a pretty crappy Christmas this year, partly down to having a retail job and nominating to have new years off instead of Christmas, I spent most of Christmas Eve, until about 7pm say, rearranging the shop, marking-down stock, adding swing tags, drinking beer and eating christmas pudding/mince pies. Today, thanks largly to being one of the only shops in town open (we have a rather large shopping center which was closed), we got mobbed [language choice adjusted - Mata]. When I let one of the girls in, it had to be done very quickly. When we opened the door, about 20 people were waiting outside, and after a mere hour and a half, we had taken what we would usually hope to take on a good day.

Presents-wise it was pretty good. Notably amoung them;
- new trainers
- driving lessons
- a nice squidgy blanket
- a rather fantastic pair of socks
- HMV voucher

The day itself wasn't so bad, I'll never have a stress free Christmas as long as I spend it with my mother or sister, for one, I'll never understand how my sister can get away with calling her partner a f*ckwit for something as trivial as gravy, where as my father just has to roll his eyes at my mother to be the nasiest man in the world. Or how I get guilt trips and meaningful looks all day for not liking a gift relating to my degree, a subject in which I've spent the past year and a half expressing disinterest, while someone else can dislike with nothing more than a "it's okay, I kept the receipt". Are there a written set of double standards between for women? Or are the women in my immediate family just a little nuts?
I did, however, enjoy giving my 4 month old neice her first item of clothing from cyberdog.

I think I'm going to spend next christmas in France, with my dad...with large quantities for whiskey....

I went to George's today to pay for lessons and buy myself a Wah pedal (finally!)...
Lessons: $68
Wah pedal: $79.99
My expression when my mom wouldn't let me borrow $20 (just 20!) so I could actually buy the pedal: priceless.

I am very not happy. And my stupid guitar didn't come yet. Stupid shipping taking forever... Stupid package not being a guitar...

But I did get some DVD that I haven't heard of or watched yet. (What We Did Last Summer:Robbie Williams Live At Knebworth)

It came! It came! It came! Finally...
See the awesome guitar here and here!

*Happy again*

Congrats Izzy!

So when do we finally get to hear you play?

Well...

There's a talent show thingy at school in I think February, so I'm probably gonna play The Extremist by Joe Satriani if I learn it in time, and that should be filmed. And hopefully put on Youtube. I could just play a couple random songs and have my friends film it, but I think the first video of me playing guitar that's going to be put on the net should involve pretty lights and an audience.

No, it just informs me of its plans to dominate the weak organic species of this tiny planetoid.

I got a selection of cool films, Day Watch (the sequel to the Russian vampire-ish horror-ish film Night Watch from a few years ago) and an extended version of The Evil Dead are the highlights there.

I also got a couple of graphic novels, these being the first nine comics of Hellblazer (better known as the comics about John Constantine, who had a Keanu Reeves film about him a few years ago), and the final graphic novel of The Sandman. I read all of the latter about eleven years ago and I've been slowly collecting the graphic novels. It's taken me about eighteen years since I first read The Sandman to finally own all of them, so I look forward to ploughing through those at some point.

Finally, I had a bad night's sleep last night, which has given me the gift of an idea for a Mittens animation, and possibly a LGG animation too.

YAY!

Late Christmas present for the rest of us?

Whoopeedoodles!

Without celebrating your insomnia, WOOT!

I have to admit I'm also rather jealous of Mata's kettle and toaster. >_>

Among other things I got:
- Making Money (Discworld)
- Addons for board games (Munchkin, Carcasonne, Settlers of Catan)
- Simpsons Pizza Cutter
- Racing dinosaurs
- A cushion shaped like a cow (or possibly a cow shaped like a cushion)
- A Ukulele and some books to tell me how to play it

Naturally I'm currently learning to play Metallica's Enter Sandman on the Ukulele since it seemed the least appropriate choice. *waits to get sued*

The most amusing present I gave was a foam disc gun for Candice to shoot me when I make annoying noises with my feet.

What annoying noises can you make with your feet? I can crack my toe-knuckles and my ankles click quite often, but they hurt if I don't do it... Do you have something my extravagant that yours can do?

The idea of a heavy metal mash-up, all played on the ukulele, sounds great.

Wytu clicks his bones ALL the damn time, as they ache if he doesn't. He also taps. ALL THE DAMN TIME.

I presume Ste's similar?

I remember telling Wytu to stop tapping at one of the London meets. He did, which meant that I didn't have to break his fingers, so everyone was happy

Hah. Yes. I remember that.
It's worse when he taps on me

Nothing extravagant, just tapping and rubbing feet together that I'm never conscious of until someone points it out. Cand's hearing is geared to detect and be annoyed by such noises.

I can also click my toes, sort of, in a similar way to snapping one's fingers. I've never managed to crack my toe-knuckles or ankles, even now you've got me trying it. O_o


*cackles*

Poor Cand, I know how she feels..when I'm trying to sleep, I can hear EVERYTHING. *bzzt*

I got:
DVD's (Superbad, Simpson's Season 10, Futurama Movie, Futurama Vol. 4, The Office Season 3, The Simpson's.)
Some clothes, the usual jeans and shirts
A new printer (my dad got it free when he bought my mom's new camera, he asked me I cared that he got it free, and I was like why would I care, it's a nice printer.)
2 Club Chairs (my mom has had some mad good karama and one of the chairs was free due to some kind of Carson's Card glitch, lol.)for my apartment.

Gave
Bourne Ultimatium (for my Brother-in-law)
3lbs of Coffee (for my dad, I got him hooked a on a coffee company in Chicago)
Crystal figurine (for my mom)
Littlest Pet Shop stuff (for my nieces)

I had a good year in my opinion this Christmas =]

I got:
>Lots of clothes
>A class photography camera and I got a job as a photograoher 4 days after
>500GB external hard drive
>Nintendo Wii
>Lots of money which I bought a laptop with
>Random washsets that random relatives get which never get used
>CD's, the best ones being the Cribs ones

I gave nothing all that brilliant but heres some anyway:
>Lots of perfume
>Jewellery
>Clothes
>CD's
>Money
and boring stuff =]

Blimey, that's a huge haul Kasbah! Your family must be very generous at Christmas time! (And congrats on the job.)

Thanks Mata =] They aren't usually this generous, every other year I feel quite poor which isn't too good. But at least this year is good =]

Yes, I'm slow. Then again, I've only just recently come out of hiding again.

Anyhow, here's a bit of a list.

-Wool yarns, four skeins to be exact. Now I guess I have to make socks.
-Capo for my guitar. It's a very nice one for all of you who would be interested in such things, and I highly recommend it.
-A nifty vinyl to MP3 ripping gadget.
-The leatherman wave tool adapter on Thinkgeek
-Two Spoon CDs (Telephono & Soft Effects EP)
-Peppermint schnapps and hot cocoa
-1000 piece puzzle
-Chocolates etc.