Bro Guide to Gift Giving at Christmas

We recently covered shopping for your lady for Christmas, which is some very valuable information, but we didn't want to leave out the rest of the important people in your life. Far too many young bro's complete screw up the idea of Christmas by handing out crappy gifts. So with that in mind, we here at Manwall decided to help by compiling our wisdom about gift giving at Christmas.

First off, let's put this whole gift giving thing in the proper light; not giving someone you truly care about a good gift is just a dick move. If you don't like them then just don't buy a gift. If you do like them then don't half-ass the job by waiting until the last minute or picking out something cheesy. Seriously, do you like it when people give you a crap gift?

Hell no!

So this is that point when you rise above and work on giving people gifts that they will remember and love rather than think, "Seriously, did he grab this from the Dollar Store?"

Gift Giving Considerations

Before you buy gifts it helps to make a list of ideas. What should go into this list is more than 30 seconds of thought. For each person in your circle that is lucky enough for you to bequeath them with some token of holiday cheer you need to do a quick mental checklist:

1.     Do they have this or something like it?

2.     Does this relate to a hobby or interest they have?

3.     Does this have some level of emotional attachment?

4.     If you were like them, would you be stoked to receive said gift?

5.     If they really don't like it can they at least return it easily?

These are all important considerations. Items 2, 3, and 5 from the list are pretty critical as you have to have a solid "hell yeah," for at least one of them or the gift should not be purchased.

Gift Giving Guide

·       For Dads - Okay dads are pretty easy. You have sport hobbies like golf, tools, and favorite sports team paraphernalia to choose from for the guy who you will probably most end up being like. Solid options also include cigars, good alcohol, beer of the month, meat of the month and similarly cool items. Brand new BBQ set emblazoned with his favorite college teams' logo? Check!

·       For Moms - Sweet and sensitive is always the way to go for the woman who gave birth to you. Have some photos taken of yourself and then frame them, create a gift certificate for a mother-son afternoon that involves lunch and hanging out. Jewelry is a solid option along with pampering gifts for the person who takes care of everyone else.

·       For Sisters - Ugh this is a tough one. For girls who are really young you are toy shopping. For teenagers you might as well just score a gift card to her favorite store because who knows what  the hell to get a teenage girl. Beyond that it can be a crapshoot like shopping for a girlfriend.

·       For Brothers - Piece of cake if you know your brother. Do we need to even put anything here? Just follow rules 1, 2, 4, and 5 and you are fine. Younger brothers get cool toys, adult brothers get cool toys. Personalized favorite team home jersey with his name on it? Is that a sweet remote control helicopter? Wicked lasers light saber (which is awesome)?

·       For Best Friends - Your best friend or friends deserve good gifts no matter what. As you know them better than anyone else then it should be personal and something they really want. Hey bro, I snagged us four front row seats at center court for the next Knicks game...Merry Christmas! Perhaps an engraved flask along with a bottle of 40 year-old scotch would be appropriate?

·       For Everyone Else - Try not to forget people. One of the easiest, and cheapest, ways to do this is buying generic gifts like bottles of wine or boxes of chocolate (just mix it up and don't have a bunch of the exact same one). Some people even like to bake cookies and such. The beauty of the "everyone else" gifts is that you don't even need to attach labels. Just keep some on hand to pass out and looks like a champ for thinking of them.

The bottom line for gift giving at Christmas is to get into the spirit of giving and take pleasure in finding gifts that people will really enjoy. Think of the excitement you had as a kid tearing open that paper and finding something right off your wish list to Santa and how awesome you felt versus when Aunt Jenny sent you those ridiculous purple knit gloves you were forced to wear all winter. Don't become another Aunt Jenny.