Choosing birthday presents can be difficult whoever they are for but we all have friends and relatives who turn the task into a veritable nightmare. This week I am faced with a huge problem in the shape of a friend whose birthday meal I am attending but who has left me totally clueless as to what I should buy him as a gift. My issue is not that I don’t know him nor that I lack the funds to buy something worth having, it is simply that this man only has one hobby or interest and I and his other friends have long since exhausted all possibilities in that direction.

Awkward

What makes the situation most puzzling to me is that this guy is not wealthy, has very little to speak of and has not had many opportunities in life. This should make the task quite straight forward but his singular lack of interest in anything has left me wondering in what direction I should turn. So the question is what do you buy a man who has nothing but doesn’t really want anything either?

Options

I have been going through the options and discussing them with mutual acquaintances and apart from some rather pointlessly lewd and rude suggestions nobody has had anything to contribute. I considered theatre vouchers but have been told that he doesn’t enjoy the theatre and I have thought about shopping vouchers but he doesn’t really do fashion and I have looked at watches online here only to discover that he already has two and never wears one of them. Now as I write this I have been struck by a brilliant idea and I think this is a concept that could really catch on. If you have a friend who has no interests, all you really have to do is create one for them and then buy what they need to get started! Problem solved!

New Hobby

I am not going to worry about whether he thinks he wants a new hobby or not or whether he has any interest in what I have chosen. I have decided that what he really needs to do is learn to play the guitar and so that is what he is going to do. I will venture out tomorrow to invest in an instrument and I think that one of the rather nice guitars that I saw in a local shop the other day will do the trick nicely. I can’t wait to see his face when I hand it over. Everyone will naturally think that I have mistaken him for someone else but no matter as they will soon see the brilliance of my plan.

Follow Suit

The next time you can’t think of what to buy someone don’t waste your time trying to cater to their interests just think of a new one for them. Just buy the first thing that comes into your head and get that. This will save a load of time and effort and could change someone’s life for the better in an instant!

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Article by a rather frustrated Sally Stacey