Hoot n’ Annie’s Definitive Gift Guide

You know, this time of year every blogger and online publication posts some stupid “ultimate gift guide” and quite frankly they are ALL wrong. They don’t get it. But you know who does get it…Hoot n’ Annie!

So, let’s dive in, here’s what to buy your loved ones:

Nothing. That’s right, don’t buy anything. Don’t spend your money on trinkets and knick knacks that people don’t need. We run around making ourselves crazy this time of year, trying to find the perfect THING. When it gets right down to it, we don’t need more THINGS in our lives, we need more time, more understanding, more friendship and communication.

The best gifts I have ever been given are experiences and time with the people in my life. There has been no physical item ever in my 38 years of life that meant more to me than the people that are in my life.

I don’t want a stocking stuffer, a book, a new car, a jacket, or an elf for a shelf. I want you. I want the one thing that is precious to you and me, time. Let’s share a bottle of wine. Let’s enjoy a good meal. Let’s talk.

Here’s the thing…I know you won’t stop buying anything for the people in your life but I will challenge you to do this. Pick one year of your life and have that be the year that you buy no physical gifts for anyone. Just try it. You’ll notice you have more money. You’ll notice you don’t go through all the stress of picking crap out. You’ll notice that you have more time.

Use that time to create a memory with someone that is not focused on gifts. Time is the gift. People have tried to give me reasons as to why gift giving is good or important or whatever and nothing has changed my mind. I cannot not express the point enough, there is no physical thing, anything, that can replace the time you can give someone.

If spending time with someone is difficult due to distance and all that try sending a note, an email, or a text message when you’re thinking of that person. And do it year round, not just at this time of year. Make them a 20 second video and text it to them. In the video you can tell them a joke, tell them why you care about them, or just say you were thinking about them. That beats the hell out of anything sitting on my shelf that I need to dust.

I can go on and on about this, probably already have…but you get the idea. Try it sometime. Let the people in your life know that you are going to skip gifts one Christmas and see how it goes. That’s all I ask. Less consumerism and more experiences. My last request is…stop clicking all those stupid “ultimate gift guide” articles online. Cheers and Merry Christmas, too!