For those of you who've not seen it, every room in the movie looks like it's fresh from Trading Spaces. Hip and red and green and textured and everything. It was a mostly good time.

Yesterday we exchanged gifts, Tommy and I. Let me explain that he's just impossible to shop for. Impossible. He doesn't want anything. He doesn't need anything. And when I go by my natural inclination for people like that, which is to buy them toys, he turns up his nose at them. He still has toys I've bought for him in his car. He tries to deny this, but I can see them peeking out from under the floor mat, stained by a bit of spilled soda.

We had agreed not to exchange gifts until I returned. It was all set. I went out shopping with my sister while I was in Oklahoma. We looked all over, until I found the perfect gift.

Tom doesn't really read much, but he does like Aumistead Maupin's novels. In fact, the first one I read was a loaner from Tom. This got me hooked and I've since read them all, even the one about midgets. So after a long day of shopping I was browsing the DVDs at a B&N and came across More Tales or the City on DVD. Showtime turned it into a miniseries and just released it on DVD. This was perfect, of course, because Tommy's parents bought him a DVD player for Christmas.

I bought it, resisted the urge to open it and watch it, wrapped it very nicely in a box chosen to conseal the tell tale shape of a DVD case, and affixed a bow.

So when the time came, Tommy said, "you open yours first."

Now, I love presents. So I said, "OK!" and ripped into the package. When the paper was gone I was faced with a shoebox. It had been sealed with some kind of appoxy and heavy packing tape. I tore at the cardboard with my teeth and fingernails until I'd ripped a hole in the box big enough for me to reach inside. I stuck my hand in and pulled out More Tales of the City on DVD.

"Oh. You got me More Tales on DVD. That's a very thoughtful gift."

I've never received a gift that was the same thing I'd wrapped to give away before. We both returned our coppies. We're shopping again. Looking for something to exchange that's less identical.

Posted at 12:40 a.m.

previously on Sooner � next on Sooner

last five entries