Okay, my smart CC friends....BIRTHDAY BRAINSTORM needed!!!

Parent Cafe
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<p>Hey y’all~</p>

<p>Well, we’re coming up on my son’s second birthday away from home…he’ll turn 20 in about a week! (Now, I guess I’ll <em>only</em> have THREE teenagers, at least for one more year, until #5 turns 13!! :eek:)</p>

<p>It seems that I have raised a rather minimalist son. He rarely asks for ANYTHING, and despite repeated inquiries from me as to what he might like for his birthday, he has not given me ONE idea!!! :confused: Don’t get me wrong…I’m glad that he’s a generally content kid and oh-so-easy to please (and one who considers his being at Duke the greatest gift of ALL time! :smiley: ), but I want to get something off to him by Wednesday at the lastest, and I’m not coming up with any ideas!</p>

<p>His major hobby at school is working out, but he uses the gyms there and wouldn’t use anything fitness related in his room. He doesn’t want extra junk to pack and store/haul at the end of the year. He has an Ipod nano, and last year, I got him a set of speakers for that. Other than that, he uses his computer for everything, so no DVD player as he watches DVDs on his computer. He has a PS2 there, though I’m sure he rarely uses it for all of the school work/socializing. He has a camera phone, but I’m toying with the idea of a separate digital camera, though I have my doubts as to whether he’d even bother to carry it. </p>

<p>What do you get for a 20-year-old who DOESN’T have everything…but who doesn’t THINK he needs ANYTHING!!! :confused:</p>

<p>HELP!</p>

<p>p.s. Going out now to get him some cologne and clothing, but those are BORING…needing an idea with PIZAZZ!!! :D</p>

<p>THANKS, EVERYONE!!!</p>

<p>love, ~berurah</p>

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<p>B, sorry no pizzazz but does he have a zip drive (or whatever they call that little USB memory storage device that you can wear as a necklace or have on your key ring)? D is finding that little device very helpful when she doesn’t want to lug the laptop around. And she’s about the least tech-y kid you are going to find. Big memory ones are still pretty reasonable.</p>

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<p>^^He has a portable extra hard drive (but not as small/portable as the little dealios), but OMG, you may have just hit on something cur!!! I think I <em>WILL</em> get him this!!! THANKS!! :D</p>

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<p>Does he play any PS video games in his room a lot? ^<em>^; I’m just curious. =P Cuz I know my bro and I do. ^</em>^’ Might as well get some PS games thta he likes. =]</p>

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<p>I am getting my Ds these microphones that attach to their Ipods, to record lectures, do interviews, etc…heard about them on the radio</p>

<p>they just attaach to the bottom and you can download your recordings to your computer and podcast or whatever</p>

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<p>Buy him a rt air ticket for Spring Break.</p>

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<p>berurah, </p>

<p>How about a pair of good sound blocking headphones? Someone gave my son a pair as a graduation present, and he loves them - uses them to block out sound while studying or listening to music. Or a new cellphone? The digital camera idea sounds good too - my son uses his contantly. Good luck!</p>

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<p>Taste in colleges. Seriously, it sounds like he’s otherwise a great kid. Fear the Turtle!!!</p>

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<p>Someone a while back posted a link to those little zip drives curm mentioned that have the school logo on them. If he is in love with Duke–he may like that. My son always needs new weight lifting gloves and something like a wrist strap (has velcro ends on it)–think it’s for extra wrist support for very heavy lifting.</p>

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<p>iTunes gift card. $50 goes a VERY long way. Or a Netflix account.</p>

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<p>Here’s a link to a Duke flash drive</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.memorysuppliers.com/duun51usbfld.html[/url]”>http://www.memorysuppliers.com/duun51usbfld.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>My son is also into lifting weights. I got him a scale that measures, weight, water content, fat content of his body. He is very into #'s. He also has a nike program for running that he can use with his ipod nano. Very cool. Can attach it to sneakers and program distance etc. and keep track on computer.
Also bought a cool devise that he can plug into the outside of his laptop and then plug it into cable and he can watch TV on his HD computer monitor.</p>

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<p>I find presents for my soon to be 18 yo impossible too. I think the sound blocking headphones sound like a great graduation gift for him. We got him a Wii for Christmas which he didn’t actually receive until mid Jan. I’d love to get him more controllers for it, but those still seem to be hard to find.</p>

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<p>my boys have birthdays within a few days of each other. we are flying the oldest out to visit the youngest. thought it would be a great present for both of them. even though they are four years apart, they miss each other quite a bit. </p>

<p>in the event that your child doesn’t have a flash drive, thumb drive, jump drive or whatever you want to call it…that is a must!</p>

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<p>B-- I recall you mentioning that S and his friends were coming home over Spring Break. Is there anything special he might want do then? If so, perhaps a clever card might work.</p>

<p>By the way, when is his B-day? The twins turn 18 on 2/26. That’a my B-day also!</p>

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<p>Gloves for lifting weights.</p>

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<p>Proud–How cool you all share a b/d! Thank goodness you skipped 2/29</p>

<p>I like the zip drive and headphone suggestions. Those Bose headphones are expensive, but that was my S’s item for his first christmas/Hannukah after starting college.</p>

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<p>

<strong><em>AHEM</em></strong>!!! proud, S’s b-day is…</p>

<p>2/26!!! :slight_smile: :slight_smile: :slight_smile: :slight_smile: :)</p>

<p>Youngest S turns 9 on 2/25, and youngest D turns 12 on 2/28!!! And before anyone says anything, yes, June was always a lucky month for us! :o</p>

<p>There are some WONDERFUL ideas here!! I really think he’d use the sound-blocking headphones! Which brands have y’all bought!!?? Goin’ to look at the link for the Duke flash drive now! :)</p>

<p>

Why?? He’s already got the BEST!!?? <strong><em>ROFL</em></strong> :D</p>

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<p>

We did! :slight_smile: He was going to go to VA beach with some friends, but decided that he’d rather come home to see us! Oh, and he’s bringing his roomie, another of my adopteds!! I CAN’T WAIT!!! Only 19 more days!</p>

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<p>Berurah, since he’s coming home for spring break, and assuming you’ll be having a birthday celebration at home, and IF he has just the right sort of sense of humor, and since you have 19 whole days, consider the following:</p>

<p>Buy a nice birthday card, a large one, with lots and lots of writing space. Put it in a folder so it stays clean, and take it with you everywhere you go to run errands over the next two weeks - to the grocery store, dry cleaner, gas station, etc. At each place, simply approach total strangers, and ask them to sign the card. You’ll have to give them minimal instruction, such as keep it clean, it’s for a 20-year old, etc. But almost everyone catches on immediately and writes something really funny (in a clean, festive way). If your son is into foreign languages, ask the various strangers if they know any other languages, and get them to sign it in whatever language other than english. (One card I did this way had something like 10 foreign language greetings, including Hebrew, Japanese, etc.) </p>

<p>You’ll have a blast doing this, mostly because complete strangers all end up laughing so hard when you approach them to sign a card etc. - so it’s a lot of fun to do. Anyway, at the end of it, you’ll have a birthday card filled with all sorts of best wishes, humorous, witty comments, etc. - all from people your son does not know. </p>

<p>Then, when he gets home, slip it discretely into the middle of the stack or “normal” cards he’s getting from you, other family members etc. Then sit back, relax, enjoy what happens next. If someone is video recording him opening his cards and gifts, even better…</p>