<p>What are we buying for our college-aged young men this holiday season?</p>
<p>We’re going up to RonJons and Quiet Flight this weekend to look at longboards. I need my son, though, to pick it out. So it won’t be a big surprise.<br>
What else… a wetsuit? Younger wants the new iPod phone, cash, clothing.</p>
<p>I just got back from WalMart. I wanted to get a Wii, but they were out, so I bought my kid a t-shirt that says “YOUR MOM GOES TO COLLEGE.”</p>
<p>doubleplay, we bought our son a longboard his first year and a “fish” board his second along with a longboard skateboard. </p>
<p>Sounds like our son’s tastes are similar :)</p>
<p>This year I’m giving best buy gift certificates and clothes. My middle son wants a pair of boots, but I think my father in law is getting that for him. </p>
<p>I kind of grieve for the days of lego kits and bikes. They were easier to buy for back then.</p>
<p>Having a music major for a son, our main gift purchases have all been music-related most of the time. Last year it was an i-pod so he could record music his band/orchestra was playing and listen a lot. This year he says it will be some kind of recording device–details to follow. I also try to get a couple little items so he at least is surprised about something! (Gift certificates to favorite restaurants are always gratefully accepted.)</p>
<p>Starter bass guitar and amp for the drummer who’s branching out.</p>
<p>Art and photographic supplies for the newly-minted-fine-arts-and-architecture-former-math-major.</p>
<p>Just did birthday shopping. His favorite gift–and his Dad and I both thought this would be perfect–was a new DVD of the 1931 film of The Threepenny Opera in French and German. Haven’t started Christmas shopping yet.</p>
<p>My HS junior is something of a clothes horse, and likes anything from H&M because we don’t have one around here, ergo, no one has those clothes and they look cooler. He wants money for Christmas, and or a PS III - which we are still waiting for price reductions.</p>
<p>For my son, if a present does not consume electricity and have semiconductors, it is the equivalent of buying underwear as a gift. Therefore, his birthday present will be a GPS system; I’m still thinking about Christmas; perhaps I’ll complete the satellite theme with an XM radio for his car.</p>
<p>Fundingfather: have you considered an iPod link for his car? My D loves hers.</p>
<p>I assume that you mean something that will transmit over an FM frequency to the car radio? If so, he already has that covered - a previous gift to him was a new car radio that has an audio-in jack that he can connect the iPod directly to the radio with a cable. </p>
<p>He had previously tried one of the FM tranmitter things and it introduced too much static. I’m not sure if that was because of too many conflicting FM stations in our area or just a poor design but anyway, he is happy with his “direct connect” solution. So much so that when his old car died, he salvaged the radio and put it in his “new” car.</p>
<p>FF: no, my D had a direct wire installed as well. Glad it’s working for him. </p>
<p>My son asked for a Rolex Submariner. We’ve already said no, but it sure was fun to think about for a few minutes.</p>
<p>I was thinking of buying that new interactive Wii videogae. Perhaps tennis or bowling. Something DS can enjoy indoors during his Winterbreak and still get some exercise.</p>
<p>I am seriously considering buying my son a GPS for his car, even though he didn’t ask and doesn’t want. He called me a few weeks ago, driving around his college town, because he was lost on his way to a date’s house! The conversation was, “where are you right now?” “I’m on 23rd street, going south” “What was the last street you passed?” “3rd street”… you get the idea.
Heck, he’s even called me while on campus before. (“Hey, can you tell me where Bingham Hall is? I have an appointment there.”) The epitome of “lostness”, as well as laziness. Why bother asking a stranger when there’s a cell phone in your pocket? Yes, the GPS is looking better every day.</p>
<p>We’re getting our S1 new eyes…PRK surgery…maybe we’ll throw some pain killers and sunglasses in his stocking!</p>
<p>mootmom: Tell me about this starter bass guitar and amp. Why not an acoustic guitar with a teach-yourself DVD? I’m thinking my S, who has all but given up playing his trumpet, might like this as a more social and lifelong music hobby. Which brand are you looking at? </p>
<p>Am I a total music dweeb for thinking that the guitar-amp gift-thing being advertised at Sharper Image looks kind of interesting…?</p>
<p>Several years ago, my son expressed interest in the guitar- he plays/played trumpet too, at the time. It has been an amazing hobby- we gave him a “crate” electric guitar and 5 lessons over Christmas break with a fantastic teacher. The teacher filled up a spiral notebook with all kinds of riffs, chords, whatever it is that guitar people read. Fast forward three years- son has sold, bought, resold, bought/traded, and now owns three amazing guitars and loves playing in his spare time. He basically “taught himself” after the first lessons. I am totally into musical instruments as gifts- you can’t go wrong.</p>
<p>“The epitome of “lostness”, as well as laziness. Why bother asking a stranger when there’s a cell phone in your pocket? Yes, the GPS is looking better every day.”</p>
<p>I hear you. Only with me it is my wife. I need to keep a window open on my office computer for google maps so that at any given time i can get her unlost. However, if she had a GPS, the “lost” calls would be replaced with “how do I program this thing to get me to …” If your son is a technophile, then a GPS may be good. But if he is a “phobe”, I’d stay far away.</p>
<p>What’s a “crate” guitar? Love the idea of lessons arranged over the break. I was looking at a travel guitar in a music store the other day. Something you could take out to the beach at a bonfire party (unless that is hopelessly lame and I just don’t know it.) I’m really liking this idea — it seems like it would be a great stress reliever and a way to take a break from studying.</p>
<p>DS has always been a techie/gadget guy. Last year it was the Wii. This year he has lost a LOT of weight and wants mostly clothes. The big item on his list is a pair of raw denim jeans. You don’t wash them for a while and then they fade/conform to your body? I dunno, I just buy what I’m told…
:)</p>