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Strangest Valentine's Day Gifts?
BladeMelbourne asks: "On Valentine's Day my partner gave me (among other things), two comet goldfish, to put in my tank with my existing comet. Where she got the idea to give fish for Valentines day is still a mystery. I'm curious to know if any Slashdot readers gave/received any unusual gifts - and whether the gift was appreciated or not?"
My Dad once got my Step Mother a Bonzi tree for soem gift to her holiday (V-day,B-day Mothers day etc.). She hated it because it was like another pet to take care of and it promptly died due to neglect (though it is the thoguh, right?)
Wow, sent an e-mail as suggested when clicking on "use classic" banner, and got a fast response that addressed my msg
On Valentine's Day my partner gave me .. two comet goldfish, to put in my tank with my existing comet.
Gee, where did she come up with that CRAZY IDEA!
PS: what is a "partner", is that like a tax designation for a business or what?
This year I got the same great gift my significant other has given me for the past 7 years:
A night at home in front of glowing CRT =/
You told me you liked the fish!
Bastard.
My bride asked for a new kitchen sink... The 20 some year old cheapo that came with the house was leaking, so when I was trying to subtly ask for ideas she came right out and stated the desire of her heart. Five hours, many trips to the hardware store, and not knowing if we are going to ever be able to turn the water mains back on... I succeeded.
Did not make that mistake again... asking, that is...
+++ UGUCAUCGUAUUUCU
In addition to a getting me a sweet new pair of airwalks, my gf framed me a picture of Ed Vedder (who I worship) and Anthony Kiedis (who she worships) locking lips. Nothing like a picture of two guys kissing sitting on your mantle.
reech bee-yond ur clip-0n
I'm curious to know if any Slashdot readers gave/received any unusual gifts - and whether the gift was appreciated or not?
:(
I've appreciated every unusual gift I've received on Valentine's day.
Heck, I've appreciated every gift, unusual or not, which I've received on Valentine's day.
Ok, I'll admit it: I've never received any gifts on Valentine's day.
Tarsnap: Online backups for the truly paranoid
For Valentine's day, I received.. A bunch of pictures from a party I was at (wishing I had a SO), that I took on my digital camera?
/., what with your women == money link.
I'll make you a deal. I'll take the best care I can of your goldfish for you, if you throw in your girlfriend.
Okay, I'm trying to be funny, not an ass. =) Though, I do hope she doesn't read
This statement is false.
I got my wife a beginning PHP book and an account on my server. Worked a treat, I can tell you. Today I teased her about wanting to walk with her and have all the guys admire her: Look at the head on that broad! She allowed that she had told all her co-workers about it but not everyone appreciated what a great present it was.
illegitimii non ingravare
... she wouldn't give out with the you know what that smells like fish.
with saying like Kiss Me and Be Mine?
Now imagine her wearing them.
And only them. Whooo-hooo!
Candy hearts facts
Cheers, Joel
Gave me sex in unusual positions and time to myself.... does that count??
--
insert someone's witty sig here.
Slashdot Subscription. The gift that says 'I see you love your computer more than me'.
Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. -John Lennon
the fish was lonely so she got another one to keep it company (somewhat like you before you met her huh?)
As for the third fish, there are 2 explanations, she wants a threesome and was using the third fish to hint at it or she knows how fish always die so was buying it in anticipation.
I'd say that I got a Hot Cocoa Sampler pack.
And why does everyone avoid me on Feb 14?
(Adjusts tape on glasses, scratches self, and resumes coding)
Don't be a zoa (zealous overbearing ass), be happy!
I was bound and determined not to spend another Valentine's Day alone, so I bough THIS!!!
My GF got me a 256 MB DIMM for my computer, and has Player's Guide to Faerun on pre-order. And she took me out to dinner, to Famous Hot Weiner.
I got her a charoite pendant, serpentine chain -- plus a new hard drive for her computer.
Having a geek grrlfriend: priceless.
I got a gift for the dog and a gift for the wife... but the wife only got me a card. So I went out and bought myself a drill press. :)
_sig_ is away
Luckily I readied her for the past few weeks by saying, "Now I got you a gift, but it's not all Valentine-ey or whatnot, but you'll like it."
Maybe it's a bad sign when she said, "You got me a GIFT! Really?"
Condemnant quod non intellegunt.
34. Okay, 27, if you don't count pets.
I got an ex a nice lacy number two years ago. She liked it so much she informed me that since we celebrated Valentines for her, we'd celebrate "Beer and a Blow Job Day" on March 14th. Best holiday ever. Current gf doesn't think it's such a hot idea, but I told her I felt the same way about Valentines day so I've got a month to convince her.
Btw, you celebrate BABJ Day by her getting you a cold beer first thing in the morning, giving you a blow job while you drink it and then her letting you do whatever you want for the day. She's supposed to serve you steak for dinner and top the day off with another beer and a blow job. There are days when I miss my ex.
... Comet cursors instead?
I keep sharp teeth (and shit) away from
anything I care about.
It was about 5 or 6pm when I realized it was valentines day, and I didn't get anything either.. Oh well, back to coding..
Why does it seem like all the recent Ask Slashdots have been posted by ungrateful whiny bastards?
"Help, I've got too much bandwidth, why do I have so much?"
"I found a truck in my yard full of AMD64 machines"
"The stick I use for beating supermodels off of me is broken, what can I do? They won't stop touching me?"
I hate you all!
My gf gave me a plastic cow that dispenses brown jelly beans. Of all the things I spend my time finding meaning in...
"Derp de derp."
50 replies? Damn, I owe somebody $1. Musta been the LotR movies.
"Derp de derp."
Well, unless your spouse wants to testify against you ;)
Wait, sorry, not a poll thread... my mistake.
I got some "Valentines" gifts and cards from family members, but as they're not in the so-called "spirit" of the holiday, I don't suppose they count.
That being the case, I believe one could say that I didn't get anything for Val's day. That being the norm, one could question why I'm posting in this thread at all, to which I would respond, "bite me." In truth, it's probably loneliness and a touch of frustration which inspires me, and no doubt many others in similar romantic situations (or lack thereof), to post here.
A few have expressed it before, that the holiday of February 14 is a discriminatory one, and I have to agree. Still, one could argue that it is no more or less a discriminatory holiday than any other "major" holiday is; Christmas is discriminatory to non-Christians, for example. The difference is that Christmas is an "optional" holiday, whereas Valentines Day seems to be applied to everyone, regaurdless to whether or not they want to take part in it.
Think about it, you don't see many resteraunts offering cross-shaped salmon filets on Christmas, but for some reason it's popular and acceptable to offer heart-shaped filets, steaks, etc. on Valentines day. It is, in short, assumed that every man, woman, and child will be participating in said holiday, even though said holiday is not applicable to every man, woman, and child. The only other holiday where such assumption is made (which I can think of, right now) is New Year's Day, but you're hard-pressed to find people who do not use the "common" (aka Judeo-Christian) calendar primarily.
But enough of my rather off-topic rant; please, those of you who were able to truly celebrate the holiday, share with us your stories. I, at least, want to hear of your experiences, how they were exciting and/or different, seemed strange and/or wonderful, or were just plain horrible.
Respectfully,
Undefined Parameter
Eat the Path.
I got nothing from no one. I'm consistant.
You might be surprised but the worst gift I ever gave was a dozen long stem roses. Actually, it was a rather NICE gift on multiple levels, but it was extremely poorly received.
I was working in an incredibly horrible job, living hand to mouth, my girlfriend and I were living in a loft near Skid Row, barely able to pay the rent, and even food was scarce. One of my coworkers went down to the wholesale flower mart and bought a whole load of boxed longstem roses, really nice ones. He sold them on the street in front of our office during his lunch hour for $75. At the end of the day, he had one box left over, and the buyers were all gone, he knew how poor I was so he just gave them to me, and wished me and my GF a happy Valentines day.
So I took the roses home, and immediately my GF had a fit, how DARE I spend money so frivolously on an expensive gift like THAT! We can barely pay the rent, and you bought expensive FLOWERS?!? Well, I could hardly tell her I got them for free, so I just took the heat.
The next year at Valentine's day, I was doing a little better moneywise, so I bought her some jewelry, some gold/pearl earrings. She had another fit, she wanted diamond earrings, I said I couldn't afford anything like that. She demanded to know how much they cost, and said if should have just given her the money instead.
It should come as no surprise we broke up not too long after that.
There are more appropriate forums than /. for discussing sexual dysfunction.
a special pillow that's suppose to help me sleep better and stop snoring zzzzzzz
Cyberbite Networks - Web Hosting, Dedicated Servers & Colocati
My brother just got a rat for Valentine's day. No joke !
But since his gf looks like one maybe she thinks they're cute...
Wish I'd discovered this before Valentine's Day, since everyone I know seems to be sick...
Wow, I'd've loved to get fish as a gift! Perhaps another dragon fish to compliment the one I have currently. I named him Smaug... those things are damn ugly, and they actually have teeth, but they're harmless.
;)
Of course, any other fish would have been nice. Perhaps some Kuhli Loaches, or some "bleeding heart tetras," for something more appropriate for Valentine's Day.
Strange.....but I loved it.
No more strange than us having a threesome for the last three anniversaries though.
. Quit playing Monopoly with Bill. Switch to one of many non-Microsoft products today.
My wife gave me the Volume 1 Futurama dvds, along with the Clerks animated series on dvd. And then she left town to visit family.
I wonder if she's trying to tell me something?
Ed Wedig
Graphic design services
docbrown.net
Unusual Gift: I bought her a membership in AARP (http://www.aarp.org/).
Unusual person: She loves it, mostly due to the acknowledgement of her eligibility (age > 50).
May you all be so lucky as to have an SO who wears the years proudly.
"I may be synthetic, but I'm not stupid." -- Bishop 341-B
I've gotten fish for Vday before.
Niether one of them even lasted a year but the tank is now home to a beta.
I installed this program called HappyWife on my girlfriend's computer. She thinks I hacked into her computer and that it was "cute." *phew*... Sometimes it pays off to have a non-geek girlfriend...
My wife is currently pregnant and has been craving macaroni & cheese, so this year I got her mac & cheese. I also gave her some other stuff, but she got a good laugh out of the mac & cheese.
Not quite a gift, but funny and Valentine's Day releated...
A friend sent an ecard to everybody in our group. The computer she sent it from didn't have a Flash player installed, so all she could see was a picture of some cats in the preview. She's a cat person, so she liked the card. Late on V-day I get the card. It says "Happy Valentine's Day to the one I'll love my whole life." It was odd because she'd already turned me down for a date. Later that evening we all got together and nobody else had gotten the card yet, so we were all a little concerned about her motives. When she heard what the card said she about died. We gave her a hard time all night, like whenever she'd make a joke about me I'd say, "But I thought you loved me" and we made sure she sat next to me at dinner, in the car, and on the couch. She'll never live it down and has to send an explanatory email to all her girlfriends she sent it to.
A girlfriend! Time to change the sig.
I have a girlfriend whose name doesn't end in
My wife got me Dark Chocolate Hershey's Kisses. That's kinda normal. Then we stopped by to visit my Grandmother. She got me a tape measure.
William of Ockham had no beard. The most likely explanation is that it was chewed off by squirrels every morning.
Experimenting with Valentines day cookies
My room-mate's girlfriend had two rats, and one of them died just a few days before valentines day. So he went out and bought her a rat. Although his story doesn't end there. She shot him down, and so the rat is now living at our house on what appears to be a permanent basis.
I gave some of my friends these cards.
Paul Lenhart writes words!
In the evening I had a date with a wonderful geek girl. :)
Escher was the first MC and Giger invented the HR department.
I ordered a dozen-long stem (clown) noses from the circus world museum gift shop. She loved them and they still haven't wilted.
My lovely bride waited on me hand and foot this weekend for my Valentine's Day gift... Of course I was lying flat on my back because I just had a vasectomy (My Valentine's Day gift to her)
A comet is a nice fish. It can be a little agressive if your other fish are fancy and slow varieties, but in general goldfish are much nicer to each other than tropical fish. When I had goldfish, they would huddle down on the bottom together at night.
They are friendly and social animals.
in relation to the "she" listed above. It is actually the LOVE OF money that's a root of all KINDS OF evil, not money is the root of evil, as everybody quotes. Subtle but quite important difference. Quoted from NIV, for those who are going to be pedantic on a/the, etc.
A stuffed animal (green frog - not Kermit) and a bamboo plant in a Chinese bowl. Supposed to be good luck (bamboo).
At least the weekend away was good.
Although I guess that was technically a post-Valentine's Day present...
Cue The Sun...
This is a Fark survey, not an Ask Slashdot article. Fark is where you go to see useless stuff, Slashdot is where you go to see stuff that is at least vaguely related to work, so that you can defend visiting it every hour or so. Not this retarded crap.
My girl got me a few things. One was a pair of boxers with pink fish on them. There's tons of little blue fish but some pink fish as well. Her defense was "They looked gray to me."
... was given to me this year by the wife - none other than a fifth of Canadian whisky. I have to say, I was impressed. A little annoyed, too, because we had just agreed a few days earlier not to buy gifts (so I had to scramble to find something). But, oh well.
She wound up giving it to me Friday night instead of Saturday - as I was getting my coat to head to the liquor store, she stopped me and made me open my Valentine's Day gift. Normally I'm a vodka kind of guy but she said she knew I drank that all the time and wanted to get something different for a change.
So I reciprocated by getting her some wine coolers (about the only alcohol she'll drink) and 10 pounds of chocolate (which I expect she will have eaten in about a week and a half - she LOVES chocolate).
I think that's the first time she's gotten me alcohol as a gift, but she's gotten damn good at picking out books and tools in the last couple of years. There's nothing like finding Ciscopress and Craftsman in a pile of loot...
Needless to say, she's my ex now.
(I actually had a lovely valentine's day this year, enjoying a gourmet dinner with my sweetie, and before that helping out with same sex marriages at SF City Hall. So it can be a good day.)
sulli
RTFJ.
but since she knew about the tickets already (and had bought me tix to the Barenaked Ladies) I kept three Valentines day cards as a surprise. I hid them all over the house along with clues that pointed to other clues and then a card (make sense?) and then gave her the first clue with a kiss. She totally loved the game and we had a bunch of laughs and kisses. All three cards are on display on the mantle and she's told her mother, her aunt, and my mother about them and the fun she had finding them.
We already bought a couple at the local Frys (which is decked out like Atlantis... Very Cool). But she saw one with a clear plastic casing last time we were there and just HAD to have it. I said "wait till Valentines Day" and she went for it.
I bought my wife a (fake) gun for VD. And a hockey jersey for our anniversary (Marty Turco, of the Dallas Stars).
Nobody's perfect, but my wife can Rock!
Fooz Meister
Whatever you do don't give her a hub or switch. She won't be anywhere near as excited about it as you. Trust me. I know.
Stick to Non-practicly silly frilly stuff that has no god given purpose other than to prevent you from being able to find a place to put down a magazine or your cup of coffee.
that when women say "I don't believe in Valentine's day," it means "I believe in Valentine's day." That extra X chromosome must have made them OD or something.
I mod down pyramid schemes in sigs.
Giving renewed urgency to the phrase "Beware of Geeks bearing gifts".
Ryosen
One man's "Troll, +1" is another man's "Insightful, +1".
Nothing says "I love you" like sex with people outside of your vows.
I gave my wife a divorce (really!!!)
I never saw it personally, but rumor was that one of my college swim team teammates got her boyfriend (who was also a swimmer, which is how we all heard about it) a sheep heart in a jar of formaldehyde. Ick.
For all the people that posted V-Day horror stories. Thank you for the great reminder of why coding is better than girlfriends could ever be.
If we don't make light of everything, we are just stumbling in the dark - Blank
I kid you not, altough this time it was my idea. Get a good pineapple with a large crest of green leaves. Beats a flower basket any day.
Me 26,She 39 :-(
Distance around 270 Miles,so visiting is not easy.
I spend her roses,but could not send it personaly,so i use fleurop.com
She was so excited to invited me one day later for tea and cake.
I broke up with my girlfriend the night before valentines day because I didn't feel like getting out and spending money :D
Sig: I stole this sig.
I was diagnosed with mono on Valentines day. I also got a teddy bear from her in the mail. A week later, she explained it was over, and tried to give back the jewelry. As I understand it, *her* Valentines day was quite nice. She had a romantic dinner. Not really geeky, or related to slashdot at all, but that's my most interesting Valentines story. Or, to quote userfriendly... "It was a hell of a massacre."