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Girlfriend Wants To Surprise BF With Christmas Gift, Ponders Canceling It After He Ruins It Again
While it’s not the only thing that matters during the Christmas season, gifts are pretty important. They tend to take center stage during December, when you have to go around thinking of what you can get your loved ones.
And not only that – you also need to figure out how to hide the gifts from them until the right time comes. This can sometimes be harder than it looks – something that today’s story proves to be true.
More info: Reddit
RELATED:
Sometimes, the hardest part is not figuring out what to gift, but how to hide the gift until the right time comes
Image credits: Kerde Severin / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
Like for this woman, whose boyfriend constantly guesses what she got him
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
Even this time, when she was secretive and slightly lied to cover her tracks – he still figured it out
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
It was a PS5, a gift he really wanted and she splurged on, but his guess ruined the surprise
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
This annoyed her – his always right guesses took the fun out of gift giving
Image credits: Alarming_Cry_9092
Later, he explained that he never snoops around to find out about gifts, he just has good intuition, which made her forgive him
The OP’s boyfriend wanted a new PS5 system for years, but since they are saving money, he never bought it. But then the woman noticed a very good deal during Black Friday and decided to splurge on a man she loves as a Christmas gift.
She was planning to keep it a secret until the occasion. But then the man started pestering her about the money she had spent on gifts, so he could be “even,” so she told him it was a little over $250,” which wasn’t totally true – it was more. But she just didn’t care for the financial “even” matter of gift giving – it’s not about the price tag.
Then, he kept pushing whether she knew what he was getting her and wouldn’t let it go, even though she said she kind of did. Apparently, he wanted to get her something more because he knew she had spent more than she said. Turns out, he basically figured out that she bought him his desired PS5.
This made the OP lose it. It wasn’t the first time he found out about his present – he constantly snoops around with such an intention, which exhausts her. She puts money and effort into it, and it all goes to nothing when he spoils the surprise.
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
At the same time, he’s also kind of robbing himself of a good thing. You see, surprises are a positive thing for a human’s psychology. It triggers dopamine’s release to the brain, which increases attention, motivation, and emotional intensity.
Well, unless the surprise is something unpleasant or even scary. Like bad news of any kind, learning that someone is letting you down, or just a nasty prank. This might not release dopamine, as after assessing the situation, the brain wouldn’t take it well.
Still, it might linger in the memory, as surprises typically tend to do that. That’s due to the fact that being surprised triggers a surge of norepinephrine, which perks up attention. This way, the brain learns lessons from unexpected events.
But gifts usually aren’t unpleasant surprises. Most often, they make a person feel joy, create powerful memories, and strengthen their bond with the person they got it from. So, if the OP’s boyfriend snoops around, he robs himself of getting such surprise benefits.
Yet, later it turned out that the man doesn’t really snoop around – he just has a great intuition and guesses the gifts right even without any stalker behavior. Such a revelation made the woman forgive him and forget the idea of returning the PS5 out of spite, which some of the netizens thought was the right move.
What do you think, should she have returned the gifts, or did she do the right thing? Share your opinions in the comments.
While some netizens theorized about the relationship being a bit toxic, the update calmed them down
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What do you think ?
Janelle Collard 2 months ago
I would have just given him the box the PS5 came in - NO PS5. Sounds like BF never outgrew the 5-year-old mentality of "I can't wait!!!" Is he this fvcking annoying about other stuff? Nag, cajole, whine, etc., when he wants to know something NOW?
Emilu 2 months ago
Give him the box, fill it with something heavy and wrap each component of the PS5 separately. Like, "hey! You got a power cord!" I think after everything's settled down, as well, you need to have a word with him. If you're willing to die on this hill, tell him you won't get him any more gifts if he continues to play guessing games. If you don't want to go full nuclear like that, maybe hide his gift at a family member's house.
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Mel in Georgia 2 months ago
Gift giving is so fraught. This is just another example of how what should be a gesture of love and thoughtfulness can go wrong. It's one reason I like American Thanksgiving so much more than Christmas. Thanksgiving is about food, friends and family without the pressure of gifts and decorating!
KatSaidThat 2 months ago
Word got out I like candles so 8 very imaginative people all bought me candles. I am happy, some of them are proper top shelf (i.e. Jo Malone, etc).
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Tabitha 2 months ago (edited)
My husband used to be like this when we were first married. Even his mother confirmed that when he was a child she had to keep his gifts hidden in her office and only brought them home, already wrapped, last minute. I am the one who likes to be surprised. After a few years, he finally grew up the rest of the way, stopped nosing around to find his presents, and started actually enjoying being surprised. What a relief! I no longer have to lug boxes or bags of wrapped gifts home from work the day before starting my Christmas time off, hoping it isn’t raining when I’m carrying them out, or the presents don’t fall and break (like if I have to suddenly hit the brakes because of an idiot driver in front of me), and the wrapping paper doesn’t get torn on the way home. I can now hide them in my closet, he doesn’t go near my closet (on pain of death), and I can do the hiding, wrapping, and placing under the tree all in one place. Give him time to grow TF up, mellow, and start to enjoy waiting to be surprised.
Janelle Collard 2 months ago
I would have just given him the box the PS5 came in - NO PS5. Sounds like BF never outgrew the 5-year-old mentality of "I can't wait!!!" Is he this fvcking annoying about other stuff? Nag, cajole, whine, etc., when he wants to know something NOW?
Emilu 2 months ago
Give him the box, fill it with something heavy and wrap each component of the PS5 separately. Like, "hey! You got a power cord!" I think after everything's settled down, as well, you need to have a word with him. If you're willing to die on this hill, tell him you won't get him any more gifts if he continues to play guessing games. If you don't want to go full nuclear like that, maybe hide his gift at a family member's house.
Load More Replies... Mel in Georgia 2 months ago
Gift giving is so fraught. This is just another example of how what should be a gesture of love and thoughtfulness can go wrong. It's one reason I like American Thanksgiving so much more than Christmas. Thanksgiving is about food, friends and family without the pressure of gifts and decorating!
KatSaidThat 2 months ago
Word got out I like candles so 8 very imaginative people all bought me candles. I am happy, some of them are proper top shelf (i.e. Jo Malone, etc).
Load More Replies... Tabitha 2 months ago (edited)
My husband used to be like this when we were first married. Even his mother confirmed that when he was a child she had to keep his gifts hidden in her office and only brought them home, already wrapped, last minute. I am the one who likes to be surprised. After a few years, he finally grew up the rest of the way, stopped nosing around to find his presents, and started actually enjoying being surprised. What a relief! I no longer have to lug boxes or bags of wrapped gifts home from work the day before starting my Christmas time off, hoping it isn’t raining when I’m carrying them out, or the presents don’t fall and break (like if I have to suddenly hit the brakes because of an idiot driver in front of me), and the wrapping paper doesn’t get torn on the way home. I can now hide them in my closet, he doesn’t go near my closet (on pain of death), and I can do the hiding, wrapping, and placing under the tree all in one place. Give him time to grow TF up, mellow, and start to enjoy waiting to be surprised.
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