What to Buy for a Geek - A Gift Guide for the Guy Who Has Everything
Posted: Tuesday, November 14, 2006
by Jean Horst
I live in Geek Heaven - or Geek Hell - all depends on your point of view. With four of them actively in my life, I never know what to expect. However, there is one thing about them that always causes me panic. Buying them gifts. They don't need much, they don't have any interest in the "normal" stuff. Sports items are out! Nothing offends like the gift of clothing - no matter how much they need it. So, after 20+ years of life with one Geek and adding a new one to the list every few years, I consider myself somewhat of an expert. Happy for you noobs, I'm willing to share my tips. On the condition that you're not trying to buy something for one of my guys!
ThinkGeek.com Love, Love, Love this site!! Run by Geeks, for Geeks. They consistantly keep coming up with the coolest stuff ever! Marshmallow guns! T-shirts with working "Pong" games and digital clocks on the front! Gadgets with temperature indicators that will turn the water from your faucet red or blue. Now they have bluetooth wireless wrist cell phone. Geek Nirvana! Not to mention a whole host of little evil toys to amuse those who are stuck in a cubicle farm all day long & need a little fun to break up the monotony.
UnCommonGoods.com So much fun with this site! Unusual shot glasses, mugs and things I'd never even imagined existed. Personal faves; Seven Deadly Sins shot glasses or the mug that stores cookies in the bottom. Check it out.
BitsandPieces.com This site has the coolest brain teaser puzzles I've ever seen. Along with unusual banks that catapult the coins into the vault, regulation size footballs, soccer and basketballs that light up in the dark, clocks that run on water (no kidding!!), kaleidoscopes, nesting creatures of all kinds, and remote control toys.
Geeks.com is a good site as well. Their items range toward the higher end and are bigger "toys", hardware, and computer items. Lots of gadgets here.
Sharperimage.com and Discovery.com These are kind of a fall-back sites for me. The home pages at first glance may not look as geek-friendly, but if you dig around a little, there's some cool stuff buried in there. Also, Sharper Image sells on Ebay, so check out the auctions, sometimes you can get the stuff really discounted there.
A few brand new find this year: PhotoJoJo.com This site targets those with the more creative bent who love photography. I got completely geeked out on the telephoto lens for the iPhone. This site is just wonderful. BlueRibbonGeneralStore.net popped up on the radar too. Bubble wrap calender anyone? Drumstick pencils? Predator and Prey mittens? I am laughing out loud at this site and I'm hooked!
Here's a freebie tip for you, NEVER, Ever, Ever give socks, or underwear or PJ's as gifts (unless it has some VERY cool Geek-friendly saying or picture on it). Clothing is utilitarian to them, something they would rather not think about and it's certainly not special. Giving clothing screams, "I don't understand you at all!"
My final tip is LISTEN. Whenever Alpha Geek's eyes glaze over and he starts rhapsodizing about his first "whatever" he bought when he was eight with his piggy bank money, I get on the internet & search for that sucker - you never know who is selling that very thing 20 years later, still in the original box!
Ok, you're on your own now. I'm off to search the internet. Hopefully, this year, I'll hear my favorite words, "That's the Coolest Thing Ever!!!" That's when I know I've hit the jackpot.
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Top-level comments on this article: (6 total)Jean, thanks for a really entertaining article. I checked out some of the websites - cool stuff for unique Christmas gifts. Have a good week!Thanks for the kind words, Joseph! I'm so glad the websites were helpful for you.
excellent. such a cool article, and funny. thank you, best regards, sue thomThanks Sue - I still use all of these websites & every day is an adventure around here!
Thanks for a terrific (and hilarious) piece! I think inside all of us are geeks. Geeks of the world, unite!!Amen! I didn't think I was very geeky, but I've adopted the "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em attitude" and now I'm one of them! Thanks for reading.
Good morning Jean! I was perusing through the articles of some of the authors of whom I enjoy and came across this article. It was very informative and I laughed at myself as I could relate. I wish I had read it sooner! I am so guilty of buying the head of the geeks (Mark) socks and such! Each year I stress over what to get him. Thank you. Blessings!Hi Michelle! First, my apologies for not responding to your comment sooner! I've been on vacation and had limited computer access.It's tough to shop for the geeks, but I swear by the ThinkGeek website. I've been happy to help many others solve the geek-giving problem. Good luck this Christmas!Jean
Great article. I have already bought a beaker cup and pi mug from thinkgeek.I will have to look at the other sites. ThanksIt's been over 2 years since I wrote this article and ThinkGeek is still my all-time favorite! They haven't failed me yet!
Thanks for your comment, Connor.
This has got to be a record-breaking evergreen article, Jean! Great websites...Thanks Jen! I hadn't realized I'd written it so long ago. So I updated it, added some new sites, got rid of some that weren't in existence anymore and decided to give it another spin! It works sometimes. ha
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