First World Problems

[soc_puppet]

For the third year in a row, I have gotten the same book from both my parents and my brother's family.

This year, in an attempt to prevent exactly that, I set up Google Docs wish lists for everyone aside from me, so we could share ideas and coordinate on what we were getting, so duplicates didn't happen. I was hoping to broadly hint that they should do the same for me.

It apparently didn't happen, because I now have two copies of The Redwall Cookbook. They are going on my shelf next to my two copies of The Raven Boys from last year, and The City We Became from the year before.

Which, well. The Redwall Cookbook and The Raven Boys, my sister-in-law and my brother have a somewhat better excuse for? Since my parents gave me the first copies at my birthday, which they were not present for, and they gave me the second copies for Christmas. But still!

I was even dead certain that SIL was going to get me Baking Yesteryear for one of those, to the point where I didn't bother putting it on my list in hopes of avoiding another duplicate gift, but she got me a book about food and The Resistance (general) instead.

New plan for next year: Stop putting quite so many very specific items on my wish lists, start putting more generalized item categories on it, since apparently that's what people prefer to shop for anyway. (But first figure out what those categories might be.)

Comments

[gwydion]

My mom used to coordinate when she was alive. My surviving family remnants have not taken hints any year until this one. Perhaps your uck will change next year.

[soc_puppet]

Fingers crossed! Though I'm going to do what I can to help it along, as well.

[jesse_the_k]

Does your library (or friends-of-the-library) accept books?

[soc_puppet]

Hmm, yes and no? The local public library is very well stocked, but does occasionally accept donations; only very rarely, though. That said, we do have a Little Free Library in our front yard that's pretty much always accepting books, so something might go to live there at some point 😅

I did also grump a bit about my woes on Discord, and a friend there has offered to do a media swap with me, since she's interested in a copy of The Redwall Cookbook. So I might get an omelet out of these broken eggs after all!

[mistressofmuses]

I always have to be very careful not to include the same books on my lists for multiple people to avoid this same thing! It feels silly to have to assign gifts to specific family members, but it feels like that's what I have to do!

[soc_puppet]

Yeah, it bites. Well, I've got my plan for next year, at least, and I think I may start sending a "wish list update" after my birthday, in case that helps at all.

[mistressofmuses]

Updating it after your birthday is probably a good idea... especially with the terrible luck of having people select the same things for multiple gift-giving occasions! You'd think that would be such a small chance, and yet!