The quest for the elusive perfect gift...

So yes, apologies for my absence. No real excuse, truthfully. Just tired. Woefully tired. As soon as American Idol is done these days, I'm ready for beddy. Sigh.

Tonight is really no exception, but since I've been egged on to post by a bored, blonde ex-pat living in Aussieland, here we go!

Friday is Hubs' birthday. Yay Hubs! Disaster for me.

He's unbelievably hard to buy for. Not to mention that we're at that crucial point in our relationship where we've had enough birthdays, anniversaries, Christmases, and Valentine's Days to have made our way throughout the standard gift roster. In the past I've given him box sets, die cast cars, a beautiful pen and pencil set, a wallet, photo books, calendars, Porsche books, video games, clothes...hell, I've even given him a new tank to put his freakin snake in!

And now I'm back at square one with nary an idea of what to do for him.

You see, I like my birthday gifts to be meaningful. Something I know the other person is going to really like if not love (and yes, stop snickering, snake tank was actually on that list - really). I am hooked on that high that comes from securing the perfect gift. Yet here I am, two days away from his birthday, and I'm still lookin to score.

When I asked him many weeks ago what he wanted, here's what I got:

a belt (black or brown, I need both)

slippers

Toca 2 for XBOX

Goodfellas and Shaun of the Dead on DVD

Seriously, that was his entire list. Oh, he wants Best Buy gift cards too so he can buy his Bose Companion 3 speakers for his computer.

A wild man, my husband.

I ask you, how does one find anything meaningful in any of those suggestions? Yeesh.

So while on my quest for the elusive meaningful present, I start to pick up the smaller pieces to have them on hand just in case. I find him a great leather belt that's actually reversable - black on one side, brown on the other. And better yet - it's not one of those tacky reversable belts either! Seriously! The non-tacky versions do exist out there, and in two days, Hubs will have one of his very own.

I went to the Eaton's Centre today during my lunch hour and picked up the DVD's he wanted. I got him an extra one too, just 'cause their sales are absolutely insane. I got 7 DVD's for $42. And that included tax. Well done, HMV. Well done.

I also managed to score a used version of Toca 2 since they don't make new ones anymore (sigh) for $5 at the EB Games. And not to be outdone, I also grabbed Toca 3 for his gaming pleasure. I figure the more games he has (and actually likes to play) the less he'll razz me for being on my computer. :)

A diva can dream.

I'm still on the hunt for good slippers though. He loves his slippers, my man. Jealous, girls? I know you are. Back off.

He does need a new pair though, 'cause his last ones pretty much disintegrated. He got so sick of them he threw them out. Which means he's pretty confident he's getting some from me. Awesome.

If you haven't gone male slipper shopping lately, I suggest you give it a whirl, just for shits and giggles, so you can better comprehend my pain. No one makes a decent, manly slipper anymore! I tried the SprawlMart - nope. Joe Fresh let me down... I'm running out of time here, people!

Oooh...I have an idea. There's a neat outlet place near here that has a wall of slippers. Now if I could only find an excuse for needing the car and slipping away tomorrow night. Must ponder that some more.

I had all sorts of other ideas, but they went over like the proverbial lead balloon. I thought I'd finally hit pay dirt when I saw that Chris Rock was playing Casino Rama in July. We both love and quote on a regular basis Bigger and Blacker, so I was SURE this would be a hit.

BUT...knowing how he'd waffled on so many other things, I decided to suck it up and ask him about it before I went out and committed those tickets to plastic. Good thing, 'cause he meh'ed right over Chris Rock! Shock of shocks! What has become of my husband?

The other challenge of course is that I don't have a wack of cash to spend, as much as I'd like to have anyway. If I had my way, I'd buy him the big screen tv he so desperately wants or a digital SLR camera. But alas, 'tis not in the cards this year. Unless, of course, we win that $25 million on Friday...then all bets are off.

What are some of the pressies you've bought your beloved in the past? Methinks this birthday is a write off in the meaningful department, but our second wedding anniversary is less than two months away, and all this turmoil will begin anew! I'd love to hear your suggestions!!!!

And that's your daily dash. How's your diva doin'?