Birthday Book Bonanza Ritual: The Pleasures of Non-Surprise
Wednesday, July 11, 2012 at 11:29 AM by Nick DeMartino I had a birthday last month, which triggered a unique annual tribal ritual I thought I’d share.
A group of friends – my “movie posse” with whom I see at least half of the movies each year – marks each person’s birthday with an elaborate and “progressive” ceremony – not politically progressive, though we all are, but a sequence that starts with a movie of the honoree’s selection, followed by dinner at a restaurant, and finishing up with gift giving at somebody’s house, along with dessert and coffee.
Aside from its duration, what is probably the most unique about this event is the style (and scale) of the gift-giving. Prior to one’s pending event, the birthday person provides a list of items desired, usually books, CDs and DVDs. The list should be really long, so that buyers have a choice, and I guess, so that there is some element of surprise as to which wishes will come true.
Only this past year did we started using Amazon’s Wish-List feature. Originally – and I gather the process started more than 20 years ago – one’s list was sent via email. Each buyer needed to alert the others when you made a purchase. This takes a lot of work.