I used to buy people gifts for their birthdays, though it never felt natural.  "What do you want for your birthday?  Nothing specific?  So you want me to think of something?"  Many gifts were either consumables or "gifts," i.e. junk from the display section of a store.  Once I started making money, I really questioned the point of giving gifts.  "Why should I ask you what you want and then buy it for you when you could much more easily buy it for yourself?  Why don't I just give you money?"  But money's not a gift.  Gifts have to be heartfelt and meaningful.  And that's why I stopped giving them.  The fact is, I'm not thoughtful enough to think of something a person would like but doesn't need.  And if I have to ask what they want, it means I'm probably not close enough to them to know the answer in the first place.  So as much as I dislike the practice, I still buy people greeting cards for their birthdays.  I never really want to, because it seems so meaningless to spend money on a piece of paper that says something in a way I wouldn't be able to say it.  It's like I'm paying someone to do it for me.  But greeting cards are a socially acceptable practice, so I engage in the activity to make people believe I'm not a sociopath. #sociology