About Rebecca Eckler
Since becoming pregnant with her daughter Rowan, Canadian journalist and author Rebecca Eckler has penned three hilarious books, including the best-selling Knocked Up. Catch Rebecca’s weekly unique perspective on motherhood and single parenthood.
They say there is no good time to break up with someone. Christmas is around the corner, or it’s the week before Valentine’s Day, or the person’s Birthday is days away, or it’s just shy of an anniversary, or you have a wedding to go to. There’s always something that stands in the way of the ideal day to break up with someone.
Well, in this same vain, I realized there is no really good time to start dating someone either.
I had been chatting on the phone with a man I recently started seeing. I hadn’t met him yet in person. During those initial getting-to-know-you conversations, the birthday question popped up. Why is this? I don’t know. But I asked when his birthday was. He answered, “It was two days ago.” Now, let me be clear: I was really, really enjoying our phone chats. The dude made me laugh. So immediately I felt awful. I MISSED HIS BIRTHDAY! I felt like I should have done something for him, even though I hadn’t met him yet, and found out after the fact. I also thought it was weird that we had a long chat the day of his birthday and he didn’t mention that it was his birthday.
Then again, maybe that would have been weirder to tell me on the phone that it was his birthday. In any case, we have gone out a handful of times now. I’m liking him AND I’m still stuck on the fact that I should have done something for his birthday. (I tried paying for dinner. No go.)
In any case, I must admit I was a tad relieved. Buying men gifts is hard enough. Buying men you’ve just started dating a birthday gift is full of pressure. You don’t really know them. You ask yourself, “Is this too much?” Or, “Is this enough?”
But – ha ha - it SUCKS to be him right now, because we’ve now seen each other more than a handful of times and chat every chance we get and guess what? That’s right! MY birthday is around the corner. Ha! Ha! Ha!
So, while I may have gotten away with not getting him anything for his birthday, all the pressure is on him to get a gift for a gal (me) he barely knows. Yup. Don’t want to be him.
Tell me, dear readers, what would you suggest for birthday gifts for men, or women, you’ve just met?
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