There's an immense difference between a Christmas gift that you'd like very much but hesitate to ask for because it's expensive or hard to obtain — and a gift you can't ask for at all because of the time and effort involved.
Between hanging out at the tiki hut with the locals and going to the Sunday BBQ at the nearby park, I tend to intermingle with 'regular' people a fair amount; meaning, people who aren't computer whizzes and/or savvy blog participants.
And it's not surprising that a huge number of people out there would love to get a little blog site going where they could post their daily thoughts ("You wouldn't believe what happened to me just now at the supermarket!") and pics and videos for family and friends to enjoy, yet most of them never even attempt it.
In pursuing the issue, the answer, unsurprisingly, is that people simply don't think they have the ability to put one together. And, admittedly, it probably sounds a little daunting to hear you have to "construct" a blog site when you're not even sure what an "icon" or "menu" is.
So, do something really special this year and give them a ready-to-go site. It'll cost about a hundred clams for the web hosting service for a year, and if you use the company I recommend they'll throw in the cost of the domain name, which can go for upward of $35 at other places.
Setting up the site is a snap. You download a free FTP program and use that to upload the files for the blogging program. There's a 'Settings' page where you'll make a few tweaks and you're ready to roll.
The easy-to-follow instructions that will walk you through the whole process are on my Easy-Blogsite. If you run into a snag, just ask here in one of my posts and I'll email you back and we'll get the rascal ironed out.
As far as the actual present goes, it might be fun to simply give them a nice Xmas card with three mysterious lines of information on it:
a recognizable web site address like "ThePattersonFamily.com" or "BobsBlogSite.com"
name: (their account name)
pass: (their account password)
Then be with them the first time they go to the site. You'd have a few 'Welcome!' posts on the home page, interesting links in the sidebar, and maybe some family pics or even videos on display. It should be a great moment when they suddenly 'get it' and ask, "You mean this is all mine??"
Then go to the main editor and show them how easy it is to make a post. Just type merrily away and hit the 'Publish' button. Show them how easy it is to import a picture from their computer, and how they can change the entire look of their new site with one click of the mouse using the fabulous 'themes' you've pre-installed. Their feelings will range from "stunned" to "beyond thrilled."
On my end, I'm giving one to a 68-year-old lady whom I've never met, but have been conversing with via email for over a decade. Her three best friends have blog sites but, no matter how often I tell her how easy it is to set up, she just won't do it. Yet I know she's dying to join in the fun. The sweet old gal will probably break down in tears on Christmas morning when she sees it. She loves bunny rabbits and I found an Easter theme that's just loaded with cute bunnies. I replaced all the 'Easter' stuff with her own name and it looks terrific.
I hope she likes pink and blue.
So, would you rather give Grandma her 25th set of bathroom towels and Grandpa his 17th pipe rack, or something that'll put some zest back in their lives? Once they get nested into a blogring of similar interests (golfing, macramé, my pet's latest funny antics, etc), they'll have a ball.
Or how about that old person next door who spends all day long watching TV? I don't have to tell you, of all people, the meaning the blogosphere can have on one's life. A spouse, a girlfriend, a boyfriend, your best friend, your kids — can you think of a more appreciated gift than a gift one cannot ask for?
This Christmas, give that someone special a gift like no other.
Give them a door to the world.
