Thank you!

You know what....You can't please EVERYONE all the time...So I please MYSELF! lol

And If I like to ask..WHERE are all the HINT threads...I will keep doing it!!! LOL :p

LOL my comment posted TWICE...guess I was trying for emphasis...

I've participated in three GEs before and have had a great experience each time. The reason I don't participate more is that it really is so expensive to do. I know I always am pretty specific about treats because I'm really picky about what I feed my dogs, and I've gotten pickier now due to Lacy's digestive issues. Good treats are pretty pricy so I'd hate for someone to buy us treats and us not be able to use them..so that's another reason I'm pretty specific. I'd be okay if they didn't send us any treats if it was just too much to deal with..but I'd feel bad if they sent us treats and I couldn't even use them..I"d feel like they wasted their money.

My one complaint is the people who see that their package was delivered and post the SAME DAY complaining that their buddy hasn't posted a thankyou thread yet. That drives me insane...seriously..some people are busy and might need a few days to post. It takes a lot of time to make sure your dog looks decent for pics, open up the package, and really takes time to upload and edit pics and post them. Some people need to learn patience

If only there were a block button so I could block threads I didn't want to see. Ahh, that would be the YorkieTalk life for me. :p:D

And for many others...we could BLOCK all rude people...


What is really funny is that all the negative comments are coming from people that HAVEN"T or don't participate in the GE'S anymore...hmmm

I'm seriously not enjoying all this negativity right before our newest GE! Why try to ruin it for all the rest of us that REALLY love the GE'S??

Oh my goodness!! I am not trying to "ruin" your GE. Like you said, it's a choice what you do, so if this negative thread is bothering you, there is a choice to read it or not.

I am very sorry if I offended you, which I clearly did. I was trying to find out if it was the norm to be so specific about what people don't want. I guess the GE just isn't for me, but I hope it is a great one for everyone else who is participating.

I don't think this is necessarily true. My first post could have been construed as being negative and if it did I certainly didn't mean it that way. I thoroughly enjoyed the GE's that I participated in, but because I stressed out over every little thing including making sure my box was pretty enough to mail :rolleyes: I decided to opt out for a few. In response to the original post, several other members who have participated in at least one GE have expressed their concerns and reasons why they are not participating. I don't think that anyone has been negative in regards to the exchanges.

Even though I haven't participated in the last few exchanges, I sincerely appreicate all of the hard work by Admin and Moderators to make the exhanges successful.

I sincerely hope that this Exchange is hugely successful and that those participating have tons of fun.

I didn't see this thread as necessarily "negative"...we all have opinions and sometimes it's beneficial to discuss them so that maybe we can understand others' opinions sometimes. Maybe some will understand why there are a lot of "Donts" after this thread and maybe some will be less apt to put so many "don'ts" now. And some of the other concerns/complaints voiced might be considered by others that hadn't thought about it before. I haven't felt like anyone was seriously complaining...just voicing their opinion/dislikes about things

I understand that there are a few people who usually always try to go out of their way and be rude. However, I was stating my opinion... along with others and I'm sorry if you didn't like it. I just know that whenever it is around GE time, I can't login and read new posts without seeing several "WHY AREN'T PEOPLE POSTING HINTS", "WHERE IS SO AND SO, THEY'RE NOT POSTING HINTS", over and over again. It's one thing to make a post with your own hints but I just think it's RUDE to call out those who choose not to. Not to mention not taking into account the members who have to see one every 5 seconds when they're trying to look for threads that they can contribute to.

I may be mistaken but I could have swore I saw a couple threads of people wondering why people weren't signing up for the GE like they used to... this thread can hopefully be their answer. :)

Granted this is my first GE but I have had secret pals in other settings before and have had a career of guiding kids in their giving gifts to the person whose name they've drawn.

My theory in giving gifts and receiving gifts from others is quite simple. Realize that you are not going to get the gift of your wildest dreams...it simply isn't possible with financial limitations. Likewise, you are not going to be giving your person the gift of their fantasy. Once you "accept" that philosophy, you are freed to enjoy the process of both giving and receiving.

I think of it more as a chance to spread a little sunshine in someone's daily life. The thrill of the gift is primarily the surprise. It's that unexpected random gift of kindness that makes the impression not the cost of the gift nor even its uniqueness.

I've never gone into any secret pal type experience expecting to be blown away with what I received. As an adult with my own income, I pretty much buy what I want whenever I want it. I suspect most of us do regardless of our finanacial status or the state of the economy.

The true excitement and fun in any of these type activities I have done has been in the planning and plotting to "make someone's day." I've truly better understood the adage that it's more blessed to give than to receive when I've participated in something like this GE.

When I first saw the lists I must admit I did a double take but then I realized that we are all strangers to each other. In any other situation, we would know things about each other just from general contact. Here we rely on a few likes/dislikes shared in writing with no facial expressions or tone/inflection to offset the words.

I have no doubt that anyone participating will be gracious and thankful in what they receive. I base that expectation on the fact that we are all adults. I hope that it encourages us to "play it forward" in other aspects of our lives by doing unexpected, nice surprises for others. Therein lies the true value of an experience like this...

I agree and don't like all the GE hint threads...... At the GE time it can be way too much to hit new posts and see half of them are about the GE which so many YT are not apart of.

I have been in two GE and posted only to sign up, when GE buddy's package was sent and to say thank you with photos. Some get way too carried away with all the GE threads. IMO. I agree with the poster who complained about the threads from those that posted threads about receiving "no thank you" the day their package was received, please give it a week.

My guess is that it's the economy. If I remember right, the GE before last was the biggest one, and the last one was on the smaller side.

I can see both sides, I guess. A lot of people feel very strongly that you should appreciate any gift you get, and it's unseemly to dictate what you're looking for. I'm on the other side of the spectrum. If someone is hard to shop for, I will go with them to a store, let them pick out their gift, and I'll pay for it. I REALLY like when I get a good gift for someone, and I don't want them to feel obligated to lie and tell me they love something they end up burying in their closet.

My only thing is that the GE is such a positive, fun thing - buying people gifts for no reason! - that it seems like we should be able to deal with things that don't go quite how we would choose, or to at least make sure our suggestions are constructive. When we say, "such and such really annoys me", even though we may mean it generally, the specific people who have done the Annoying Thing know that they have Annoyed You. See, I just did it myself.

Let's keep it positive! :ghug:

allow me to clarify....
 

I was actually only speaking OF ONE person that I thought was being unnecessarily rude...LOL (emilyann)

Sorry that all you others took my comment personal!!

About the Hint threads...who cares...do it ...don't do it...what's the big deal really? Takes too much effort to overlook them??? LOL

I think the reason this thread had bothered me..is that the ones being the most critical aren't even participating....And (Chattiesmom....I was never referring to you) so I ask again......while not joining the GE......why sit around talking about everything you don't like about it?

If you don't like it...don't join...but it still feels like people are raining on our parade...now I'm starting to think I don't want anything to do with the dang thing myself.....

Thanks.:(

To continue on my own vent, I hate when you see distant relatives for the holidays, and you both get each other gifts that neither particularly wants. It's like what was the point of that, to keep mediocre gift companies in business?

Last GE I received a bed for Thor, which actually I didn't ask for. It would never have occurred to me to buy something like that for him. Naturally, it is now his favorite place to sleep, and he also uses it to get himself on the couch. It was great to get something he loves so much that I never would have figured out on my own. :)

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ETA: Don't be sad, Wabbit! You know we're going to have a great time. :hug: