Gift giving can be easy and painless with the right plan of attack.
Shopping for my wife, daughter, or daughter-in-law has always been a challenge for me. I’d spend countless hours at the mall and not really be satisfied with whatever I chose as the best gift I could find.
In this last year it has become a snap with the help of Tipton’s Stationery and Gifts in downtown Manteca where owner Brenda Franklin takes care of the selection in a flash – usually less than 15 minutes and everyone is happy – including me.
It was frustrated trying to find a present for my daughter Sharon.  Time had run out and it had to get out in the next UPS truck or I was going to be late in getting it to her.  Walking into Tipon’s I sat down in a stenographer’s chair near the wedding announcement ordering desk.
“Brenda, I need your help,” I blurted. 
She came over and asked all about my needs and offered a bright, classy light jacket with an accompanying scarf. 
“That’s perfect,” I said.  “You’re amazing, and just in a matter of minutes too.”
It was perfect for her classroom garb in her fourth grade to look her standard professional self.
“Do you need a card?” she questioned, as she ran over to the card section and brought me back half a dozen she had selected.
“Pick one!” she said. 
I did. That was pretty much the end of my shopping that day in late March.  She wrapped the gifts, packaged them for UPS shipping and said they would go out at 3 p.m. to the San Jose area. 
“Wow!”
All that was left was to write her a check for the clothes and the shipping charges.  No handling charges like all of us have become used to paying. I asked myself why I hadn’t done this sooner.  Then I thought of all the guys who walk up and down the stores in the mall for birthdays, Mothers’ Day and Christmas with no concrete idea of what they are going to buy for their loved ones.
In the last two months, I have visited Tipton’s several more times for appropriate gifts for daughters-in-law and granddaughters as well as for our oldest son Steven who likes to cook since he lives alone – vegetarian cook books and a bottle of Salsa Verde were perfect.
By reducing my shopping trips to less than 20 minutes each for all those red-letter days in our family, I have become very relieved and somewhat excited to see what Brenda is going to present.  Besides every man needs a woman’s point of view when picking out a special gift and also the perfect card.
It was a surprise to me to see that Tipton’s had women’s clothes in their stock – never thought!