Gifts to surprise your friends

Unlike some furry mammals who are visible throughout the year until they hibernate, the common hot water bottle does the opposite. It remains out of sight in some cupboard, or under the bed until it senses the first signs of winter. Well, what do you know! There it is at the bottom of the bed

Of course this is nonsense, but I just wanted to highlight that for most of us a hot water bottle is aesthetically-challenged objects. I can’t even remember the last time that I actually bought one. it would have probably been a last minute Christmas present for an elderly relative.

But still, as a nation, we are tied to them. In fact we were once lampooned by a Hungarian born author by the name of George Mikes. In his hilarious book How to be an Alien he remarks Continental people have sex lives, the English have hot water bottles. In a way, there may have been truth in the joke, especially thinking back to when the designs were dour and bland. These words probably reflect the way a typical person on the continent sees the English attitude to sex.

Hold on a minute! Lots of things are different now. i wouldn’t have believed it, but these things are actually now considered to be ‘sexy’? The other day I stumbled across this site that appears to stock many different styles and shapes. If ever I was looking for unusual gifts to buy, things that you wouldnt normally find in the high street, this would certainly be the place to start. They have everything here, from a Buddha statue or two to retro telephones silver gemstone jewellery, and most things in between!

For anyone interested solely in hot water bottles, the ones that appealed to me were the cushioned shaped products. All of my favourites looked extremely comfortable and probably had therapeutic values, particularly for suffers of neck and lower back pain. For the environmentally conscious, they are also manufactured from recyclable material and are guaranteed not to fade.

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