What’s the perfect holiday gift for the tribologist who has everything?
TLT Sounding Board December 2015
© Can Stock Photo Inc. / marilyna
At the top of many tribology wish lists were time home with the family followed by cash, gift certificates, food, wine, vacations, more cash, STLE membership and a Tesla. Many readers said reference material relating to tribology, lubrication engineering or a person’s hobbies also are good selections. Asked about the best holiday gifts they’d received, many readers mentioned childhood presents like an Evel Knievel bicycle, a fur hat, a Red Ryder pedal car and a trip to Disneyland. Memorable gifts for grownups included grandchildren, Christmas bonuses and a Green Egg Grill. Under the Some Things Never Change Department, when we asked readers about their worst holiday gifts, their answers included socks, sweaters, ties, coffee mugs, an iron—and a Phil Robertson talking bobblehead doll.
Time with the family.
STLE membership.
Food.
Knowledge.
A gift card to his or her favorite restaurant.
Something that will remain with me on the way forward to helping customers understand the need for good practices in our industry.
Fine wine!
A portable viscometer.
Flashlight, calculator, antique lube-related item.
Time off.
The winning lotto ticket.
A gift certificate for a full synthetic oil change for my automobile.
Microsoft Surface Pro 4 computer.
A ticket or gift card to something they would like.
Cash. Simple. Clean. Neat.
Two weeks vacation over the holidays.
An opportunity to drive a NASCAR automobile so they can see and feel how their work makes life enjoyable for others.
Doctor Who merchandise because I for one am a Whovian.
A company-paid trip to STLE’s 2016 Annual Meeting next May in Las Vegas.
A year of good health.
A book.
Well, training is always a good gift. You can never have too much knowledge.
Vacation in an exotic place.
Appreciation for the assistance and direction they have given.
An STLE coffee mug?
Paid time off.
An expanding economy.
A paperweight that simultaneously demonstrates low friction with rolling contacts.
Peace and quiet.
Some vacation time with my family and festive drinks with close friends!
Infrared camera for thermal imaging, temperature gun and good microcamera lens for close-up imaging.
Uh, a Tesla?
A book with lots of big pictures and little text.
A new book in his/her preferred field.
A gift basket from Harry & David.
Eighteen-year-old scotch.
Time.
Field test kit.
MONEY.
A periodic table blanket!
A 28-hour day.
Oil can collection.
Understanding and appreciation.
A book or magazine in the area with a spa package.
What is the best holiday gift you ever received?
Green Egg Grill.
Money.
My master’s of science degree, which I’m getting Dec. 13.
A position working in the lubrication division of the business.
A divorce.
Two-week holiday with all expenses paid. Relaxing and lots of fun.
Love and devotion.
A fur hat when I was 12.
Trip to Disneyland.
Show or restaurant tickets for the wife and me.
Conga drums from my wife. At work, the best gift is usually something to munch on.
A bike when I was a kid.
$2,000 Christmas bonus before the name was changed to the politically correct “year-end salary adjustment.” Only problem was 40% was taken out for taxes.
The opportunity to celebrate my 20th wedding anniversary.
A beer-making kit.
The first transistor radio in my fourth-grade class.
A nice pair of hockey skates.
Sonic Blaster.
Calculator.
Laptop.
An unexpected thank you.
Visit with the grandchildren.
Getting up every day.
Perfume.
A grandson.
A Red Ryder pedal car at age four.
Evel Knievel bicycle as a kid.
Smartwatch.
Golf clubs.
Tools and a steel toolbox.
A surprise visit from relatives.
A trip.
Cookbooks, charitable donations made in my name.
Time with my family.
A radio-controlled car, but that was 25 years ago.
Six cooking classes at ICE in NYC.
A dog.
Fly rod outfit.
Time off from work!
What is the worst holiday gift you ever received?
A customer far away wanting a plant survey done on Dec 23-24.
Bad aftershave.
Ugly clothes.
Wrong-size undershirts.
An extension cord.
A divorce.
A call out to do a job, which meant travel away from my family.
Vietnam.
Socks.
Fruitcake.
A wood storage rack.
Ugly sweater or a no-name can of nuts.
Jury duty over the holidays.
There is no worst gift—every gift is given because someone took the time to at least think about you. The thought really does count.
A talking Phil Robertson bobblehead doll.
A job termination right after the Thanksgiving holiday. Became effective Dec. 31.
A squeegee for cleaning a car windshield that holds cleaning solution in the handle.
Lump of coal.
There isn’t any gift that can be bad. It just means someone was thinking about you no matter what the gift may be.
Stuff for the kitchen.
They are all special.
A tie.
Socks at age 16.
A Chinese calendar.
Herb-growing kit.
Sample bottles.
A toaster when I wanted a coffee pot.
A sonic toothbrush from someone I was dating.
An iron.
Trinkets, bath and body products. They’re not personal; people don’t know what I usually use.
A long-sleeved shirt. I never wear long sleeves because I’m always too warm.
A pair of gloves.
A U.S. client once asked if we could do a training seminar during Christmas week.
A mug filled with candy.
Editor’s Note: Sounding Board is based on an email survey of 13,000 TLT readers. Views expressed are those of the respondents and do not reflect the opinions of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers. STLE does not vouch for the technical accuracy of opinions expressed in Sounding Board, nor does inclusion of a comment represent an endorsement of the technology by STLE.