Ravenous Winter Festival Geeky Shopping Guide. Day 13: Feed Their Addictions

Piggy backing off yesterday's topic I wanted to take a moment to discuss entertainment that requires upkeep. In this day of internet capable phones and instant streaming to our televisions a lot of services have gone online, even books, and in an effort to continue to generate revenue (those greedy jerks) companies have instituted various ways of allowing downloaded content via subscription fees or online currency systems. You're only a gift card or credit card payment away from adding points to their online account, thus allowing them to continue to absorb all the great things that keep them away from you so that you can have some peace and quiet once in a while.

Again, similar to the post about magazines, the gift card or money deposit depends highly on what they like to do. If they are really into purchasing songs and movies for their i products, why not get them a gift card for online purchases through the Apple store? You can also purchase them more time on their online gaming or even get them a subscription to the brand new miracles of the modern age like the Marvel digital comic book plan.

What's best about this present is that it doesn't require a whole lot of thought on your part. Instead of racking your mind trying to think of that perfect gift idea you can just give them more of what they already enjoy. Yes, thanks to the wondrous invention of online transactions (Which you strangely owe a lot of credit towards the porno industry for), you can maintain a healthy relationship with your friends and loved ones with very little thought or effort!

Ravenous Winter Festival Geeky Shopping Guide. Day 12: Magazines

No matter what your friend's interests may be I can guarantee you that there is a magazine that specializes in it. From cars, movies, video games, music, and comic books there are enough publications out there to satisfy all kinds of cravings. Even if your friend isn't the type to read magazines, or read anything at all for that matter, they will definitely appreciate a colorful and compact source of information to thumb through on a periodic basis.

Most magazines allow for different subscription plans so choose one that you feel will be best. Also remember that while most magazines do monthly issues there are some that go as low as weekly and others that churn them out on a quarterly plan. It's best to keep this in mind as it allows you to gauge whether or not it would be an appropriate gift based on your friend's level of patience.

You should also keep an ear to the ground and look for things that fall into more fringe categories. Seeing as how we live in the age of the internet, most information is a web address or blog post away from being public knowledge. So instead of buying them, say, a general magazine about movie news, why not get them a subscription to a smaller publication that focuses on a sub genre like "Fangoria"?

I'll leave the rest up to you as it takes a certain kind of friendship to be able to find just the right reading material that will actually keep your friend's nose to the ink.

Ravenous Winter Festival Geeky Shopping Guide. Day 11: Their Favorite Christmas Movie

Movies have a strangely hypnotic effect on people. The stories they weave are powerful enough to stir our deepest emotions and the ones associated with happier times cast an even stronger spell. The classic tales that spring up for their yearly rotation on channels such as TNT are more than just things of entertainment, they're moments of our lives attached to fond memories. Time capsules for our pasts. Holiday movies that appear around the end of the year celebrate some of the more redeeming qualities of mankind and do wonders to bring together friend and family; best of all, everyone has their favorite.

Whether you enjoy watching Chuck Jones' "How the Grinch Stole Christmas", the classic "A Christmas Story", more modern favorites like "Elf", or are into the unified double header "A Nightmare Before Christmas" there are enough movies out there to bring the brightest smiles to even the grumpiest of scrooges. Chances are, if you're a decent enough friend, you already know what movies your friend looks forward to once Halloween has come and past. Check to see whether they have that movie in their collection or if they're the type to just catch it whenever it finds it's way to their cable network line-up. Why not buy them a copy so they can enjoy it whenever they please, and to seal the deal make sure you watch it alongside them to truly take in all the greatness that Christmas movies can offer.

Ravenous Winter Festival Geeky Shopping Guide. Day 10: Cosplay

ladies, looking for that perfect gift for your boyfriend to spark the flame of romance this winter? Nothing sets the mood quite like dressing up as their favorite character from science fiction or fantasy. Instead of investing in a present that will only cause your guy to isolate himself within his room, this year pull his attention away from the TV and computer monitor by showing him your wild side.

With this gift there is a large range of options for every girl. For the more prudish and conservative types there are female characters like Power Armor Samus, while the more risque women can go for the whole Felicia look from "Darkstalkers". Also, don't labor under the false impression that an ample endowment is required for this to work. There is a large range of female characters that cater to all fruit sizes, from "Street Fighter's" more modest Cammy physiques to the "Soul Calibur" Ivy girls who are a single surgery away from removing all of their lower back problems.

So head on down to your local fabric store and get crackin' on that new outfit that will surely make this Christmas one of legend. Don't bother disposing with the outfit come January, you never know when the mood might arise or when a convention is afoot.

Ravenous Winter Festival Geeky Shopping Guide. Day 9: Console Upgrade

The only thing more pathetic than a gamer hopelessly attached to a single current gen system (anyone with even a shred of dignity will own two), is to be the person stuck with five year old tech. I understand that gaming consoles can be a little crippling to the wallet, but the modern systems have now been on the market for almost half a decade and have fallen considerably in price. Before you know it the knew 3ds will be upon us and within three years or so you can expect to see the next set of memory crunching graphic spewing titans of home entertainment set loose upon the market. Strike while the iron is hot and get your loved ones those dazzling creations of technical wonderment before they become obsolete.

While you're at it, throw in a game or two as well, unless you're a huge fan of expensive paper weights.

Ravenous Winter Festival Geeky Shopping Guide. Day 8: First Aid

Believe it or not, but the life style of us meek and obsessive types has a lot of potential health hazards. From Carparl tunnel to scoliosis, it's a wonder how we survive at all. To keep your friends up and running like the little computers that they are, you need to do a bit of scheduled maintenance once in a while, otherwise you'll be throwing them away in a matter of months for some brand new top-of-the-line model. So here's some suggestions on how to keep your nerd a well oiled machine for years to come (not that they need any oiling since most of them probably have plenty of lubricant located somewhere near their computer. Just sayin').

Most of their hobbies from watching movies, reading books, listening to music, or painting miniatures are done while sitting down, a comfortable chair would be a nice upgrade from that rotted old apple crate they've been resting upon. Do they do a lot of reading? Why not get them a nice reading light? Eye sight is very important to many of them so think of ways to help them see without the need to strain their vision, this may extend beyond the simple gift of a new light source. A comfortable set of headphones is probably a step in the right direction for your music lover. Those painfully cheap ear buds make it feel like your ear canal was recently molested by your ipad once you take them out. Honestly, this list is pretty much endless and while I could go on listing more gift ideas I think you can figure it out from here. This is a gift they may not appreciate at first, but after a week's time they will be singing your praise for the preventative measures put in place to battle the many crippling side effects of leading the fanatical life.

Ravenous Winter Festival Geeky Shopping Guide. Day 7: Event Tickets

Bust out your pen and notepad, today's topic requires a little bit of homework.

Do you have a friend that is patient? The kind of person that understands the value of of something even if its functionality takes a bit of time to see any returns on? Well, here's a fun little gift idea I know they'll enjoy. This holiday, buy them tickets to an event that you know will warm their hearts.

All throughout the year, large tours and conventions spring up all across the country which are catered directly towards those who have a certain fondness for all things nerdy. There are conventions like San Diego Con and Dragon Con, big movie events like Fantastic Fest, and even museum tours for Harry Potter and Star Trek. If you are fortunate enough to live in a big city and have the cosmos align perfectly for you, then there may be something happening near your hometown this December, for everyone else, there's the internet. Most of these large scale events are telegraphed months (sometimes even a year) in advance, meaning that you can buy tickets now for something that won't be around until November of next year. So go ahead and figure out what they would be interested in, find a place where you can get the tickets and purchase them now while they are cheap and available. Come this time next year, your friend will be glad you put so much thought and care into their gift. As a minor caveat make sure you supplement this gift with something they actually can use on Christmas day; the last thing you need is a daily reminder of how you got them "nothing" for Christmas for the next 11 months.