giving strangers birthday cards

I think birthday cards are a huge waste.

and I hate picking out birthday cards for strangers.this was the stress at my job yesterday.some of you are thinking, "that was your biggest point of stress?? I wish I had it so good!"and I am saying, "YES, precisely, THAT was my biggest point of stress..."

job is boring, can you tell? but I really do dislike picking out birthday cards. so I opt for nice ones rather than offend someone inadvertently with my choice of a "humorous" cutting-up kind-of card. One of my co-workers says I'm "too nice" in my card choice. I told her she can come along with me next time... and then I'll make her pick them out. Because believe you me, I don't like doing it.

and then I have everyone in the department, about 12-15 people, sign the card. I'm the last to sign and don't want to say the SAME EXACT thing as someone else. Only problem: EVERYONE says the same exact thing. It's either "Happy Birthday [insert name here]!" sometimes with the name before, sometimes with more than one exclamation point, or it reads "Have a great [birthday/day/year]." What else can you say, right?? So I TRY to think of something a little more creative. Fail miserably. I say something with a high corny factor like "Hope your day is full of [joy/laughter/adventure]" - which works, but hey, does the person whose birthday it is REALLY take our trite comments to heart? I guess one receives the general good-feeling from others' good-intentions. But I say, tell them in person, or write a real letter, and while you're at it, save yourself $3.50 from buying a birthday card that will be trashed in less than 10 minutes. These things are not worth $3.50. And if you keep your birthday cards?? That means either a) someone really did write you a long, meaningful birthday note, in which case, congratulations, I'm shocked, or b) you are a pack rat and need to throw those things stacking up in boxes AWAY.

with all that said, for some reason I still like it when my Grandmother sends me birthday cards.

I'm bubbling over with contradictions today.