Our friend was leaving to work abroad before Christmas so every one decided to give her Christmas present before she left. I knew there were some songs she liked but were difficult to find. I managed over the course of a couple of weeks to dig them all out, some I received from friends abroad via e-mail. I prepared a CD version of a "mixed-tape" and presented her the present the same time as everyone else. Well, she couldn't hide her contempt for the "Cheap" present. I explained that it wasn't just a copy of a CD, but a carefully researched group of ones she had trouble getting. This didn't seem to make any difference, and she wasn't the only one. Others said "Could you not have bothered to buy her something". This was cheaper than buying a CD, but it took a hell of a lot more effort tahn picking the latest release off a shelf. There seems to be no value put into the thinking behind a gift, or its usefullness, just how much it cost. A very disillusioning experience.