Some context for the gift: A few months ago, my girlfriend and I were walking down 53rd Street in Hyde Park, and passed by the Silver Room. Prominently displayed was a shirt with Muhammad Ali amongst a group of people, during his stint in Zaire (now the DRC) training for the Rumble in the Jungle. I'm a huge Ali fan - his dominance of his chosen field, his unapologetic brashness, and his unwillingness to bow to pressure from the highest of sources. I mentioned in passing that I was a big Ali fan, and thought no more of it.
My girlfriend moved away and recently I co-founded a technology company with a friend. As a result, I have been so focused on the business that I forgot my birthday. One day, I received an unexpected email message telling me I had a package waiting at reception in my apartment.
I dutifully picked it up from the mail room and opened the package to see three sets of gifts:
1. A bunch of Reese's peanut butter cups. Before starting a company, I worked out pretty religiously and ate pretty healthy - and as a result, avoided candy and sweets. But I'm a huge fan of the chocolate + peanut butter combination, and so Reese's is and always will be an exception.
2. A set of protein bars (also chocolate + peanut butter). A win given the two characteristics described before (fitness and PB + choc).
3. Two Under Armour shirts from the Muhammad Ali line. This gift in particular both combined two things I like (fitness and Ali), and also showed an incredible amount of care - I had completely forgotten about the Ali shirt, but she remembered that conversation and used it to buy a great gift.
All of gifts were special - they demonstrated a deep understanding of me what I enjoy, and also showed that my girlfriend was more tuned into my birthday than I was!
My girlfriend moved away and recently I co-founded a technology company with a friend. As a result, I have been so focused on the business that I forgot my birthday. One day, I received an unexpected email message telling me I had a package waiting at reception in my apartment.
I dutifully picked it up from the mail room and opened the package to see three sets of gifts:
1. A bunch of Reese's peanut butter cups. Before starting a company, I worked out pretty religiously and ate pretty healthy - and as a result, avoided candy and sweets. But I'm a huge fan of the chocolate + peanut butter combination, and so Reese's is and always will be an exception.
2. A set of protein bars (also chocolate + peanut butter). A win given the two characteristics described before (fitness and PB + choc).
3. Two Under Armour shirts from the Muhammad Ali line. This gift in particular both combined two things I like (fitness and Ali), and also showed an incredible amount of care - I had completely forgotten about the Ali shirt, but she remembered that conversation and used it to buy a great gift.
All of gifts were special - they demonstrated a deep understanding of me what I enjoy, and also showed that my girlfriend was more tuned into my birthday than I was!
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