I am cursed to be married to a woman who puts in hours and hours of thought in what to buy me each year, and a mother who has an uncanny knack of always buying me exactly what I need, without ever asking me beforehand. And when it comes to friends, who you feel pressured to buy for, just because they buy for you each year, deciding what to get them is actually damaging my health.

Trying to guess how much to spend on someone is a very hazardous thing, and is part of the reason why the whole process terrifies me. If they buy you a Blackberry, and you buy them a chocolate orange, the foundations of the friendship take a real battering.

Another aspect which fills me with fear, is the opening of my gifts from the wife on Christmas morning. She always says stuff like, "open this one first, then this one, and then this one".

I never know whether I am getting the smaller one first, and the expensive one later, so I have to be very careful with my reaction. I swear she mentally records the looks on my face, and decides whether or not I am grateful enough.

As for my gifts to her, I have long since retired from trying to guess what would make her happy. Dropping subtle hints to try and find out was never a strength of mine. These days I simply give her cash, and tell her to buy whatever she wants/needs. In fact I am a big believer in gift tokens.

That way you take out all the risk of present-buying. For those people who think it shows a lack of effort, remember it's not the thought that counts, but the present. And I always like to use the excuse that the money can be used in the January sales, and therefore will go further.

The other gripe I have with the whole present buying subject is how much we now feel pressurised to spend. Back in the day, my pillow case would be stuffed with one decent gift like a bow and arrow set, together with an LP, a selection box, and some oranges and nuts. And I'd be happy.

Nowadays our kids won't expect anything less that computer game consoles and games, mobile phones with accessories, electronic this that and the other, all costing hundreds of pounds. No wonder the nation is up to its eyeballs in debt.