“This is the best birthday ever!” exclaimed my 36-year-old husband as he opened his present. Yes, I finally found the answer to a birthday gift for the-world’s-most-difficult-man-to-buy-for – it’s a plastic Ericsson alien.

The back story here, because there has to be one, is that when we were in a local Mobinil store Ron noticed this strange plastic alien that was being used in a display. He admired it (if that’s possible) and asked the clerk if he could buy it. Even in Arabic the clerk was confused. And Ron’s attempt to acquire it failed.

I repressed the whole thing, just happy not to have yet another piece of strange plastic junk in the house. But recently someone mentioned it in reference to Ron’s upcoming birthday and I realized that in order to qualify for the “Wife of the Year” award, I needed to get that damn alien. So I went back to the store, employed my feminine wiles (I smiled and looked pleadingly), and did the one thing that I knew would work. I offered a ridiculous amount of money. The clerk was still confused, but with money on the counter, he more than gladly sold me the alien and I walked away with a win.

You can see the delight as Ron opened the box and after exclaiming this was the best birthday ever, he paused and added, “Did you wash it?” Welcome to Cairo. Where all gifts need a good bath. I admitted my failure, so Ron diligently went and gave the alien a good scrubbing.

Happy Birthday Dear!