[INDENT]SWMBO goes to the store, comes home chuckling, says there a lot, a lot of guys scrambling around the gift card aisle,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
I see that as gender prejudice, I'm sure there were some women too,,,,,,,
And after all men are doers not plannersB-)
don't forget what today is,,,,,,,,
Or pay for it later[/INDENT]
Once-upon-a-time a local retail store added a large book on display in front of their refrigerated floral department. It was a reference book for men to use when wondering what sort of flowers to buy for any given occasion. I had to check it out. It had a section in the back labeled "Begging Forgiveness" and I flipped through the pages until I came to "Forgot Anniversary". When I looked at what type of flower was appropriate for such a transgression, it read "See Jewelry Department"...;-)
I've found that two things are very helpful in dealing with the lovely lady in my life.
First, putting anniversaries, birthdays, and similar events into my digital calendar is vital. And I make sure that said digital calendar is synchronized across all of my devices (work computer, laptop, phone, tablet, etc). As part of this, I make sure that these dates have advance warnings as much as a week ahead of time.
Second, I use what I call the "pre-emptive strike". When my reminder goes off the week before a birthday (or whatever), I will ask her, "So, what are we doing for your birthday this year?" This demonstrates that I haven't forgotten and also puts the onus of planning on her.
This method doesn't work perfectly 100% every time, but it generally keeps me safely out of harms way.