| By John Smith | | | | anything online. How many hole-in-ones will it take |
| Boys will be boys - it's a popular saying and I'm | | | | before he wants to take up the game at you |
| sure it's something that has been said by many | | | | local club? Grown-ups are a little more difficult to |
| parents around the world. Often regarded as | | | | buy for. When they're out of their teens and |
| more boisterous than little girls, boys can often be | | | | done with university, they may have enough of a |
| seen playing around with their toys; whether alone | | | | disposable income of their own to purchase any |
| or with friends, they are never far away for a | | | | number of toys to entertain themselves with; so |
| gadget or game of some kind to entertain them. | | | | it means that when buying birthday gifts, you |
| You may remember the long summer days of | | | | really have to go that extra mile towards thinking |
| your childhood? A time before computers became | | | | of something that appeals to their sense of fun. |
| so widespread and almost everything electronic | | | | But if the person you're thinking of is into oriental |
| and cool came prefixed with an 'i'. Where a | | | | cuisine, why not buy them an ultimate birthday |
| championship football or cricket match involved | | | | gift for the man who may well have everything - |
| actual participation and BMX racing involved a gang | | | | the Chopstick Kid. Whether or not the birthday |
| of children, some rather battered looking bikes | | | | boy is actually able to use chopsticks, it will be |
| and some unsafe-looking hills and ramps, rather | | | | impossible to resist the fun offered by this |
| than a console and a glass of coke. Well, even | | | | fantastic toy. A tremendously simple concept, the |
| though times have changed and toys are often of | | | | Chopstick Kid works by pushing sticks into his legs |
| the indoor variety - requiring the latest software | | | | so that the utensils can be used rather like tongs. |
| updates to work properly - it is still possible to | | | | It's not exactly how they'd do it in Japan or China, |
| recreate that innocent sense of real-world fun | | | | but isn't that part of the fun? In fact, while he's |
| that you enjoyed as a child. Whether you are | | | | unwrapping his amazing Gifts, you could always |
| planning on buying birthday gifts for him; for your | | | | impress him with stories on the origins of the |
| son, a younger brother, or even a friend, why not | | | | humble chopstick. Did you know that although |
| opt for a Build Your Own Lamborghini? This | | | | believed to have originated in China, these fun |
| hugely entertaining birthday gift for him is perfect | | | | utensils are used in a number of different Asian |
| for younger toy lovers who want to develop their | | | | countries - and to a lesser extent in countless |
| creative construction skills - the old air fix model | | | | non-Asian cultures - including Vietnam, Japan and |
| aeroplanes of old may have been fantastic, but | | | | Korea? They are also used in Thailand, but there |
| this toy is really in a league of its own. A Build | | | | you're as likely to encounter a fork and spoon, |
| Your Own VW Camper Van is also available for | | | | which although far easier to deal with, are also far |
| kids - of either the little or big variety - who | | | | less fun. The sticks themselves can differ |
| appreciate a little bit of retro cool. Older boys | | | | according to the country in which they are used. |
| may be into different things, but they undoubtedly | | | | The business end can either be tapered into |
| appreciate their games as much as their younger | | | | points or be blunt, and they can also be |
| counterparts. For that older fun-loving toy-playing | | | | constructed from a number of different materials. |
| boy, why not go for the USB Golf Putt Returner? | | | | Wooden and plastic chopsticks are well known, |
| These golf gadgets make perfect Gifts for those | | | | but they can also be made from bamboo, bone, |
| teenagers who like to spend lots of in front of | | | | metal and jade. However they're made though, |
| the computer. And you can feel at least a little bit | | | | the Chopstick Kid will make them work a treat. |
| better about their apparent aversion to getting | | | | And if the etiquette of some different countries is |
| out in the sun by giving them a little bit of golf to | | | | observed - such as not standing the sticks up in |
| focus their attentions away from the screen. | | | | bowls of rice - the whole birthday dining |
| Powered by USB, the USB Golf Putt Returner | | | | experience will undoubtedly be a fantastic |
| offers the perfect opportunity to practice | | | | success, should they be used. What could be |
| real-world golfing skills that cannot be matched by | | | | better for birthday gifts than that? |