By Ayoung Lee | Staff Writer

Word on the Street: What was the best Christmas present you ever got? What was the best one you ever gave?

Chantal Nagelmann
Age: 19
Major: Engineering

“My freshman year of high school I got my husky, Jake. He just turned five in October. I was kind of nagging my parents about it jokingly but I came home from school on, like, the last day of break and he was standing in the kitchen … just walking around. He was tiny … he was six pounds and now he is about 80. He still thinks he’s a lapdog. I don’t get too creative with [giving gifts]. I just try to center it around what my friends like and things … I don’t think there is anything spectacular.”

Reo Shimizu
Age: 21
Major: Liberal Arts

“It’s a Nintendo DS, the one that I got in 2005. My mother bought it for me on my first Christmas. [My first game] was Mario Kart DS on it. [It was] kind of [expected but a big surprise] because I know my family is poor so … but she bought it for me anyway and I am happy. I don’t have much but I think the best Christmas gift that I gave, when I was seven years old I saved up my allowance and took my family to a restaurant in Japan. I was living in Japan at the time and I got lucky with a few yen so I took them to a steak restaurant.”

Megan Biggs
Age: 19
Major: Nursing

“It wasn’t really a gift but I was in a long distance relationship all throughout high school and my boyfriend came out to surprise me for Christmas. I think that was probably the best one, this was in 2016, and now we’re married. He’s in the military and he gets home in a week and a half. So I get that present again. He just surprised me at my door and you could tell because I didn’t even have my makeup on yet. My mom called me out and the first thing I said was ‘Mom! You didn’t let me finish my makeup!’ I’m a terrible gift giver. Well there is a gift I’m planning on giving this year, I’m planning on giving my husband tickets to the Thomas Rhett concert.”

Raju Nakamoto
Age: 20
Major: Liberal Arts

“The Nintendo DS when I was so little, I got a DS from Santa Claus. Then I lost my [eyesight]. I played Pokemon, I was a fan when I was young … not anymore. I got this gift in fifth grade. It was a big surprise but it was exactly what I wanted. I didn’t really give nice presents [to people]. I don’t know. [If I could] I would give travel tickets to Hokkaido to my parents.”

Ace Cabangon
Age: 19
Major: Culinary Arts

“I think the best Christmas gift I ever got was when I was around seven years old and my dad got me this drumset, but he tricked me and got me this toy drum set and then surprised me with the real one. I [learned how to play it] a little bit, after that no. I was for sure [asking for it] but I was still surprised a little bit. It was cool. I think the best Christmas gift I ever gave was a bunch of cooking pots, pans, and utensils for my mom because she works in the kitchen a lot. She loves cooking with it all the time now.”