'Please record a happy birthday message for Jane as a 40th surprise!' Please fuck off.

[BlueEyedDash]

Of all of the things that have become common this year, surely these recorded good wishes videos are one of the worst?

Oh no, my friend who lives far away turned 50 and it was lovely to see faces from the past.

I would do it for someone!

My sister turned 60 and her daughter gathered video messages for her. My sister loved it.

How miserable!

I'm not really a birthday person at all, but would hate to have a big birthday in 2020/21 and would really appreciate a video like that.

Yes, we've got to do one for someone's 30th, which has been heralded as a 'big' Birthday. Is it?

Oh I would hate that, photos of myself are bad enough!

I was recently asked to write a message for a card, I can't do that either, not enough original thought. I drew a picture

We did this for my dad's 70th birthday. I'd hate to think of people saying things like "fuck off" and being rude about it. We didn't tell everybody this but he has a terminal liver disease and the video we made of family and friends made his day.

Someone I know had one last year, it was nice to see. Hardly the world's biggest ask, to just say something nice about someone and Happy Birthday!

It’s the ones that ask you to dress in fancy dress and sing/dance along to a section of a certain song that are THE WORST.

It's for the office- there has been a glut of them recently as well. Three birthdays, a wedding, a couple of babies, so many opportunities for me to wish colleagues awkward sentiments while looking like a potato.

@LilyE1234 Yes- we had to do that for that dreadful Bruno Mars song about a wedding for the colleague getting married. Dreadful dreadful dreadful.

If it’s someone you care about it shouldn’t be hard.

Office/colleague ones are just a major PITA and should not have to be done.

@HunkyPunk after 18 and 21, 30 is the start of the ‘big’ something+zero birthdays. It’s obviously not as ‘big’ as 100 but it’s still a milestone.

What a misery!

Friend sent out a message to all her WhatsApp contacts asking for a message for her DS as he turned 18yrs.

He doesn't have a clue who l am ..so l didn't.

I've done this for a couple of friends - don't be a misery

Have only done this once, both message and song, and it was fantastic and much appreciated by the recipient. She's having a shitty lockdown and she looked really happy about it.

We had this for a retirement. We all refused!

We’ve had to do a couple of these - I do feel awkward doing it, but to be fair they’ve been for people we aren’t that close to (DH’s aunt overseas who was unwell, and a periphery friend’s 50th).

I would feel less cringey doing it for someone I was close to.

How on earth can the concept ofspending a few seconds of your time to make someone feel a bit better possibly be one of the worst common things to happen this year? @BlueEyedDash

I think it is maybe that we've done so many of these. It's not for a close friend or relative either.

I also really, really hate having my photo taken, a video is even worse!

[quote SatsumasOrClementines]@HunkyPunk after 18 and 21, 30 is the start of the ‘big’ something+zero birthdays. It’s obviously not as ‘big’ as 100 but it’s still a milestone.[/quote]
That's interesting. I've never thought of 30 as being a big Birthday. I wonder if it's a newish phenomenon? I've always considered the next big Birthday after 21 to be 40. I'm pretty sure I wasn't asked what I was doing for my 30th (nothing, evidently!) in the same way that I remember friends enquiring about my 40th and 50th. Don't remember friends treating their own 30th Birthdays as particularly significant, either, other than bemoaning the fact that we were getting old

I changed department during lockdown and my team who were all working form home did this and it meant the world to me. Done be so miserable and have a think about how it would be received

I think it is a lovely idea. I'd love it.

Just don't participate then? Send her a message instead. I'm sure it doesn't really matter.