This is the worst time of year. Not the celebrations of December, but around Thanksgiving when I’m asked for my Christmas wish list.

I bug my wife and kids to fill out their lists, so I better reciprocate. This year, like usual, I wasted a couple of hours reading gift guides for guys, for dads, for writers, for aging hipsters, for malcontents, you name it. I came up with bupkis.

I can’t think of anything I want. Is this a guy thing? A getting-older thing? It can’t be just me.

What do you buy for a guy who has little and is fine with that?

If I want a shirt, I’ll go buy it

Please note, I’m not some evolved spiritual being who’s transcended material concerns. Feel free to mail me random checks.

It’s just that I have pretty much everything I want or need. Got a roof over my head, a reliable car, food on the table and coffee in the mug. I’m a minimalist at heart, so much more than that seems like clutter.

For most items, if something catches my eye, I just buy it. If I need a new shirt or want a bottle bourbon, I’m not waiting for jolly old Saint Nick.

But when friends mention some new luxury they bought (a Harley, jet skis, cabin in the woods) all I think is, “Ugh, sounds like a lot of maintenance” followed by “Where exactly do you store jet skis?”

Over time, you learn that the more stuff you buy, the more complicated life gets.

Most luxury items end up owning you

I’ve drooled over high-end BMW motorcycles and imagined mountain rides with buddies on the weekend. Seconds later, I think of loans, insurance and upkeep, and quickly lose interest.

Besides, I’m sensitive to diagnoses of midlife crisis; riding up to Payson every Saturday on a fully loaded K1600 won’t help my case.

Likewise, a vacation home sounds great in theory (if I could afford it) until I consider the inevitable leaky roof, plumbing issues and squirrel infestations that come with it. I can’t keep up with maintenance on my current house, let alone an A-frame in the pines.

The stuff you own quickly starts to own you — and I’m pretty lazy.

Since my November birthday wish list was empty, I got a few checks from family members; no clue what to do with them.

I joked with my wife that all I want is peace and quiet (teen daughters come with factory-installed drama), so maybe I should check in to a local motel for a few days and do nothing.

But then I’d feel selfish and my wife would need a few days on her own to recuperate from my absence.

Just give me good food and conversation

At last, after a few days ruminating, I remembered I could use a case for my smartphone. Also, there was a book I heard about a few months ago that I never picked up. So now I have two whole items on my list.

It’s hard not to agree with the old Roman Stoic Epictetus, who said, “Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.” Being a former slave, he knew of what he spoke.

In that case, I’m richer than Elon Musk. And I don’t have the hassle of running Twitter — I mean, X — or flying to Mars.

I likely splurge on more single-origin pour-over coffee than Mr. Epictetus, but word is he had a larger wine budget than yours truly.

Thankfully, I’m fine spending Christmas with family and friends over good food and better conversation. If there aren’t as many gifts for me under the tree, that’s just more room to give to others.

Jon Gabriel, a Mesa resident, is editor-in-chief of Ricochet.com and a contributor to The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. On Twitter: @exjon.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Christmas gifts aren’t needed for the guy who wants nothing (really)