You better watch out, you better not cry -- because Santa's elves have come to Whyville! Maybe you've seen their buying threads on the forums or have received one of their special y-mails asking you to make a wishlist, but all around our little island anonymous "elf" accounts have been hard at work figuring out what face parts Whyvillians want most, trying to gather as many as they can before Christmas. I interviewed two of these generous Whyvillians to see what exactly motivated them to take on this daunting Christmas task.
Xoxkitkat: What made you decide to create an elf account and when did you start working?
EIfHelper: Haha, I guess I just like giving. I had some clams to spare, so why not use them to give somebody a gift around Christmas time? I was also hoping to give other people similar ideas and possibly start a trend.
SantaElfy: I love giving gift and making people smile! I usually give gifts to random people around Christmas on my way to work, as I can't afford to do that this year why not make someone's day on Whyville? I started this a few days ago and will keep this going for many years!
Xoxkitkat: About how many gifts are you planning to give out this season?
EIfHelper: Well I have 23 people who asked for gifts. I don't know how many people will actually get the gifts they asked for, but I'm hoping it's a good amount of them. The people who don't receive any gifts will be entered into a raffle that is only for people who responded with wish lists.
SantaElfy: I have 35 people on my list right now and hoping to get at least one item they want.
Xoxkitkat: How have you decided what gifts to give to each person on your list?
EIfHelper: I haven't really. I did send out y-mails asking people what they wanted, but I only have about 6 gifts as of now (12/12/13), and it's difficult to find gifts for people. Haha, most people ask for expensive and rare face parts, so it's not an easy task to complete.
SantaElfy: I mostly took links from random buying threads from BBS and a few from y-mails for people who seem like they need a cheering up. :)
Xoxkitkat: Have you been working to collect the presents on your own or have you had support from other gift givers?
EIfHelper: I'm the one and only. I have had donations from a couple of people (and I thank them!), but I'm the only person finding gifts for people.
SantaElfy: I have made a buying list on BBS and I have gotten a few generous gifts and a few offers but I'm a little behind schedule on what to get. I also search for the most recent buyer of a part and y-mail them to see if they still have it.
Xoxkitkat: In what ways have you gone about collecting the needed presents?.
EIfHelper: I have gone through BBS history trying to track down people with the face parts I'm looking for. I've gone through countless numbers of posts and y-mailed countless numbers of people. I'm hoping to buy a lot more parts. 6 is way too low.
SantaElfy: I would y-mail people, go search in style studio, look for on BBS, and make a buying thread on BBS.
Xoxkitkat: Why have you chosen to remain anonymous?
EIfHelper: I won't be anonymous for much longer. I just think it's good to stay anonymous because people don't feel bad asking a random stranger for anything, but if a friend had asked them, they'd say how they don't want anything and blah blah blah. I also think it's fun to keep people guessing who you are. xD
SantaElfy: I want this account to be remembered for years so I can continue to hand out gifts and it's more a surprise of not knowing and it makes them feel special. (I also plan on gathering a bunch of stuff through the year and sending it to random people as a random act of kindness).
I'd like to thank EIfHelper and SantaElfy, not only for their answers, but for their selfless holiday act. It was both interesting and inspiring to take a look into your giving processes. Just knowing there are kind people out there like you two brings a smile to my face and I'm positive that your generosity is appreciated by each and every Whyvillian.
