Me, My Wife and the Vibro-Reclining Chair

Its funny how your [fill-in-the-blank: wife, lover, significant other] will go about letting you know what she wants for her birthday. You'd think after 22 years of marriage finding a birthday present for my wife would be a cinch. That's pretty much true, but just to make sure, my wife has her own little ritual to let me know she has a particular birthday present on her mind. I don't mind this at all. These little hints of hers have enabled me to do the right thing at least once a year - while at the same time preventing me from purchasing a power saw or a pneumatic hammer and then disguising it as a birthday gift for my wife.

So this year (today is her birthday by the way) the process started a few weeks out. My wife apparently mentioned to my daughter -- as innocently and nonchalantly as possible -- that she wanted something for her back. My daughter than dutifully passed this Intel on to me: "Mom told me she wanted something for her back." The next challenge here is to decipher this information. What exactly does "something for her back" mean? A tattoo? A small umbrella that mounts on your shoulder and keeps the sun off? A whip? So I incurred my daughter with the responsibility of going back to get some clarification. A day or two later my kid returned to me to spill the beans. I discovered that "something for her back" really meant a chair with some kind with a built in back massage device.

I did not know this type of chair existed. But apparently my wife had seen something like this -- or exactly like this -- on TV one day and felt that it would make a great birthday gift. Or at the very least a great suggestion for a birthday gift.

So I went about doing a little digging and lo and behold there are a whole bunch of vibro-massage chairs. These chairs -- actually recliner is a more suitable word -- run the gamut from expensive to really expensive. For example www.linearete.com touts one model that gives you 5 different types of massage including the impressive and much sought after Shiatsu massage. This recliner massages your upper and lower back as well as your lower leg. It also massages your bank book to the tune of about 4 grand. But I ask you -- can you really put a price tag on a woman's happiness, health and well-being? Of course not. Especially when a well-thought out birthday present can translate into an as yet-to-be-determined amount of reciprocal peace and quiet around the house.

So I kept on looking. Www.iperstore.net has several models, including a streamline "professional model" that looks like an office chair but can be modified to tilt and lean and vibrate in all sorts of cool positions. Www.relaxo.it also has several models to choose from including one that not only vibrates and massages but actually lifts you up and out of your chair.

Well -- after looking at about 300 pages of vibrating recliners I found one that looked pretty darn good, was stocked locally and didn't cost an arm and a leg. In fact this particular outlet was close enough that I was able to drive out and give the vibro-chair a test drive first.

Now I can't speak for all these recliners on the market but the one I tried didn't feel too bad. Cushy soft leather -- real leather not vinyl by the way -- and a remote control that lets you enjoy not one, not two, but 5 different massage modes -- separately or all at the same time. The big question you're wondering - probably the same question I was wondering is, "Do these vibrating chairs actually do your back any good?" Most of the sites I checked come loaded with testimonials and one in particular www.fujichair.com did a real good job of explaining the technology that is at work here. But I'm no doctor. I can say that as a tried-and-true gym rat and life-longer lifter of weights and things, I can see where the vibrating motion for the upper and lower back can be of some good. So until I can afford an in-house masseuse this'll have to do.

Toss in free shipping and installation. Cool beans, baby. One vibro-massage reclining chair/birthday gift made-to-order and one less thing I have to worry about this year.

Now I know my wife, and when all is said and done she'd be perfectly happy with a dozen roses. Come to think of it, when we were first starting out I don't even think I could afford a dozen stems much less a dozen roses. So it's nice to know that I can finally splurge once and awhile for my soul mate without worrying that I'll have to pimp myself on a street corner for the next 3 months in order to make ends meet.