I got a marble-based pen and pencil set from an ex one Christmas. He was a workoholic and I know that he ran down to the stationery store in his building before closing time to pick it out. I almost cried, I was so mad, and he was pointing to the brass plate that came with it and said, "You can get it personalized!"
We broke up about three months later. Now I can laugh, but I couldn't for a long time.
One year when I was about 17, my Uncle asked my mom what he should get me for Christmas and my mom said to just get some pyjamas. So Christmas morning I open his present and pull out a tiny, hot pink, see thru baby doll nightie. I was understandably confused. Mom took a look at it and said " Tell me who got you that?". I said Uncle Dave. She started laughing and explained she told him to buy me pyjamas. My boyfriend was psyched about it. I never wore them.
Worst secret Santa gift ever: I got a coffee mug with two, TWO packets of Swiss Miss hot chocolate and marshmallows in a Ziploc bag. I wasn't good enough that year to get the entire pack of hot chocolate and marshmallows - not to mention someone had to grab the marshmallows with their hand to put it in the Ziploc bag.
@dirtybee: AT first I thought you meant two packets of hot chocolate with marshmallows in a bag, then I realized it read two packets of hot chocolate and marshmallows in a Ziploc bag. Wow, that is crazy town. How insulting.
I have a great aunt that send $1 in a card every christmas and birthday, completely sealed with scotch tape. I presume she thinks that $1 is lots of money, and someone might take it. It costs almost as much to mail the card now, so it gets funnier every year.
Pro football tickets for the whole family, for the christmas day game. So it's get out of bed on Christmas morning, and surprise, put on your coat, we're going to sit in the sleet in a stadium for 3 hours. this happened twice. Maybe my dad enjoyed it...?
My brother gave me a wretched book called The Artist's Way. It's a twelve step program for people who are unable to be creative because their parents insisted that they be bankers or something, interspersed with rants against the author's parents and ex-husband. Very weird, considering that I write, paint and am a creative cook and our parents always encouraged us and bought us all the art supplies and instruments they could afford. Check out the hilarious angry amazon reviews here: [www.amazon.com]
Example: Plaque that has seashells on it and reads "home sweet home".
The colors are nothing like anything in my apartment, neither is the style, I live in a very small place, and yet every year my aunt tries to ADD to my clutter by presenting me with things that must be hung on walls or be displayed on shelves.
@Brigit quiere comer pasteles!: My mother pretends she didn't hear me every time I've told her I'm an atheist. She still tries to get me to go to church with her every time I visit.
@beliefunwrought: I'm still trying to figure out a "nice" way to let my boyfriend's mom in on the fact that I'm Jewish, but not overly religious and no, I'm not ever going to believe Jesus is the Messiah, sorry.
I mean, I'm more interested in becoming a Wiccan or some other pagan religion before I converted to Christianity.
@Oranges w/ Cheese: I was Catholic when I started dating my hubs, and his mom was a "Catholics killed Jesus and are from the devil" type of Pentecostal.
I'd personally went with a lot of metaphorical religious speech of the love of god and then let it go from there throughout some months. Good luck!
Actually, I'd be happy if someone bought me Proactiv, because I use it daily and carefully ration it because the shit's exPENsive. I may not have any grocery money, but dammit my skin looks niiice. Worst gift? Hmm...that's a minefield of memories spanning 26 years. I'll select only the worst, which may take a little while. Then I will show you it.
@terribletwenties aka Aesop's Foibles: Among the gifts I'm giving mom this year, there is a moisturizer to calm her mild rosacea. That shit is expensive and she still has my sister at home.
I really, really want bookplates. Seriously! I have a lot of books, and I'm always lending books to people and then forgetting about it, and for me bookplates would be the perfect gift. Sadly, no one ever believes me when I say this, so I think I'm going to have to make some myself.
@St. Francis of a Sissy: Thank you, I have been considering getting stamps made for some time now, but I think I'll have to buy locally on this one; I don't think that website even ships to NZ (and if they do, I'm too scared to find out the cost).
Let's not knock the deodorant. Every year (in addition to a real gift) my grandmother gives me what we've started calling the MagicBag. Basically it's full of little things of hand sanitzer, those little pocket packs of tissue, lotion, and yes, deodorant. It lasts me ALL YEAR and you can have it when you pry it from my cold dead fingers.
my aunt does christmas bingo and gets the prizes at the dollar store. last year my uncle got "FROG" it was a clearish frog you could take apart and see the organs. but it didn't explain that, the package just said "FROG", awesome.
and my cousin won one of those spinner things, it's got a little plunger on the end and if you push it a lot the little tree on the end opens and there's a reindeer in it. know what I'm talking about? and he get it tangled in my hair!!!
12/19/08
We broke up about three months later. Now I can laugh, but I couldn't for a long time.
12/19/08
12/20/08
12/19/08
12/19/08
/rant
12/19/08
I have a great aunt that send $1 in a card every christmas and birthday, completely sealed with scotch tape. I presume she thinks that $1 is lots of money, and someone might take it. It costs almost as much to mail the card now, so it gets funnier every year.
12/19/08
12/19/08
12/19/08
Example: Plaque that has seashells on it and reads "home sweet home".
The colors are nothing like anything in my apartment, neither is the style, I live in a very small place, and yet every year my aunt tries to ADD to my clutter by presenting me with things that must be hung on walls or be displayed on shelves.
12/19/08
I already came out on FB (yes, I have my mom on FB), but apparently she hasn't gotten the hint that it means I don't believe in gods.
She's arriving this Monday and I still don't know if I should bluff it and put the goddamn cross or "ruin" Christmas and just give her "the talk". :-/
12/19/08
12/19/08
I mean, I'm more interested in becoming a Wiccan or some other pagan religion before I converted to Christianity.
12/19/08
I'd personally went with a lot of metaphorical religious speech of the love of god and then let it go from there throughout some months. Good luck!
12/19/08
With no bingo chips/board. Just the pen.
I don't play bingo.
12/19/08
12/19/08
12/19/08
12/19/08
12/19/08
12/19/08
Needless to say, we're no longer friends.
12/19/08
Apparently the "AXE effect" for me is to make me crankypants. Grrr...
12/19/08
Of course I was such a nice kid, I actually used the musty-smelling thing for years!
12/19/08
12/19/08
and my cousin won one of those spinner things, it's got a little plunger on the end and if you push it a lot the little tree on the end opens and there's a reindeer in it. know what I'm talking about? and he get it tangled in my hair!!!