What Terrible Gifts Will You Be Returning Today?

Christmas is over! Now that all the joy (and pain) of spending hours on end with one’s family and consuming ungodly amounts of food is wearing off, it’s time to go back to thinking about the true meaning of the holiday season: stuff!

Today is that magical day when everyone ventures out to stores to begin returning or exchanging all the crap they got from well-meaning relatives who missed the gift-giving mark. It’s like Black Friday, but in reverse.

So what strange or misguided presents did you receive? Or did you luck out and get exactly what you wanted? Did anyone give you anything that was super insulting or offensive? (Unsolicited self-help books always send a cheerfully judgmental holiday message!) The funniest gifting tale I’ve heard so far was from a friend who reported that her young daughter got her a bag of pretzels from their pantry and a pair of her own underwear for Christmas. Ahhh, children really are a gift!

Anyway, if you’re on the fence about heading to the mall today, remember it’s not all about returns and exchanges. You can spend all those impersonal but welcome gift cards you got and take advantage of post-holiday sales too. Or, if you’re a criminal, you might want to do as the Atlantic Wire suggests, and try to return all the stuff you shoplifted this year for cash. Yes, the holidays really do bring out the best in all of us!