Most memorable best gift was Christmas of '82 when I was nine and got a Colecovision. It was one of those “Don’t give it to him at first” Christmas Story-style things where I assumed gifts were over and was disappointed but trying hard to not make a show of it and ruin Christmas. Then the “Oh, wait, what’s this?” from the parents, etc.
Most memorable disappointment was my first serious college girlfriend (again, Christmas) where I bought her some fancy silk pajamas and a pair of earrings and she bought me a pair of jeans she thought I could use. It was like getting a gift from your mom. It wasn’t even a “she’s not that into the relationship” thing but rather she just had no skill at gift-giving.
These days, gifts are usually a lot of complaining about how I’m too hard to shop for followed by gift cards and clothing items.
Best was an old framed print. It’s a picture that has been in the family for as long as I can remember, and I’ve always loved it. For years, my brother and I have joked about fighting over who gets to inherit it when our mother dies, but somehow he ended up with it and Mom’s still alive. A few years ago, he shipped it across Canada to me. I was quite touched - it was just such a nice thing to do.
Worst was a puppy. For the ten years I’ve been friends with the breeder, I have wanted one of her pups, but with two high maintenance dogs already, it hasn’t been the right time. A couple of years ago, she gave me a pup. Nice dog, but after a few months, I found giving the pup and my adult dogs enough attention was a struggle. I sent the pup back and she was rehomed and is much loved now, but it was awkward and I feel like I let my friend down.
Best: When I was 8 years old, I was sitting in the living room watching Gomer Pyle. My dad came in, reached past me, and turned off the TV. “Hey!” I said. I turned around, all indignant and did a complete double take. There was a blue bicycle with Slurpee footprint and flower power stickers all over it. I got some mileage out of that thing. Dad had bought it 2nd hand from a co-worker for $10. It was a boy’s bike, so he cut and welded and painted, new tires and seat, etc. After I outgrew it, he welded the bar back on, attached chrome fenders (we had a little more money coming in by then), and my brother rode it for another five years.
When I was about 30, my dad handed me a wrapped present. I had it mostly unwrapped and my mom said “What’s in the drill box?” Dad & I both looked at her. “A drill”. That has been the longest lasting gift. I’ve had cordless drills, but I’ve been using this corded B&D consistently for 25 years.
I think it is generally a bad idea to give a pet as an unexpected gift.
It may work out wonderfully, but it is pure chance if it does; the downside is imposing a serious, long-lasting obligation on someone who may not want it. Not fair to either the recipient or the pet.
My mother was the best at thinking up the worst presents for me. When I was 32, she gave me a pair of pajamas with feet attached. The type babies wear.
The best thing she gave me was a stuffed black monkey. My younger sister had a red and white stuffed monkey, and we had many an adventure with our monkeys.
When we clean out my mother’s house after she died I found a red and white stuffed monkey and a naked, earless, tailless stuffed Mickey Mouse.
When I was a kid, my friend had an Indy 500 race track. It had battery powered cars that you “filled up” with a battery gas pump and an automatic lap counter. It was rally kinda stupid because all you did was watch a car go around an oval track for about 20 minutes, occasionally “filling up” your car, and I quickly got board with it, but it cost a lot of money ($50) and I knew my dad wasn’t making that much. He still got me the one toy I really wanted. Best gift ever.
The worst gift was from my mother in law. She really likes me, but she just sucks at gifts (to the point where when we went to her house first for Christmas, my parents couldn’t wait to see what she got me). The worst was a salad magnet. it was a refrigerator magnet about 1 inch square that was shaped like a clear plastic salad to go container with a salad in it. The salad was individual pieces of plastic lettuce, radish and tomato. We still have it
My sister has a knack for finding great presents for people. On thinking about it, most of my favorites from her have been clocks: There’s the one with steel ball bearings rolling down tracks to count the hours and minutes, and the one where the second hand stays stationary and the entire face rotates around it counterclockwise, and the one that displays in binary-coded-decimal… She also gave me my first pliers multitool (not a very high quality one, but enough to get me addicted to them) and a super-cool 13-function utility pen. And last year, a bike taillight that laser-projects an appropriate-width lane on the pavement behind you, so cars know to leave room.
For worst gifts, I’ve gotten some where I had to remind myself to politely say thank you, but I haven’t gotten any real zonkers… so I’ll instead share one my dad gave my mom one year (well after the divorce): A hundred-pound bag of flour. It wasn’t even all-purpose flour, which she’d eventually be able to use: No, it was cake flour, which is pretty useless for most baking. But of course details like that are “woman’s work”, and so there’s no way that Dad could possibly be expected to know them.
I really don’t remember the worst and best of all time, so the following are the best and worst from childhood gift exchanges.
Worst- I picked out a cool model car to take to the party. Any guy would want it. I ended up with a lousy U.S. flag lapel pin. I’m as patriotic as the next guy, but I could tell this was a last-minute desperation present the kid brought just so he could get something back.
Best- I picked out a neat Matchbox car to give. I received a nifty Matchbox dump truck. I asked the guy who got my car if he wanted to trade. He said yes, because he collected Matchbox cars, and didn’t have the dump truck, but he did have the one he got from me! Win-win!
BEst – Last Christmas, my neighbor/besty and I exchanged gifts. Mine came in a heavy box, not that big, and I couldn’t imagine what could be in there of that specific gravity. She knows I eat a lot of organ meats, and she bought me a beef tongue at the butcher shop. One of those few occasions I was both delighted and surprised.
I won’t mention Worst, don’t like to be judgmental about people’s good intentions.
My cousin, who was a huge hockey fan, died several years ago. He was laid out at the funeral home wearing the jersey he had always worn to the games. A few weeks after he was buried I was given that jersey as a gift of remembrance. Yes, the jersey that had very recently adorned a corpse.
mmm
My god, that reminds me of yet another terrible gift my mother gave to my wife: a set of pajamas (one piece, feet attached, with a “flap” on the behind) with a picture of a “sexy” Betty Boop taking a “provocative” pose and winking on the front.
Once again, I had to reassure my wife that my mother was not intentionally messing with her. Not sure she totally believed it, though.
Best: bought myself an X-Box a few years ago for the express purpose of buying Rock Band. Arrived at Dad’s house for Christmas and found out no one had done shopping for anyone. Announced that if you feel like it you can all chip in and buy me Rock Band. They did. It was my only gift that year other than stocking stuffers but it was great.
I have that rifle, too! My grandmother worked at Sears in the late 40’s-early 50’s and bought it for my dad. It still shoots great and is highly accurate.
Worst: Twice one of my co-workers got my name for the office Secret Santa. One year he gave me a soap dish. The second he gave me a $10 AT&T long distance calling card. They were definitely
Worst: When I was 5 I really wanted a tyco slotcar racetrack. Its all I asked for Christmas that year. So Xmas day came and I get a large box with a note from Santa saying “You might still be too young for a racetrack. Maybe next year.” Inside the box was a sleeping bag. :mad:
Best: Having two older sisters I inherited a hand me down girls bike. My allowance at the time was 50 cents per week but I was bound and determined to save up the cash for a new bike. A couple months later I was at my grandparents and my dad asked me to run to the basement and grab him a coke. I went down the steps, flicked on the light, and nearly tripped over a brand new Schwinn Scrambler!
My sister had a knack for getting me really good and unexpected gifts, one of the best was She will have her way, an album of covers of Neil and Tim Finn songs (two of the guys behind *Crowded House). *Fantastic album.
Then she discovered Costco…
Now I get crappy compilations of books I’ll never read on subjects I have no interest in and DVD’s of TV series I’ll never watch - though someone on eBay obviously does.
