# What would you think of this Christmas present? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 30, 2018, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909 "2018-12-30T05:28:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909/21 "2018-12-31T00:41:40Z")
Just out of curiosity, how old are you? I can’t imagine being upset by a gift from a parent past the age of 14. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909/22 "2018-12-31T01:15:27Z")
> [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > Ask him? Maybe he wanted to give you his favorite book, or maybe he’s mad at you. Only one way to find out… Seconded. Although I probably would have done it already. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909/23 "2018-12-31T02:37:06Z")
> [@peedin](#): > > If you know the answer, why did you post your question? He was hoping that a bunch of strangers on the internet, who don’t know either him or his father, would be heartbroken by his sad story. He was hoping everyone would say how badly and unfairly he was treated, poor guy, and what a terrible person his father is. Then he could feel validated. He could also justify to himself not having the maturity to ask his father a simple, obvious question. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909/24 "2018-12-31T02:51:38Z")
> [@Sterling\_Archer](#): > > You all seem to be assuming my dad put thought and care into this gift. I assure you he did not. He realized on the way out the door that he didn’t get me a gift so he grabbed it off the shelf. The reason it’s dog-eared and covered in food stains and stickiness is because that’s how EVERYTHING in my dads house is. It’s the grossest thing I’ve ever seen and I intend to never enter it again. > > If it’s meant as an example of a book that inspired him, I definitely should not read it. My dad has wasted his life and all of his money chasing after every get-rich-quick scheme under the sun. That was a heck of a lot of pertinent detail to leave out of the OP. mmm ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909/25 "2018-12-31T06:36:40Z")
The further explanation also doesn’t make much sense. “He realized on the way out the door that he didn’t get me a gift,” the OP assumes - without asking. But the only gifts he gave were $25 gift cards. If he miscalculated the number of cards to get, all he needed to do was open his wallet and take out $25, and give cash instead of a gift card. This suggests that the book was given purposefully, for a specific reason. Neither the OP or his father seem to be great communicators. Perhaps there’s some advice in the book that his father thinks he needs to hear? ---
**Author:** ![Sterling\_Archer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Sterling\_Archer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sterling_Archer)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909/26 "2018-12-31T09:24:29Z")
> [@GreenWyvern](#): > > He was hoping that a bunch of strangers on the internet, who don’t know either him or his father, would be heartbroken by his sad story. > > He was hoping everyone would say how badly and unfairly he was treated, poor guy, and what a terrible person his father is. > > Then he could feel validated. He could also justify to himself not having the maturity to ask his father a simple, obvious question. Look, I thought this would make an entertaining story, ok? My intention was not to invoke any sympathy, but I thought perhaps it was an interesting curiosity people would enjoy hearing about. And perhaps I’d gain some good insight in how people would react to a gift like this. I like to share experiences with others and do a sanity check. Am I crazy in reacting this way? That’s all it is. No need to be rude. Part of me would like to just simply ask my dad what’s the deal with the book. But I know what he’d say, most likely he’d claim he liked the book and wanted to share it with me and that’s all it was. So now I’m the jerk for questioning his motives and being an ungrateful son. This still doesn’t make it a good gift. It’s old and dirty, and nothing I’d be interested in anyway. Also I find it amusing that you claim my explanation doesn’t make sense because my dad would just take 25 bucks from his wallet and give that instead. This solution assumes many things: 1) my dad is logical and makes good choices, he likes things to be fair 2) my dad has 25 bucks in his wallet 3) he gives cash gifts. All of these are wrong. My dad is cheap as they come. His cheapness will overrule all other logic circuits in his brain. I once saw him leave a tip of 5 nickels on a restaurant bill and when I asked him about it, his response was “well that’s what they brought me for change, so that’s what they get!” ---
**Author:** ![Sterling\_Archer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Sterling\_Archer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sterling_Archer)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 9:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909/27 "2018-12-31T09:27:42Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > Just out of curiosity, how old are you? I can’t imagine being upset by a gift from a parent past the age of 14. It’s not about the gift, it’s about the message it sends. As I said in the OP. I’m not really upset, more like confused and wondering if I should feel insulted? ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2018, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909/28 "2018-12-31T16:26:22Z")
I don’t get the vitriol directed toward the OP. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-think-of-this-christmas-present/826909.md?page=1)