(spin off) What is the WORST Christmas gift you've ever received?

[lifesavacation]

If any of you have ever worked retail, you know the fun of the return lines after Christmas. And the poor people in them that you have to tell Grandma bought this 3 years ago and we can only give you 50 cents. Or that the item is so old the system doesn't recognize it. Happen every Christmas.

Not me, but a coworker has a mother in law who dislikes her. One year she received a used candle for her gift. Nothing says Merry Christmas like a half burnt candle.

My MIL gave my SIL a used candle. Is your coworker from WA? Here’s the funny part....my MIL also gave her a used candleholder with the used candle, but they weren’t the right size to use together.

 

[ronandannette]

One Christmas gift many years ago that I thought was my worst turned out to be my best.

I unwrap a gift from my husband on Christmas Eve and it's one of those "gothic romance" novels......y'know, handsome young squire is getting' jiggy with a beautiful young maiden, badly written and cheaply printed. Not my taste in literature, not at all. The title had something about a ring in it.

I thank him, lukewarmly, and set it aside. A little later, he asks me if I want to read my book. No, I don't. He insists that I should read it. I don't want to, but I pick it up and open it to humor him.

There is a hollowed-out area in the book and in that hollow is a beautiful emerald and diamond ring.

My least-favorite gift turns instantly into my most-favorite gift. Not only did the dear man save and scrimp to get me this beautiful ring, he also spent a long time in the bookstore digging around for a book that had "ring" in its title.

That was my last Christmas with him. I lost him three months later.

I wear the ring occasionally and when I do, it reminds me to treasure every present that is given generously and to the best ability of the giver, even if it doesn't look like something you'd pick for yourself. You "can't judge a book by its cover".

What a sweet, sweet story - thank you and I hope you have a very Merry Christmas!

 

[Gumbo4x4]

My MIL gave my SIL a used candle. Is your coworker from WA? Here’s the funny part....my MIL also gave her a used candleholder with the used candle, but they weren’t the right size to use together.

Facepalm

 

[luvsJack]

One Christmas gift many years ago that I thought was my worst turned out to be my best.

I unwrap a gift from my husband on Christmas Eve and it's one of those "gothic romance" novels......y'know, handsome young squire is getting' jiggy with a beautiful young maiden, badly written and cheaply printed. Not my taste in literature, not at all. The title had something about a ring in it.

I thank him, lukewarmly, and set it aside. A little later, he asks me if I want to read my book. No, I don't. He insists that I should read it. I don't want to, but I pick it up and open it to humor him.

There is a hollowed-out area in the book and in that hollow is a beautiful emerald and diamond ring.

My least-favorite gift turns instantly into my most-favorite gift. Not only did the dear man save and scrimp to get me this beautiful ring, he also spent a long time in the bookstore digging around for a book that had "ring" in its title.

That was my last Christmas with him. I lost him three months later.

I wear the ring occasionally and when I do, it reminds me to treasure every present that is given generously and to the best ability of the giver, even if it doesn't look like something you'd pick for yourself. You "can't judge a book by its cover".

"Wiping the tears away so I can see the keyboard" what a beautiful memory! Thank you so much for sharing.

It should remind us all so much of the meaning of Christmas.

There are definitely some exceptions here, gifts given cruelly or with malice or just in not caring about the feelings of others, but your story should remind all of us that sometimes we should look at a gift as what it is or hopes to be, a gift of the heart.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Staying with the theme of bad gifts that turned out to be good, my first Christmas with DW (then fiancé), I knew she wanted a specific pair of jeans and they were green. Well, the store was sold out of green in her size, so I bought blue ones in the correct size thinking she'd just exchange them. Instead, she was thrilled to get them as even in blue her size was frequently sold out. I also saw a nice sweatshirt in another store on clearance that I grabbed on a whim. 23 years later, she still has it! Her "big" gift from me that year was a necklace, which she loved, but she definitely didn't wear it as much as those jeans or the sweatshirt.

On a weird side note, this all lead up to DW leaving her parents' house. We were in the process of fixing up our first home, but not living there. Turns out, my fil had never gotten my mil "anything nice" for Christmas. And mil's extreme jealousy & bitterness over seeing DW get presents that were thoughtful and a little $$$ made her unbearable. DW moved out within a week.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

None of my gifts must have been that bad because I don't think I can remember my worse present.

But I do have a related story. Somebody wrapped my present in a gag box. It was a box for an "iArm". I honestly thought that it what it was and tried to react nicely, because these people were never the best gift givers. They were like, "no, open the box!" So I actually got burned by trying to act grateful for a dumb gift when it was just a gag box.

What was in the box? I don't actually remember.

 

[Dr.Mickey]

Pork chops. Fresh from the grocery store. Wrapped in wrapping paper. It's the first, and only time, I've ever been given a gift directly from the refrigerator.

 

[Dream Finder]

I'll add another - this one was a worst to best. I work in an industry where it used to be pretty common for customers to give us small gifts. Usually candy or cookies - that kind of thing. Over the years, we have had a couple that were non-edible. One customer gave me perfume, another gave me gift certificates for movies etc. Well, my boss at the time had a sweet customer who would bring her small knick-knacks from Arizona every time she traveled. My boss was the furthest from liking this kind of thing as you could imagine. Nevertheless, the little cactus, or donkey or sleeping man with a sombrero would be duly appreciated and placed on her desk for a while (this customer really was a sweet heart and we all loved her).

Well, one time the customer gives my boss a redneck china holder (honestly - that's what it said - right across the front!!)
What is this thing you may ask???? think... a wood platter with a place to hold your redneck china aka...paper plates. It's meant to hang on the wall. For the vast majority of the world - a gag gift. After thanking the customer - my boss asks me "Figment..what the heck am I supposed to do with this???"

My mom and dad at the time lived in Arkansas, so I asked her if I could give it to them as a gag gift. She gladly agreed.

Christmas came and dad unwrapped his gift. HE LOVED IT!!! That silly thing hung on the wall until the day he moved. Goes to show - one man's junk is another man's treasure - lol

 

[RainbowBrite]

So I guess innapropriate for me would be a piece of jelwery from a creepy BIL that I have no relationship with...creepy and inappropriate, IMO. You do not buy jewelry for others unless you know them!!! !

I don't understand what makes this creepy?? It would be creepy if your BIL bought you lingerie. Buying you a necklace he thought you might like is not creepy or inappropriate.

 

[spacemountainmom]

I’ll start by saying that my in-laws moved across the country 18 years ago. They come back home maybe once a year. Several years ago my mil called and asked me if I would like an electric tea kettle for Christmas. I explained to her that I already had one and used it frequently. Christmas comes and what did she send me? An electric tea kettle! Of course, no gift receipt.

I thanked her and kept in. It did come in handy a few years later when I took a new job and brought my kettle with me to have tea at work!