Bad Presents

[Chyron8472]

This is a thread wherein we talk about specific stupid/lame presents we've received for occasions such as birthday or Christmas where you find yourself either immediately wondering in you can take it back, regift it to someone else, donate it or just chuck it away. You can also discuss presents that you hated at first but either it grew on you or you found a different use for, or one that you thought was okay at first but turned out to really suck.

I find that there are various people in my family that, despite my having a typed wish list as well as an Amazon Wish List, they have no clue about what sorts of things I might want.

[Secret Fawful]

The only time I ever got Christmas presents my parents would let me have as a kid, I got Sega Genesis games from a cousin. One was a sports game, and one was Disney's Fantasia. Dad made me throw Fantasia away as a lesson that we often don't get what we want, and holidays only end up disappointing you in the end because you'll never be satisfied.

I think I'll go download a rom of Fantasia now.

[RetroVortex]

For christmas, me, and my brothers got a hat, scarf and gloves from our Grandma...

No, not a hat, scarf, and pair of gloves each, one set between us.

Let me put this into further perspective:

- We are 19,20 and 22.
- These were the cheapest stuff you can get, (people from the UK will recognise the brand "thinsulate"... :/)
- We got her a nice Bailey's glass set

The cheeky cheap old cow.

[supmandude85]

I would write out a list of bad presents, but this SBmail captured all of them perfectly: http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail163.html

[GuruGuru214]

My grandma is notorious for doing this. However, I seem to have blocked out the time she did it to me, and she's so much worse about doing it to my mom. One specific instance that comes to mind is when my mom asked her for sheets and said "anything but white". Christmas rolled around, and my mom indeed got sheets, but "I didn't know what color to get you, so I just got white". Also, that was the first set of sheets I had for my new queen bed when I got my new room, and those things were like sandpaper.

[Alcoremortis]

I honestly can't remember any bad Christmas presents. My parents always told me that if I didn't like something I should gush over it anyways, write a nice thank you note and hold onto the item for awhile until the person who gave it to me forgot that they gave it. Because there's nothing more awkward than having someone ask about a certain gift and having to explain that you don't have it anymore. The side effect of this, is that I really can't remember what I didn't like because I pretend that I love it for so long that I can't remember not liking it.

[RetroVortex]

Oh, and I'd like to also point out that my grandma actually had phoned my Dad before, asking about Christmas, the conversation went down like this:
(I was heard his end of the conversation, then he filled me in on it)

Grandma: "Oh hi Andrew! I'm doing some christmas shopping, and I was wondering what I could get the boys for Christmas"

My Dad: "Oh thats nice. How much were you looking to spend?"

Grandma: "Oh no more than £5"

My Dad: "Oh ok. £5 each"

Grandma: "Oh no! £5 maximum"

My Dad: "......"

Grandma: "...."

My Dad: "Oh I guess you could get them some Hats, Scarfs and Gloves (implying each)"

Grandma: "oh okay then!"

I seriously wished she had never bothered. Better to get no present at all then be insulted!

(And I wouldn't have had to waste £12 on her present! >: /)

EDIT: She literally does this all the time. All. The. Time!
(And we always tell Dad to tell her not to bother. We don't like her very much, she is an aweful person)

One year she bought my little brother an Austin Powers figurine.
(Which was pretty cool, but my little bro was like 8 years old back then)

Another year she got him a Flash Gordon. A FLASH GORDON!

A few years ago, she got my older brother a Magic the Gathering Starter Set.
My older brother has ZERO patience. He is the sort of guy that plays Call of Duty religiously for god's sake!
And she grabbed a card game deck off the market, (even worse was that its an old one. Basically valueless both collection wise and competatively).
He didn't even open it. It was buried in the pile 'o' boxes next to the TV.
(I opened it for curiosities sake about a year ago, after playing some Duels of the Planeswalkers)#

EDIT: She is the ultimate present Troll.

Here's another one:

My mother hates After Eight mints, and for several years my grandmother decided out of all the chocolate to get her, she gets her After Eight mints.

She also sends people presents wrapped up in wrapping paper from old presents.
Sometimes in paper or bags the same person sent their present in to them the previous year! XD

God I hate that woman!

[Rather Dashing]

Originally Posted by RetroVortex

One year she bought my little brother an Austin Powers figurine.
(Which was pretty cool, but my little bro was like 8 years old back then)

Another year she got him a Flash Gordon. A FLASH GORDON!

Sounds solid to me. Flash Gordon is pretty badass. =P

[RetroVortex]

Originally Posted by Rather Dashing

Sounds solid to me. Flash Gordon is pretty badass. =P

He liked cars.
No, actually, all he ever did was play with cars.

Maybe if he had it now, he'd like it, since he's currently into old cartoons, TV, and toys, but an Autistic person who is exclusively interested in cars, has ZERO interest in anything else.

(A cheap little car toy would have been a more useful present to him at the time)

Those toys are still up in loft though somewhere, still in their box.

Bet they aren't worth anything though sadly... :/

[Juicius Maximus]

You're gonna feel like such a tool when your Grandma drops dead tomorrow. Sobbing into those scratchy white sheets, drowning your sorrows in After Eight mints.

[Irishmile]

People gift me "funny" text t-shirts on occasion.. because "I saw it and thought you just needed it a har har har" But I am not really big on gimmick t-shirts... But I wear them to bed a lot....

[Secret Fawful]

Originally Posted by retrovortex

he liked cars.
No, actually, all he ever did was play with cars.

Maybe if he had it now, he'd like it, since he's currently into old cartoons, tv, and toys, but an autistic person who is exclusively interested in cars, has zero interest in anything else.

(a cheap little car toy would have been a more useful present to him at the time)

those toys are still up in loft though somewhere, still in their box.

Bet they aren't worth anything though sadly... :/

GlMME THEM!

[GuruGuru214]

Originally Posted by Juicius Maximus

You're gonna feel like such a tool when your Grandma drops dead tomorrow. Sobbing into those scratchy white sheets, drowning your sorrows in After Eight mints.

There's no need for that sort of talk here.

[Juicius Maximus]

Sorry, that was kind of dark. No offense intended!

[puzzlebox]

A Justin Bieber mug.

Yeah... not kidding.

bieber_mug_small.jpg

[Rather Dashing]

Generally speaking, I like to be entirely grateful that someone thought of me enough to give me something. If the thing itself is nice, that's a good bonus, but overall I don't tend to dislike presents at all.

BUT.

...Every year, my grandmother gives me one of the ugliest sweaters I've ever seen. This would be fine, but the things are also itchy, and have some weird thing or other sewn into them seemingly randomly that will poke at me and otherwise make the thing actually painful to wear. Now, THIS also wouldn't be too bad, but I'm generally expected to WEAR the thing for a solid day in her presence afterwards to show appreciation for the thing, which is....

I don't like to do that.

Now, I love my Grandma. She's amazing. Paranoid sometimes, and sometimes a bit too open about her sex life with Grandpa, but a wonderful woman all the same. I know she's trying to pick out something she thinks is nice, I just wish the end result of that wasn't an itchy, painful torture device that I'm stuck walking around in for several hours before getting rid of the thing.

[skeeter]

I got shampoo for my birthday once.. other than that I pretty much like everything I get.

[coolsome]

I once got a John Cena note pad for Christmas...(needed to wash my hands after opening it). I'm glad someone told my Gran I hated him already and she just decided to give it me cos she already bought it. There's no way I can fake liking it. I was tempted to just throw it in the fire place but that would be rude.

[Sausy Gibbon]

A gift I don't like to get is a gift card and it annoys me when I get one. Usually because I always forget I have it and when I do find it again it's past the date I can use it, there is never anything that costs the amount of the card so you have a amount remaining on it that you can never find something for that remaining cost, if I do buy something I almost always get something I don't want very much because I'm under stress to buy something before it expires and finally you can only spend it at the one place which is usually a department store were I don't shop normally. I know that it's the thought that counts but if people get you money or a gift card they haven't thought about it for very long.

[puzzlebox]

Originally Posted by Sausy Gibbon

I know that it's the thought that counts

I'm a strong believer in the notion it's the thought that counts, so often I just think about getting someone a present and then don't bother.