Ugly Santa is coming for you
I was at a Christmas party last night that included a gift exchange. It wasn't really a white elephant exchange; the gifts were mostly nice, useable things (a picture frame, a set of mixing bowls, a Starbucks mug, a bottle of wine, a gigantic chocolate bar, etc). This wasn't the "wrap a roll of duct tape and can of Spam" kind of gift exchange, although those are fun in their own way.1
I was the second one to pick a gift, and the one that I happened to open was a Lindt chocolate snowman (not bad) and the ugliest Santa candle I've ever seen... and I knew as soon as I opened it that I'd be taking the ugly Santa candle home. No one would want to steal that gift from me--and I was right. My fate was determined in the first round of gifts, and that's exactly what I ended up with.
It wasn't until afterwards that I discovered that my very own sister had brought that gift, regifting some items from a gift basket, and didn't even warn me when I was about to pick it up! I didn't get a well-timed cough or a glare or anything! She just let me unwrap to my ugly-Santa-candled doom.
So guess what she's getting in her stocking next Christmas?
However, there are two ways to win at a gift exchange. One is to take home the best present (or the one you want most). The second is to have brought the most sought after gift--the one that's stolen the most often, desired by most people, and causes most disappointment for the ones who don't get it. In that part of the game, I totally won.
I took a Starbucks travel mug (one of the ones with a coupon for a free drink) and a pound of coffee, and it flew back and forth across the room a number of times before finally ending up in Colin's mom's possession.
Also sweetening our overall win of the evening, Colin came away with a brie baker, which we'd actually been wanting to get anyway. I'd seen one a week or so ago, and contemplated buying it, but didn't, and we were actually looking at it again yesterday afternoon. When someone else opened it, I knew it was pointless for me to try and steal it, because no one was going to steal my crappy gift away from me, but Colin did some clever maneuvering and managed to end up with it, so bonus points for us there.
Still. Ugly Santa is totally going in Esther's stocking next Christmas.
1 I saw an article this Christmas with the best White Elephant gifts, and my favorite was to take an empty gift bag, and when you get to the party, take someone's purse from wherever people are storing their coats and put it in the gift bag. I have no idea where I saw that article, so if someone reading this entry linked to it, you get credit for this suggestion.
I was the second one to pick a gift, and the one that I happened to open was a Lindt chocolate snowman (not bad) and the ugliest Santa candle I've ever seen... and I knew as soon as I opened it that I'd be taking the ugly Santa candle home. No one would want to steal that gift from me--and I was right. My fate was determined in the first round of gifts, and that's exactly what I ended up with.
It wasn't until afterwards that I discovered that my very own sister had brought that gift, regifting some items from a gift basket, and didn't even warn me when I was about to pick it up! I didn't get a well-timed cough or a glare or anything! She just let me unwrap to my ugly-Santa-candled doom.
So guess what she's getting in her stocking next Christmas?
However, there are two ways to win at a gift exchange. One is to take home the best present (or the one you want most). The second is to have brought the most sought after gift--the one that's stolen the most often, desired by most people, and causes most disappointment for the ones who don't get it. In that part of the game, I totally won.
I took a Starbucks travel mug (one of the ones with a coupon for a free drink) and a pound of coffee, and it flew back and forth across the room a number of times before finally ending up in Colin's mom's possession.
Also sweetening our overall win of the evening, Colin came away with a brie baker, which we'd actually been wanting to get anyway. I'd seen one a week or so ago, and contemplated buying it, but didn't, and we were actually looking at it again yesterday afternoon. When someone else opened it, I knew it was pointless for me to try and steal it, because no one was going to steal my crappy gift away from me, but Colin did some clever maneuvering and managed to end up with it, so bonus points for us there.
Still. Ugly Santa is totally going in Esther's stocking next Christmas.
1 I saw an article this Christmas with the best White Elephant gifts, and my favorite was to take an empty gift bag, and when you get to the party, take someone's purse from wherever people are storing their coats and put it in the gift bag. I have no idea where I saw that article, so if someone reading this entry linked to it, you get credit for this suggestion.