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Have we done this and I missed it?
I was talking with the neighbour earlier whilst out in the corner shop. She was fussing with scratchcards, I asked "oh, have you won?"
"Won? WON?!" she exclaims. Turns out, one of her presents this year was scratchcards. Two carrier bags full of them.
I've clearly touched a nerve and she continues. She also got tea bags. Ten THOUSAND tea bags. She must be pushing 70 years old, they'll outlast her son.
Two carrier bags of scratch-cards!? Sounds like she'll win a trip down the nick when they run the serial numbers.
I've no idea. Both seemed dodge city to me, but she said the tea (at least) came from Amazon.
I had a Toblerone this year, that was it.
Me and the wife haven't done presents each other for years due to lack of funds, kids are 13 and 15 now, told them they really should be thinking about other people now, little gits.
I love toblerone though, so it's all good
Got some socks off mrs g she must have miss heard me😉 socks were the ones I didn’t open last year apparently I have a feeling they will come out again next year too 🤣
I got some socks.from the MIL, but she also bought me.some.whisky and a tent for bikepacking...so I'm not complaining 👍
The wife gave me one of these for when I go through the airport, so I don't have to carry my drink.
I travel by air once or twice a year.
Yeah, but when you do, that thing is in no way going to interfere with stowing luggage or moving up and down stairs…
I had a Toblerone this year, that was it<br /><br />
That’s one more present than me.
Unless you count the phone call from the garage yesterday… new turbo, engine and dpf required.
All decent. Sorry.
A waterproof saddle cover from the in-laws. Wide enough to fit an armchair. Last year it was a waterproof bike-helmet cover. Both remain unopened and are now in the village raffle donations box.
Oh, and a big shed sign to hang on the door advertising the fact that there are bikes in there. Because I pedal occasionally marketeers think that anything with a bike image on it will do. Previously it was a 'bike maintenance' tin that actually contained hand cream. Still, I'm blessed to have family who care, so it's all good and I'll stop being so whingey (new year resolution)
Radiotherapy was my boxing day gift
We long since established that I buy myself the presents I want. So DJI mini pro 3, new kayak and an IOU for a 2 day mountaineering course. And a pair of socks from my son.
Got great presents. Canoe dry trousers, tickets for Jonathan Pie, new air mattress for Canada trip next year.
Asked for 4 things. Got 3, plus a plastic soup cup thing. Which will never be used. Plus a carrier bag stuffed full of 'healthy' snacks. Which are all crisps. Better than last year when I was gifted chocolate, port, red wine and caramel-mixed-nuts.
I'm pre-diabetic and have high cholesterol. MIL is obviously trying to tell me something.
Do alright again. I only ever ask for one main thing from the Mrs, after that I’m not fussed. Of course I got some socks but they’re useful and means I don’t need to buy them.
A pint sized mug for tea from number one daughter and bivvy snacks from her sister. Both done good.
A woman's t-shirt three sizes too big from my mum. Actually, I'm wondering if that was meant for her now.
Got mainly decent stuff. We neither ask for nor give much these days. Did get some chopsticks which seemed fairly random?!
jam-bo
We long since established that I buy myself the presents I want. So DJI mini pro 3
Same here (others did make contributions though). First world crap present though as it doesn't work - won't activate via the app or responds to any controls/commands other than moving the gimbal around a bit. Two hours live chatting to DJI support didn't get anywhere so they suggested returning to seller for replacement. Amazon wont replace directly so have had to return for refund and order another one.
Not really whinging as realise I'm very lucky right now to be able to have such toys.
Other pressies were decent (t-shirts and Lego) so all good.
I also got a Toblerone, all 4.5KG of it!
Amazon sent the wrong item and wouldn't accept a return as it's food, it's free, bloody huge and I feel like one of the borrowers sitting next to it.
It's BBE of June so I have 6 months to finish it, bring it on!
A ‘Chapeau’ road jersey in large. Got it out the bag and I’m wondering whether I need XXL or XXXL. Annoying. I don’t really do posh cycling gear, I wear it until it’s see through, luckily for the others I’m generally at the back.
I had a Toblerone this year, that was it.<br /><br />
we’ve got my brother in law and his 7 year old daughter staying with us. As he was unwrapping his present from her she announced it was a Toblerone but not a complete one. She had eaten all but the last little triangle and then wrapped up the entire packet for him.
I saw one of those 4.5kg Toblerone’s in the petrol station the other day. It’s f-ing enormous! I’m thinking there’s going to be a fair few emergency dental appointments if people keep them in the fridge.
My daughter thoughtfully bought Mrs P a bracelet which comes with the ability to track a tagged giraffe. Thing is, it looks like Bilal has been dead on a rock for the last five days. I joked maybe he's hibernating - she mentioned later that she'd looked it up and giraffes don't hibernate.
Cheap bicycle pizza cutter anyone?
Was a joke re-gift from a friend. he's been given several in the past. I think it's my second or third.
Saved by the pizza axe though.
My daughter thoughtfully bought Mrs P a bracelet which comes with the ability to track a tagged giraffe
Fahlo? The boy got one of those last year for Timmy the Turtle. Timmy had stopped moving two months before Christmas. I think the excuse they use is sometimes the trackers fall off or run out of battery, in which case you've got a bracelet out of it.
He got another one this year. Esperanza the Turtle hasn't moved since 9th December. He got a bracelet though.
I only ever ask for one main thing from the Mrs
Me too but she's been very tired recently...
As an adult if I need anything I can purchase it myself .
Christmas is for children and the idea of exchanging gifts with other adults on a day I believe is for children is just not something that interests me .
I find the whole just buying some random #### for uncle #### head just unnecessary landfil
The sooner we get back the old values of what is actually important at Christmas instead of trying to make your own house represent a m&s advert the better .
I wasn't expecting much as most of the adults agreed not to do presents this year, but I received some fantastic surprise gifts:
- Gregg's gift card (work secret Santa)
- Aeropress coffee maker (asked wife for this)
- Bike Park Wales voucher (surprise gift from wife)
- Whiskey (surprise gift from mate)
And the boxing day trip to the in-laws was cancelled as my wife was ill, so I got to spend the day playing Lego with my son instead.
Jesus, SIL and daughter both received one of those bracelets, giraffe and turtle respectively. Thankfully both have been mooching about quite happily as far as we can tell...
Not this year, but one year the father in law gave me an incomplete magic set, missing instructions amongst other bits.
He proudly told us the local tip has started a shop and he picked the set up for a quid.
Nothing crap this year but my folks got me a pint tea mug. It cracked on first addition of hot water. The shop gladly replaced it. My wife then broke it washing up so went out to the shop and bought me a replacement, 3rd time lucky?
Jesus, SIL and daughter
What did he get? Donkey?
Thankfully both have been mooching about quite happily
SIL and daughter?
I ballsed up my own gift. Wanted a set of mudguards for my gravel bike, MIL said it'd be easier for me to get them and she'll pay. Perfect.
Except I got ones with plenty of clearance that are too wide for the frame. I've quietly just ordered a new set because the packaging got damaged so can't return them.
(If anyone wants a set of unused 56mm SKS Aluminium mudguards at a good price, PM me. 🙄)
Hubby and I both got each other books (some from charity shop). Also other gifts were all really usable (no tat). One year my brother bought us all a goat each, for some African families, best pressies ever.
What did he get? Donkey?
I get a donkey every year from the MIL.
https://www.thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk/adopt/timothy
So much better than any crappy tat.
Nothing bad this year surprisingly. SIL usually gifts rubbish (a small jar of mango hot sauce last year, totally random).
My mum did split a pack of four pairs of socks between me and my son though.
Nothing crap this year but my folks got me a pint tea mug. It cracked on first addition of hot water. The shop gladly replaced it. My wife then broke it washing up so went out to the shop and bought me a replacement, 3rd time lucky?
I'd be careful.
A few years back, my then-employer got a load of branded mugs as part of a rebrand. Easily half of them exploded on first use, one woman got quite badly scalded. they were either a bad batch or (likely TBH) the cheapest crap they could buy in.
Got mostly good stuff, including socks (which I asked for - shoot me now)!
One present was thankfully absent this year. The kind of gift people buy you because they know you ride a bicycle. A tool kit in a twee little tin from one of those high street gift/tat shops. With a pedal spanner made of cheese that only fits a 1950s cast iron shopping bike. Or a cringey t-shirt/mug with a 'mud, sweat and gears' caption etc.
I once received a bottle of aftershave - I've had a beard all my adult life, possibly had it since birth but can't quite remember 67 years back 😅
The sooner we get back the old values of what is actually important at Christmas instead of trying to make your own house represent a m&s advert the better .
Yes, we've given up on presents and just concentrate on the important stuff - like eating and drinking too much.
Books. I don’t read them, but I feel guilty about getting rid of them unread. An obligation, even the most minor of obligations, is the worst kind of present.
I once received a bottle of aftershave – I’ve had a beard all my adult life
Maybe it was a hint 😉
The sooner we get back the old values of what is actually important at Christmas
.... like Noel Edmunds. Back on our tellies. I mean - his name is 'Noel' for godsakes.
I once received a bottle of aftershave – I’ve had a beard all my adult life
No reason why you can't still use it as 'cologne'.
The sooner we get back the old values of what is actually important at Christmas
Which is...?
Which is…?
Jesus Christ... do I really need to spell it out? 😉
... which is why I asked. When I hear "values" being championed I'm put in mind of David Cameron, corporate ****speak, and racists.
Christmas is very definitely over-commercialised and we're conditioned into an arms race as to who can give the best presents or, as per this thread, the opposite. But to mind what it's really about these days is catching up with friends and family.
Sure, that might not be the "true meaning of Christmas," but the number of people who are actually celebrating the birth of the baby cheeses are surely a minority in the UK. Same with Easter, bonfire night etc.
The sooner we get back the old values of what is actually important at Christmas instead of trying to make your own house represent a m&s advert the better .
If it doesn't involve spending loads of money at John Lewis, and drinking copious amounts of coca-cola, and snow in Africa, do you even know it's christmas time, at all?
The sooner we get back the old values of what is actually important at Christmas
Holy war?
Back to the op question. A concrete 3d plus sign zis the best way I can describe it, like 7 2" square cubes stuck together.... I have no idea wtf it even is. From my wife's uncle who could just have not bought us a present as we really don't need one.
I saw one of those 4.5kg Toblerone’s in the petrol station the other day. It’s f-ing enormous! I’m thinking there’s going to be a fair few emergency dental appointments if people keep them in the fridge.
Am I the only one that thinks these would make the perfect murder weapon. Freeze it, bludgeon and then eat the evidence!
IIRC frozen leg of lamb is the traditional weapon for that one.
BIL got us all some posh fortnum and mason chocolate biscuits that were really really hard, completely inedible for his 93-yo father. Shocking really considering the likely clientele for that sort of thing. It was a challenge breaking them into suckable pieces.
Perhaps it was slightly down to the temperature as we’d just transported them by car. At room temp and with some advance warning they were just about manageable for good teeth.
Sure, that might not be the “true meaning of Christmas,” but the number of people who are actually celebrating the birth of the baby cheeses are surely a minority in the UK. Same with Easter, bonfire night etc.
It's because we're all doing it right. Christmas is (like Easter) a hijack of pagan festivals, probably making up a Christian 'event' in order to maintain the celebration but with a new reason so as to not upset the locals.
The pagan festivals were just celebrations of stuff for the sake of it. Wishing for a good following year/gathering with family etc. so at least most people are doing it right.
Future member incoming - nearly as good as it's a ****ing Goat!
https://youtube.com/shorts/dWXkJEDijr4?si=NcZQHKWYRV2hVIA-
My wife and I don’t usually gift each other anything, but we agreed to get something just to demonstrate a bit of gift giving to the kids. So I got whatever was in my wiggle fire sale basket at the time -
a bench top work stand - and she got the £9.99 running jacket to make up the postage 🙂
Maybe it was a hint 😉
It didnae work!
No reason why you can’t still use it as ‘cologne’.
It was in the late seventies when I had hair down to my waist and ran around on a Z1000, at that time the perfume of choice was more likely to be Castrol R, 2 stroke, burnt Ferodo or Newky Brown (amongst other things)
I literally received some shit.... 20g of squidgy black and 30g of some lighter stuff. Less of a Christmas present and more of a thank you.
On top of that the GF got me a tube of 554 Sikaflex. A leak* appeared in the skylight above the bed in the van. Spent the 24th cutting out the skylight, cleaning off the old Sikaflex from both the van and the skylight only to stick it back down a few hours later.
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* Sikaflex obviously doesn't like Hammerite. Or rather Sikaflex bonds better to Hammerite than Hammerite bonds to the original paint.