Sometimes the thought just doesn’t count enough: Students remember their worst gifts
A teddy bear would not usually make someone’s list of “worst gifts”, but Joelynn Stephen, the associate director of the Center of Career Management, has a good reason for including it in hers.
To cope with this year’s unique holiday season, it might be useful to keep reminding yourself that “it’s the thought that counts” — no matter how weird the gift is.
And remember, this year’s COVID holidays have not affected the market on quirky gifts.
“I gave a high school boyfriend a giant bear that I bought for Valentine’s Day [and] I noticed after I bought it that it had a little hole under the armpit,” said Joelynn Stephen, the associate director of the Center of Career Management.
“Guess what gift I got re-gifted for Valentine’s Day? The same bear,” she said.
“He told me he had bought the same one, which I thought wasn’t true in the first place, but I tried my best to believe him,” Stephen said. “But then I found the same little hole under the armpit and knew he re-gifted it.”
A 2019 survey of 2,270 American adults found that more than 60% report getting gifts they do not like. A report on a survey conducted by finder.com estimates that Americans waste $15.2 billion on unwanted gifts. About 23% of respondents said friends give them the worst gifts.
Bad gifts can result in serious repercussions.
“On my 17th birthday I got a fruit basket from my boyfriend,” said Erica Felix, sophomore nursing major. “I mean, who wants a fruit basket?
“To make it worse the fruit was frozen, and it had a whole pineapple, pear and bananas in it,” she said. “He broke up with me the next day.”
Stephen and Felix are not alone. Other people from the PNW community have received gifts that continue to haunt them.
Senior political science major, Viviana Plaza remembers one vividly.
“In middle school I received a gift by my aunt who is a nurse,” Plaza said. “[It was] a book on puberty and what to expect.
“The book was an encyclopedia for teens on what it means to go through puberty, with very colorful pictures,” she said. “It’s a cringey gift, but that’s what I always think of when someone says, ‘bad Christmas gift’.”
For Alex Bishop, junior marketing major, the gift he remembers wasn’t so bad, just defective.
“In high school my grandma got me an alarm clock,” said Bishop. “When I went to use it, the clock didn’t work, and I was late for school.”
If it’s the thought that counts, then givers can be confident these students will never forget their gifts.
