My sister gave my twin brother and I Weird Al Yankovich albums for Xmas one year (yes, they were vinyl). I hated him (Weird Al) at the time but I feel he is a pop culture pundit! Anyway, my brother and I had to laugh about it.
Wedding gift (30 years ago) from my soon to be mother in law was a well used Oster blender from a garage sale with the masking tape price tag of $5.00 on it.....
I tend to just feel really happy when someone goes out of their way to give me something, but there are two exceptions I can think of.
1. When a cash gift or other gift is given with obvious strings attached (ie. I am giving you this so you *need* to do this for me...).
2. When someone knows I am not interested in something, but tries to change my opinion through 'gifts' (ie. An aunt hearing you don't want to have a baby, but buys you baby clothes all the time).
My husband and I aren't big on consumerism, materialism, or gift-giving culture. If someone gives a gift, we'd prefer it be because they genuinely wanted to do something to make the person they are gifting happy. We have let family and friends know that we do not expect or need any gifts, and to never stress about it. We don't even give each other gifts during Christmas and other holidays every year, and instead choose to use that money to travel together or to buy a pet we both want, etc. We've had so many fun Christmas road trips, where we are some of the only people on the road.
I know I always prefer little cheap, fun, spontaneous gifts from my husband. Things that don't fall on obligatory holidays, but "just because I was thinking of you today" gifts. He seems to love them in return, like buying cheap kites and going out and flying them. There are several holidays that we feel are too constructed to want to celebrate ourselves, such as Valentine's Day. Poor husband always gets a hard time on why he didn't buy his wife any flowers, and even if I try to explain that I don't want anything on V-day....it does not compute with many. XD Interestingly, no one has ever gotten on my case for not buying the guy in the relationship anything. Poor husband always gets the hen pecking on that day...and it isn't even from me!!
But yeah, if you are giving me a gift because you want to, I don't care if it is broken macaroni art or a sock that seems to have lost its mate...you've just made my day. Even better if it is home made or something the person obviously put some thought into to match the gift with the receiver. The people I tend to give gifts to the most are friends. And the people who are my friends aren't the kind who check price tags or who scoff at a home-made gift, so we seem to usually be on the same page. I've tossed out or rehomed some gifts, and I suspect people I've given gifts too have as well, but the warm feeling that someone wanted to brighten up my day does not leave along with it.
My grandmother one year put a bar of soap in my stocking with a note attached that said i needed to "clean up my act". Another year, for my birthday, she gave me dead irises. My brother had chopped them down, and she just swore i did it, so she gave them to me as my gift.
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I wonder if the iron and ironing board was a gift to him and he graciously regifted to you?
. Oh, I would be furious! I hate to iron, I'd rather wear my clothes wrinkled then to iron them. I tried ironing hubby's work shirts, but it didn't work out.
