[QUOTE=Mozart;4561465]
I am feeling confessional so I will post about a Christmas gift that I gave that was pretty dismal.
Shortly after I got my first horse that I actually owned (as an adult) I thought my vet would love nothing better for Christmas than a coffee mug with a picture of my horse on it. I loved this horse so naturally my vet would like nothing better than looking at him as he had his morning coffee right? Yes, I was delusional.
The horse was wearing a blanket with a banner safety pinned to it that read “Merry Cristmas”. Yes, I had misspelled Christmas. Didn’t notice when I made the poster. Didn’t notice when I took the picture or when I took it to the photo shop to order the mug. Not when I picked it up. Not when I wrapped it. I did not notice until months later when I was actually at my vet’s house and was served coffee. In my horse’s cup. That said “Merry Cristmas”. :o
Bless his heart for not immediately throwing it away …[/QUOTE]
:lol: Trying very hard not to LOL at work…faked a cough as I ALMOST laughed…
Thanks so much!
[QUOTE=Lazy Palomino Hunter;4561627]
Not a “bad gift” per se, but… my father got me a book about horse breeds for Every. Single. Gift. Occasion. for the first, ohhhh, 17 years of my life or so.
As you can imagine, it was very exciting when I was little, but became progressively less exciting as time passed. Ultimately I had to explain to him that although I love horses, there is a limited use for 40 million different books about horse breeds.
The books were all very well intentioned gifts, though! :lol:[/QUOTE]
Not sure how old you are …but some of those books could be worth their weight in gold. I want a ‘horse book’…well it is more of an art book - but an artist who specifically gained fame for painting horses that ceased publication in the 1980’s and the cheapest I have found it has been $165.00…sadly out of my budget for a book!
The first christmas after my uncle divorced my aunt everyone (and I do mean everyone!) got a Fort Lewis College sweatshirt in a different style but…the same sizes! In total I think there were 7 sweatshirts opened that day. There was my 16 year old sister (really a size S) all the way up to my other uncle and grandfather (sizes xl) all with size M Fort Lewis College sweatshirts. I have three for riding and barn work now!
I got one of those 3’ tall leather funky shaped horses, normally would have freaked me out…but my grandpa bought it himself for me. This was the only present he has ever bought (aka shopped for, had to have, and dragged my grandmother out of another store just to see what he found for me) for anyone his entire life…and it was for me. So he stands proudly in my living room and brings a smile to my face everytime I notice it.
It was a wedding gift and not Xmas, and to some it will sound hokey & ugly…but it is a brass horse figurine, complete with molded-on brass Western saddle & standing over a clock.
It came from a dear friend I volunteer with and we loved it.
Funny thing is whenever my power browns out, if it comes back on in less than a 1/2 hour, somehow the (electric) clock has not lost time.
Not a minute.
{cue Twilight Zone music}
Hey, now. Some of us (who ride hunters and jumpers) would take that sticker as a compliment! Cowgirl is a quality of the spirit!
[QUOTE=Krallen;2886224]
My dad gave me this LARGE decal made to put on a vehicle that said “100% cowgirl”. I had bought a new pickup a few months prior to Christmas and I ride, so therefore I must be a cowgirl…!!! Nevermind that I ride jumpers and dressage, and breed warmbloods.
FOr those who like questionable (i.e. messy, staining) gifts for nieces and nephews, the Cootie game is a classic!
I may have posted this in years past, but it’s still a horror.
My biological father, who has never made an effort to know me or even pay child support :rolleyes:, actually took the time to send me something one year. It was an XL (wtf, I was like 11!) t-shirt with cowboy boots and a lasso or lariat or whatever rope coiled around the boots, and the words “I LOVE COUNTRY MUSIC!”
I ride English. I listen to classic rock, modern rock, oldies. Erm?? Horrid thing, couldn’t even keep it as a night shirt.
ALso, had a girlfriend in college who’s soon-to-be-and-maybe-still-is-cousin-law (or something, it was one of those weird redneck families where everyone’s kids just moved from family home to family home) gave me a “horse” figurine. Looked like a cow. Ears came out the side of the head, it was laying down, was brown. Horsey-hooves and a long tail. The rest was distinctly cow-ish. I used it as a door stopper until my connection with that family was over, and then hucked it into the trash.
I’m being haunted by one of these. 10 years ago I married and my sister’s parents (convoluted, would take another few paragraphs to explain) enthusiastically mazel tov’ed us (we’re not jewish but they are) from afar and the mother happily told me over the phone they had the most wonderful gift for us and she’d be sending it via mail. Weeks turned into months turned into a couple years and I finally got down to their house in Florida. The mother happily told me I’d finally get to see the present they got us for our wedding. Sadly it’s in the box that never made it to the post office, but right after I left they’d send it to me asap.
Curious, I walked into the house and she ran to fetch this mystery gift that I’d heard about over the years. I do not know how I swallowed my gasp over the leather covered mouth gaping eye bulging teeth barred rearing evil creature that stared me down from the cardboard box, but I did. I always thought she liked me and my husband, but this thing was evidently an evil spirit in earthly form. What a wedding gift! I said my thanks and never mentioned the demon the rest of the visit. Evil Spirit Stallion never made it to the post office post visit either.
A couple more weeks months years and I visit again. The mother gives me lots of appologies for forgetting to send Evil Spirit Stallion to me after the last visit. In fact, she has a great idea; how about I take ESS to the post office myself? :eek: So I’m driving the rental car with ESS sitting in his cardboard prison in the back seat and I’m seriously considering leaving him as a present somewhere. But I figured even Goodwill would turn him down on principle (Goodwill, bad omen, ya know?). So I go to the post office with it. Holding the pen for the addressing the label, I sadly can’t think of anyone off the top of my head I don’t like enough to send this cursed creature to. So I actually paid money to send ESS to myself. When the counter clerk asked about insurance, I swear my laugh sounded slighly derranged.
Arriving back home, ESS was waiting at my post office box. I brought him home, and my husband cringed with me. It was truly as evil as I had described. Fortunately, ESS was “misplaced” somewhere during our last move. I hope he’s haunting somewhere far from here.
If anyone needs a really good “worst” gift–I saw a doozy yesterday. A 12" stuffed rat (or some sort of rodent) that sings…of all things…rap Christmas carols. It sings so loud it had me running down the aisle, with everyone staring. Get thee to a CVS for this doozy.
Some of the worst gifts are some of the best! I got one from my co-worker. She had just come back from vacation, and was telling me how she saw some horses in a field…ok…she hands me this framed picture of an very fat appy (not a fan of appys…) with it’s eyes closed and some power lines in the backround. She was so proud of herself, and it was so thoughtful, and it’s one of my favorite presents in a long time. It sits on a shelf and I love it!
I’ve got some…My dad really sucks at buying me presents. If it’s not cash, he doesn’t get it right. I tell him I need some new stirrup leathers, tell him which ones that I want, and he goes to the local tack shack and gets me the cheapest ones he can find which stretch to three times their original length. Or how about the fact that he won’t write down what size I am. He got me some pull on schooling tights that gave me camel toe so bad I couldn’t wear them to the barn without scarring the kids for life. Or what about when I was 12 or 13 I wanted a nice sweatshirt that had a logo embroidered on it. well I guess I got what I asked for, it was a USED sweatshirt that was embroidered with the original 90210 logo on (3-4 years after it went off the air) that was apromotional item from AT&T. Thanks. Oh and this last summer he brought my SO and I camo baseball caps from a flea market that he went to. I know it’s the thought that counts, but maybe they could either think more, or less. I agonize over buying them things that they (my dad and step mom) will like and use. Ah, well I’m just gonna stop here before I REALLY come off as a spoiled brat. (I know, too late)
I used to get these god-awful sweaters made for me every year. Every year they would be knitted with a very scary horse head (often western, but I’ve been an English rider my whole life) with my name on it…spelled wrong. Every year…from my family…my name (which is unique, but very easy to spell), spelled wrong.
Needless to say they were totally useless gifts.
This year though, my darling husband thought that “we weren’t exchanging gifts”. So…I’d have to say this year’s gift is the worst (though I’m making up for it by buying two saddlepads the other day from TOTD and a new blanket for the Gray Pony) sigh How romantic.
[QUOTE=OneGrayPony;4573334]
I used to get these god-awful sweaters made for me every year. Every year they would be knitted with a very scary horse head (often western, but I’ve been an English rider my whole life) with my name on it…spelled wrong. Every year…from my family…my name (which is unique, but very easy to spell), spelled wrong.[/QUOTE]
LOL… my mother called me last week to tell me that she can’t find my Amazon wish list. I told her, well, it’s under my name; type it in again. She insists that no, it’s not coming up. I listen to her typing for a second and then quietly say, “It’s Sarah, with an ‘h.’”
“I know how to spell your name.”
(Silence/typing.)
“Well, now it’s coming up. But it wasn’t coming up before.” (Click.)
