but, there is a certain type of surprise, that may always be problematic for me, of the hoilday sort.
examples:
sixth grade: final two presents left. me and classmate must choose. i got to go first, i pick the bigger box, and simply for that fact. i got puzzle. she got a gift certificate to super-fabulous claire's accessories. just as i was discovering tacky late-90s jewelry. i was angry. stupid puzzle. (note: i would love a puzzle now)
eighth grade: spanish class secret santa. my santa secreto left my present at her casa. received two weeks later after winter vacation. christmas themed lip glosses. after christmas. of course, i was no longer in the spirit.
ninth grade cheerleading secret santa: "i accidentally left your present at home." surprise never received.
but these instances don't even compare to the frustration felt at my dad's dental office's holiday party '08.
emily was staying with me in connecticut at the time and i convinced her to go to the holiday office party. just a luncheon. no big deal. but there was going to be a grab bag.
sixth grade: final two presents left. me and classmate must choose. i got to go first, i pick the bigger box, and simply for that fact. i got puzzle. she got a gift certificate to super-fabulous claire's accessories. just as i was discovering tacky late-90s jewelry. i was angry. stupid puzzle. (note: i would love a puzzle now)
eighth grade: spanish class secret santa. my santa secreto left my present at her casa. received two weeks later after winter vacation. christmas themed lip glosses. after christmas. of course, i was no longer in the spirit.
ninth grade cheerleading secret santa: "i accidentally left your present at home." surprise never received.
but these instances don't even compare to the frustration felt at my dad's dental office's holiday party '08.
emily was staying with me in connecticut at the time and i convinced her to go to the holiday office party. just a luncheon. no big deal. but there was going to be a grab bag.
now i must say, emily has had awful grab bag experiences, as well. she had to participate in two grab bags our senior year, leaving our house with nice, thoughtful gifts. what she had received was less than desired. for the first exchange, she came home with two packs of axe body spray playing cards. the next time didn't go much better, she received a paper bag filled with magic hat bottle caps and a single peacock feather.
yikes.
so off shopping we went! we purchased wonderfully generic gifts, and thought, if it comes down to it, we would take our own presents if they were not chosen at that point. we may both have had awful experiences in the past when it came to this holiday tradition, but this year, we had a plan.
we came home and had shown my parents what we were going to be giving. great. my mom had also bought gifts for this. she showed them to us and then we all wrapped them up together. perfect. i am really excited at this point to get my surprise tomorrow at the holiday lunch.
holiday lunch 2008: it's time. i start getting anxious. i step up to the gift table. i have five presents left to choose from. it is obvious that three are bottles of wine. one is emily's gift but i wanted the mystery. i was really excited for this surprise. i quickly grabbed the fifth present. and as i opened up my gift, i realized that i had taken the present my mom had contributed. agghhh. emily laughed at me and thought that i had known the whole time. in reality, i was too flustered to make the connection that this is what we had wrapped the night before. i was under too much pressure! it was too much to process! my mom gave a wonderful tea set that i would have been happy with in any other situation. very thoughtfully, emily traded with me. but it wasn't about the gift, it was all about the surprise.
and there you have it.
lindsey adams is good at many things, but one is not the grab bag.
so off shopping we went! we purchased wonderfully generic gifts, and thought, if it comes down to it, we would take our own presents if they were not chosen at that point. we may both have had awful experiences in the past when it came to this holiday tradition, but this year, we had a plan.
we came home and had shown my parents what we were going to be giving. great. my mom had also bought gifts for this. she showed them to us and then we all wrapped them up together. perfect. i am really excited at this point to get my surprise tomorrow at the holiday lunch.
holiday lunch 2008: it's time. i start getting anxious. i step up to the gift table. i have five presents left to choose from. it is obvious that three are bottles of wine. one is emily's gift but i wanted the mystery. i was really excited for this surprise. i quickly grabbed the fifth present. and as i opened up my gift, i realized that i had taken the present my mom had contributed. agghhh. emily laughed at me and thought that i had known the whole time. in reality, i was too flustered to make the connection that this is what we had wrapped the night before. i was under too much pressure! it was too much to process! my mom gave a wonderful tea set that i would have been happy with in any other situation. very thoughtfully, emily traded with me. but it wasn't about the gift, it was all about the surprise.
and there you have it.
lindsey adams is good at many things, but one is not the grab bag.
