Receiving gifts is all fun and games until you get something you have absolutely no idea what to do with. You can’t return it, and your conscience might not let you give it away, so it ends up just sitting in a drawer in your room for years.
To do our part in tackling this problem this holiday season, we asked Malaysians what the worst gifts they ever received were. Keep reading if you want to know what NOT to do!
1. A broken heart
“I caught my ex cheating on me with his girl bestfriend. It was my birthday that day and I found out through someone else’s Instagram Story,” Han shared about her trashy ex.
2. A paper bag
Bim and his friends held a contest to see who can give the most useless gift. His best friend gave him a paper bag with a ring box containing a tiny gold keychain.
“I didn’t expect to find anything in the bag. My thought was, ‘I can’t believe my friend paid and wasted RM4.90 just to send me an empty paper bag.’”
3. A dead fish
For Priya, this worst gift may well also be her best story to tell at parties. “My primary school bestie gifted me a fish for my 7th birthday but it was floating in a transparent plastic bag when I received it,” she said.
The funniest part is that both Priya and her friend didn’t even know the fish was dead! “I took it home and my dad told me it was dead. Then I just started crying.”
4. Tobacco
“It was legit just tobacco and rolling paper“, said Dennis who got his present through a Secret Santa gift exchange.
“I got a cup, as I requested. So the tobacco and paper were something extra. But it also had a note that said something like tobacco is better than vape.” Dennis only vapes occasionally, but never smokes cigarettes.
5. A Pilates 101 book
Natalie got a Pilates 101 book from a classmate during a Secret Santa gift exchange in college. “I literally didn’t know how to react. He said something like ‘Because you teach Pilates’,” she said.
She was the unofficial instructor of the Pilates Club her friend founded in college.
6. Mouthwash
Every year, Teoh’s family would do a Christmas gift exchange and you’d have to get one good gift and one bad gift for your recipient.
“I got 2 bottles of mouthwash from my sister. It was both her good gift and bad gift,” said Teoh defeatedly.
7. Female socks
“I got a pair of Totoro socks from a colleague in my previous company. They didn’t know my gender, so they just assumed I was a girl.”
Nonetheless, the female socks fit Jon’s feet and he still wears it today.
8. Covid-19
This is one gift I never want to get at ANY time in my life. Unfortunately, Hany caught the Covid-19 virus for the 2nd time on her birthday this year.
“I was supposed to go out for dinner with my fiancé as was planned for my birthday. But I had to isolate myself and I just laid in bed all day.”
9. A self-help book
As a parting gift from his first job, Hanif received a self-help book.
“I think the person who gave me this gift is just out of touch. I have no intention of helping myself with anything.”
10. Empty boxes
In a gift exchange with his family, Sara received a box with more boxes in it.
Sadly, he became the victim of a prank that made him open box after box just to find a note that said, “Better luck next time”. My Christmas would’ve been ruined, for real.
11. Used UK8 men shoes
“This guy liked me and got jealous when he saw someone give me a gift for my birthday. He went and looked for a shoe box, put his own used UK8-size shoes in it and gave it to me,” Sophia said.
Have you had the misfortune of receiving a “bad” gift? Share your story with us!
Also read: 11 Christmas Gift Ideas for All the Things the People in Your Life are Obsessed With
