The re-purposed & bizarre gifts

Some families have one oddball. But in my family we are basically all odd. One of the things my relatives are worst at is selecting appropriate gifts for my brother and I. Christmas and birthdays can be incredibly amusing.

Here are the top 10 re-purposed gifts that my brother and I have received:

1. Expired Manchester United beer, wrapped in an old newspaper

Recipient: My younger brother

Brother's age at the time: 8

2. Video cassette tapes of Crimewatch episodes, in cardboard sleeves

Recipient: Me

Age: 10

3. Doomsday book, second hand with another person's inscription and a £1 price sticker

Recipient: Me

Age: 13

4. Dried seahorse inside triangular amber pendant, on leather necklace

Recipient: Me

Age: 15

5: Half a leather Rolex watch strap, with the promise of the second half on my 18th birthday

Recipient: Me

Age: 16

6: An old-style aerial for a 1960's TV, which we didn't own

Recipient: My brother
Age: 11

7. Used cricket trousers with green stains on the knees
Recipient: We're not sure, they were put under the Christmas tree in an unmarked bin bag.

8: Velvet photo frame with clock in one side and picture of relative in the other
Recipient: Me

Age: 18

9: China egg that opened to reveal a jewel-encrusted flower, which turned to an eerie song 

Recipient: Me

Age: 18

10: The other half of the Rolex watch strap
Recipient: Me

Age: 18

And the moral of the story is - be grateful that your family give better gifts than mine.