This was both an awful gift and a decent pick. ...
For years, I've been handing my favorite pair of pants to the somewhat welcoming arms of my grandma, ex-girlfriend and sister, who promised to sew the holes and perform transplant surgery. My ex sewed about an eight-inch hole on the butt right before college graduation, and my grandma used another pair of pants -- Salvation Army special -- and cut strips to patch my favorites.
Two years ago, though, they got pretty ragged. There were holes outside and in each front pocket, the bottoms were completely frayed, there were holes in the crotch, the rear -- not on the already-sewed part; she's good at it -- back pockets, thighs, etc. So they sat on grandma's sewing machine for about a year. She gave them to me last Festivus to give to the ex. She put them in her closet and thought about ditching them, but instead left them there until my sister asked for them. The exchange was filled with high hopes; sewing is her new hobby, and she's quite good, too. It'd been about six months since, and I really had forgotten about them. Until last night.
Everyone knew what I was getting except for me. I opened a couple books from my sister and brother-in-law, so I wasn't expecting anything else. But she brought over this pretty big box, and everyone watched as I slowly opened it. When I saw the insides, I almost cried -- and not in a good way. I saw one pocket, and then another. Out of the box, I pulled a blanket made from my cargo pants -- all six pockets and a bunch of the seems.
It really is nice. But I was a little heart-broken. It's a good way to remember them, I suppose. She could have thrown them out; they all could have and wanted to do so. My first girlfriend threw away a pair of pants she'd sewn repeatedly, and that was a big deal to me. (Not enough to get me to learn to sew, however.) My brother-in-law told me, "(My sister) wanted me to make the first cut, and I told her, 'I want nothing to do with that gift. You're on your own.'" I like him.