Now that it is December and Christmas time has arrived, tell us what was the best Christmas gift you ever received. Feel free to throw in a 2nd and 3rd place contender too if you are so inclined.
For me it was many years ago when I still had to work all the holidays. I was alone with everyone (friend and family) away celebrating Christmas, including my new bride who was at her parents two states over. I worked 3 straight shifts, got one day off (12/25), then had to work straight through New Years Eve. I was all set to spend Christmas Day at home all alone eating a Swanson TV dinner and watching National Lampoons Christmas Vacation when I got an unexpected text to meet my wife at the airport in 3 hours. She decided that there was no way she was not going to spend her first Christmas as a married woman without her husband and booked a flight home. It was a comedy of errs trying to get her home in a snow storm with delayed flights and the like, but she eventually made it and we had a very nice evening together. We have never been apart for Christmas since.
Otherwise it would be the Atari 2600 I got as a kid from my parents. They had fully convinced me it was not going to happen and that I was getting more practical stuff instead. After opening all the practical gifts, saying my thank yous, and believing Christmas was over; I went to the basement to find the game console all hooked up to our old TV with a bow on it. I think I was perhaps 9 years old.
For me it was many years ago when I still had to work all the holidays. I was alone with everyone (friend and family) away celebrating Christmas, including my new bride who was at her parents two states over. I worked 3 straight shifts, got one day off (12/25), then had to work straight through New Years Eve. I was all set to spend Christmas Day at home all alone eating a Swanson TV dinner and watching National Lampoons Christmas Vacation when I got an unexpected text to meet my wife at the airport in 3 hours. She decided that there was no way she was not going to spend her first Christmas as a married woman without her husband and booked a flight home. It was a comedy of errs trying to get her home in a snow storm with delayed flights and the like, but she eventually made it and we had a very nice evening together. We have never been apart for Christmas since.
Otherwise it would be the Atari 2600 I got as a kid from my parents. They had fully convinced me it was not going to happen and that I was getting more practical stuff instead. After opening all the practical gifts, saying my thank yous, and believing Christmas was over; I went to the basement to find the game console all hooked up to our old TV with a bow on it. I think I was perhaps 9 years old.