Socks for Christmas - Don't do it

Nothing disappoints like unwrapping a bundle of socks for a Christmas or birthday present. If the only other option you have for a gift is a hug and kind words, go with that. If you give socks, expect the reaction to look like this:

This reaction will also precede an Alllen Iverson type rant: "Socks?!?! Socks!! I was born on this date and I get socks! Not even ankles socks, which I prefer, but tube socks?!?! Phack mein! I got socks. You know what Hassan got? A car! I get socks. Not even Hanes socks, these are the socks you get from the callejones in Downtown L.A.!! I'm talking about Socks..."

My mother raised me as a single mother for many years. I know we didn't have much money for gifts and celebrations, but socks? I would have been satisfied with a burrito from Marielas. I'm Honduran, but I don't even play soccer. Why do I need these socks? Sometimes it was socks and more, but some years it was just socks. One of the most depressing childhood memories is unwrapping what I believed was a shoe box containing a new pair of shoes. Why would I think anything to the contrary? As I began unwrapping the gift, my mother calmly (cough, cough) reminds me to be careful so she can reuse the wrapper, "Si rompes el papel te quito el regalo". I noticed this was one of my old shoe boxes and thought she got the shoes downtown or something. That's cool, I don't mind shoes from downtown. I was so surprised I even folded the wrapping paper back up for her. I removed the top portion of the box and there they were; a bundle of tube socks.

Not even a bag of tube socks like Kmart sells, just a bunch of socks bundled together by a string. I should have torn the wrapping paper.

Life is funny though. This year my father offered me a "professional style" camera, I requested socks instead. I don't want to walk around with a big bulky camera, and I need socks.