Here are the rules (they way I learned them that night)... Everyone brings a crappy gift from home - or some junky thing that they bought for like 10-20bucks... wrap it and bring it.
You draw a number ... That is the order in which you will be able to go get a gift (different from the one you brought).
Number 1 goes... they pick a present out of the pile, and open it.
Number 2 goes ... they can either take the present away from number 1 or they can get a gift from the pile....
and so on and so forth.
Most people have rules about how many times a gift can change hands - 3 usually and most of the time it is a pretty harmless way to pass the time.
Unless that is... you are with a bunch of crazy drunk people... then it can be fun or really really annoying.
Like when one guy opens up his gift and its a huge bottle of Captain Morgan... the next guy steals it, opens it and drinks from it.... (hoping that it will deter anyone else from stealing it.) But then you get another guy who doesn't care (as his wife looks on in horror) and when his number is up, steals it and drinks from it anyway...
Or you get the lady who keeps trying to get her hands on the "Girls Gone Wild" DVD ... for her 'husband'... at least that is what she kept saying.
I am sure there are many people who play this game who keep things fun silly and civil.... but the game allows people to be greedy and selfish and rude... Remember the Office episode where every ones feels got hurt because no one wanted their present?
This game has many names, all of which are meant to reflect the mean spirited nature of it. Yankee Swap (which I personally find ridiculous), Barona Gift Exchange, Thieving Secret Santa, Selfish Santa, Nasty Christmas, Dirty Santa, Scrooge's Christmas, Rob Your Neighbor, Thieving Elves, Pirate Bingo or Chinese Gift Exchange....
My challenge was to find out whether or not the Chinese actually participated in these types of gift giving scenarios...
I wonder what was/is so horrible about the Chinese that some one named this game after them? And I wonder why the term is still used.
1 comment:
1 - the bottle in question was Crown Royal. And it was "Captain Dan" that brazenly snatched the now open and sampled whiskey bottle. He very shrewdly lapped his tongue both in to and around the rim of the bottle's orifice. No one may dare deny the utter finality of this genius!
2 - The people of China and those individuals around the globe that count themselves of Chinese extraction ought to be spared our occidental dersisions. What a horrible bunch of biggots we are! Shameful!
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