White Elephant

Yesterday’s bingo turned into another food fest for the seniors.

Instead of five games, a snack break, five more games, it was ten games straight through followed by turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, pies, cakes.

I’m assuming either Red Light or The Baker cooked the turkey and stuffing, pies were store bought and it’s possible The Baker made the cakes.

I didn’t stick around to find out who cooked what because 1) I couldn’t eat anything anyway and 2) these back-to-back-to-back-to-back parties are a bit exhausting — too much of a good thing as I said a few posts ago. So, as soon as they started serving, I snuck out.

I didn’t win any games, but the glass oil pourer I’ve been eyeing on the prize table for a month and a half hasn’t been picked by anyone yet. It’s still there waiting for me to win it.

As far as I know, the next bingo (Dec 2) is regular bingo BUT the one on the 16th is yet another party — a Christmas Party, no bingo.

Not only that, but Red Light wants to include a White Elephant Gift Exchange, with gifts priced around $10 or more, and she stressed "brand new, not something from your unit".

I recall the few times I was involved in a White Elephant Gift exchange that it was a lot of fun.

I’m assuming we all know that a White Elephant Gift Exchange is where every participant brings a single wrapped gift, which gift is anonymously placed in a pile. The first participant chooses a random gift to unwrap from the pile, hoping it’s something they like. If they don't like it, too bad, they're stuck with it. Except, the next player has the option to choose a wrapped gift from the pile or take the gift that was just unwrapped and so on and so forth as players choose from the pile or steal an unwrapped gift another player has chosen.

At any rate, my thinking is $10 is a lot of money for all but a handful of those of us who will participate.

Seriously.

I don’t think anyone is going hungry, thanks to the food pantries in the area — or at least I hope no one is going hungry, but one resident recently shared with me that her income is only around $600 a month.

Of course, the county pays her rent, but with utilities, groceries, incidentals et al on $600 a month, wasting $10+ on a white elephant gift might not be in the budget.

So, anyway, I’ll arrive with a white elephant gift, something that jumps out and speaks to me when I’m out and about; but hopefully, it’s not just The Baker and I.

In fact, I'll wait until the last minute to purchase a gift, check with Red Light to see if white elephant is still a go or not.

My initial thought is one of the Gingerbread Decorating Kits I’m seeing everywhere I go. That seems like something a senior would like but not waste money buying for herself. They can build it, then eat it later.

Remember back when I was lamenting the loss of my Wonder Woman tumbler? Returning from that Pride Parade visit in Long Beach I could not find it, thought I'd left it in the hotel room.

Cleaning out the trunk of the car this morning, in preparation to store all of what I'll need for a week's hotel visit in Long Beach, starting Tuesday, what did I find but the tumbler.

Who knew!