Monday, October 27, 2008

A Sad Tale

I have this really cute pair of earrings. They fit into that "perfect earring" category, if you know what I mean. They're smallish, so they don't overwhelm. They're pewterish silver, so they go with anything. They're dangly but not very long, and they have this cute little rosette at the bottom with a cute little low-profile pink stone in them.

And I can never wear them.

And no, it's not because I'm allergic. The real reason is much, much, more pathetic and sad than that. The story goes something like this:

Two years ago (yes people, that said TWO YEARS AGO), I was doing my thing, just walking around my house (cleaning again, because as you know I am ALWAYS cleaning), when I find this cute little pair of earrings lying on the bureau in my living room. They sparked the following conversation:

Me: Hey, does anyone know where these earrings came from?

Liam: (seven yrs old at the time) Oh yeah, those are from Grandma.

Me: They are? How do you know? Did she give them to you?

L: No, I found them in the mailbox.

Me: The mailbox? Well how do you know they're from Grandma if you found them in the mailbox? (My mother always writes old-school cursive, and I knew there was no way he could have deciphered that).

L: Because it came with a note.

Me: What did the note say?

L: I can't remember.

Me: Well, where is the note?

L: I threw it in the garbage.

Me: The kitchen garbage?

L: No. The big garbage out by the road.

Are you following this? That would be the big, disgusting, garbage garbage, that all the other garbage goes into. The big smelly one the actual garbage truck dumps on Wednesdays. The garbage way too disgusting for me to scrounge around in looking for some mysterious note from some really nice, thoughtful person.

I was irritated. Frustrated. Exasperated. Why? Why, why, why would he think it was okay to throw away a note? A note written to his mother, accompanying a gift? If he hadn't been so cute - and so pathetically sorry when he realized he'd done something horribly wrong - I would have turned into "Mean Mommy".

But I didn't.

I still had hope. After all, surely I could find the giver of the cute earrings, right? I mean, I don't know that many thoughtful, generous people, right?

Wrong.

I called everyone I could think of. For weeks, I would randomly think of names and call people to ask them if they, by any chance, left a cute little pair of dangly earrings in my mailbox.

No one knew anything about it.

"That's okay," I told myself, "even if I can't thank the person, I can still wear them - right?" Wrong. I can't wear them, and it's so unfair. It's bad enough that some kind, thoughtful person was generous to leave me cute earrings and a note, and I never even thanked them. They no doubt already think I'm the most ungrateful person ever.

But how much worse would it be if they saw me WEARING the earrings - actually utilizing the results of their generosity? There I'd be, with the cute earrings dangling from my earlobes, talking away, STILL not thanking them for the kind, thoughtful gift. Then they'd know - without a doubt - that I really was the most ungrateful person ever.

As it is, the mystery giver probably thinks I just didn't like them. But why, oh why couldn't they have ever called just to say: "So, did you ever get those earrings I left in your mailbox? I was worried one of your kids might have taken them and thrown the note into your big nasty garbage can, and that you might not have known they were from me."

But no, instead they were just too kind and thoughtful to bring up the subject of a pair of earrings I no doubt hated.

And so, the moral of this story is - If you ever mail (or leave in someone's mailbox) a cute, thoughtful gift accompanied by a note, but then never hear from the person regarding the cute, thoughtful gift - CALL THEM! Make sure they actually received the gift (and accompanying note)!

And if anyone reading this blog is the sender of my cute, anonymous earrings, please reveal yourself! I'm tired of only wearing them when I'm out of state visiting strangers, or taking the risk, wearing them anyway, and then feeling compelled to ask every person I know if my earrings look familiar to them.

It's bad enough that someone out there thinks I'm the most ungrateful person ever - I should at least get to wear the earrings

20 comments:

Natalie said...

Just wear them already! Maybe it will spark a conversation & put your mind to rest. I'd love to know who they're from.

LisAway said...

Yes, you have to tell us when you find out!

I say wear them, too! Or have a giveaway on your blog? I'm up for another limerick challenge and am in desperate need of a decent pair of earrings.

Just kidding. If you did that you really WOULD be the most ungrateful person ever!

Laura said...

Well, maybe the person who left them already thinks you hate them since they never see you wear them! Uh Oh! Offended!! You should totallly wear them with a big smile, and someone, somewhere is going to say, You look so good in those! Glad I dropped them off! And you can laugh, tell the story, and be grateful. Yep, wear those puppies.

Alyson | New England Living said...

Hi, wandered over from CTD. I vote wear them too! If the person who gave them to you sees you wearing them, they might say something like, "So I see you liked those earrings I gave you afterall." I'd probably say something like that anyway.

Anonymous said...

Okay, I admit it.

They're from me.

Two years ago, someone gave me these darling earrings. Since I don't have pierced ears, and since I don't wear jewelry at all (except for my wedding ring), I thought to myself, 'who would really appreciate these earrings?' So I found myself wandering aimlessly across the United States, doing my own private Forrest Gump sort of thing, and one day I looked up....and there was this mail box....next to a smelly garbage can.... and I said to myself, 'Self, the woman who lives in this house had to take the trash out by herself. She DESERVES these earrings.'

So I wrapped them carefully in an unintelligibly scripted piece of note paper, which your son evidently intercepted, and now I have the satisfaction of knowing that the earrings have found a good home.

So wear them already. And take a picture of yourself wearing them, so I can rest at night knowing that the good home my earrings found have fulfilled the measure of their creation.

The End.

Barbaloot said...

Dang-Sue Q claimed to be the giver before I could:) I say wear them as well. You've tried your best to find out who sent them. And maybe-if you do start wearing them more often whoever DID send them will say something and you can finally resolve this.

*MARY* said...

This is EXACTLY why I never got my ears pierced, EXACTLY!

Camille said...

I would wear them only if while wearing them I have a shirt that reads "Thank you to whomever gave me these earrings. LOVE THEM!"

Robyn said...

Jen! Happy to see you dropped by my blog. It will be fun to keep in touch. We have moved around so much, I lost touch with lots of people. We will have to try to get some sort of roomie reunion going on somewhere.

J. Baxter said...

Seriously? You guys think I can wear them?

Machen - love the t-shirt idea. Definitely the best one so far.

Vicki Johnson said...

Wear the earrings today!!! Vicki

Alison Wonderland said...

I would think that wearing them would prove to whoever (whomever?) that you do like them. So I guess you'd still be ungrateful, since you didn't thank them, but at least you'd be ungrateful with good taste.

melissabastow said...

I just wrote you a way awesome comment and then my internet connection went POOOOOOOOP and then I lost the whole thing. And since you will never ever see that comment I can tell you that it was THE BEST THING EVER WRITTEN. Because there is no proof otherwise. Oh and it was all about your earrings and how I had the perfect solution for you. Also I somehow managed to slip $100,000,000 and a new bathroom into the comment. But thanks to the pooping internet connection, that is also gone. And now that I've written a totally pointless comment on nothing, I'm going to hit publish before this one is lost too.

J. Baxter said...

Can I just say Melissa cracks me up?

And I will mourn the $100,000,000.

Probably forever.

Claire said...

I wish someone would leave me a gift!

annie valentine said...

Why does our sister leave you comments and not me? So unfair.

I sent the earrings. There. Ya happy?

Nutty Hamster Chick said...

This is a tragic tale, you should enter it into the Don't you hate it when that happens contest over at Shelle Blok-thoughts.

I vote with everyone else, just wear them already. Do people really pay that much attention anyway? Or maybe that is just me who is so inattentive.

Little GrumpyAngel said...

I think you should wear the earrings. After 2 years that person probably will not even remember what the earrings she gave you look like. Serious. Sometimes someone would say hey thanks for giving me this and I'm you're welcome but in my brain I'm going I don't remember. or I'm with Lisa, giveaway! giveaway! giveaway!

That Girl said...

Okay, so this post made me laugh out loud.

I think you should wear them EVERY DAY for the rest of your life, and bring them up in ever conversation.

"See my cute earrings? I love them. Did you give them to me?"

Grocery store clerk, mailman ... it doesn't really matter ....

Kimberly Vanderhorst said...

I would totally just wear them and wait for someone to look irritated with me. =P