The Times didn’t miss a New York minute; they posted a story on Regifting before the wrapping paper even hit the floor this morning.
Regifting made sense in the former Age of Abundance. Even when cupboards overflowed with designer vodkas, no one really needed a third martini set. Now that recession has hit, regifting makes more sense than ever; not only is disposable space at a premium, but so is disposable income.
The problem, as the NYT’s Joyce Wadler reports, is hurt feelings. When the gift that goes around comes around, relationships suffer. (A round of martinis can dull the pain, even in paper cups.)
I like this year’s trend towards gifts that help ends meet. Those shiny rectangles of happy plastic that say “SHELL” and “TARGET” may look like gift cards, but they’re really the new ration card, shiny shields against trouble and toil in the widening war on poverty. And who’s going to complain if a grocery card goes to someone who needs it even more than you do?
— Julia Lupton · 2008-12-25
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THE BOOK