‘Tis the season for re-gifting! In a few weeks the holidays will be over, and all that will remain of your Hanukkah candles and meticulously decorated Christmas tree will be melted wax and a pile of sticky pine needles.
The carefully wrapped presents with their satin bows will fade into memory as you kick through a mountain of wrapping paper confetti. Inevitably, some of that paper decorated at least one gift you didn’t want.
So what do you do with that heinous reindeer sweater from Great-Aunt Mildred? Assuming none of your hipster friends want it, you can either bury it in the back of your closet or give it to someone who will wear it.
Goodwill and the Salvation Army accept clothing donations.
If your aunt ever asks why you don’t wear the sweater, just say it was stolen from your dorm’s laundry room.
Jewelry-making kits, Star Wars action figures — which are totally dolls, despite what defensive collectors say — and K’nex make excellent gifts for kids but not for college students.
If your relatives perpetually mistake you for an 8 year old, you can expect unwanted children’s gifts. If you stopped being a Toys ‘R’ Us kid when Clinton was president, you probably don’t want those G.I. Joe walkie-talkies or iCarly electronic diary. Rather than stashing those unwanted toys in the basement, donate them to Toys for Tots, which distributes Christmas presents to underprivileged children in the community.
This holiday season, remember that one student’s trash is another person’s treasure. Don’t throw away your unwanted gifts or banish them to the back of the closet — donate them! You’ll be happy to get rid of those presents, and somewhere a needy child or adult will be thankful to receive them — even if that sweater really is atrocious.
llandau@theeagleonline.com
