Present opening ceremony

[Skinnyboneylittlepony]

I bumped into someone I went to school with the other day. Not close friends but got on well enough so it was a nice surprise. We were on the high street and she lives a 2 min walk away, so she invited me for a cup of tea.

Her DD had been Christened that weekend and now it was the Tuesday. On the coffee table were unopened gifts.

While I was there she decided to start opening them and I had to join in at coping over dresses and admiring silver spoons. She also counted out the money from cards.

As an aside, she has done well for herself financially but I’ve ‘fallen on hard times’. I’m sure she knows ‘from the grapevine’ as we have mutual friends. Also I was not invited to the christening and would not expect to have been.

AIBU to have found the present opening really bizarre?

[clumsyduck]

Absolutley random as hell that !!
Why choose that moment ? Was she waiting for an audience ??

If that was me I'd have just said ah there from dc christening last weekend and carried on with our cup of tea and chat

Why weren't they already open tho
Who / what was she waiting for ? Clearly not her dp or other family though if she opened them with you

Arghh so many questions 😂😂
The mind boggles

[BuntyII]

Maybe she just thought it would be nice to have a look at the gifts with a friend there?

[clumsyduck]

Id have found it so awkward though. Close friend - totally different but an old school pal you barely see ?

[NaughtToThreeSadOnions]

It wasnt a "ceromony" there wasnt an invite, indeed she wasn't even expecting you to be there at all she bumped in to you as much as you bumped in to her.

It was prehaos a little rude to start opening them in front of you instead of enjoying a nice chat and catch up but it wasnt a ceremony.

[Skinnyboneylittlepony]

Naught - ‘ceremony’ was a tongue in cheek turn of phrases. You may encounter that every now and then.

[Skinnyboneylittlepony]

clumsyduck

The only thing I can think of is that someone else was responsible for collecting the presents at the party and had only dropped them round that morning and she hadn’t had time to open them. But still, I would have provided some kind of explanation

[Skinnyboneylittlepony]

*turn of phrase

[clumsyduck]

Yeh me too I just find it a bit strange , like you just had to sit there and watch her open them like I say if it was a close friend then It would be totally different

[HundredsAndThousandsOfThem]

I agree it's weird, why on earth choose that moment?

[pigmcpigface]

Oh my God, that's really insensitive behaviour - it's basically deliberately showing off in a "look what I've got" kind of a way. The fact that she may know your circumstances are straitened makes it worse. She sounds like one of Jane Austen's self-obsessed baddies!!

[ScreamingValenta]

It's a bit strange. Is she still with her DD's father? I'd have expected the gifts to be opened with him, if they're together, not a seldom-seen friend.

[Slartybartfast]

what a show off, just shows, money doesnt buy everything

[Fairenuff]

Some people are socially awkward and find 1-1 conversation and eye contact difficult. Maybe this gave her something to focus on whilst you were chatting.

[UpstartCrow]

Yanbu, that was sad. Imagine being that desperate, she must spend all day planning little treats for herself that involve getting one over on other people.

[Skinnyboneylittlepony]

She is still with her husband. Most of the things were in gift bags, so I don’t think there was actual unwrapping. Thinking about it, her DH May have already seen them and this was just opening them again !?!

[CircleofWillis]

Am I the only person who would have actually have enjoyed this? I loved the fact that my sister and her husband opened their wedding gifts when I was there. (I dropped the ceremony gifts off after the honeymoon.)

[MoistCantaloupe]

That is ridiculously weird. Sounds like she was just showing off. I too, would have felt really uncomfortable.

[youngnomore]

Apart from the money part. Which I would just place aside and open later. The rest I would be fine with.

[Skinnyboneylittlepony]

CircleofWillis

The key difference is that it’s your sister. Not a random.

[CircleofWillis]

I wouldn't mind a random either. I always hate handing over parcels to neighbours. I think that if I have taken them in I for them I should at least be able to see what's in the damn package!

[TestingTestingWonTooFree]

Weird

[SparklyLeprechaun]

I think I would have enjoyed it as well, I like opening presents. I don't see it as showing off.

[theveryhighlife]

I agree with fairenuff perhaps she's just a bit socially awkward and needed to be doing something.
I'm sure there was no malice intended. Do you think you could have been feeling a bit sensitive about your own situation? I hope things ease up for you.

[ScreamingValenta]

Thinking about it, her DH May have already seen them and this was just opening them again !?!

Was she behaving as though she was seeing them for the first time (or did she say this?) Do you think she might have been showing you the gifts rather than opening them in front of you? Showing you the gifts is slightly less odd, if it was in the spirit of 'look at all the lovely things people gave my DD' - this could just have been a way of keeping conversation going with someone she no longer knew well.

[pigmcpigface]

I think the key piece of information people are missing in their violent urge to contradict the OP is that this woman knows the OP has fallen on hard times. When you know someone's circumstances aren't great, you don't flaunt wealth or possessions in front of them. Basic decency, really.