Inappropriate present, hideous bookends and me in drag!!!!

Here’s my take…

the meal is a red herring. The bookends / statue were probably ordered weeks ago.

you both have form for buying ‘homemade’ and personalised gifts.

you made a calendar, you friend got a bust made based on your photo.

she was probably as shocked as you when the bust arrived, but thought you find it so ridiculous that it would be funny. Maybe she thought you’d laugh as
much as she did?

I don’t think it’s meant to be an ugly caricature of you- it’s not exaggerated enough. Neither is it very good- it just looks a bit ‘meh’

Perhaps they were mentioning the Xmas Carol tickets as a big hint for you to get for all of them, particularly after the mess up with the dinner? Why didn’t you offer to transfer the funds straight after? I would be livid if I was offered to be taken out for dinner and then had to foot the entire bill so I’m surprised you got anything!

The filming of the opening of the presents does sound like they knew what they were doing though.

If you genuinely intended to pay for the meal you would have:

1. Checked the restaurant prices beforehand to ensure you could afford to pay.
2. Made sure that you had the means to pay on your card/cards or taken cash with you.
3. If all else failed, reimbursed your former friends by bank transfer or paypal ASAP?

By the way, why were ALL your cards declined?

It's the proverbial "I've left my wallet at home" excuse.
My SIL is very accomplished at this modus operandi.
She's a CF too like you!

Yep- people in London often forget that many restaurants there are pretty good value for money.

they’ve got a much higher footfall, and lots of competition, so prices are tend to be lower

not the point of the thread sorry…

They obviously think you do😂

but then my card got declined, well, I say my card, I ended up trying a few, as you do

As you do?

Tbh, I've never invited friends put for dinner, offered to pay, had a card decline and then tried several more, which were also declined and had to ask my guests to pay. All while hoping for theatre tickets whilst gifting them a calendar.

And, if I had, I'd have asked for their bank details to transfer the money immediately.

You sound like a liability - inviting them to choose what they wanted without checking either the prices or ensuring you had the means to pay.

It's sounds like something from Tales of the Unexpected.

You look lovely! Like a pamtomine character😂

Can we see the bookends too OP?

That’s not the bookend, it’s the separate figurine.

@confusedgoldilocks I'm trying to understand the dynamic between you and your friend. How old are you/ they? What gender are they? How do you know them?

This seems like a highly specific set of circumstances so I'm trying to imagine myself into your life to understand what is going on.

Maybe this is covered earlier in this thread but if the dinner took place just before Christmas (which OP says it did), how would the friend have had enough time to have those bookends specially made in time, assuming that they are personalised? Unless they know someone who can make bookends very quickly. Most personalised mail order stuff like this takes quite a while to produce and deliver, in my experience.

This! But I’d be done with them after refunding them. And yes you should cover the full bloody bill cos ordering you took them out saying it would be paid for by you! Did you even cover your own half? You both sound like arseholes

It’s hideous and shit. Bin it right away!!!

I meant too late!

Absolutely correct! Not to late to send the money to them.

@Winterburn I did the same (reverse searched). It's too mental to be believed 😂

Thanks for making me laugh 😂

Sorry OP but either pay them back for the meal or buy the tickets for the concert or something!

This has to be a wind up, surely? 😂😂 I even tried reverse searching the image but nothing comes up! Even so I hope it’s just a horrible bookend you already own and this is for laughs! 😂

You gave them a cheapy snapfish calendar, and expected theatre tickets. And you thought that by them recommending that particular performance that meant they’d bought you tickets? 🤣

You treated them to a meal without checking what the prices were, couldn’t afford to pay, let them pay £300 they weren’t expecting to pay, and still expected expensive theatre tickets when all you’ve given them is a £6 calendar?

Why do you think the bookends are you? If they’re so hideous and don’t look anything like you, then here’s a thought, maybe they aren’t you?!

You sound like a perpetual victim to be honest, and nothing is ever your fault, but that everyone owes you a favour 🙈🤣

You should have sent them the money for the bill later when yo could.
That was bad form! Maybe the present reflects how they now see you!

None of them prices seem high? How on earth did you offer to pay and then didn’t manage to pay for ANY??? This is so shitty, weird and rude. I’d never be going out with you again and it would have been embarassing.

@confusedgoldilocks

Is this friend a guy?

Nope

YABU. They were nothing more than bad but well-meaning gifts. There’s no hidden meaning. She thought you would like these caricatures of yourself and see them as endearing.

It seems like your friendship is over any way, so I’d tell her what you think, OP. That it was a cruel thing to do, compounded by humiliating you in front of your own family and then theirs. Cruel and juvenile.

As for your brother. He would be dead to me after actively taking part.

How fucking nasty some people are.

Deliberate mischaracterisation of my comment. My asking the OP if she had ever considered she might be ND was the unusual hyper focus and misreading that this was all some elaborate joke by the friends and brother. Which seemed to be unhelpfully missing the point and might have helped her make sense of why her behaviour was also slightly batshit

I never said I didn’t think she was also being cheeky, thoughtless and selfish too. I alluded to that further down in my comment. ND people can be ND and also act like knobheads