Car boot gaffe
Not terribly long ago, I was invited to a Christening. The event was heaving with people, and not surprisingly there was a table full of gifts for the new sprog, the progeny of a couple well known for furnishing their house with the contents of rubbish skips.

A couple of weeks later, I happened to run into the proud parents at a local car boot sale. Their stall, you will not be surprised to hear, was brimming with christening gifts, ranging from 50p to a fiver.

The double-take they gave me was a joy to behold, as was the not terribly good save "We're not selling yours - we liked your present."
( Scaryduck LIKES EGG, Mon 27 Oct 2008, 11:56, 5 replies)

So obviously...
Your pressie WASN'T a copy of the 1984 Arsenal calendar...

What?
( snee held his breath since, Mon 27 Oct 2008, 11:57, closed)

Classy bit of footie memorabilia...
...I'll have you know.

In fact, my present was an antique 1920s piston engine.
( Scaryduck LIKES EGG, Mon 27 Oct 2008, 11:59, closed)

Last car booty I went to
We set up a stall and made £200, which wasn't that bad :) The stall next to us had 2 doormen and a thick dobber helper whom I nicknamed "Mongo", and advised the doormen to get a placard saying "For every £10 we raise, £1 of that will go towards getting some fresh hay for Mongo's cage".
I can get into that nightclub for free now :D
( Jeccius Steam Borderlands 2 junkie, Mon 27 Oct 2008, 12:29, closed)

Which meant...
...they'd already managed to sell your present at the car boot sale before you arrived?
(annexed, Mon 27 Oct 2008, 13:31, closed)

Almost certainly
...although there was a certain amount of panicked hiding-stuff-under-the-table as I approached.
( Scaryduck LIKES EGG, Mon 27 Oct 2008, 15:47, closed)