Receivers recall best, worst gifts

BOARDMAN -- What's the best Christmas gift you've ever gotten? What's the worst?
Black Friday shoppers reflected on past years when they were on the receiving end.
The adage that people don't appreciate "practical" gifts didn't seem to hold true for those interviewed. And surprisingly, expensive jewelry isn't always the sure winner you'd think it would be.
But more than one person said it wasn't anything of material value that made their best or worst list.
Delights
* "Years ago, my husband got me a clothes dryer. It was the greatest invention and the greatest gift ever." Mary Watson of Poland, who remembers without fondness a world without dryers.
* "A shop vac and a leaf blower." Dallas Staton of Youngstown.
* "An XBox." Kyle Staton, 14, of Youngstown.
* "My second daughter was born Dec. 21." Debbi Beil of Boardman.
* "Watching the excitement in my children's eyes." Mary Congemi of Canfield.
* "A diamond bracelet." Rosemary Staton of Youngstown.
* "A rock with our name carved on it." Chrissy Smith of Canfield, with Ray, her husband, concurring.
* "The best was my little brother. He came five days before Christmas." Kelly Kordupel, 12, of Boardman.
Disappointments
* "The worst is, they make me wake up at 6 on Christmas morning. And I don't even get up for school that early." Michelle Kordupel, 12, Kelly's twin.
* "Those bath sets that you never use, with those lotions you just throw away." Debbi Beil.
* "It was some kind of weird stone, and you get it home and you see it wasn't really that great for the money." Chrissy Smith of Canfield, explaining why husband Ray returned an expensive ring he'd tried to surprise her with after it caught her eye on a vacation in the Bahamas.