Unofficial Meh Exchange 2025
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You’re invited to a secret gift exchange! RSVP soon as names will be drawn in this gift-giving game!
Merician exchange 2025
Organizer: Star2236
Gift Budget: $11.00
Date: February 12, 2025
Draw Names: January 26, 2025
Here is the link. If you got an invite, disregard that. I messed up setting it up.
Anyway, now that the holidays are over and things have calmed down a bit, it’s time to abuse the postal system for some fun. It’s our annual MERICIAN EXCHANGE 2025!!!
Important dates to know: the exchange is open to sign up till January 26th. I will probably draw names on the 27th bc there’s always someone who forgets to sign up. All boxes must be shipped out by February 12th. If for some reason that is not possible, you must let me and your person know!
Here is what the exchange says if you are interested
You must be an active member on meh to participate in this exchange. You also must not abandon your Elfster account once you sign up. Please check in a couple of times a week until you send out your package and check the sent package button. I will send messages through Elfster (it’s easier to reach everybody than trying to find everybody on meh) and I will also confirm you’re a real person on there.
The $11 ($10.20) covers the cost of the. 8 11/16" x 5 7/16" x 13/4" size box from USPS (it’s the small one that holds a VHS, remember those). It can be sent with up to 70lbs. That’s all you’re required to fill out and send for this exchange. Now do people go above and beyond and send way bigger boxes with lots more stuff? Yes. Lots and lots of people do. Lots of people really get into the exchange and like to fill huge boxes, packed with lots of fun stuff for people. Every year there’s someone new that says they wish they would have gotten into it more and sent more than they did. But if you can’t afford it, DON’T FELL BAD. The VHS size box is the minimum requirement and that’s all you’re expected to do.
What to fill your box with? No broken items, this isn’t meh, we throw are broken shit in the trash. No junk, if you don’t want it, chances are no one else will either. No trackers (one for laughs is okay). This is a meh exchange so if you have some meh stuff still in the package you could toss that in. Some people like to stalk their person and try and find out what they would like, others have sent a collection of things from their hometown. The world is your oyster, think about what you would like to get and pass it on. - Star2236 S.
Can someone make this a broadcast for the next couple of weeks or until the 26th? I don’t know how to do that.
You’re invited to a secret gift exchange! RSVP soon as names will be drawn in this gift-giving game!
Merician exchange 2025
Organizer: Star2236
Gift Budget: $11.00
Date: February 12, 2025
Draw Names: January 26, 2025
Join the party: https://www.elfster.com/gift-exchanges/ddbe2178-3b11-4f37-a7f9-c18ca5d98df0/?join=zgri
What’s a secret gift exchange? It’s where participants are randomly assigned to one another to purchase a gift anonymously. The gift receiver won’t know who it is until the day of the reveal. It’s the easiest and most fun way to gift!
- 57 comments, 112 replies
- Comment
@extramedium can you broadcast this?
@star2236 I don’t see a link although you mentioned it
@mbersiam
I know I’m having trouble with that. Give me a moment.
@mbersiam
It should be on there now.
@Star2236 Should this read Merician exchange 2024 or 2025? I know we’re in 2025, but if this is meant to be overflow from Christmas 2024 I just need to know how it should read. Also, if it’s meant to be 2025 you might want to update the title on Elfster as well.
@ExtraMedium
Oh shit I’ll change it on elfster
@ExtraMedium
Initially I wanted it to say 2024 as an overflow from 2024 but then I realized I did last years as 2024 (really 2023) so I changed it to 2025. Just to clarify.
@Star2236 This will be stuck to the top again on January 23rd for 3 days, but until then you’ll need to rely on comments bumping it to stay visible. Normal traction should keep it up regardless. Sorry we can’t keep it up the whole time.
@Star2236 Ok, got it stuck to the top again. It’ll come back down on Sunday, but I hope this helps.
I got the invite but the RSVP didn’t work. I’ll keep checking back. Thanks @Star2236 !
@steeltoesenator invite in email didn’t work for me either, but the link above did…
https://www.elfster.com/gift-exchanges/ddbe2178-3b11-4f37-a7f9-c18ca5d98df0/?join=zgri
@OnionSoup Yeah, I got it now. Thanks!
@sillyheathen @iutami @shandasunshine @allisonivy
@OnionSoup @steeltoesenator
Invite got signed up by accident sign up through the link in this
Thank you! I am joining now! This is always a blast.
Woohoo! Thank you for getting this going again!
I just Rsvpd on Elfster! I’m a real person. You can ask Pinocchio
@AllisonIvy
Don’t count on it
/eightball is allisonivy a real person?
@AllisonIvy
@Kidsandliz I’m real. Ask Pinocchio
Heck yeah, my white elephant pile is getting pretty tall.
YES!!! Time to clean out the trunk!!!
Fine. I’ll do it again.
Meh has no chance to top my ability to make people ask, “Why the f* is this in my box?”
Really not sure how to ship cinder blocks, but I’ll figure something out. 
Stay tuned.
Also, a sincere thank you to you, Star. These are always fun, but also never without pain points. I appreciate you shouldering the burden. Here’s to a weird New Year!
@capnjb
Thank you. I don’t mind doing it.
yekoP and I are in. He L-O-V-E-S opening boxes!
@ybmuG … Where does the box begin (because I can see where it ends)
@pakopako it was a shoe box. Not much left after a few days. Even less now
Got excited based on the interest check thread, didn’t realize it required membership. Oh well, y’all have fun!
@bigcurmudgeon
You just have to be a member of meh and be actively talking in the threads so we know you’re a real person. Which you are. People try and sneak in and then don’t send out boxes in return, that’s why we say that. So go ahead and sign up. It’s lots of fun.
@Star2236 Ah, understood; I’m a “member” in that I have an account, not official “membership”. Got it!
I figured it was an easy gatekeeping way to keep out the riff-raff - if you’re a paying member, you’re in. I do, however, appreciate this more inclusive method.
Imma go ahead and sign up, then!
@bigcurmudgeon @Star2236
Goal is just to make sure they are real people that are actively involved.
@bigcurmudgeon @chienfou
Some people are very new this year and don’t have a lot of activity on the treads.
I have been looking forward to this exchange.
@ShandaSunshine yay glad you’re joining! I always love this exchange. Thank you @star2236 for hosting again this year! It was fun gifting to you last year!
I’m in! My knee replacement surgery is on 1/27, so I may not be able to personalize the items much, but I have plenty of stuff I can pack up in advance.
@Pony
Good luck with the new knee. My titanium hip is a great thing. I frequently do over 10k steps a day pain free… Who hoo!
@chienfou My surgery was canceled. I was just hospitalized for a few days with sepsis, so no surgery for me until three months after I am completely recovered. I’m extremely disappointed. I’ve been trying to get these damned knees replaced for years, and something always happens to throw a monkey wrench in the works.
@chienfou @Pony Oh no!
@chienfou @Kyeh It was crazy- I was just watching a show on my laptop, and I suddenly started getting hives, and then I started feeling dizzy. I called my husband and asked him to come upstairs, and by the time he got there I was on the floor, unresponsive. Fun times.
@chienfou @Pony Whoa! Good thing he was home … I hope you’re over it soon!
How are you collecting the list of people who will send a box to someone if that person’s sender doesn’t send or sends total crap?
I know when I ran this some years back usually we needed 1-3 boxes sent from the “I only want to send and not receive” folks. I don’t know if you ran into this recently or not but it is probably good to have a couple of people in reserve just in case. One or two times some of the people who only wanted to send and not receive who weren’t needed to send decided they wanted to send to some random person on the list (so that person got two boxes). Don’t know if you want to do that if the “extra” senders are interested. If you want to know more about this whisper me.
@Kidsandliz
Last year I didn’t have anybody not get a box and nodody complained to me that their box was crap so I think it went ok. If anybody wants to complain that they got a crappy box they still can.
@Star2236 That’s good to hear!! Every time I ran it we had one to three people affected (and those folks responsible were banned from future exchanges - I sort of remember passing that list to you - if not let me know and I’ll see if I can find it), although enough of a deal was made it sounds like people have learned. Plus the checking on who people were in advance, their past presence on meh (eg didn’t create a meh name and then immediately sign up), etc. helped us in the past too. We limited people who hadn’t participated before to just one box exchange, which helped as those were the offenders. Of course now with the platform you are using it would be hard to exchange multiple boxes.
One thing that was fun that we did a couple of times is that people who wanted to send (to get rid of junk) but not receive and weren’t needed for replacement boxes were asked if they wanted to send a random box to a random participant. Some did and that was a lot of fun. That could be something you could add (just have them whisper you).
I’m not that chatty here, but I am here.
A 70 lb weight limit is very generous.
A lead brick with those dimensions, is only 33.9 lbs. I don’t think anyone wants anything that could breach that limit.
Internal volume of 1.2L means I could receive just over 23.8 kg of tungsten. :p
@aethermancer
I just went off the post office site lol
@aethermancer @Star2236 Well I’d settle for a gold brick in that box even if it isn’t 70 pounds. Just sayin’
@aethermancer @Kidsandliz @Star2236 a 70 lb. 11$ gold brick will be… A gold dusted boulder?
I don’t quite get the $11. I do get that the USPS (flat rate?) box costs $11. Are we supposed to put gifts worth $11 in that box or whatever box we decide to use? This will be my first time doing the gift exchange and I don’t want to screw it up.
@ItalianScallion If you search for Mehtizen Exchange you can get an idea of what’s been done in previous ones.
Here’s the 2021 reveal thread:
https://meh.com/forum/topics/2021-unofficial-holiday-mehrican-exchange-reveal-thread
Thanks @Kyeh. I get it. This is gonna be fun!
@ItalianScallion
Feel free to message me or whisper if have a questions about anything. I’m the one organizing it.
@ItalianScallion @Star2236
Essentially the goal is the only out-of-pocket cost is the shipping. The plan is that most people will be able to send things they already have at their house that they aren’t using/don’t need.
Ok I’m in… when I get back from Martinique/Guadeloupe on the 17th. Vive les vacances!
@chienfou
Must be nice, looks nice.
@Star2236
I’ll see if I can figure out a way to pack some ti punch!
Yay! Thank you for extending the send deadline. I will be back from vacation by then.
@ironcheftoni
I knew there were a few people that were gonna be on vacation so that’s why I did it.
@Star2236
/giphy you rock
Brings my heart a lot of joy to see this tradition continuing. This goes back more than a decade now!
I’m going to procrastinate until the last possible hour
@pakopako
Thanks
Use pirateship.com to ship your package. Much better rates than going to the post office.
FYI Pirateship uses UPS and you actually drop off your package there.
@Kidsandliz but there is this have to buy a printer thing to use it.
@Cerridwyn So go to one of the office stores and spend 50 cents to print the mailing label. Still cheaper.
@Kidsandliz Or USPS
@Cerridwyn @Kidsandliz A separate printer thing?
@Kidsandliz @pakopako like many today, I don’t have a printer
@Vrysen if pirateship is using USPS/UPS, why are they their own thing?
@pakopako @Vrysen Because they contract with them, getting a business high volume rate where they pass some of the savings on to us.
I’m new but can’t wait to join this year’s event!
Anybody with the name sminkey??? You were just removed do to an invalid email address. So if this was a user mistake sign back up
Somebody added an Apple airtag to their list? That’s a dangerous move for this group!
@ybmuG rofl
@djslack
Are you and your sister gonna participate in the exchange this year?
@Star2236 hey! I’ve been a bit hit or miss on the forums of late but I’d love to. I’ll talk to @melanie413 but speaking for myself I’ll go get signed up. I’ve actually already started building a box in anticipation
Thank you for organizing this and for reminding me!
@djslack @melanie413
You guys were names I didn’t see on the list so I wanted to remind you.
@Star2236 going to sign up now! Thanks for the reminder!
@melanie413 @Star2236
Likewise, I have been accumulating goodies most of the year. Now if I can just remember where I put them. Damn this CRS…
Glad so many people are signing up. Still 2 Monroe weeks left so lots of time for more to sign up.
@Star2236 I do love me a good Monroe week or two…
@bigcurmudgeon @Star2236
/giphy face palm
D’oh. Had to go Google ‘Monroe week’… Then decided it it was probably just an Otto Kerrekt issue.
@bigcurmudgeon @Star2236
Perfect…
@chienfou @Star2236 /giphy giggle
I can only say I got my snide sense of humor from my parents.
@bigcurmudgeon @Star2236
Best. Inheritance. Ever.
(I tell people all the time I have a master’s in smartassery and I’m working on my PhD)
@bigcurmudgeon @chienfou @Star2236 Pile (it) high (and) Deep?
@bigcurmudgeon @chienfou @ItalianScallion
What a Monroe week? When I google it, it pulls stuff up about the county Monroe a few counties away.
@chienfou @ItalianScallion @Star2236 Lol it’s nothing. Just an auto-correct typo followed by me being a smartass.
@bigcurmudgeon @chienfou @Star2236
So do you consider that a genetic defect or a benefit?
@chienfou @Kidsandliz @Star2236 Clearly it’s a benefit! Right? Right?!
@bigcurmudgeon @Star2236 You don’t need more than one week to celebrate Jim J. Bullock’s breakthrough role of Monroe Ficus on Too Close For Comfort.
/showme 2 Monroe weeks left
This must be the Monroese language.
@ItalianScallion
/youtube Beatles- Eight Days a Week
(A Veeek?)
Bought a USPS VHS box.
I’ve got a marker to scribble a label.
Now to stuff all the junk I can inside and send it to a sucker?
@pakopako Welllll… you might want to look up the past exchanges before you approach it that way.
@Pony I’m not taking more suggestions on what should go in (I would love to stuff fresh produce, but I think that’s illegal now) – maybe how it should go in – I’m more concerned with how the box should go out.
I have been a member for many years now, and I do all the lurks, I am excited to join in on a swap! I missed all my usual holiday ones while recovering from surgery.
Looking forward to participating in my first meh gift exchange!
Servet seni seviyorum
@Servet313131
That’s sweet… But are you signing up for the exchange?
/giphy oh boy
Tommow’s the day!
Does anyone know how to ship scorpions? And/or livestock?
@capnjb
Carefully?
@capnjb scorpions… send them in a
/image Kia Stinger
/showme someone excitedly opening a box full of deadly scorpions and other venomous creatures.
@mediocrebot
The scorpion with three pinchers shouldn’t feel bad since the man has twelve fingers.
@capnjb is it weird that I would love to get live scorpions and/or livestock? I keep tarantulas and snakes, and we have chickens, ducks and sheep. Plenty of room for more… lol
@Pony You should have put that on your wish list when I sent you stuff last time
@capnjb we didn’t have the acreage then that we have now. Oh well… missed opportunities. Hahaha
@capnjb @Pony I’d take Chickens or Goats. I’ve always planned to have some just havent got around to it yet.
If anyone wants to put some live chickens in a box to me, I like Buff Orpingtons the most.
@capnjb @OnionSoup Goats are troublemakers. Too good at escaping. Buff Orpingtons, however, are sweet birds. I want some of those too.
@capnjb @Pony chickens I want for eggs.
Goats I just wanted a few wethers, not planning to milk them or anything. Wanted them to be bramble clearers and chicken bodyguards… And just cool four-legged dudes to have around for the sake of having them around.
Whereas they won’t actively protect the chickens. Aerial predators are much less likely to attack if there are large mammals around… And other threats like Racoons and Coyotes are often chased off by goats.
We have all the above in abundance around us… And whereas wouldn’t trust the goats alone to keep chickens safe, they would be an extra small layer of protection if one came calling.
@capnjb @OnionSoup I actually prefer the eggs we get from our ducks, but I love our chickens because chickens are awesome. We have plenty of predators up here in the Colorado hills too- including bears and bobcats. Having big fluffy sheep around has never stopped them, but the coyotes etc. mostly keep their distance. Our two big dogs could have something to do with that, though.
I love how this has become a thread about farm life. lol
MEALS! DEALS! EELS! AWESOME!
@capnjb @Pony I’d love ducks but it would be harder for me to keep them safe since they don’t return to coop at night automatically (and I don’t have a large pond for them to hide from predators on).
I think goats are a little more protective of their space that sheep. We do have two big dogs too… But they’re indoor dogs except when we go out with them.
We let the dogs roam free while we’re out… They just run into the woods and then come when we whistle for them to come back in. They know to stay on our land…
Unless a stray dog has wandered onto our property… When that happens one of my dogs will try to chase it off while the other tries to befriend it… And both dogs ignore the whistle to chase/befriend the visitor.
People come in all shapes and sizes…
@DLPanther If it fits, it ships!
Yay matched are assigned! Excited to build an IRK for my match!
/giphy im so excited!
Hey all participants!! Make sure you respond if you receive a message from your secret elfster to make sure you receive the most Meh package ever.
@cbilyak do we do that there? Because I’m unlikely going to be near a postal service until Thursday at the earliest.
@pakopako I meant through the elfster messaging. People may have questions for the person they drew and send a message thru the elfster platform. If anyone gets a message, respond to help your sender with whatever information they are requesting.
Ha ha ha, I forgot to check Elfster. Turns out I made an account without an address. (Sorry to whoever got me.)
@pakopako Apparently I screwed up and never got matched. Oh well. January was a long year and these things happen. I blame myself.
If you add to your wishlist, you’re more likely to get a less irky irk!
@sillyheathen “less likely”; not guaranteed
@pakopako @sillyheathen Yes not guaranteed. Not to mention originally there was no request list - that only was added as it was a feature of the program an organizer decided to use. Instead we’d stalk the forums and anything else we could think of. The other thing that was lost was the ability to exchange more than one box. Usually about 8-12 people wanted to exchange 2-3 of them to but the program isn’t set up for that. Of course what was gained was about 3 or so hours of the organizers time as they now don’t have to randomize everyone to do a random match, check they hadn’t been paired before or aren’t paired with themselves, then send out all the emails. Trade offs.
Is there a reveal thread?
@mbersiam
Not yet that I’m aware of. Did you get yours already?
@Star2236 no, but i’ve sent my box
@mbersiam
I was just about to message everybody to remind them to check that they sent their box and then to post pics of what they got
@mbersiam One was created today. Saw it on the forum list.
@clutterbug
You have not seen your draw yet for the exchange. Please log in and view your draw. If something has come up and you can no longer participate please message me here or on elfster.
Is there a reveal thread? Or do we post here? I want to thank my incredible gifter.
@OnionSoup
No reveal thread yet. Waiting for first person to start it off
That was fast. I just shipped mine out. (They should be getting my
messmeh today or tomorrow.)I’m still working on mine. Y’all are fast!
@sillyheathen mine was packed before the draw. sealed after. just in case ya know
And will be there mid week
@Cerridwyn mine is almost ready. I’m actually flying to see my best friend in CA this weekend and because of the things they said they enjoy, I’m picking up a piece there and sending it on Tuesday when I get home.
@sillyheathen cool beans
Mine is packed, labeled and ready for UPS to pick it up. 12 lbs of randomness!
@Pony Aaaaand it’s been picked up.
UPS says the box has been delivered. I hope my recipient likes their goodies. And I really hope they post a reveal! I’ve had lousy luck with that.
Hrm. I sent a message on Elfster, no reply. The box was delivered Thursday. Am I getting ghosted again? I’m going to be so sad if I am. I should have learned by now to take a photo of the stuff before I send the box out.
Just waiting on the right box for mine and will ship probably tomorrow! Excited for reveals to start!!
Label printed (yay pirate ship), boxed is packed and sealed. Just need to drop off at UPS. I do hope the recipient has a hand cart or knows to lift with their legs
20lbs of random inbound! 
@capnjb thicc thighs save lives!
@sillyheathen Okay… arrow has been launched. I am off the clock and headed for a nap.
Gathering all the goodies today/tomorrow (I have not forgotten about the exchange!) and getting it shipped out by the end of the week.
@blazespirit Same here. Gotta get one more thing then mine will be on its way too!
@blazespirit USPS picks it up on Saturday!
Package is officially off via usps!
@blazespirit Mine too. Picked up by USPS a hour or so ago.
I had to wait to get a package from Meh to get a decent sized box. Reuse, recycle and IRK.
Taking it to the UPS store now. I hope my secret mehelf likes everything. Eleven pounds of mehness and IRK
My arrow has hit the target. I can put my feet up now
Mine going out today. I’m a bit of a straggler this year… been a rough few weeks.
Hello my match! I see that tracking says it was delivered Feb 8, but I checked at the PO today and they said they didn’t have it. But do not fret! There was a big door lock fiasco at the end of last week and I think things might just be a couple days backed up. I’ll check back tomorrow and let you know!
@mehhhhname i’ve received your gift and i was so thrilled. thank you so much! will share a proper post here later.
@n3g3v_doge ahh yay I’m glad yours arrived! Here’s hoping that’s a good sign that mine arrived too
My box goes out first thing tomorrow morning! And I received mine today!
@UpbeatDuck we look forward to your post in the reveal thread
Got mine mailed out a whole day before the deadline. Wasn’t sure I’d make it. Should be delivered later this week.
sorry to my person, my box will go out at the last possible moment tonight – I am sooooooo underwhelmed by the box that I am trying to make it better
(or worse??)
mailed!!!
Mine went out on 2/11- early! Roch may get it today or tomorrow, and my incoming box is due any minute. This is fun!