I declined a laptop, so my boss is gifting me his Mercedes.
A few weeks ago, my two bosses (a brother and sister) called me in for a chat about what they called a "First World Problem." They explained the business had an exceptionally good season, that they needed to spend some money, and they wanted to get something specifically for me.
- They started by offering me a laptop. I declined because I prefer my desktop setup.
- As I sometimes work from home, they offered to upgrade my entire home PC - screens, hard drives, everything. I declined again; everything I have is in perfect working order, replacing it woupd just be wasteful.
- They asked if I needed a new phone. I had to say no again as I just bought one a few weeks ago.
Finally, my boss (the brother) looked at me with a completely straight face and asked: "What about my car? I'm buying a new one for myself. I'll gift you my current one."
At this point, my brain stopped working and you could have knocked me over with a feather. I have a car; it’s almost 20 years old, but it works just fine for my needs. His car is a 2017 Mercedes-Benz B-Class W246. I told them I’d sleep on it, but I hardly slept at all.
I live in a snowy, mountainous area, and my top priority is having 4-wheel drive to get to work safely. While I love his car (we're on the road a lot in it), I was sure it was only 2-wheel drive. I thought I’d have to decline this, too.
The next morning, I went into work ready to explain that I needed my 4WD and instead suggest they could just reimburse me for the phone I’d bought?
I walked up to him and said, "It would be a yes, if your car was a 4-wheel drive."
He said, "But it is!" I just stood there and said, "...Oh."
He replied, "Great. So that’s that then."
I never even got to suggest the phone. I asked him if he knew that this wasn't "normal" behavior for a boss, and he just gave me a huge grin. Before I went back to work, I gave him a big hug.
No date fo the exchange has been set, but it'll likely be in the next few weeks. I have test driven the car and it was great!
Posting with my newish alternative account to keep from being identified.