My mom signed me up for a cooking class "as a gift" and then got offended when I didn't thank her enough
I'm 28, live alone, have been cooking my own food since I was about 19. I'm not a professional but I genuinely enjoy cooking and do it most nights. It's kind of a hobby at this point. For my birthday my mom announced she had signed me up for a beginner's cooking class at a local community center. Basics of knife skills, how to make a few simple sauces, that kind of thing. It runs four Saturdays in a row.
I said thank you and tried to be genuine about it but I guess my reaction wasn't enthusiastic enough because she immediately said "you don't seem very excited." I told her I appreciated it but that I was a little surprised since I cook pretty regularly. She said "well you could always learn more" which, okay, true of literally everyone. The issue is the class conflicts with something I already had planned on two of those Saturdays. When I mentioned this she said I should rearrange my plans because she already paid for it and it wasn't refundable. I said I'd try to make at least two of the four sessions.
She called my aunt to mention that I was being ungrateful about my birthday gift. My aunt called me to tell me this. My mom hasn't brought it up again directly but she's been a little cool with me since.
I'm going to go to the classes I can make. I just wasn't aware that receiving a gift I didn't ask for also meant restructuring my schedule around it or it counts as ingratitude.