Dear Urban Diplomat: Is it wrong to ditch our ugly wedding gift?

When my husband and I got married last month, we requested that we receive no gifts. Our place is tiny, and we don’t need anything. But the week after the wedding, his aunt gave us a hideous two-foot-tall sculpture. I think it’s meant to be a couple dancing, but it looks like Plasticine aliens getting it on. We desperately want to get rid of it, but we have nowhere to store it and don’t want to hurt her feelings. What should we do?

—Statue of Limitations, Malvern

Given your explicit no-gift stipulation, it’s fair to ditch the thing. If your place is as tiny as you say, I assume you won’t be hosting your aunt-in-law all that often. However, if she does visit and notices the piece is missing, you have two choices: lie and say you broke it, or be upfront and tell her you gave it away because you didn’t have space for it. The conversation is bound to be uncomfortable—but nowhere near as awkward as explaining the copulating extraterrestrials to every new person who comes over.

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