The phrase "an albatross around one's neck" means to have a heavy burden or responsibility that is difficult to bear, often referring to an unwanted obligation or guilt. The term comes from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem “Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” in which an albatross is a good omen until one shot by the mariner, bringing bad luck and hardship on his shipmates. Since then, the phrase has been used metaphorically to describe any unnecessary or unwanted burden that weighs someone down.