Good news!

It's not too late to find gifts for the remaining December holidays:

First night of Hanukkah - Dec 14

Bill of Rights Day - Dec 15 (seems like a great year to make it a gift giving holiday)

Winter Solstice - Dec 21

Last night of Hanukkah - Dec 21

Christmas Eve - Dec 24

Christmas - Dec 25

Kwanzaa - Dec 26 through Jan 1

I put together a gift guide in my usual nerdy style. Take a gander, and please hit that comments section below to let me (and everyone else!) know what you would add!

• books

• games

• music

• subscriptions

• activities

Books!

“Tsundoku” is a Japanese word for the practice or habit of acquiring bazillions of books that you intend to read but in the meantime create joyous amazing hopeful beautiful chaotic stacks everywhere in your home.  Okay I may have slightly embellished, but it IS a term for collecting a lot of books for future reading.  This practice features in pretty much all of my professional bios as one of my special skills or super powers and, much to my partner’s chagrin, I don’t plan on ditching it anytime soon or ever.  So you will just have to wonder at how the heck I managed to keep my list to only four selections.  It was challenging, but somehow I pulled it off!  Please buy books from your local independent bookstore, or borrow from the library.

A memoir for people interested in a frothy intersection of the Asian American experience, trans experience, and marine biology - Sabrina Imbler “How Far The Light Reaches: A Life In Ten Sea Creatures” 

A graphic novel for people who like skillfully done and beautifully imaginative adaptations of one act fantasy-horror operas with a high philosophy bent which are extremely thinly veiled anti hegemonic dictator observations and were originally written in a Nazi camp during WWII - Dave Maass, Patrick Lay, Ezra Rose “Death Strikes: The Emperor of Atlantis”

For the person who loves fiction that hovers near magical realism while remaining searingly close to universal themes that thread through our daily lives.  This one has stuck with me when contemplating aloneness vs loneliness. It’s inventive and beautiful. Emily Habeck "Shark Heart: A Love Story"

For people who are seeking inspiration to create things, love a collage, and needn’t be burdened by traditional step by step instructions - Lynda Barry “Syllabus”

games!

If you know me at all you know I have had multiple interventions from family members about my game obsession.  The good news for you, Dear Reader, is I’ve curbed my spending and collecting JUST ENOUGH to allow them to be distracted from my continued habit.  Is it all in service to you?  No.  But you can benefit!

For the gamer who enjoys creating and responding to chaos and has no infant/toddler children, prey driven pets, or floor vents to gobble up escaped game pieces may I present to you Terror In Meeple City!  It’s ridiculous in all the best possible ways.  No wonder I love it!

For the lovable econ nerds in your life who don’t need to yell or smash or plan other players’ destruction/destitution in order to have fun, Traders of Osaka or Happy Pigs will provide some good diversion without having to get hyper about math.

For a couple or group that enjoys debate and puzzling through other people’s thinking, the Venn diagram game Things In Rings is oddly satisfying.

Music!

It should not be so hard to buy music as a gift for others but here we are.  Streaming killed download culture, CDs are coasters, and tapes are memes, so that leaves vinyl which is expensive to produce and comes with an unfortunately bougie stereotype.  Some of this list was at least at some point available in physical form, otherwise I guess these are suggestions of (downloadable) gifts to yourself, which is totally legit - we all need gifts.  Please support the artists more directly with a purchase rather than streaming.

For people who are invigorated by wildly expressive and beautifully textural music for large orchestra and chorus with percussion and cello features, LA Philharmonic’s excellent recordings of the music of genius Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz on the albums Revolución diamantina and Yanga (yay! both available on vinyl!)

For someone who is at least open to the polished sound of KPop and enjoys acoustic instruments, you can’t go wrong with the beautifully wholesome Korean Blue/Newgrass band Country GongBang. Start with their album We All Need Bluegrass.  It’s true.  We do. (available for download)

For someone looking for next level hip hop genius and an album that underscores a call to creatives to never ever give up, Little Simz “Lotus” (vinyl is available and there’s a beautiful pressing!) delivers with arrangements that deliciously ooze of jazz, rock, Afrobeat, and funk. 

For the person who waited impatiently for country music to grow up and turn punk - Wednesday “Rat Saw God”  (Yay! Vinyl available!)

For people who enjoy large scale and/or long form acoustic music or are already TOTALLY LEGITIMATELY OBSESSED with pianist/singer/songwriter/composer Gabriel Kahane and want to experience his ‘classical’ music composition (whatever that means anymore) you really must get thee to his Bandcamp interwebs shop and order a copy of Heirloom which features his new piano concerto written for, and recorded by, his exceptional performer/conductor father and Brooklyn based chamber orchestra The Knights.  In the liner notes Gabriel says of his creative path, "songs and storytelling share the road with the Austro-German musical tradition". Heirloom had only 500 vinyl pressings but may still be available IF YOU HURRY UP.

subscriptions!

I know, I know.  Believe me, I know.  But… all of life is either ‘add to cart' or ‘unsubscribe’, so embrace it!!  THIS IS A GIFT GUIDE AFTER ALL. 🫣😂

For anyone who likes surprises, uses shoes (or sandals - no judging!🤓) and wants to adorn their lowest limbs with snuggly neato designs, go check out Sock Club’s sock of the month subscription.  Also you’ll be supporting an Austin TX based company that isn’t soulless tech.  Do it for yourself and you can feel smug while snug. 😎

For the tea lover or tea curious you can’t go wrong with a tea of the month subscription from Atlas Coffee Company.  Extra fun surprise to see where in the world your tea is coming from each month and get to do research on that location and culture.  Maybe it will spur planning for a trip!

For the curiosity driven person in your life (or you!) who has an interest in classical music and other random topic surprises - you guessed it - Beeson’s Backstage Pass!

Activities!

Activities aren't exactly wrappable gifts, but they definitely fall into the 'keeps on giving' category.

While collaborating with Phamaly Theater here in Denver I was recently treated to a touching story of self care that included this line - “of the 8,760 hours in a year, take 52 for yourself” in reference to encouraging a recurring weekly lunch date away from daily responsibilities.  My twist on that is to suggest you plan to try 12 new scientific and cultural things to experience alone or with friends/family. That’s an overall goal of just 1 per month, with a backup plan to clump some into a staycation or smash them closer together if they’re a one-time scheduled event type thing. Treating yourself (and others!) to new adventures both big and small is an easy way to invigorate creative juices!

If you’re in the Denver metro area and you need a jumping off point that’s a little less ‘wild west’ than asking the interwebs, go to the SCFD website and take a look at the list of options there!

Some of my favorites in SCFD are Morrison Natural History Museum, Denver Botanic Gardens, Chatfield Farms, The Butterfly Pavilion, Buntport Theater, Black American West Museum & Cultural Heritage Center, Lighthouse Writers Workshop, Wonderbound, Redline Contemporary Art Center, Playground Ensemble, Cleo Parker Robinson Dance, Swallow Hill Music, Phamaly Theatre Company and of course my family band - the Colorado Symphony. :)