A Random Conglomeration of Awesomeness, a.k.a. An Excellent Gift Guide

Hurry, folks, time's a-wastin'. By my count, there are 5 more days until Hanukkah, 9 to Christmas.

Were you looking for CHEAP-ASS gifts for your beloveds? Ones that say "Even though I can't afford much, I still think you're worthy of cool stuff."? Look no further, here are four sweet deals for under $20, one for under $30 and one for exactly $40 that was too cool to pass up. Not too shabby.


This poster is about the coolest reference material ever made.


Yarn in beautiful colorways for the peacenik in your life.



A "Rad" tee shirt by rad artist Ray Fenwick.


Foxes in Trees.


A pretty little cardinal pendant, featuring my favorite colors.

I don't know about you, but I feel better knowing that you know about this now.

Fay Four: the Sitar

Not as exotic as a hurdy gurdy, and every Beatles fan on the planet is familiar with it, but who doesn't love a sitar?

This is Anoushka Shenkar, daughter of Ravi Shenkar, who taught George Harrison how to play. She is incredible.

Day Three: The Hurdy Gurdy

We saw a hurdy gurdy in action at Folklife Festival a few years ago, and I fell in love with it.

I've always been drawn to gypsy music, starting with Bartok's Romanian Dances in 7th grade, with my youth orchestra. There's something so complicated sounding about the hurdy gurdy. I think it's the drone strings.

Close your eyes, and you might mistake it for a bagpipe. If you're not Scottish, I suppose.

Day Two: The OUD

My belly dance classes have introduced a whole new world of instrumentation into my life. The oud is very impressive.