More gift ideas

Just a couple of things to add to our longer list:

- #2 son asked me to recommend Clear the Bridge!: The War Patrols of the U.S.S. Tang by RAdm. Richard H. O'Kane, USN, which he says is awesome:


One Amazon reviewer calls it the "greatest submarine book ever written":

I could not put this book down. O'Kanes writing puts the reader inside the sub taking part in every detail of the Tang's patrols during WWII. I found myself refering to the maps every time he gave a description of the Tang's approach to enemy shipping and being able to see his detailed discriptions of the area thru the periscope. O'Kane's memories of details of shooting setups and the details of men at their stations in time of war is uncanny. This is truly a book that takes the reader to the dark days of WWII and the frustration of fighting with defective torpedos and equipment and the "jury-rigging" the crews had to do to make things work and in most cases make equipment better than what was issued. O'Kane was not only a great leader of men he is one of the great heros of WWII. It would be an honor to shake his hand. 

- Labyrinth: My kids loved this game when they were little. It's been unavailable for a while but Ravensburger is apparently making it again and a couple of my twenty-somethings are going to be getting it for Christmas. (Don't tell.)

Also available in an anniversary edition.

- There's a dangerous side-effect to Christmas shopping -- those tchotchkes you irrationally want to buy for yourself. I stumbled upon these this morning:

Only $21.17! But seriously, what would I do with them? I drink my tea from bucket-sized mugs (and those butterfly handles look really impractical). And they aren't even old. (I do have a few pieces of real chintzware that I'm very fond of but they sit hidden in the cupboard most of the time.)

What I really want for Christmas is a new sofa.

This is turning into a Pinterest page. Sorry, guys.

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