[andi*pandi]

Have anything interesting picked out for the family, SO, or dog? Post it here (if sfw! )

The husband is getting touch gloves, jeans, and a bunch of books.
Kids are getting magic the gathering cards, clothes, and a slew of my little pony, barbie, minecraft whatnot. Somehow no lego made the list this year!

The dog is getting new squeaky toys to demolish, including this awesome thing:
Amazon.com: Plush Puppies Squeaker Mat Long Body Gator Dog Toy with 16 Squeakers: Pet Supplies

[subego]

I tend to be the guy who finds and gives nifty gadgets.

My discoveries for this year:

Card Ninja: a pocket which sticks to the back of your phone, and has room for DL, CC, and a folded bill or two. This is especially useful for women, who society deems not deserving of normal sized pockets on their pants.

Slice: ceramic box cutter. Won't cut you but ravages cardboard and packing tape. Has a detent if you're worried about cutting too deep.

Wahl Five-Star Razor Edger: meant for doing fades and the like, but is the best beard trimmer I've found.

HotHands 40 pack: chemical handwarmers. Not a new discovery, but a realization if you have 40, you actually use them.


Honorable mentions from previous years:

Plastic Razor Blades: proper scraping is a question of getting something harder than what you're scraping, but softer than what you're scraping off of. Metal razor blades tend to be harder than what you're scraping off of. These aren't.

Proprietary Chargers: like, for a laptop. Seems like a lame gift but is like giving someone gold. Almost everyone you know has a place they use their laptop a lot but there's no charger nearby. Now that place will have a charger ready to go.

http://www.cardninja.com/
http://www.sliceproducts.com/product...ble-box-cutter
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0001B433I
http://heatmax.com/hothands.html

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B004623NU2

[subego]

Oh... I unfortunately don't know anyone other than myself nerdy enough to need one, but if I did, this would be the goto gift:

Magnetic Project Mat - iFixit

What makes this awesome is it's also a dry-erase board. Not only will it hold tiny ass-screws, you can write down which ass they came from right next to the screw, as well as other useful notes like "came out of ass first".

[ShortcutToMoncton]

CardNinja is awesome....too late for XMas delivery, damn it people!

Any other good ideas for stocking stuffers? The wife has been very happy with me finally getting my audio cabinet completed and messy electronics stowed away; so happy in fact that she agreed that we really could use a preamp that has a remote, and the Cary Audio SLP-98P would be a great alternative as our "shared present" this year. So I'm picking up a used model and could not be happier with both ladies.

[osiris]

What does stand out is the iPad air for my wife, a slew of kitchen items like an oven, a fryer, and a toaster.
Also got lots of books, clothes and fun t-shirts for the family. Some silver dollar coins for the kids… I'm also taking care of the appetizers for Christmas Eve - lots of delicacies and good stuff for the family. Can't wait!

[subego]

I'll post the stocking stuffers as they come to me.

First up: snow cleats.

The two brands I've tried are Yaktrax and STABILicers.

The Yaktrax are easy to get on and off, but will fall apart after a couple seasons. The STABILicers are for not kidding around. They reside permanently on my combat boots. It's really fun walking the dog on ice when I have total traction and her little 4WD can't do shit.

https://www.yaktrax.com/
http://www.32north.com/

[residentEvil]

We have decided for this year, and going forward, no more "gifts". Instead, we used the money we would normally spend for Xmas on our favorite animal welfare society to help our four legged friends find forever homes (they are a no kill shelter). Sure, on xmas morning, Santa will have some small things for us like socks or gas cards. But actual present giving, we have ended. We will continue this actually, on a monthly basis, albeit in smaller amounts. During the holiday season, we will contribute more like this year.

[subego]

Next: Innergie Cables

Very clever. Charging cable with multiple tips, but each tip fits into the next. The one I have is mini-USB/micro-USB/Apple 30-pin. They just released a micro-USB/Lightning version.

https://www.myinnergie.com/overview....6&languageid=1

[subego]

Best naked iPhone stand: Glif

Studio Neat — Glif

[Doc HM]

Ankle length black kashmir/wool Pierre Cardin winter coat. found in vintage clotting shop in Bath. Virtually unworn. Fits like it was made to measure. £90. VERY pleased/ My early pressie form my partner.

[subego]

This rocks:

PlugBug Charger - PlugBug Charger - Twelve South

It fits on an Apple laptop charger. Two USB charging ports.

[osiris]

Originally Posted by subego 

This rocks:

PlugBug Charger - PlugBug Charger - Twelve South

It fits on an Apple laptop charger. Two USB charging ports.

That is pretty neat… uh oh - is that Guy Kawasaki? The traitor who abandoned ship when we needed him the most?!? Oy vey.

[subego]

Yeah... I like him, but he can be a prick. No question.

[subego]

For the mechanic types, Google "magnetic finger" and either "glove", "tool", or "cot".

They slip over one finger and have a magnetized tip. Great for grabbing a bolt you dropped in some hard to access cranny.

[subego]

In the vein of proprietary chargers, for those who use 30-pin connectors, Griffin makes a 10-ish foot 30-pin cable. Six feet isn't enough slack if you want to use your device when it's plugged in IMO.

3 Meter USB to Dock Cable - for iPad, iPhone and iPod | Griffin Technology

[Shaddim]

Like the last fews years, we're making donations to charities for each other, except for the kids. The exception is an `06 Eurocopter EC120B, which is the family gift.

[Face Ache]

Originally Posted by Shaddim 

Like the last fews years, we're making donations to charities for each other, except for the kids. The exception is an `06 Eurocopter EC120B, which is the family gift.

Neat! What scale?

Spheric posted this elsewhere, and I ordered one for my son (13).

Synth Kit - littleBits

[Spheric Harlot]

KORG is doing some great stuff. Really great.

My Christmas "gift" to myself came two weeks early:


Not vintage, not analog, but awesomely straightforward. Clavia really know what the hell they're doing when it comes to musicians' tools. On their stuff, you work with instruments, not computers.

And I've been working with a nord electro 2 for over eight years now, and it hasn't ever let me down once through years of abuse. Even the keyboard is still pristine.

[Shaddim]

Originally Posted by Face Ache 

Neat! What scale?

You can control it with an iPad app! No, not really.

[andi*pandi]

Originally Posted by Face Ache 

Synth Kit - littleBits

that looks cool!

[Laminar]

Originally Posted by andi*pandi 

The dog is getting new squeaky toys to demolish, including this awesome thing:
Amazon.com: Plush Puppies Squeaker Mat Long Body Gator Dog Toy with 16 Squeakers: Pet Supplies

COOL. Ordered one for my pup. Will post results.

Originally Posted by residentEvil 

We have decided for this year, and going forward, no more "gifts". Instead, we used the money we would normally spend for Xmas on our favorite animal welfare society to help our four legged friends find forever homes (they are a no kill shelter). Sure, on xmas morning, Santa will have some small things for us like socks or gas cards. But actual present giving, we have ended. We will continue this actually, on a monthly basis, albeit in smaller amounts. During the holiday season, we will contribute more like this year.

Historically, my siblings and I did a gift exchange of sorts where we'd each pick up something for $15-20 then we'd play a game of Bingo to determine who gets to pick which gift. This year we decided instead of wasting money of something that no one really wants, we'd all play a game and the winners got to pick a charity to which everyone would donate the money we'd have otherwise spent. The girls won the game of Taboo by one point, so this year we each donated to a local organization that provides housing and support for women (usually teenagers) going through unplanned pregnancies who are no longer welcome in their own homes.

Much better than a Shake Weight or novelty brew-your-own-root-beer kit!

[subego]

I basically disowned myself from one side of the family because they didn't put me in the brother/sister gift exchange, parents buying gifts for their kids in your name program.

When I was 18, and had to buy gifts for my mother, stepdad, brother, grandma, grandpa, eight aunts and uncles, plus six first cousins, I just said "**** this shit" and stopped showing up.

[Laminar]

Originally Posted by andi*pandi 

The dog is getting new squeaky toys to demolish, including this awesome thing:
Amazon.com: Plush Puppies Squeaker Mat Long Body Gator Dog Toy with 16 Squeakers: Pet Supplies

He liked it so much he wouldn't sit still long enough to take a picture. Although it touts "no stuffing", it took all of four minutes to rip the neck open and find all of the stuffing inside the head.

[andi*pandi]

ha, awesome!

Most of my dogs toys now have duct tape heads.

[subego]

Most of our dog toys have signed DNRs.

[Laminar]

[subego]

He pulled a gun, man!

[Face Ache]

Originally Posted by andi*pandi 

that looks cool!

Oh, it is!



The boy is distracted from his videogames!

[Spheric Harlot]

Be forewarned that getting into modular gear can get very expensive — but extremely rewarding.

Good job, man.
Very cool.

[andi*pandi]

Originally Posted by Laminar 

your dog looks very proud of himself.

[andi*pandi]

bumped because I found these photos. My pup also enjoyed her alligator, but a little overwhelmed by it at first. Makes a great chase toy. 2 months on, still has some squeaks left, and somehow the head is still (mostly) intact.

[Laminar]

We ended up having to toss ours, he was getting green and yellow fuzz all over the carpets. For a "no stuffing" toy it ended up being pretty messy. Back to squeaky tennis balls for him.

[jmiddel]

Originally Posted by ShortcutToMoncton 

CardNinja is awesome....too late for XMas delivery, damn it people!

Any other good ideas for stocking stuffers? The wife has been very happy with me finally getting my audio cabinet completed and messy electronics stowed away; so happy in fact that she agreed that we really could use a preamp that has a remote, and the Cary Audio SLP-98P would be a great alternative as our "shared present" this year. So I'm picking up a used model and could not be happier with both ladies.

That is sweet! I've Cary Audio gear and loved it.