So my sister posted something on Facebook about Obama insisting on "holiday" trees instead of Christmas trees. I promptly Snopsed her. She's coming to visit tomorrow. Normally we carefully avoid discussing religion or politics.

This visit is going to be awesome.

Burrell, my thoughts are with you and your family.

Beth, I'm glad Nathanial is responding to the meds. May he continue to improve.

I need help with a wedding present (and yes, the bit from Bull Durham is running in my head). My cousin, ex-addict and her fiance, another ex-addict are having a low key wedding. Neither have completed any rehab but are supposedly clean now. I don't want to just give them money, it does not appear they are registered anywhere, and I'm not getting a spark of inspiration. Any ideas?

beth, glad to hear there's some improvement.

Burrell, so sorry for your loss.

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Suzi, someone once gave me the idea of giving step-stool/small step-ladders (like for high cupboards in the kitchen, not garage-type) and I often do that for couples I don't know well enough/am not close enough to to make something. They've always been appreciated. I've also used the adage "you can't have too many kitchen/dish towels" in the past.

Or, of course, candlesticks are always nice. t /Bull Durham paraphrase

I'm not getting a spark of inspiration. Any ideas?

We did register, but also got non-registry gifts -- some friends gave us a restaurant gift card and a movie gift card for a date night. Maybe something like that?

Teppy, that sounds good. I like the step-stool idea, I'm just hesitant in this case cause they live in Reno (or at least they were a few months ago) and the wedding is in CA - don't want to add too much to what they have to transport home.

Part of me just wants to do candlesticks and I can giggle at myself over the Bull Durham-ness. Don't care if anyone else "gets it".

Also, a nice picture frame is a good gift. Not a huge thing to transport, and they can frame a wedding picture in it.

My default wedding gift for awhile was frames for photos

We get our professional pictures back Friday, and I cannot wait. I'm going to frame the hell out of them.

t edit And that's the only thing family is getting for Christmas presents this year. If you're related to me or Tim, you're getting a framed picture from the wedding. Or possibly a Viewmaster with a reel of wedding pictures, if you're my brother. Or Tim.

I would send the present to their home, in that case.

I have a friend who always gives fire extinguishers for wedding gifts.

I have a friend who always gives fire extinguishers for wedding gifts.

It's not a bad gift. You seriously don't think to buy them yourselves and hope to never use them. But something a home ought to have.

I need more tea. If I were looking online (which is not ideal but is what it is) for plain loose leaf teas, where should I start? I definitely want oolong but would love a place to try a few others as well. I have maybe two pots left of the lovely oolong that my flight attendant ex-aunt-in-law brought me from China. But she's not doing that route for a bit yet. I have to find my own tea.