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.

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

I love this! For the reasons Cass said, plus...discount on your renter's insurance...plus, the metaphor of cool heads.

LOVE it.