Traveling great lengths for gifts
One advantage to traveling for nearly the entire month of October is I have purchased most of my holiday gifts. That’s really good news because I hate shopping.
From December to January I’ll avoid the east end of 20th Street in Chico. Yet, put me on Grafton Street in Dublin and I have no problem dropping $400 to buy wool sweaters.
It’s different when you’re on the road because your main job really is to look around,, even at shops.
I thought I knew a lot about my travel companion, Michael. Now I know that he loves shopping. He’s 78% Irish, and has many siblings, friends, nieces and nephews. If he had started shopping for gifts in May, it would not have been soon enough.
If I had tried to dissuade him from shopping, I might have found myself on a boat, crossing the River Shannon alone.
I can’t blame my friend entirely. I like buying small items that summarize a location, such as olive oil soap in Greece.
Near the mound of Tara I was roped in by the honorsystem outdoor stand where I bought small jars of lotion made from local beeswax. I dropped my money in the coffee can and did not need to answer helpful questions from a cheerful sales clerk.
At some point, the mental padlock to my wallet was opened, and money began to flow.
This had everything to do with the fact that I found myself in one store after another.
We spent a lot of time in Carroll’s Irish Gifts, which is about as ubiquitous in Ireland as ABC stores in Oahu. One rainy day, Michael was struggling to find the perfect necklace for his secretary. By the end of the visit, he knew the clerk by first name, as well as the name of the clerk’s fiancé who had pointed us toward the $5 rack.
This was the day that I stood outside the threshold of the store, listening to musicians busking and wishing I smoked cigarettes.
The next day we found our way to the Dublin Writers Museum, which was closed, but was conveniently close to Talbot Street, where we found thrift stores. We made our way to St. Patrick’s Cathedral where we saw our friends from the Carroll’s shop, walking handin-hand. Michael remembered their names and hollered at them as they walked out of a SPAR convenience store. If we had lingered a few moments longer, I’m sure Michael would have been asked to
sing at their wedding.
I warned my friend about buying too much too soon, and to avoid bulky items like books. I knew from my experience with international visitors to California that travelers can easily buy more than they can squeeze into a suitcase with a 50-pound limit. Many travelers will abandon socks and pajamas on the beds of their hotel rooms to make rooms for Nike high-tops and souvenir San Francisco baseball caps.
Michael didn’t listen. He browsed and gleaned fascinating facts about wool and silver as salesfolk treated us like Canadian
rock stars. It was inevitable that holiday gifts would fall into my green plastic shopping basket.
Some in my family will receive Celtic cross earrings (likely made in China), knit beanies with Irish emblems, foldable grocery bags emblazoned with cartoon sheep or a plastic tote from the Long Room at Trinity College … Many items were so small they easily fit into my brown leather Keen walking shoes and the crevices of packing cubes.
On our final days in Dublin, I spent time listening to more street musicians as Michael shopped for an oversized duffle bag, which would cost him $100 to check onto the plane.
Because this is a garden column, I will share a few
garden gift ideas for folks who still need to brave the holiday shopping crowd. (Friends and family, please note that I already own everything on this list. If you’re shopping for me, I prefer gifts that imply quality time, such as vouchers for dinner or a movie.)
You’ll find some links below, so you can see what the garden tools look like. It’s better to shop locally so we can keep brick and mortar shops in business.
Hori hori
Samantha bought me this digging tool, https:// bit.ly/3iN5n80, several years ago, and it’s a rootgetter. When you grip it in your hand, you feel like you could protect yourself from the Viking invasion. The edges are jagged and the blade reaches deeply
into the soil. Spiffy sheath and belt holster is a bonus.
Stirrup hoe
I saw this while visiting my Aunti Pat and rushed out to buy one of my own: https://bit.ly/3FyaHoE. A standard hoe is great, but this bad boy makes it feel like you’re whisking the weeds away. The long handle lets you twirl wads of Velcro weed that are trying to invade from the neighbor’s fence line.
Fanno saw
This compact saw with a nasty bite is surprisingly versatile. Chico’s store is at 224 W. Eighth Avenue. You can pack the tool into the hills to cut down a Christmas tree, have your way with one-inch-thick ivy vines or slice French baguettes and cheese.
Marshalltown 5
This pointed little tool is great for liberating wee plants from six-pack containers. Those plastic cells are so tiny, by the time you squish out the soil the root may be mangled. The pointed tip of this tool slides into soft soil easily. I bought mine at Home Depot. They’re also advertised at Ace Hardware: https://bit.ly/3UzyAAh
Bypass pruners
Even if your gardening friend has a nice pair, she can always use another. When you’re busy in the garden you can easily lay them down pruners and forget where you were five minutes ago.
Be sharp
If your loved one already
owns all of these tools, and they are quality, you might win points by having her tools sharpened at Fanno Saw Works, Eighth Avenue. Before you go, check behind the hydrangea. She may have dropped a garden tool or two last spring.
More in the grab bag
I know I’m missing some garden tool gems. If readers have experience with others, please send me an email and I will update this list, and go shopping in
May to buy them for myself.