Nerd Christmas Gift Ideas

I thought, since I am such an enormous nerd, that I should share with my readers some fun Christmas gifts I have gotten from my friends in the past, just in case it helps anyone who might be having a hard time finding a great gift for one of their nerdy friends. These are great gift ideas if you are creative and artsy, but also there are some good ones even if you aren't. (They mostly surround Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, but you may be able personalize them and tweak them to fit other things, too!)

TOMs shoes:

This year one of my friends bought each of us a pair of TOMs shoes in the color she thought would be best for us and then painted them to fit our favorite things! They turned out beautifully, and it's a great way to incorporate the receiver's personal favorites into what you give them. Plus it means more because of the effort and work you put into them. Not to mention that when you buy a pair of these shoes, one pair goes to a child in need. Can't get better than that.

Lord of the Rings on one foot, Harry Potter on the other!

The ocean and mountains on one shoe, the forest on the other.
Melissa is a nature lover.

Lace was added to Ashlie's shoes, as were these beads. 

JEWELRY:


For those of you who aren't great with painting, but you are slightly crafty and have the ability to string some beads together, you might look into making meaningful pieces of jewelry for your nerd. These next few pictures are examples of how to bring out important things from your nerd's favorite movie or book series.

This is a gorgeous "Snape" themed necklace Rocky made. It says "Always"
with a Lily and a doe in a frame. Any Snape fan would love this. 

Another Harry Potter themed necklace. It says "expelliarmus" with
Harry's lightning scar framed, the Deathly Hallows symbol, and a phoenix feather. 

And simpler still are singular charms that represent their favorite stories:

A few beads create tiny "snitch" earrings and necklaces for Harry Potter. 

A leaf charm and a tree for Return of the King.

Or, if you really want to do something special or unique, you could use actual excerpts from the books or real movie images to make the jewelry like so:

An old calendar with a screen cap from a movie...

...turns into a really special charm with words from the story.

RECREATE important moments:

Most nerds enjoy fantasy/sci-fi stories, but there are elements of those things that will never happen in real life. We get it, we're not crazy, but that doesn't mean we don't secretly wish that it could happen. So, this next one is a simple gesture that shows your nerd that you may not "get" it, but you know how important those things are to them. 'How sweet,' they'll say. Check out what one of my best friends did for me this year at Christmas:

What, did I open a box and find that a tiny owl is
delivering my very own Hogwarts acceptance letter?
With the correct childhood address and EVERYTHING? (Yes.)

And inside... a real letter with correct fantasy font? AND worded just like the book?
Don't forget there's a supply list.

It's even signed by Professor McGonagall!

This is just Rocky being adorable with her owl. 

Ashlie did this for all three of us this year (us = Rocky, Melissa, and I) and she did it all on her own. She didn't have to buy much, just special paper to print on and whatever it cost to get the envelopes stamped with the Hogwarts crest and addresses. She also downloaded some special fonts and then typed the letters herself, using the books as a reference. Simple but SUPER special! Something that is completely doable and will blow your nerd's mind.

VISIT:

If your nerd has dreams of visiting their fantasy worlds, for some books and movies that is a possibility. Surprise your nerd with a trip to Universal, Disney World, or ... if you're really nerdy and rich, New Zealand!

A nerd in her heaven.

Another nerd visiting his childhood.

CHILDHOOD DREAMS.

Or, if you aren't a bajillionaire (or have no desire to go into debt) and there is no way you can surprise your nerd with a trip for Christmas, you could do what my friends and I did. We have always wanted to visit New Zealand because we love Lord of the Rings and basically... NZ = Middle-Earth. However, that will cost approximately $05863957986724856, so instead of crying about the impossibility, we decorated jars to stash a "NZ-fund" in. That way, the idea is always out there and the hope that one day we will get to go isn't smashed. This could be a really cute way to bring a dream like this one more step into reality for a nerd yearning for a trip.

All the stuff on the outside of the jars are images that motivate us to save
because they make us WANT TO BE THERE.

Hopefully this list has been helpful in one or another. If it wasn't exactly what you had thought it would be, hopefully it had things you can tweak to fit your situation. And finally, if it wasn't helpful even in that last way, hopefully you got a great, big laugh out of just how ridiculous I am in all my nerdom. Merry Christmas!

Starkid Spacetour: Dallas House of Blues

Firstly, if you don't know who Starkid is... you MUST read this amazingly accurate article about them from the Chicago Tribune, RIGHT NOW.

I can hardly believe I never blogged about this. On November 13th I was lucky enough to get to go to the afternoon show of Starkid's Spacetour at the Dallas House of Blues. Charlene Kaye opened for them and it was just fabulous. Plus, I got to meet two of my favorite guys after the show.

The show at the Dallas House of Blues was SO amazing. Perhaps one of the most unique concert experiences of my life. It was like watching showtunes, but you could sing along, and it was a concert... but there were skits and a little stand up.... and... it was just GREAT.

About 30 minutes after the afternoon show, I walked back behind the venue in order to put more time on my parking meter and Dylan Saunders was standing back there chilling out with Clark from Jim and the Povolos. At first I kept going towards my car, but then I realized if I didn't stop and be a creeper and ask for a picture, I'd kick myself. So I went over to him and talked to him!



He was SO sweet and completely genuine. I got to talk to him for about 10 or 15 minutes. I told him how impressed I've always been with Starkid and how smart I thought they were for doing what they do. He was so thankful and gracious about everything I said and he hugged me about 3 times in the course of our conversation!

I asked him what they were thinking about doing after the tour and in the long term. He talked about how the tour is an experiment and they'd love to continue acting, since that's what they're all trained in first and foremost. He also mentioned they have 2 other shows written and that they may want to re-vamp Starship and hopefully, if they have a way to do this in the future, tour those shows!! It was so interesting! And I was so grateful that he was so easy to talk to -and willing to answer questions.

It was also really special to have an uninterrupted (and kind of intimate) opportunity to tell one of these Starkids, sincerely, how awesome I think they are. And I'm so glad it was Dylan. It was perfect.

So after that I was so happy, I didn't feel like it was necessary to linger and see if I could catch anyone else. I went back to put some more time on my parking spot so I could eat before I went home, and when I started walking back towards the venue, guess who I saw. Joey Richter!



I could not BELIEVE my luck. He must have just come out there and he only was able to stay out there a few minutes, but I was able to get a picture with him, too! I pointed out to him that I was wearing my Ron shirt because of him and he said "Well, I was gonna say!" Then he hugged me for the picture, which was ADORABLE.

Needless to say, my night was TOTALLY awesome!


I just know that these guys are going to BLOW UP one day, and people are going to be shocked that I was able to meet and chat with them like it was no big deal. Hah!

Short Movie Review: The Muppets

I loved "The Muppets" so much!

More specifically, the following:

• The musical numbers
• The dancing
• The cameos
• ”Rainbow Connection”
• Jason Segel being awesome
• The fact that I thought the lyrics of “Muppet or a Man” sounded like Flight of the Conchords lyrics, and then found out that Bret McKenzie wrote the songs for “The Muppets.” 
• Amy Adams’ entire wardrobe
• 80s Robot
• The ever-growing need to see Amy Adams in a true, full-blown musical
• Everything

It. Was. Precious. Jason Segel did a great job with this film! Go see it right now.