It's All Over Baby Blue

I spent a lot of time stressing out about what to get my boyfriend for Christmas this year (in part because my default gift to everyone is always books, and it didn’t seem to be enough on our first Christmas). Also, he’s a genius gift giver, so it’s also a competition (only on my end).  So I’m putting together a list of potential gifts for anyone you love that’s a little outside of the normal sweater, perfume and CD (do people, besides me, give CDs anymore?)

1. Music subscriptions.  From Daytrotter to Spotify, music services are the way to go. They provide access to bands and sounds that you might never know of otherwise. Spotify’s premium service lets you access your playlists from anywhere, which is great. But Daytrotter, a longtime champion of small Indie acts - and big Indie acts - offers great downloads and streams and are frankly too adorable for words.

2. Art. We walked into a shop in Silverlake the other day called “Pull My Daisy” which has these amazing tiny canvases of pop culture figures. They are amazing (and a little pricey, but one of a kind). Still, if you can’t afford $125 for a six-inch painting of David Bowie as an Android playing Jared, you can find some amazing art on Etsy, Society6.com, or any of the sites that feature unique creations.  If your loved one is a pop culture nerd, you’ve got a wealth of options to choose from.  I say this as a thrilled recipient of a snowman Dalek t-shirt from my honey.

3. DIY projects:http://laist.com/2011/12/21/last_minute_diy_holiday_gifts.php

4. Tickets. Experiential stuff is always key for us these days. A museum opening, a concert, a wacky class. Time is more precious than stuff these days, and time gifted to someone you love is undeniably important.

5. Donations. Pay something off, frame something, send $50 to an organization that supports animals, kids, the environment, a college, books, writing, math, science, whatever. Take someone and volunteer at the food bank, the soup kitchen.  Very few of us need more stuff.  But the people who do need? They really need it. So make that better.  And make it a gift that goes through-out the year.  Being hungry in July sucks as much as being hungry at Christmas.

6.  Books. Everyone needs books. Whether virtual e-books or solid in the hand tomes, books are a great gift.  Everyone is into something, and there’s a history, a biography, a how-to or a novel about it.  Support your favorite writers, locally or globally. Support your favorite book sellers. Give books!

I was reluctantly excited for the US version of Prime Suspect in part because I loved the original so much and I wasn’t sure how the concept would translate nearly 20 years later.  I was less worried about the story lines and more worried about the datedness. Of course, I don’t actually think that women facing sexism in a predominantly male environment is a dated concept. But in terms of what we see on television, the concept of a female leader, even in a police drama, is not new ground. Maria LaGuerta is only one example, as fraught as that character can be.  And at a time when we are seeing Catherine Willows departing both a leadership role, and CSI itself, to be replaced by the oldest of the 1980s old guard, more women in leadership roles on TV was welcome regardless.

However, I was happily surprised by how engaged I was by the show. I thought Maria Bello was terrific, I felt like it was a welcome, gritty and totally watchable while intriguing take on the procedural, and I really like the character of Jane Timony.  I like the whole ensemble in fact. Timony is unapologetic in her actions, her brashness, her relationships, but she feels complex, three dimensional, someone you’d like to know (most of the time).  She’s not a caricature, in part I think because Bello is so watchable. Beautiful, but real looking.  Hard-edged but not heartless, she’s neither a pushover nor someone willing to back down, but she also has to deal with the real ramifications of actions she took that put her in a bad light: a position she wouldn’t face if she were male.

So I’m disappointed to hear that the show’s been cancelled. I liked her, I liked the stories, and as my other favorite procedurals start to show the wear and tarnish of age, I’m sad to lose a new one that had completely captured my interest.