Clever Gifts for a Foggy Day

Gifts, especially at Christmas, can be boring and predictable or boring and impersonal. Some people, however, have a gift for gifts -- for choosing just the right thing for just the right person. I received two of those this holiday, from my nieces.

The first, a present my niece-in-law, is a beautiful hand-woven scarf, something I wear virtually every day in the winter. I work on one warming principle: if my neck is warm, my body is warm. What's lovely about this scarf is four-fold: it's hand-crafted; the maker lives in Pisgah Forest, NC, near Brevard; its colors are among my favorites; and it's generously long for wrapping and wearing.The second, a present from my blood-niece, is itself handmade, or at least hand assembled: a clever canning jar of layered hot cocoa ingredients. I am sipping my first cup right now, and my tongue is sparking with chocolate and peppermint.Lovely treats that remind me of lovely women on a foggy afternoon.