Acquiring stuff

People sometimes complain that they don't know what to get me on occasions when that's appropriate (hi, Mom!). So below is a list of stuff I'm interested in having, roughly categorized and in no particular order.

Music

• Anything by Rilo Kiley, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Spoon, Colbie Caillat, or Sarah Bareilles
  
• 21, by Adele
• ...Featuring Norah Jones, by Norah Jones
  
• Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, Lucinda Williams
• Sister, by Letters to Cleo
  
• Infinite possibilities, by Amel Larrieux
  
• Mama's Gun, by Erykah Badu
  
• Bowmboï, by Rokia Traoré
  
• Humming by the Flowered Vine, by Laura Cantrell
  
• Dreaming Wide Awake, by Lizz Wright
  

Books   

Generally I like: mysteries with a sense of humor; fantasy that isn't horribly cliched; books about food and cooking; books about politics and culture; and books by and/or about women. Don't be all funny and get me something by Ann Coulter just because I said that. Maybe I should change that to, "books by and/or about women who are not bigoted sociopaths."

Authors of whom I am fond: Pat Conroy, Barbara Kingsolver, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, Jennifer Weiner, bell hooks, Lawrence Block, Susan Wittig Albert, Melanie Rawn, Toni Morrison, Neil Gaiman, Neal Stephenson. Unless otherwise specified, please assume I own everything written by each of these folks; this list is just to give you an idea of my taste. I have a wish list at Powell's under lioness at ology. And here's some other specific stuff I want:

• Paint It Black, by Janet Fitch
  
• Wishful Drinking, by Carrie Fisher
  
• The Hunger Games and sequels, by Suzanne Collins
  
• Dreamers of the Day, by Mary Doria Russell
  
• Palm Latitudes, by Kate Braverman
  
• Briar Rose, by Jane Yolen
  
• Sister Mine, by Tawni O'Dell
  
• Operating Instructions, Rosie, All New People, by Anne Lamott
  
• City of Glass by Douglas Coupland
  
• Anything about politics by Steven Gillom
  
• Choice Cuts, edited by Mark Kurlansky
  
• Flux, by Peggy Orenstein
  
• Another Planet: A Year in the Life of a Suburban High School, by Elinor Burkett
  
• Joe College, by Tom Perrotta
  
• The Silk Road, by Jane Summer
  
• Cookbooks:  French, Thai, Chinese, American, Greek; and anything by Rick Bayless, Charlie Trotter, Alice Waters, James Beard, or Caprial Pence.
  
• The Splendid Table, by Lynne Rosetto Kasper
  

DVDs 

• Daria: The Complete Animated Series
  
• Singin' in the Rain
  
• Whip It
  
• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
  
• Heathers
  
• American History X
  
• LA Story
  
• Lara Croft Tomb Raider
  
• Wit
  
• Shawshank Redemption
  
• Silence of the Lambs
  
• Muppet Movie
  

House/kitchen stuff

• Serving pieces. I prefer clean, modern shapes in shades of red or white pottery, dark wood, or nickel/silver.
  
• A cheese board and cheese knives.
  
• Big square tablecloths. If you've seen my living/dining area, you know these should be in creamy shades of ivory, taupe, or brown. Red would also be nice. My table is 60" square and extends another 18".
  
• A beautiful soup tureen, suitable for serving at table.
  
• A large, round, clay casserole with a lid. Should be at least 4" tall.
  
• I always dig good wine.  I like buttery Chardonnay without smoky oak; crisp, citrusy Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc; all kinds of Riesling; big, frisky reds like Zinfandel and Shiraz; all kinds of dessert wine; and this particular Italian sparkling red, Brachetto D'Acqui. I also love port, Sauternes, muscat, grappa (especially the chamomile-infused sort), and good whiskey. I tend to prefer wines from places other than Europe, but I've been known to dig Spanish and Italian.

• Organic and/or fair trade shower gels, lotions, and lip balm
  
• Anything vanilla or lavender from The Body Shop, or any of their body butters
  
• Fun bath stuff! We have this ludicrous bathtub, and I like to be in it. I enjoy fizzy, bubbly things that smell like vanilla, lavender, ginger, chamomile, lemon, jasmine, cinnamon, roses, gardenia, pomegranate, blackberry, honey, caramel, blackcurrant, or orange.
  
• Socks.  Lots of them, preferably comfy and soft, in black, purple, navy, and dark red. I like extra fluffy redonkulous pairs for wearing around the house, and I need more pairs for grown-up wear. I'm really serious. I need socks.
  
• Hair jewelry. Basically anything pretty that will show up in blonde hair and make me look like a grown-up while also keeping my hair out of my face.
  
• Jewelry! Guidance: I like earrings and necklaces. I don't much wear bracelets, and I prefer to choose my own rings. I like dangling or chandelier earrings, and hoops with personality. I like wires, not studs or posts. I dislike chokers; I like heavy pendants and long necklaces (at least 18 inches). Don't be shy about size - I like big pieces and can carry them off well. I tend to like pink, red, blue, green, and purple stones. I prefer silver to gold, ethically and aesthetically. Please be careful about metals! I can't wear copper, brass, and gold "fill" or plate, because my freakishly acidic skin will literally eat through them. For real. I'm not kidding.
  I like a lot of the stuff at Lura Jewelry, SkyDreams, Alice Istanbul, and Novica.
  When I say hoops with personality, I mean stuff like this or this.

Good places to get me gift certificates

- Container Store
- BookPeople or Powells.com
- Williams-Sonoma
- Sephora
- The iTunes music store

But you know, since we are blessed to have so much of what we want, I would also be very happy if you donated in my name to any of the following:

- Capital Area Food Bank
- Feminist Majority Foundation
- Heifer International - give someone a goat or a llama from me!
- Ms. Foundation for Women
- Oxfam, which does many cool things to make trade fair, fight poverty, and so much more
- my local Planned Parenthood - did you know President Bush's grandfather was on his local affiliate's board back in the day?
- SafePlace, the local women's shelter and rape crisis center
- UNFPA, the UN Population Fund, which, among other things, helps people in the developing world get good health care