Jon Rocks

Like most of us Daillaks, my brother, Jon, has his quirks. His most notable ones relate to hair care, vanity plates, the post office and -- the one at issue here -- gift-giving occasions. You see, Jon tends to skip them, not on principle, not because he forgets, not even because of a lack of funds (though he tries to use this as an excuse from time to time.) He just doesn't give gifts very often. And we all know this well enough by now that it doesn't even cause hurt feelings or warrant an apology. He's basically trained the expectation out of us. Here's the thing, though: when he does give gifts, they are the kind you find yourself talking about, and appreciating, for years.

Last week he gave me a Flip video camera. It's a no-nonsense, palm-sized, cordless wonder of a thing that holds up to an hour of footage & sound and plugs right into your computer (or tv) for uploading. Even though I didn't know such a fabulous piece of technology existed, now that I do, I can't think of anything I might've wanted more this season. Well-done, brother man.

Here's a little sample. Not very exciting, I admit. But I'm practicing. You'll see.