Happy Friday — we’re back with more Hot Bones. I think my increasingly desperate plea for it to stop snowing has worked, at least for today. On the bright side, I did get to enjoy all the snow celebration food groups this week: popcorn, ramen, cookies, and whiskey from a coffee mug. No real meals allowed.

This is the last Hot Bones edition until January rolls around, so I’d like to take this opportunity to say happy holidays to everyone here — thank you for reading, responding, and referring others to the HB crew! Stay warm out there.

🐶 Pet of the week: Chip! This guy loves people, good sniffs, and a comfy sun spot (4-year-old hound, 60 lbs).

🍪 Meal of the week: Is cookies. Ethos is hosting a cookie potluck with Chris Martin of BakerNoBakery. Bring one or two dozen of your favorite holiday cookies, and enjoy trying everyone else’s (free, RSVP here). Seasonal mulled wine is also on the menu.

♻️ Reduce, reuse, recycle, but on a 20-year planning horizon: If you have thoughts on how to improve the recycling and composting opportunities in the region (including friction points!), spend <5 minutes with this survey. It’s anonymous, but the deadline is Dec 15.

🏠 Tiny house of the week: This early 1900s carriage house was fully renovated in 2020 and comes with hardwood floors and a clawfoot tub (2 bed, 1 bath, $245k in Staunton’s historic district). Not sure it has a yard though.

🏡 Cool rental of the week: Recently renovated cottage in the Rugby Road extended area, with utilities and furniture included ($2,850/month, 2 bed/1 bath).

💼 Job of the week: Assistant Director of Communications & Public Engagement for the City of Cville ($96k - $121k).

🔋 Remote job: Copywriter at Bantam Communications ($40 - $50/hour).

Have an event or rec you’d like to share? Hiring? Interested in advertising?

Share any and all info here.

A few weeks ago, G and I drove down to Nashville for Thanksgiving, and since we had 9 hours in the car and since it was just a few days until Black Friday, I thought we should play a fun game called: “hey so what are you getting me for Christmas?”

Silence from the driver’s seat.

“Oh come on, this could be fun! What if I guess?”

“No way, that’s a trap.”

“There’s no way I can guess. You’re an excellent gift giver.” I sat back, looking at cows digging in muddy fields and signs for the next Buc-ee’s.

“Okay you can have a category.”

“Nice. What are we working with?”

“I’ve been doing some research, and it’s probably going to be in something, well, let’s call it ‘home care.’”

“Hmmm. Are you getting me a vacuum?"

We veer across two lanes of traffic. A semi lays on the horn. We return to our lane.

“WHAT. No. UGH. This game sucks.”

I look back at the cows. They also seemed disgruntled.

“I was kind of joking? A vacuum for Christmas? You do know I’m your spouse, right?”

“YOU SAID YOU WANTED TO GET A NEW VACUUM THIS YEAR.”

Back we go across to the far right lane. A different semi honks, a concerned minivan beeps.

“You mentioned ours was wearing out. And I know vacuuming is an important task for you. And I did a ton of research. It was going to be a really nice one!”

“A vacuum for Christmas though?”

“I WILL DROP YOU IN BRISTOL VIRGINIA if we keep talking about this. And we all know that’s the worst of the two Bristols.”

G puts her foot on the gas, taking us closer to the state line, faster.

“I just. I just don’t want a vacuum as a present? That’s like relationship 101. No appliances.”

“Bristol Virginia, Charlotte. We’re getting close.”

“How about some nice tennis gear instead?” I whisper.

“You ask for that every year. I really wanted to surprise you.”

The minivan passes us from the right. The two kids in the backseat are staring straight at us. Vacuum arguments must be better than screen time.

“One time your brother bought you 20 boxes of Rice Chex for your birthday and you said that was the best gift you’d ever gotten. Why is a vacuum so bad?” G said.

“It’s just not very whimsical I guess. Plus I bought one this morning.”

Fast forward 60 miles and we passed both Bristols, but barely. I’m really looking forward to my new tennis grips.

Introducing the first annual Hot Bones gift guide. It’s short and sweet because I imagine you’ve already gotten a dozen gift guides from all the other newsletters.

This one is Charlottesville based, heavy on experiences over products (less chance things end up in landfills), and comes with an iron-clad guarantee that not a single appliance will be recommended. Also, none of these recs are affiliate based, so no one is buying my vote. Here’s the layout:

The caveat with gifting experiences is that handing someone a printout of the activity can sometimes feel like a let-down. We are children of the mall, we want presents!

To get full credit for your hard work, I recommend either handwriting the experience details on a nice notecard and calling it done — or popping that in a small cardboard box and wrapping it up in unwaxed butcher paper (which can be composted by Cville’s own Black Bear). Refill Renew in Mcintire Plaza also sells compostable wrapping paper for $6 a pack, and Target has an in-house brand that’s recyclable and Forest Stewardship Council certified.

Or take a leaf from Hot Bones reader Katie’s book, who recommends placing the note/tickets/etc in an empty paper towel roll and then wrapping that so it looks like a Christmas cracker.

I’ve pulled all these recs from previous editions of Hot Bones, so even if they might end up getting thrown away by your ne'er-do-well recipient, at least they were vetted by a sustainability newsletter first.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to amazing local gifts. But don’t forget the most important takeaway here: If something piqued your interest to receive, not give, just forward the newsletter to someone who really whiffed on their gifting last year, and tell them the # on the list.

Frannie doing her best Call Me By Your Name impression