What can I buy my brother?

May 13, 2009 7:55 AM

Help me pick out a graduation present for my Yale-bound brother.

My brother is graduating soon and will be off to start work on his Ph. D. at Yale. We come from a pretty lower-middle class family, and the successes of my siblings are very exciting to all of us. I want to get him a very nice graduation/birthday present, but I don't have much money to spend. He's notoriously picky, so getting him a gift is difficult, but everyone here always has great ideas, so I thought I'd ask.

A bit about him: He's 22, loves coffee, doesn't drive, used to work at a bike co-op and is still interested in biking, likes silly/wacky things (was going to buy me a poster of different types of beards for Christmas), has a macbook, will be living in Yale graduate housing and will be working on a degree in Chemistry (his undergraduate degree is also in Chemistry, with a minor in math). Oh, and he'll be spending a month in Taiwan this summer. I have only about $50 to spend (a bit more, if it's a really good gift). Any ideas? Bonus points if anyone knows any good books about New Haven, because I was thinking of getting one to go with whatever else I get him.

Thanks in advance!

posted by nuclear_soup to Shopping (21 answers total)

Forget the books.

Replace his quick release wheel mounts with fixed, get his mudguards welded on, and epoxy/superglue his lights/reflectors. He'll thank you.
posted by gensubuser at 8:02 AM on May 13, 2009 [1 favorite]

There's always the classic and obvious caffiene molecule shirt... if he doesn't already have it.
posted by fearnothing at 8:02 AM on May 13, 2009

Does he have a French press? We LOVE ours.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 8:05 AM on May 13, 2009

A ten-trip off-peak Metro North pass from New Haven to NYC is $113.05. A little more than your budget, but seems like a nice way to provide him with opportunities he might not otherwise take. Check to see how long that ticket is valid, though.
posted by These Premises Are Alarmed at 8:12 AM on May 13, 2009 [2 favorites]

A Spoke POV kit for his bike. $40 and one of you gets to put it together. Sure to light up the heart of every silly/wacky bike lover.
posted by ChrisHartley at 8:29 AM on May 13, 2009

Replace his quick release wheel mounts with fixed, get his mudguards welded on, and epoxy/superglue his lights/reflectors. He'll thank you.

DO NOT do anything to his bike without asking.

I'd suggest coffee. Maybe some varietals from Stumptown or Counter Culture. The latter offers a 3-month, 2-12oz bag/month subscription for $80 (a bit more than you're looking for, I know).
posted by The Michael The at 8:30 AM on May 13, 2009

Re books: I recently read Murder in the Model City, a book about the Black Panther trials in New Haven in the early 70s, by the guy who was the editor of the free weekly paper there for a long time. The book has flaws, but it tells a fascinating story that I'd only partly been aware of. Maybe a different lens on New Haven than he'll get otherwise.

For fiction, if he likes the legal thriller genre, Stephen L. Carter (law professor at Yale) sets his books in a lightly fictionalized New Haven.
posted by yarrow at 8:32 AM on May 13, 2009

Get him a Zipcar membership (it's only $35 per year for Yale students). He can use his bike for pretty much anything in New Haven, but having a car available is really useful for things like going to the grocery store (most of which are a ways out from downtown) and Ikea.

Does he like theater? Get him tickets to a show at the Yale Repertory Theater, which is consistently excellent.
posted by ocherdraco at 9:04 AM on May 13, 2009 [1 favorite]

Consider a Road ID, or at least a gift card so he can do his own picking out / personalization.

I like Ocherdraco's Zipcar idea, though.
posted by alynnk at 9:10 AM on May 13, 2009

Response by poster: Ocherdraco - nice idea, but he doesn't drive (as in, doesn't have a license)
posted by nuclear_soup at 9:14 AM on May 13, 2009

Best answer: Gift certs to The Devil's Gear bike shop and Willoughby's coffee? (Both great local spots).
posted by Lazlo Hollyfeld at 9:58 AM on May 13, 2009

I like Lazlo's advice. I got my dad a Harbor Freight gift certificate years ago. The dollar amount wasn't important, what was important was introducing him to a place he had never been, ant that I thought he would love. I may have done a bad thing with how much money he has spent there since. The two listed would introduce him to two resources local to Yale that he would most likely find intriguing. Do $25 to each maybe....
posted by Antidisestablishmentarianist at 10:12 AM on May 13, 2009

ant=and, plus doing the legwork to have found local things he would like shows you cared enough to put time into it.
posted by Antidisestablishmentarianist at 10:13 AM on May 13, 2009

leatherman skeletool

http://www.amazon.com/Leatherman-830846-Skeletool-Multitool/dp/B000XU9NXW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1242158422&sr=8-2
posted by fumbducker at 10:24 AM on May 13, 2009

I'm always a big fan (no matter where the person is going) of getting them a hooded sweat shirt from their school. I wear my undergrad hoodie (Go Dartmouth!) all the time, and I got a new one for my graduate school (North Texas) as well. Hoodies are ubiquitous, and always a good thing to have.

Make sure it's his style, though. I do know about 10 people that don't ever wear them.
posted by SNWidget at 11:04 AM on May 13, 2009

SNWidget - The blue Yale hoodie is practically a uniform around here. I'm not sure if that is a point for or against, but pretty much everyone seems to wear them.
posted by Lazlo Hollyfeld at 11:37 AM on May 13, 2009

The archetypal caffeine mug, J Press Bulldog or Skull & Bones Tie, some swell old vintage Yale crap from ebay (some is actually pretty neat), bike stuff like a Brooks saddle, a custom sweatshirt from neighborhoodies (maybe representing your home town), or something home made by his beloved sibling. A friend of mine custom etched messages into a set of jelly jars to make an awesome set of drinking glasses for a wedding gift. In general, I think the more personal the gift the better.
posted by ladypants at 1:03 PM on May 13, 2009

Chemistry and coffee? What about a vacuum pot coffee brewer, like this or this? He probably won't have a vacuum pot, he can use it with a bunsen burner, it's fun to boot...
posted by suedehead at 1:34 PM on May 13, 2009

Best answer: I got my cousin a gift certificate to the "local hangout" for geeky grad students when she went off to grad school in a different city. I just called a couple of people to find out a good place and she loved it! She did not have much money due to the move and all and it allowed her to take a new friend out for beer and a burger.
posted by rvrlvr at 1:40 PM on May 13, 2009

Best answer: Oh! A gift certificate to Pepe's Pizza! He can take his new friends out for pizza and beer (or the delicious New Haven clear birch beer).
posted by ladypants at 2:10 PM on May 13, 2009

An Aeropress coffee maker. Seriously, it's sweet. You can even throw in some coffee. Or just buy him a coffee grinder if he doesn't have one. Coffee is another world with your own grinder.
posted by flippant at 2:19 PM on May 13, 2009