Hello. It’s good to see you again. I feel born again as I don’t have any writing obligations for at least a couple of days and when I don’t have any obligations, I create some, which is why I asked the staff to put together their Staking The Plains Gift Guide for this year. We’ve done this off-and-on for a couple of years, but it is truly one of my favorite things to do for the year. I love seeing everyone’s thoughts. I don’t look at any of the drafts before they get published so they’re as new for me as they are for you all.
Regarding my instructions to the staff, there are no rules other than it be a gift guide. I don’t actually ask anyone to do anything in particular, but some will do themes and some will do random stuff (that’s me). The idea here is that there are no rules, just gift ideas for the Red Raider in your life.
And I should also mention that your graphic designer Brian DonCarlos did the covers for each one of these posts. They are ridiculously creative and well-done. /chef’s kiss/
Let’s go.
Where You Stay, Part I. You’ve often seen me use the where, “where I stay” and I mentioned in the Weekly Conversation last week, that it’s something I picked up as a kid and it’s always stuck with me, some 30 years later. In any event, if you’re a fan of Texas Tech, you’ve most likely lived in Lubbock and at one time, this is where you stayed. Or maybe you never moved and you stay in Lubbock for the time being. I’m incredibly proud of ever place I’ve ever stayed and Lubbock is no exception (I’d move back in a heartbeat if anyone needs a probate lawyer). So check out these Lubbock map pint glasses, you get two, one red and one black, for $29.50:
Where You Stay, Part II. If the mug maps weren’t enough, I thought this screen print of Lubbock was pretty terrific, the red is just perfect with the white lettering. Prices start at $24.00 for just the print and are $100+ if you want to include a frame, which I think looks absolutely fantastic.
Where You Stay, Part III. Aaron Draplin is a designer and he’s very good at his job. I’ve always been drawn to the work that he does, it’s bold and interesting if you don’t want to go for the Lubbock screen print, this state of Texas poster is pretty terrific, I sort of love the reds, blues, and colors in-between and in his description of the light blue, it’s the color of a West Texas sky. Oh, and if you don’t stay in Texas, Draplin’s merch shop has a ton of different state posters as well as things like, “spare change containment apparatus” (i.e. one of those plastic coin purses you had as a kid) and “DDC hair organizer” (i.e. comb). There’s hats for the snap-back fan in your life.
Throwback Jacket. As you all know, I have a ton of love for the old double-t. In fact, I want Texas Tech to move permanently to the old double-t because IT IS THE BEST LOGO. I will not hear differently. This Dugout Varsity Jacket is darn near perfection, you’ll feel like you maybe earned a letter jacket at Texas Tech, just tell everyone you earned it being an internet warrior on Staking The Plains.
Throwback Performance Polo. I used to one one of these, but I lost 20 pounds and ended up giving this to my brother-in-law because I looked like I was wearing a leaf trash bag, but I absolutely loved this old double-t polo, $61.99. I owned the black polo, but given that I live in a place that’s hot a lot of the time, I think I’d ask for the white polo with that absolutely awesome double-t logo. I can say that these performance polos are pretty terrific travel shirts because they don’t wrinkle and you can wear them multiple days and they won’t stink (hell yeah I’m speaking from experience).
Accessories. I don’t know if I’ve talked about TopoDesigns before, but they’re a shop in Colorado that make their own products in that great state and this key clip comes in red or black and only $12. They also make these great accessory bags because I know you have accessories. Truthfully, I own all of these because I love the black bag with red accent and I travel with them, I keep all of my cords and chargers in them at my desk because I don’t like to leave messes or cords out or anything like that. Also, the inside is like a highlighter yellow and you’re probably thinking, why would they do that? Well, it make is much easier to see inside a yellow bag than a black bag so yeah, they actually put some thought into the design.
That’s all folks! I hope you enjoy these gift guides, it’s one of my favorite things we do as a staff. Enjoy your day and enjoy your holiday!