Well, HISSS, what all that array of musical things told me is that it's not the dollars that matter. I appreciate the thought that goes into the gift and I would be acutely embarrassed if you thought you had to spend a lot of money on it. My house is full of quirky things that other people might view as trash, but things which appeal to my love of the out-of-the-ordinary or creative things or clever inventions.

In that list, I'm afraid the only things that tickled my Gemini fancy - and I am DEFINITELY saying that you are NOT to buy any of it, I'm only telling you that I love quirky, weird things and odd instruments like thumb pianos and panpipes, and cigar box hurdy gurdies and I especially love hand made things - were the strange and interesting desktop composition thingy and the percussion tubes and the roll up piano. Wow! And Barry Manilow? Lucky this is a family forum or I'd tell you what I really think of BM! :-)

I think that that list was a present in itself. It was like finding a virtual treasure box in the attic, all jumbled up with a bunch of things that a group of different people find valuable and that they couldn't bear to throw away. Thanks for the adventure! I have saved the page so that I can go through the treasure box again.

Thanks,
Helen