pimblr.com

You wait until the last minute, hoping for inspiration. You seek clues. You ransack your brain for fresh ideas.
You get none.
What does Dad want for Father’s Day? He’s apt to shrug and say, ‘Nothing.’ (He may be thinking: A few hours on the couch, with a six-pack and a Cubs game and no interruptions sounds good.)
In years past, this noncommittal response would trigger a desperation strategy: He’d get a necktie.
For generations, the tie was the default, all-purpose Father’s Day gift. You couldn’t go too far wrong. Even if Dad didn’t need any more—and how could you tell, anyway?—he could still
use one. And if you had a budget, say of $50 or so, as one female colleague noted, “what else on Earth could you buy the man?” But now, the tie is slouching toward extinction, a silky vestige of another time, useful as a rash.
Only about 6 percent of men wear ties every day to the office, according to a Gallup Poll. The Wall Street Journal reported that the Men’s Dress Furnishings Association, the trade group that represents American tie makers, was shutting down after 60 years. As the Journal noted dryly, some of its members “sensed the trend two years ago, when, at the group’s annual luncheon in New York, a number of people turned up tieless.”
The demise of the tie—as fashion statement or gift—reminds us that Father’s Day and Mother’s Day are not created equal. Buying a gift for Dad is a lot harder.
Moms are good at dropping broad hints. They know what they want. Every woman we know keeps a mental list of all the clothing, jewelry, purses, perfumes, spa services and other items of desire, ready to rattle off at a moment’s notice. Even if a spouse or child fails to ask, the default position—flowers—rarely fails.

chicagotribune.com

Calendars aside, you can always tell a holiday is coming up by the commercials that roll forth; this week, it’s been a steady stream of everything from ice cream cake to golf clubs. Ah, Father’s Day is upon us.
Set in a gendered nest of neckties and barbecuing, the day has, like many other holidays, become marred by commercialization pushing you to “buy” instead of “do.”
Father’s Day originated in 1909 as a rural movement organized by Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Wash., in honor of her father, William Smart, a Civil War veteran and a widowed dad of six. Celebrated on the third Sunday of every June, Father’s Day wasn’t made a national holiday until 1972, even though President Calvin Coolidge recommended it be recognized as such in 1924.
Now, almost a century after the first Father’s Day, the typical celebration involves buying some power tools or fishing gear, or simply giving the perfunctory card - according to Hallmark, 95 million cards are expected to be given this Father’s Day. Dad will surely be happy enough with such gifts, but if you’re lucky to live near him (which I am not), why not take some time to hang out together this weekend?
Start things off early on June 14 with the Vasona Vibrations summer concert series at Vasona Lake County Park on Blossom Hill Road from 5 to 7 p.m. The group Blah Blah Woof Woof, comprised of Chuck McCabe, Steve Kritzer and Jay Howlett, will be there with its upbeat blend of acoustic Americana, as will dozens of
folks who come to hear the music while enjoying a picnic or some wine. (The show is free; however, parking is $6 per car.)
If your dad is an oenophile, head to Los Gatos’ Jewish Community Center on Oka Road from 6 to 10:30 p.m. for a wine auction. The event will feature local wines, food, jazz by Silicon Vibe and, of course, an auction of unique wines. Tickets are $90; proceeds will go toward the JCC’s various community programs. For more information call (408) 357-7402.

mercurynews.com