I have three of these brothers. Christmas is always a fun time. (Not.) Does he have Netflix or Hulu Plus? You can give him several months of streaming video, if he likes to watch TV. A "luxury" brand of something he uses often? Like gourmet coffee or chocolate or nachos? If he has a favorite movie or TV show, something related to that? I knitted one brother a Doctor Who scarf last year and he loved it. Even though he's not into gadgets, what about one of those emergency radios? The ones with a flashlight and charging port, that run on batteries but can also be hand-cranked. Nearly everyone has power outages at some point, and needs some emergency gear. Two places I've found good gifts for my brothers: Restoration Hardware and ThinkGeek. Check out RH's gift section--look at the stocking stuffers. There are a lot of ideas there. ThinkGeek does have a lot of techy stuff, but there's some useful home gadgets there as well. In addition to a cat hammock that my cats just love. (Would he like a gift for the cats?) It's a good place for outside-the-box gifts. Granted, he is probably not going to want the Zombie Apocalypse Garden Gnomes, but they have a lot of iPhone and iPad accessories, desk/office stuff, and a lot of things related to coffee and bacon, which a lot of guys seem to like.

How about some American Express gift cards, they can be used anywhere. We used to do that as a class gift for a teacher. I am originally from AZ, and I havent been to Casa Grande since there wasnt anything there but the ruins! of course that info not so helpful. anyhoo brought back fun memories.

::: furrowing brow ::: Not true. I am not sure if that could have been accurate in the past, but it isn't now. It also may have been that you misunderstood the "valid thru" date, which applies to the physical card, not the balance you have. From Amex: Are there any fees for the use of the Card after purchase? The Card has NO FEES AFTER PURCHASE (including dormancy, service or other fees). Do the funds on the Card expire? No, the funds on the Card do not expire. If the funds do not expire, what is the "valid thru" date associated with the Card? The "valid thru" date on the front of the Gift Card or associated with the eGift Card is the date through which your physical plastic Gift Card or eGift Card card number may be used. This date is required to process transactions at merchants that request an expiration date. Even if the "valid thru" date associated with a Card has passed, its Available Balance remains unchanged and intact. In order to keep making purchases with your Available Balance after a Card's "valid thru" date has passed, please call 1-877-297-4438 for a free replacement Card. Some of the more onerous gift card business practices have been regulated. If you still have the info, or if it ever happens again, complain. Maybe you can sue them. Or, uhh not... thank you VP Pence.

Thank you everyone for the great ideas. I will be getting him a bottle of the Lagavulin scotch (it's a favorite of his) and am researching other great ideas mentioned here. The turn signal gloves are for cyclists, but they led me to look for other motorcycle items. I just ordered him a heated warmer bib for his winter commute. It looks great and my brother who also rides motorcycles approved. I love the idea of a coffee roaster and may hold off on that one for his birthday. He mentioned a great restaurant in Philly that he just went to that I may try to get a gift certificate to. It is called Gran Caffe L'Aquila. Seems to specialize in gelato. My kind of place. As far as concerts (great idea!) and weekend escapes, that will all have to wait til next year after my youngest heads off to college. He also has superb headphones and great knives. I'm not sure he would appreciate law books, but he does have a "Atticus Finch, Attorney at Law" tshirt (bought before "Go Tell a Watchman.") I may add more, or not. But at least I'm not in a tizzy anymore. Thank you all--I love how everyone here tries to help everyone else. :) Jo