Caduceus Gifts
A lot of Really Neat but often underappreciated jobs have to do with the medical professions: not that we're sorry to see the nurses, the dentists, the veterinarians or the EMTs when we need them - because when we need them, we really need them - but after the crisis is over we tend to... not forget them, really, but to put them out of our minds.

The caduceus is the ancient symbol of medicine, derived in one version from the staff of Aesculapius, and in another, from the staff of Hermes. Caduceus Gifts clues us in to the fact that the staff of Hermes replaced the staff of Aesculapius just because it looked better - but attractive versions of both symbols are featured in the shop. A nurse might raise her eyebrows at the idea of doctors abandoning the symbol of an ancient physician, and replacing it with the symbol of a Greek god - but I'm far too polite to do the same.

T-Shirts for Everyone Who Heals

Caduceus Gifts has medical symbol art for all sorts of medical professions; there are t-shirts and other gifts and regalia for registered nurses and veterinarians, for example, and custom versions of the caduceus designs as they're used for emergency medical technicians, dentists and orthodontists, doctors, and assorted technical specialists in the medical field. The graphic designs are quite nice - although the EMT tee shirt shown at the lower left doesn't hold up so well when it's shrunk down this way, there's a high degree of skill in the rendering of all these snake-wound staffs.

The t-shirts are available in a variety of styles, from plain white ones through colored, long sleeved, ringer tees and cap sleeved women's shirts; pretty much something for everyone except the kids.

Gifts, Gifts, and More Gifts

The shirt designs are great, like I said, and they're just the thing for labeling the labelable - but they're personal enough that they're the sort of thing one might buy oneself. On the gift side there's quite a lot to choose from, and the idea of these as gifts is a pretty pleasant one.

Especially nice are the framed ceramic tiles shown at the right; these are also available on wooden jewelry or keepsake boxes with the tiles set in the lid. But there are also greeting cards, buttons, magnets and stickers with each of the medical symbols for the professions; and while I'm not usually the cuddly teddy bear type I think there's something sort of fascinating about the veterinarian bear shown below.


3 Liters of Jamaican Blue Mountain, Stat!


Somehow I forgot to mention the coffee cups, even though it's hard to picture a 30 hour shift in the ER without them. And for watching for the end of that shift, there are some clocks, too - pictured is the nice, vintage-styled Staff of Aesculapius clock with its branches in leaf.

Altogether this is a Really Nice collection of art, t-shirts and gifts for members of the medical professions. There's more emphasis here on the types of people you're likely to get to know - again, when you really need them - like the nurses, veterinarians and other folks you might want to do something nice for, after all they may have done for you. Have a look!