From the New York Times:

"In this season of strange presents from relatives, Dorothy Ferreira got a doozy the other day from her 82-year-old sister in Waterloo, Iowa. It was ugly. It weighed four pounds. There was no receipt in the box. Inside she found what looked like a gnarled, funky candle but could actually be a huge hunk of petrified whale vomit worth as much as $18,000."

I suggested to Helena that she think about this for a fittingly nautical Christmas present for Captain Pete. She immediately said, "He wouldn't want it!" (He doesn't really like the idea of a commercial Christmas). He may be wise - although the New York Times euphemistically describes ambergris as "vomit", Wikipedia says:

"Ambergris occurs as a biliary secretion of the intestines of the sperm whale, and can be found floating upon the sea, on the sea-coast, or in the sand near the sea-coast. Because lumps of ambergris with embedded beaks of giant squid have been found, scientists have theorized that the whale's intestine produces the substance as a means of facilitating the passage of hard, sharp objects that the whale might have inadvertently eaten."

Yummy. And to think we used to put this stuff in expensive perfumes...(and apparently, some people still do).

Read the full story: "Please Let It Be Whale Vomit, Not Just Sea Junk" »