Since Tim Russert's death was announced by NBC Friday afternoon, prominent journalists and politicians have paid tribute to him. I won't attempt to compete with the likes of Andrea Mitchell, Tom Brokaw, Barack Obama, the Clintons or various members of the Kennedy family, who praised Russert as the best political journalist of our time, a devout Catholic, patriot, devoted father and husband and loving son.

Instead, I'll try to explain why I cried for an hour last night while watching televised tributes to a man I never met. For starters, I am a Jesuit-educated journalist with working class roots and a passion for politics. Russert's son Luke just graduated from Boston College, my alma mater. Russert was a fellow Bruce Springsteen fan, something I learned a decade or so ago when I read an essay titled Springsteen & Me in a magazine called P.O.V. So we had a few things in common.

As my husband was on his way home from dropping our oldest son off for his next-to-last day of kindergarten, I received a tweet from a friend in Colorado. School's out in Denver, and she noticed the number of dads was equal to the number of moms dropping their kids off at camp. Sign of the economy? she wondered.

I, too, have noticed an ever-larger number of dads dropping their children off at daytime activities and walking with their babies to the coffeeshop here in Portland. At my three-year-old's speech class, two daddies wait outside for two little boys. At the grocery store in the late-morning, I spot a number of papas wearing infants in slings. Not only are they all riding bikes (part green, part money-saving), daddies are really involved with their children's lives this summer!

Or is it that they're just unemployed? With rising unemployment rates and the economy skittering out of control, in my house the papa is involved about 20% because he's such a great daddy, and 80% because he's the one who's not earning a paycheck.



Maybe this isn't a (totally) bad thing, though -- getting both parents actively involved in a child's life will make for stronger families and better adults-to-be down the line. I'm not sure if I've seen research to suggest it, but anecdotally, the kids I knew whose dads were very involved generally grew up to be really fine, productive members of society. Hey. There's a silver lining to unemployment for you!

With just a few days to go till Father's Day, if you don't have any good gift ideas, books are a good fallback. Here are a few you can find in any bookstore:

Everyday Drinking: The Distilled Kingsley Amis: I laughed out loud when I read the New York Times review of this compilation of three out of print works by deceased British author Kinglsey Amis, an authority on booze. I love his comment about dieting: "The first, indeed the only, requirement of a diet is that it should lose you weight without reducing your alcoholic intake by the smallest degree."

Bobby Flay's Grill It: If your dad is more into cooking than drinking, famed chef and TV food host Bobby Flay has just published his fourth grilling cookbook. Although he could never top the first title, Boy Meets Grill, his recipes are winners.

Poor old Dad. Forever playing second fiddle to Good Old Mom. We gave Dad his own holiday in 1962, while people have been celebrating mothers since Roman times.

The least we can do is buy him a nice tie once a year. But when it comes to shelling out the dollars for a parent, Dad has traditionally gotten the short end of the stick. The good news, however, is that even with the ugly economy, people will open their wallets for Pop...and spend goodly amounts anyway.

This coming Father's Day (June 15,) one business research group is reckoning that U.S. consumers will spend some $11 billion on gifts, food, and outings with the Old Man. That's $7 billion less than they spend on Mother's Day, according to the same group, but still an eye-popping amount given the way things are going.

The Daily Deal for Sunday, June 7, 2008

Are you ready with your Father's Day presents yet? If not, I have the perfect Daily Deal for you from Hammocks.com. Who can deny that every father's fondest desire is to have an occasional day to himself to do absolutely nothing? What better way is there to spend a day of nothing than to be laying back in a breezy hammock with a cold beverage and the ball game on the radio? Is there anything as enjoyable as a shady snooze?

Hammocks.com is offering the Island Bay, quilted hammock with included stand for a 32% discount. For just $189.98, you get the hammock, a button attached pillow, the powder coated stand and all hanging hardware. This is a two person sized hammock with a 450 pound capacity, so it'll hold just about anyone's dad. For a limited time, shipping to the continental U.S. is just $15. The company claims next day shipping, so you should still be able to get one delivered before dad's big day arrives.

Does your dad know the identities of both of the actors who played Vito Corleone?

Does he know all the words to the MASH theme song?

Does he ever complain that movie trivia questions are "too easy?"

Has he ever gotten into an argument about whether an Imperial Star Cruiser could beat a Klingon Bird of Prey?

Is there an indent in the couch in the shape of his butt?

If you answered yes to two or more of these questions, I might have the perfect Father's day gift for you. Netflix recently unveiled its new Roku player. Basically, this $99 box connects your computer to your television, enabling you to watch streaming movies right on your TV. While this isn't the first TV/internet connector, the Roku is far cheaper than previous options. Netflix is promising full DVD quality, and it will currently allow you to stream any of its 10,000 movies and TV programs for free, as long as you're a member.

Admittedly, there are limitations to streaming movies. They don't tend to have all the wonderful DVD extras and are, currently, a little unwieldy to work with. That having been said, Netflix's streaming movies are, essentially, free, and they are insanely convenient. Besides, as more and more content becomes available online, these sorts of interfaces are going to become really common. With a little help from you, your dad could become the coolest kid on the block!

Bruce Watson is a freelance writer, blogger, and all-around cheapskate. He still gets a little teary when he remembers his family's first VCR. It was a cute little Zenith, and it just worked its little heart out...

With Father's Day fast approaching, I thought it might be a good idea to take a look at some affordable options available for kids to give to good ol' dad. These pre-wrapped presents could be at least part of the perfect solution. I really like the multi- function desk calculator. It has an alarm, a timer, the year/month/day displayed along with the time and, should he need to know, Dad can also check out the time in sixteen other cities. How cool is that? This would be perfect for a dad who travels a lot, as it folds up into a neat little package when not in use. It comes with a one year manufacturer's warranty, too!

Some of the boxes come with a picture of the contents on the front of the package that is easily removed for gift-giving. Otherwise, there is a small sticker on the back stating what's inside. This emergency flashlight runs on two AA batteries, not included, and can be used in regular or red flashing mode. There is also a small whistle tucked into the handle. It comes with a 1-year warranty, as well. This might be included in a gift for a dad who likes the great outdoors. Alternately, you could team it up with a travel mug for the car. I saw some nice black and chrome travel mugs in the dollar store, too.

I don't know why you can suddenly get these electronic gadgets for $1.00. I can only surmise that there are too many other gizmo's in our lives, like cell phones, that have alarms and calculators built into them.

Father's day is fast approaching, which means that it's time to come up with a gift for the first man in your life. Of course, you could go with one of the two classic stand-byes: a necktie or a soap-on-a-rope. Then again, you might want to consider whether or not giving your old man a tool for self-strangulation is the best way to say thank you.

If your father is the kind of guy who is worried about the world that he's leaving his kids (or grandkids!), then you might consider giving him the EcoGir suit. Produced by Bagir, an Israeli company, the EcoGir is made from a mix of wool and recycled plastic bottles. In addition to saving thirty bottles from the landfill, each suit will carry a carbon footprint label. Perhaps best of all, the EcoGir can be machine washed, which reduces the amount of nasty chemicals that are released by dry cleaners.

The EcoGir will be available at Sears, where it is expected to sell for approximately $200, which makes it a pretty economical gift for the man who gave you life and half your chromosome structure. On the other hand, if your dad (like me) is a little hesitant about wearing old plastic bottles to work, Bagir also produces suits from more traditional fabrics, including organic cotton and bamboo. While not as "green" as the EcoGir, cotton and bamboo are still renewable and environmentally sound.

Either way, there's no excuse for giving the strangulation special this year!

Bruce Watson is a freelance writer, blogger, and all-around cheapskate. He's waiting for someone to make jodhpurs from old truck tires.

Every day, WalletPop will be bringing you information about a fantastic freebie. Like what you see? Check back tomorrow for more!

You almost never see a deal for something truly free at a restaurant. It's usually "Free soft drink!!* with the asterisk indicating that you must sign an area development agreement to franchise 16 locations in Singapore.

But in honor of Father's Day, T.G.I. Friday's is offering a serving of beer-battered onion rings. Just click here and print out the coupon.

Of course, you'll be hard-pressed not to avoid buying something else too -- and that's where they got ya! Unless of you course you want to take dad out for water and onion rings on Father's Day.

And if you're cheap enough to do that, you should probably be writing for our site.