7 gifts to help you connect during this socially distant holiday season

Everyone’s got the friend or family member who just can’t figure out their best lighting for all those online video calls. They’re always in shadows. You’re always looking up their nose. They’re always blurry. You can’t see their eyes because of the glare on their glasses. While there are ring lights a plenty for sale online, Lume Cube’s Broadcast Lighting Kit is a step above. It’s got a full spectrum LED panel set on a ball mount, so that you can bounce it off a wall and adjust the light strength based on the time of your call. The Broadcast Kit comes with a handy tripod that can extend to 30" and is sleek enough to tuck into a purse. If you don’t want the tripod, there’s also a cheaper option that just suction cups on to the back of a laptop. (It’s a good present for yourself as well—especially if you’re tired of looking at your tired pandemic face over and over on Zoom.)$129.95, plus free shipping; available on

For many people, a key element of spending the holidays with family is gaming—not PS5 gaming, but old classics like Uno and Trivial Pursuit. Unfortunately, it’s hard to figure out how to play a lot of board games remotely—especially if you’re dealing with technologically challenged relatives. Fortunately there’s Jackbox, maker of various party games perfect for remote play. All you need to do is pick a game runner, have that person fire up the game on their end while sharing the screen on Zoom or the like, and have everyone else play along on their devices. The latest Jackbox Party Pack—no. 7, if you’re counting—includes updated versions of fan favorite game Quiplash, a “collaborative chaos” game called The Devils And The Details, a pop culture guessing game called Blather Round, and a couple other things perfect for groups. It’s a fun way to wile away the hours with family online, and a good way to remind each other that it’s still nice to laugh.$29.99; available for purchase on most game sites or

Speaking of games, remember Guess Who? One of the few in-person games that actually works pretty well remotely, the ’90s classic (“Does your person have a hat?” “Are you Maurice?”) is perfect for lazy Christmas afternoons spent trying to talk to grade-school-aged nieces and nephews. Plus, it’s cheap enough that you won’t mind buying two sets—one for you, and one for whoever you plan on playing.$7.99 for the , or $16.94 for a .

Send a little bit of home and support struggling small businesses with Goldbelly restaurant kits. If you’ve got a friend from New Orleans, let’s say, who can’t make it home for the holidays, why not gift them a ? Missing New York at the holidays? Order a , or even . Offerings range from Detroit-style pizza from actual Detroit to kolaches from Texas. Again, this would also make a great present for yourself. After all, if you can’t go home for the holidays, at least let your favorite foods come to you.Prices very depending on restaurant and offerings; purchase via .

Most know about Cameo by now, but it’s always worth a reminder that sending a Cameo by someone truly off the wall is a great gift. The site has literally thousands of personalities to hire for a quick greeting, from to . While big names can go for big bucks (Harvey, for instance, charges $450 for amount a minute of his time), you could send your Boy Meets World-loving sibling , ask , or—best of all—hit up a friend with a weirdly specific message from a . That’d be a bargain at twice the price!Celebrity availability can change.

Start a long distance movie club with the TCM Essentials Collection. Use this book to set up a monthly—or, heck, weekly—classic cinema night with family and friends. Pick a movie from one of the two Essentials guides included in the collection, bone up with a quick essay, and then press play simultaneously on anything from Casablanca to Field Of Dreams. It’s a fun way to connect over something you share, and an easy way to avoid just randomly scrolling Netflix until you fall asleep. Plus you get a snazzy coffee mug!$45.95 on .