# Two Christmas gifts that are so awesome, I'm not sure how to react **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [December 27, 2023, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242 "2023-12-27T17:01:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2023, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/1 "2023-12-27T17:01:54Z")
Well, one was for me _and_ Mr. Rilch. Still mind-blowing, though. So on Christmas morning, I open a box that contains an envelope. I open the envelope, read a few words and start shrieking so loud it’s a good thing we don’t have neighbors. See, Mr. Rilch and I are both big fans of a certain indie comic strip from the '90s. It’s one of the things we bonded over when first dating, and because the archive is so small, we pretty much have it memorized. So the strip is a time capsule, for us personally and for our generation. Mr. Rilch found contact info for the cartoonist, asked him about buying some original strips, _and_, for a small extra fee, could he personally write a letter to me? So that’s what I was screaming about: this letter\*, thanking me for my fanship and chuckling about what Gen X hath wrought (he’s only a few years older than us). And six original strips! Of course they’re among our favorites, and there’s two in particular that I intend to have framed. And as Mr. Rilch said last night, he’s really the only person who could have done this for me. He had to be a fan himself to have that email chain with the cartoonist, and he had to have that shared fanship to know that this would blow my mind. Come to think of it, he did a similar thing about ten years ago, when he gave me the Criterion collection of Leningrad Cowboys. Who else, in the USA, has even _heard_ of those movies and that director? So that’s still sinking in, and then last night, our friends “Beth” and “Phil” came by for dinner, a movie, and gift exchange. Candy, a video, homemade jam…and then Beth pulls out a sign she painted for us. Well, on a canvas, but the point is, I’m looking at the stenciling that says “The Rilches”, and it takes me a minute to absorb the fact that…_it’s a picture of our whole property_! She must have taken a photo at the end of our driveway. She got the house itself, the carport, the big tree, and even one of our cats hanging out on the stoop. And she’s **good** ; this is not Napoleon’s portrait of Tricia. If someone saw this in a store, without the name on it, they’d likely say “That’s classy; I’ll take it.” So again, mind blown. As with Mr. Rilch, she had the idea because that’s a view she sees a lot. Well, she’s definitely getting petit fours next year… \*which Mr. Rilch did not open, so we were both reading it for the first time! ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2023, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/2 "2023-12-27T21:51:30Z")
Sounds like mr Rilch & Beth are keepers ! ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2023, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/3 "2023-12-28T01:44:09Z")
That’s awesome! I love presents that are personal and reflect something about the parties involved. But, I gotta say… > [@Rilchiam](#): > > our friends “Beth” and “Phil” came by for dinner I’m not sure how friendly they are if they won’t even tell you their real names. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2023, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/4 "2023-12-28T02:55:20Z")
> [@Rilchiam](#): > > See, Mr. Rilch and I are both big fans of a certain indie comic strip from the '90s. Can you tell us the name of the strip? Or the cartoonist? There might be other fans here who’d relate to your excitement! . (Like the time a friend who drove for a delivery service in Seattle showed me Gary Larson and Lynda Barry’s houses, and I left a book of my cartoons in each of their mailboxes.) ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2023, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/5 "2023-12-28T03:55:03Z")
> [@digs](#): > > Can you tell us the name of the strip? Or the cartoonist? There might be other fans here who’d relate to your excitement! [Jim’s Journal](https://www.amazon.com/Pretty-Good-Jims-Journal-Treasury/dp/1535199881), by Scott Dikkers, co-founder of the Onion, although the strip was never in the Onion. Check out the [Wiki page.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim's_Journal) Now skip to Characters – Steve. _I now own the original of that strip._ > [@digs](#): > > (Like the time a friend who drove for a delivery service in Seattle showed me Gary Larson and Lynda Barry’s houses, and I left a book of my cartoons in each of their mailboxes.) Oh, wow! Did you hear from either of them? (Presumably you left contact info. 😉 ) ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [December 28, 2023, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/6 "2023-12-28T04:53:46Z")
I didn’t even have to click on your link to say “ **I went to college, and it was OK.** ” (Title of one of the books). _Jim’s Journal_ was wonderful, so low-key, and they had a poster up at Pic-A-Book. I got a form letter from Gary Larson’s secretary: “We don’t accept anything from the public.” (subtext: “If you saw something that looked like one of your ideas, you might try to sue us.”) But Lynda Barry came out on her porch with bright red hair and said “You’re the first person to see this…” About a month later, I got a long note from her, encouraging me and admitting that she actually likes _The Family Circus._ I got to remind her of all this when she was recently doing a stint at UW-Madison as resident artist, and was teaching a cartooning class. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2023, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/7 "2023-12-29T03:44:27Z")
That’s cool! Lucky you. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2023, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/8 "2023-12-29T03:53:43Z")
Those are wonderful gifts! They show so much thoughtfulness and affection and appreciation of your unique being. I can’t top that, but I did get two fantastic presents from Mr.Cairo that show he was paying attention, and boy, do I lurve them both: a weighted blanket, and a knife sharpener. It’s hard to get out from under my lovely blanket, except I know that when I do I can go cook something with my very, very sharp knives. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2023, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/9 "2023-12-30T02:20:19Z")
Weighted blanket? Do you mean [one of these?](https://bearaby.com/products/the-napper?variant=40367706505402¤cy=USD&utm_medium=product_sync&utm_source=google&utm_content=sag_organic&utm_campaign=sag_organic&srsltid=AfmBOopKRl7_ozIQiUrfIhqOrGyOsmjbA3KmMcEjFs54KbVnavmJ_Su9BSM) That’s something I’ve wanted for a while. I slept under one just once, in someone’s guest room, and it was what I’ve been told: the blanket conforms to your form, so your own body heat works most efficiently. Then there’s [this kind](https://www.amazon.com/Weighted-Breathable-Microfiber-Material-All-Season/dp/B097DK6ZCR/ref=asc_df_B097DK6ZCR/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=533440616117&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12344102140493683139&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9014913&hvtargid=pla-1429069423332&mcid=38cb32211ab53a1eb57ee44adfdbcaaa&gclid=CjwKCAiA-bmsBhAGEiwAoaQNmnYFBibJe8tVha4UB3zE-K1j5wwf--TDpd5tn7t0e9hTG8r_BJnfVBoCqsYQAvD_BwE&th=1) of weighted blanket, which I gave Mr. Rilch for Christmas before last…and which he ended up not using. Because unlike with the knit blanket, there’s nowhere for excess heat to go. Back to the good old duvet! ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2023, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/10 "2023-12-31T01:41:26Z")
My wife got me a weighted blanket a while ago (the grey one above), and I’m worried it’ll be too warm. But now that it’s getting down to 20ºAmerican at night, I might try to overcome my trepidation… Anyone used one? Am I going to wake up sweaty? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2023, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/two-christmas-gifts-that-are-so-awesome-im-not-sure-how-to-react/995242/11 "2023-12-31T04:09:30Z")
You won’t know until you try. It’s not like waking up sweaty is fatal. Whole lotta people love 'em. I personally don’t see the point, so I can’t offer you any experience.