What I got that’s noteworthy enough to mention:
So, what did you get for Christmas this year?
Videohound’s Golden Movie Retriever (2021), a 2100 page guide to movies
Sugar-Free Aplets and Cotlets
Dirty Jokes And Beer by Drew Carey
A bottle of Tullamore D.E.W.
A six-pack of Dirty Bastard Scotch Ale
Two pairs of slippers
The Best Of Me by David Sedaris
Silly socks
A subscription to Skeptic Magazine
Delicious spicy peanuts
A professional book on grief
A Garth Nix novel
$ toward Audible
Wool socks
An immersion blender with a metal blade (not plastic)
The game Dialect
Marzipan
Other stuff
We’ve been married for so long, we don’t do gifts anymore. Already have just about everything and not much room to keep more. So we take the money we would have spent and buy us a nice dinner.
Although I did get the wife a sort-of Christmas present when I paid for her Peanuts Aloha shirt (and mask) earlier this month. But that was just a coincidence on the timing.
I got a number of good things, but my personal highlight is this hat. I’m a KC Royals fan, and they got a new Single A team this off-season in Columbia, SC. They’re the Fireflies, but they have a Hispanic night when they become the Chicharrones, and this is their alternate uniform hat. As a Royals and BBQ fan, I friggin love it.
I got the perfect gifts for our times.
My mom gave us a check and a big platter of homemade cookies, as usual.
One sister gave us these weird things she got at the dollar store, as usual.
That’s all. We don’t exchange with each other and our daughter and SIL are broke.
Two Princess Leia dolls. Repeat: two Princess Leia dolls.
Star Wars, what I believe was not yet called A New Hope, came out when I was seven. Leia was the first female heroine I’d ever seen*. I wanted her action figure so bad I never got one. Maybe my mom didn’t take the hint seriously. (“There’s only one woman in the whole thing!” “But mom, what a woman!”) Or maybe she tried but couldn’t get one; it wasn’t easy, believe me. Anyway, I didn’t get one then, and by the time Empire came out, I no longer wanted one.
(*See, in the ‘70s, IIRC and I think I do, movies were still narrowly targeted. Kids’ movies were saccharine and for kids only. Teen movies were raunchy and dumb and for teens only. Grown-ups’ (not “adult”!) movies had little to no appeal for kids and teens. Another reason, among the many, that SW77 was such a huge hit was that it appealed to, and was appropriate for, all ages. Point is, I hadn’t seen too many female leads before, and I’d say Veruca Salt and the girl from Mary Poppins were not role models.)
Anyway, fast forward to last year. I asked a mutual friend to drop a hint to Mr. Rilch that that’s what I’d like. December 24th, Mr. Rilch gets a text: “Hey, did you get Leia doll for Rilchie?” His first time mentioning it, mind you. 
Sometime between then and fall of this year, the message got through. So I unwrapped a Kenner re-issue, which is more like a Barbie: about 14" tall, clothing and hair are real. And I also got one from Sideshow (a division of Weta, Peter Jackson’s company). The Kenner was not small, but this is even bigger, closer to American Girl/Our Generation size. And she comes with accessories! Two guns, and that flash drive thingy she puts in R2D2. So I’m pretty much one with the force. And since I already have Dorothy from the WofO and Rose from Titanic, I’m going to have to start a gallery of movie heroines. Sarah Connor, Ellen Ripley, Harley Quinn, and at least one of the women from LOTR…
Disneyland house robe that makes me look like Father Christmas. A very cool wolf walking stick. Some very good port.
1.Solutions and Other Problems by cartoonist Allie Brosh (hilarious book.)
2. A Teto the squirrel fox plush toy from Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (Miyazaki film.)
3. An octopus sweatshirt
4. Steak
5. An enormous amount of chocolate
I am content.
I received a rice steamer (rice is my kryptonite), a small food processor, a multi-tier bird feeding station, so much chocolate, a variety pack of K cups and a lovely dragonfly mug, old school Tupperware fridge magnets, and a little cash.
And, best of all, almost four days with the kid and her fiancé.
My younger sister, who was the last living family member I still exchanged gifts with, passed away in November, so that’s the end of that.
I got a box of chocolate truffles and a $20 Whataburger gift card from my boss at the museum where I work. Given the parlous financial state of the place, I didn’t really expect even that much.
My not-a-girl friend will be taking my out for a nice lunch next week as a reward for looking after her cat while she was out of town the week before Xmas.
A 70cl bottle of Ardbeg single malt.
Three books – an SF novel and two history books (one about female soldiers in the USCW and one about female soldiers in Afghanistan) from my Amazon wishlist.
A new Kindle (not yet arrived)
Dipping oils - or a paper with a picture of them, since UPS destroyed them in transit.
A cookbook - One Pot meals
3 jigsaw puzzles
5 shirts from thrift stores
A computer solitaire game
Fudge
A set of small yellow pads to write my to do lists on
A book of Daily Telegraph (London) cryptic puzzles
So pretty good. I haven’t finished some of the books from last year and two years ago. At the moment I’m working on reducing the backlog. Food gifts are good, they go away.
two mosaic lamps (one bedside and one swan neck) beautiful.
Amazon.com : mosaic lamp
one jigsaw puzzle
A Comfy
Amazon gift card.
All good and welcome
Lovely!
Shearling slippers and lamb skin gloves.
Mosaic lamps: bee-yoo-tee-ful!
What was the jigsaw puzzle?
Thank you! The lamps really are stunning. My son & daughter-in-law have great taste.
The Jig saw puzzle is a winter scene, with a cabin, snow on the ground, snow covered trees, 2 deer, and some cardinals. It’s very nice!
Cool! I also got a jigsaw puzzle, with a TV theme. And I gave someone a 2020-themed puzzle.