OT - Perfect Things

[QuikSand]

Do you own any things that you consider to be perfect, at least for you?


In my mind, there's quite a strangely satisfying feeling if you feel as thought something -- even a pretty incidental thing -- is really, really just right. I'm thinking that the best examples of this will be material goods -- people love their television, or a certain item of clothing, or that sort of thing. But if there's something "outside the box" that fits the description as well... add that in, too.

Hey, if this turns into a "gift-giving hints" thread by accident, that would be okay with me as well.

[Franklinnoble]

Zebra M-301 mechanical pencils.

And I have one ball point pen that I bought at a Target store about three years ago that's my all-time favorite writing implement.

[Cuckoo]

When I go pick up my daughter from the babysitter and she comes to me, doing her best to run on somewhat uncoordinated, not-yet-two legs with a big, toothy smile on here face while saying "Dad-dee, Dad-dee" over and over.

Perfect.

[QuikSand]

My first submission is my set of kitchen knives, from Warther Carvings.

I'm not all that serious a chef, but I do most of the cooking at our home, and from time to time I get into a more serious approach to it all. About six years ago, I received as a gift some knives from this small company in Ohio, amidst glowing recommendations from several family members and friends. Turns out they were absolutely right. I have used Chicago Cutlery (also a gift) and other expensive knives before -- but I never felt the sense of perfection that I get with my Warther knives. They are, for me, perfect.

The hand-carved handles tend to darken over time -- a few of my knives have definitely gotten enough use for this to show already. Some are fairly new (for a set of steak knives with in the last two years, and the French chef knife this year) and still have a fairly light appearance. But it's part of their beauty, to me.

Take them back to the Warther museum and store, and they will re-burnish and sharpen them for you on site, for free. It's even a worthwhile little museum to visit.


And add to all this -- the knives aren't even all that expensive. I think the French Chef knife was less than $40, making it far cheaper than the high-priced stuff at the kicten store from your local shopping mall. And in my book, far, far superior.

Consider that a gift-giving recommendation, a personal endorsement, or whetever. These are great kitchen utensils.

[cuervo72]

One of the best gifts I've gotten was a red oversized mug (a hemisphere, really), which I've used for 5 or 6 years to warm soup, noodles, etc. I also had (still have, actually) a wallet given to me from my grandmother as part of a graduation gift that I used for well over a decade.

I know there are other things, I just need to think of what they may be...

[cthomer5000]

I have this two-tone generic blue windbreaker I bought while visiting a friend in San Diego a number of years ago. I got it for like $5 bucks at a thrift store.

Its "perfection" is a combination of my liking the appearance, the comfort, and having the whole thing remind me of a very good time in my life. Definitely my favorite article of clothing. I don't even let the bit of black tar-like substance that got on one of the arms prohibit me from wearing it.

[HornedFrog Purple]

My Franklin Mint Civil War chess set. I love the craftmanship, it looks perfect in the living room and it is really fun to play chess with. People that come by often look at it and ask about the various pieces.

[Ksyrup]

I have this pair of jean shorts...

[VPI97]

Originally Posted by Franklinnoble

Zebra M-301 mechanical pencils.

Heh...a pencil was the first thing I thought of, too...

Sanford Protouch II - I've had mine for over seven years and couldn't imagine using anything else.


That and my cat:

His personality mirrors my own...and at any given moment at home, there's a 90% chance he's within five feet of me. I got him a few weeks after my wife and I started dating in '94, so he nearly pre-dates everything in my life.

[lurker]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

My first submission is my set of kitchen knives, from Warther Carvings.
...Consider that a gift-giving recommendation, a personal endorsement, or whetever. These are great kitchen utensils.

Hey, how come you didn't post that in the thread awhile back where someone wanted good knife recommendations? Actually, they sound good--I've been looking for good kitchen knives.

My choice for something great is this one pair of socks that just fit so well and are perfectly comfortable. Whenever I put them on, I have a great day.

[QuikSand]

Originally Posted by lurker

Hey, how come you didn't post that in the thread awhile back where someone wanted good knife recommendations?

In all likelihood, I just missed the thread. Perhaps it had a title like "Can you...?" with no mention of the actual subject. We get a lot of those...


[edit] Yup, I just missed it, I suppose. Anyway, I added my comments, far too late to be of any help for the original poster, I'm sure. Anyway -- after all the CutCo praise in that thread, I know that my CutCo knives remain dusty in my kichen cabinet, while I use my Warther knives almost every day.

[Blackadar]

To say my Wife or Son is too easy.

My most prized possession is a set of 8 pictures, taken by local Colorado photographer (Jesse Speer), in a landscape format. About a foot long and about 7 inches high, framed, of Rocky Mountain National Park. Simply incredible. I ordered the entire set one day and I'm glad I did - I'm one of only a few people to get all 8. They're no longer available and he said he'd probably never do another group like that.

by the way, you can find his sites at www.jessespeer.com and http://www.aroundcolorado.com/.

[Alf]

Strangely, I do not have a single thing I own I consider perfect. Maybe it's because I don't care too much about owning things.

[KevinNU7]

This is the perfect thread to say....

I got nothing.

[rufusjonz]

The Perfect Hairdo

[DeToxRox]

rufus wins

[Subby]

My wife got that mug for me when she went to New Orleans a few years ago. I can honestly say that it is perfect in almost every way - size, weight, visual appeal. There is even a small chip in the rim of it that gives it a little extra character. I cannot and will not drink coffee at home out of any other mug.

Best coffee mug ever.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

Do you own any things that you consider to be perfect, at least for you? ... But if there's something "outside the box" that fits the description as well... add that in, too.

I sure as heck don't "own" it, but there's an outside the box item that immediately came to my mind, so I'll mention it -- Las Vegas, NV.

Specifically, the 24/7 nature of the town, which fits perfectly with my body clock, my insomnia, and my tendency toward doing a lot of things at non-traditional times (eating, sleeping, working, playing, whatever).

[digamma]

In college I had an ugly, old orange lounge chair. It was absolutely perfect. I spent many an hour in that chair playing sega genesis or, during our senior year, playstation. The chair was passed down to our room by guys two years older than us. We passed it down two years later. I know they passed the chair down to rising juniors when they graduated. I have since lost track of it.

I also agree that Las Vegas is pretty damn near close to perfect.

[Tom E]

My 8 inch Penis comes to mind...

[Flasch186]

my GF says, "my brown shoes, theyre perfect. I love 'em." I sighed.

[Leonidas]

An autographed picture one of my subordinates gave to me as a going away gift of the Vietnam Memorial in DC that he shot himself. It is a fine picture that had added meaning when considering the mission we had at the time combined with the fact the guy who took the photo was born in Vietnam during the war and he and I had some special bonds beyond the workplace. I literally was speechless when given this picture.

Then two things for special mention, first the autographed Dan Marino plaque my dad bought me for X-Mas, and then the autographed Bob Feller plague he bought me for me birthday one year (Feller and I share the same birthdate). They both hang prominently in my office.

[MikeVic]

I agree with Franklinnoble's pick of that Zebra pencil. I bought my first in grade 9, and used it throughout high school. I then bought another exact same one when I started University, and still use it, three years later.

Can't think of anything else at the moment.

[Draft Dodger]

ok, I'll pretend I'm not posting this on the internet...

I have this blanket. it's pink (mostly) with also some purple in there. It's crocheted (I think that's the right term for it). It's about as old as I am - when I was very young, my grandmother came out to visit us and crocheted (maybe knitted is right?) two of them during her stay. One was brown, one was pink, and both were very much in the style of the mid-70's. But they became household staples - they were always draped over a couch or chair in my families living rooms.

The brown one fell apart years ago, but the pink one lives on. When I'm sitting on the couch, even on the hottest day of summer, I like to have a blanket on me. And this pink blanket was always the perfect size - went from my shoulders to my toes - and "thickness".

14 years ago, when I moved away from home (has it REALLY been that long), I took that blanket, and endured a great deal of ribbing from various roommates. One gave me a nice blanket as a Christmas gift one year, just to get the pink thing out of the living room. Didn't work. Actually, I think he tried that twice. When I met and married my wife, the blanket came too. She wasn't too fond of it either, but I wouldn't give it up.

Finally, for Christmas 2 years ago, she made me a new blanket. Very similar in size to the old one, except that the colors actually are tasteful (red, grey and black...they accidentally would turn out to match our family room perfectly). Even then, though, I was reluctant to give up the pink one; I'd alternate between the pink one and the red one, much to the chagrin of my wife.

The end of the road finally came for the pink blanket when it finally started to develop a couple of small holes - not bad for a 30+ year old blanket that probably got used every single day. I asked Christine how to repair it...her response "put it away somewhere so that it doesn't fall apart completely".

So, today, my pink blanket is no longer in commission. It's been safely stored above my sons bureau for several months now. Every once in a while, my eye gets drawn towards it, and I think about bringing it down just for "one last nap on the sofa"...but so far, I've been able to resist the temptation. The new red blanket is working out pretty well, and, well, it isn't PINK.

But, somehow, I don't think I've seen the last of my good buddy. Maybe, in 35 years, my son will be writing something similar about it...

[randal7]

Originally Posted by Tom E

My 8 inch Penis comes to mind...

I'm surprised it took 2 1/2 hours and 19 responses to get to this...

[B & B]

Spending 70 hours/week analyzing 60+ football games and finding a gem about every month or so. Sitting down for 3 and a half hours watching that game like you've already seen it from start to finish. Then cashing in like you've just called all six numbers in the Powerball lottery the day before they drew them.

[Peregrine]

This sounds pretty pathetic, but I'd have to say my Tivo. It is just a simply perfect device, and I don't have many (or any) other electronic gizmos that come close. It works well, records stuff I like that I don't even tell it to, keeps track of all my shows, and even the remote is perfect, shaped to fit your hand, buttons you can easily tell apart by touch, even good tactile response when you press them.

I know I'm not alone in this as other Tivo owners have expressed the same idea...

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by Subby

My wife got that mug for me when she went to New Orleans a few years ago. I can honestly say that it is perfect in almost every way - size, weight, visual appeal. There is even a small chip in the rim of it that gives it a little extra character. I cannot and will not drink coffee at home out of any other mug.

Best coffee mug ever.

Hmm.....how large is this mug? It looks similar to mine (yeah, mugs tend to look alike), which I was going to list too. I love it because it is so damn huge - it fits about 4 cups from my coffee maker. It is just about as high as a can of vegetables, has the circumference of a carton of quaker oats (yes, I have these things in my cube here at work), and is heavy. Oh, and it says "All Star Dad".

[GrantDawg]

This board.....you love you, man!

[Subby]

Cuervo - it is not huge, but is about twice as big as a "normal" sized coffee cup. Certainly some of the ones they sell at Starbuck's are much bigger. I am not a fan of the monster sized ones because the coffee tends to cool more quickly.

Weight is important, however - and my cup is definitely on the substantial side.

I'll also echo Peregrine and say that TiVo is the most perfect toy ever created...

[cuervo72]

yy, TiVo rocks.

And my coffee from this morning is indeed cold already...

[oliegirl]

Hmmm - first of all would be my son, his smile can change any horrible day to amazing and most times it's hard to be in a bad mood when he is around.

Secondly, my engagement ring. I love the ring itself, but even more I love what it represents.

Third, my white eyelet pillow that I have slept with every night since 5th grade...so it's about 20 years old. It's amazing, I can't sleep without it (just ask radii). It's been washed so many times and is so well loved that it is completely threadbare and is no longer white, it's kind of a permanent shade of khaki now. And all the filling inside is broken down and it's all lumpy - but it smushes underneath me perfectly and I have to have it!!!

[Balldog]

The only thing perfect I have is my "Beaver Fever" cooley cup. I can find something wrong with almost everything else I own.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Subby

my cup is definitely on the substantial side.

Bragger.

[Ksyrup]

I've thought long and hard about this, and outside of the obvious family references, I can't think of anything that I consider perfect. Even my CD collection has too many holes that need to be filled to be considered perfect.

[andy m]

[cthomer5000]

Originally Posted by oliegirl

Third, my white eyelet pillow that I have slept with every night since 5th grade...so it's about 20 years old. It's amazing, I can't sleep without it (just ask radii). It's been washed so many times and is so well loved that it is completely threadbare and is no longer white, it's kind of a permanent shade of khaki now. And all the filling inside is broken down and it's all lumpy - but it smushes underneath me perfectly and I have to have it!!!

Ahh, this reminded me of perfect item #2 I own.

About 2 years ago, out of nowhere, my girlfriend made a pillow for me. She made the whole thing from stratch and went out of her way to hunt down song lyrics from a band she knew I liked (Superchunk), but personally knew nothing about. She then painted the lyrics accross the face of the pillow (which was a cool multi-color sort of abstract patterened material).

I went out to the forest and caught
A hundred thousand fireflies
As they ricochet round the room
They remind me of your starry eyes

Never mind the fact that the song she picked was actually a cover ("100,000 Fireflies," originally by The Magnetic Fields), it was the thought that mattered and I was floored by the gift. I said there and then that it was the best gift I had ever received, and I still beleive that. I sleep with it every night.

[Radii]

Aside from the obvious family stuff here also, an item I don't even own anymore:

When it's cold and I want a blanket, I like to wrap it up tight around my shoulders, I'll grab it from the inside and scrunch it up around me. Being 6'3"-6'4" with most blankets this means that my feet end up uncovered.

In middle school, my mom knitted me an afghan, Carolina Blue and white, and made it about a foot or more longer than a normal blanket. I could bunch it up around my arms and shoulders as much as I wanted, and it was still long enough that I could wrap it around my feet too when I was cold. Plus, it was Carolina blue and white. Perfect in every way It lasted a few years before the god damn dog started(I hate dogs) using it as a bed sometimes, and ended up stretching it out and putting a bunch of holes in it at some point during my high school years.

I don't own any material posessions right now that I'd consider perfect that I can think of.

[Franklinnoble]

[condors]

frozen food

i personally like stouffers stuff

heat it up, eat it, throw it away, no mess no fuss

(i used to work as a cook and while i don't mind making things on the weekend i sure as heck don't want to cook and/or wash dishes when i get home from work)

[rkmsuf]

[Daimyo]

I got this blanket/comforter in China that doesn't look very special and wasn't expensive at all, but it's amazingily comfortable. Somehow it feels cool when the room is warm and warm when the room is cool. Its pretty thin so it folds up easily... not one thing I'd change about it. I think its made of 50% cotton and 50% silk so I guess it just combines the good qualities of both materials...

[rufusjonz]

My new "Bentley Jr." is pretty close to perfect for me.

[FrogMan]

I have to go and say the family thing first. Watching my two sons peacefully sleeping is the closest to anything perfect I could have. Not so much because they're quiet, but simply because they look so much at peace when they sleep that I'd want to take a bite out of them...

About material things, many people have mentionned blankets and such, for me, it would have to be our cotton jersey knit sheets. They simply feel like sleeping in one huge, well worn t-shirt...

FM

[Peregrine]

I'm surprised so many people are mentioning family, didn't the original post say things you owned?

[Cuckoo]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

I'm surprised so many people are mentioning family, didn't the original post say things you owned?

Um... teacher, I think I did the wrong assignment.


Seriously though, I read the original post but the only thing I could think of was what I posted. It had happened for the second time that day, and I couldn't stop smiling about it.

[QuikSand]

I have another submission. Two of my hobbies are birdwatching and horseracing, and while they share fairly little in common -- there is one overlap. Having good quality optics is a nice asset for both of them.

So, a few years ago, I did my homework, and invested some "found money" into a nice set of binoculars, my Nikon Superior E field glasses. I have the 10 x 42 (top of that particular line) and I have never, ever regretted a cent of their substantial purchase price.

In the birdwatching field, the hobby is growing rapidly in popularity (especially among the well-to-do demographics) -- and there are ways to spend two to five times as much on a pair of binoculars as I did on these. At some point, I suppose it's possible that I become inclined to do so. But for my needs -- these Nikons have an ideal weight and balance, the image is really as good as any I have ever seen (including much more expensive models, which I have even field-tested), and are really perfect for my needs.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Peregrine

I'm surprised so many people are mentioning family, didn't the original post say things you owned?

I thinnk family fits as "outside the box."

[thealmighty]

3 daughters, blah, blah. As much as they cost, I fucking DO own them.

Now, really, I have a king size water bed that I have had for 20+ years. The great thing is that it still has the original mattress- still in fine shape (a dealer said that I should have had 3 mattresses in that amount of time). You can say what you want about newer, better beds or air mattresses or any other new fangled contraption to sleep on, but that puppy is heaven, especially when I come home from some trip and hotel bed and I get in there...ahhhhhhhhhh, heaven.

[judicial clerk]

When I got my hands on the original FOF, I thought that was pretty perfect. It was like Jim read my mind.

That is why I am afraid to try CM. I have heard such good things, I am afraid it will swallow up my free time faster than that lady got swallowed up by that hole.