What's the best thing you didn't know you needed until you got it?

1. A heating blanket. I never knew how nice it could be to simply climb into bed and have it already be toasty and warm. It is especially nice right now when it's very cold as we do not have heat upstairs in our old farmhouse. I want one that is bluetooth controlled so I can just turn it on from downstairs to pre-heat the bed. Laziness at it's finest.
   — Nerysthera


2. The Kindle. I thought it would be just a novelty hidden away in a drawer. But in the two years that I've owned one I read more books and in more different languages that the 10 years prior that.
   — janniceinaccounting


3. My parents are not very interested cooks, so we usually ate very simple meals growing up. Often with a rice base because it's simple. A rice cooker is still one of the best purchases I've ever made. Rice is just better now.
   — SecretSpiral72






4. A steam cleaner. I've cleaned things I would have never dreamed of cleaning before.
   — SugarTits1


5. Noise cancelling, over ear, Bluetooth headphones. My tube rides have gotten so much better since I got them.. also London is suddenly hella loud when I take them off on my commute. So. Loud.
   — Sluethi


6. In high school my creative writing teacher heard me mention i like stories with unreliable narrators. Unsolicited, he gave me a copy of pale fire later that week. That gifted book sparked my passion for russian literature, a major factor in my decision to become an english professor.
   — sarayg






7. A high quality knife and a good chopping board. Makes cooking so much easier and far more enjoyable.
   — Foalykins


8. Reddit honestly. Discussion here are great and there's a subreddit for literally anything. Most of my online entertainment/information comes from browsing Reddit now. A year or so ago it was just mainly the pages I followed on Facebook, looking back, that sucked.
   — NotSpicyEnough


9. Rain boots. I never owned a pair, even as a child. But I was going to be visiting NYC when it was supposed to be raining and I didn't want to walk miles with wet feet. Best investment ever. I wear them every time it remotely calls for rain now and I haven't had wet socks in years.
   — enimsekips






10. A dish scrubbing brush that you fill with detergent.
    — Lintopher


11. A creative outlet, I feel so much better being able to express myself and have something to show for it rather than just sleeping or watching stuff (not that I don't do that still, just less)
    — mediumpacedgonzalez


12. Got our first Roku almost ten years ago. My wife didn’t understand it. Three kids later, I don’t know how we’d survive without it.
    — echobase_2000






13. Electric toothbrush! Now brushing teeth is way more fun and my teeth are way cleaner
    — Logipuh


14. Love and a caring support circle
    — clogga96


15. A cat. Cats are like that friend who you can chill with any time. You don't even have to say anything to each other for hours, you just chill and watch TV or play games or whatever. But whenever you need someone to hang out with or calm you down, they are there for you. Yeah, sometimes they want a few belly rubs or to lay right on your damn keyboard. But I feel like that's a worthwhile trade off.
    — ThatsBushLeague