I pretty much love anything old, retro, funky or red.

So it makes sense that I've been pining after a vintage red plaid thermos for a while. I mentioned my desire for this particular item to Scott Lindberg, a local guy who's been written up in our features section for his love for Midcentury Modern design. He scours thrift shops for MCM items and sells examples of graphic design in his Etsy store, New Documents.

Scott sent me a message Tuesday on Twitter, mentioning that he'd found a plaid thermos. And the kicker was - he wanted to give it to me. He even delivered it to my office.

To be honest, it was a wonderful surprise during a tough time, after a sudden (and terribly sad) death in my dad's extended family.

And the thermos itself is just ... peachy. It's name brand, and has a list of replacement parts on the bottom. You know, so that when you break it, you can repair it instead of buying a new one. It needs a good scrubbing, but I'll be able to fit a lot of coffee in this guy.

It's been sitting on my desk for the last few days (waiting for its close-up, which it got thanks to Photo Editor Darrell Hoemann) and it makes me smile every time I see it.

I'm working on a story that will run tomorrow about a group of local people trying to help community members remember to be kind. Lucky for me, Scott showed me this lesson earlier this week.

May 7, 2012 update: I got the nicest email from an Urbana resident about this thermos. You can read about it here.

Photo by News-Gazette Photo Editor Darrell Hoemann.