For all those celebrating with friends and family, today, and to those far from home, I wish you a happy Thanksgiving.

With the loss of my uncle a few days ago, I’m feeling a particularly strong sense of carpe diem, at the moment, and am immensely grateful for the days and the deeds I’m lucky enough to have.

And thank you, friends, for dropping by “Sheldon” in days past, and all the many days to come. I feel so thankful that I’m able to draw this strip every day for folks all around the world. And so thankful for the many kindnesses you have shown me in return. Thank you, and Happy Thanksgiving!

Hot off the presses, the new Sheldon book collection is available now!

I’ll be honest and say this one might be my favorite, for the cover alone. This collection features storylines like: Flaco’s Olympic trip, Dante’s art competition, the great Hawaiian vacation, and the adventures of Sir Biggles Chiggles. There’s even bonus content you can’t see online, including ridiculous knightly poems, Arthur’s “activity pages,” and more. Here’s a sample:

I really think you guys are gonna enjoy it. A lot of love when into this baby.

Along those lines: I and my family want to thank every last one of you who orders the books, as they are a huge part of how Sheldon keeps going. As you know, we give the strip away every day for free on the site, RSS, and in daily e-mails. So when you treat yourself to a book, you’re not only getting a cool collection, you’re directly supporting *new* Sheldon strips being created tomorrow. So thank you!

Hot off the presses, copies of the new Sheldon book, “Still Got It,” are here! I’ve started crack-a-lackin’ on drawing all 300 Artist Edition copies of the book, which will be going on sale in the next few days. But! In the meantime, check out the artistic flourish that I ended up giving to the #1 book!

(…and here’s another little Flaco on the facing page, commenting on the #1/300…)

We’ll be separating #1 out from the other books for the true Uber-Sheldonista out there who wants the best of the Artist Editions for their bookshelf. ** Here’s your chance to snag it!** Shipping for this book will be FREE in the U.S., and we’ll start the ball rolling at 1 penny for it….’cause I’d rather let you guys decide what it’s worth.

(Click here for a larger image.)

Starting today, and running through December, when you pick up the first and second Sheldon collections, you’ll also get the third one, FREE.

It’s the best deal we’ve ever had on books!

Just head here, pick up the first two books, and the third book’s thrown in FREE!

It’s a great way to start your Sheldon collection, and an even better way to solve all your gift-giving in one swoop!

Sheldon reader Kurt M. sent in an awesome photo-comic version of today’s strip. Click here, or the picture below, for a larger comparison shot. Thanks, Kurt — this is awesome!

Today, I had the fun opportunity to teach comics at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles: I mention it only because it was my last appearance for 2009.

Counting them up, I made eleven appearances around the U.S. in 2009. And in flipping through photos of each, I’m struck by how thankful I am to everyone who came out with high-fives and hugs and kind words at each event.

I’m mindful, every day, of how blessed I am to have a job like this. It’s a rare and wonderful thing. But one of the best parts of the job is getting to meet you in places like Miami, Seattle, San Diego, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Baltimore. You make one little cartoonist feel friendship and camaraderie in far-flung cities across the map. I can’t tell you how much that means to me. Thank you.

I’m catching up on a backlog of great reader e-mails, and wanted to share three great ones that stood out:

PHOTO 1:

Do you guys remember when Arthur needed to rescue Flaco…and he rode across the Atlantic on the back of a larger “Sooty Shearwater” bird? Well, Sheldonista Kailee B. sent in the MOST AWESOME PHOTO EVER. Check this out…remind you of any ducks you know?

PHOTO 2:

Sheldon reader (and awesome software-maker) Chris T. sent in some fantastic Dante/Stickboy fanart. I love the look of this — thanks, Chris!

PHOTO 3:

In what might qualify for the “coolest kid on the block” award, Sheldonista Shannon P. sent in this pic of her nephew dressing up as a Dalek for Halloween. And yes, for those asking, that’s virtually the same cardboard that BBC Wales uses to build the real Daleks. 🙂

(…and before I get more e-mails assuming I don’t like Doctor Who, let me make it clear: We love Doctor Who in my house. Love it. Now, whether we’re gonna like the new Doctor, we’ll see….)

Here’s the link to past strips of our Saturday sci-fi feature, “Drive”.

And since it’s been a few months since we’ve seen them, here’s a reminder of who them there fellers might be in the last panel.

It’s always very humbling when another artist draws your characters, and does so in a way that makes *you* envious. The very talented Dylan Meconis surprised me with a beautiful, wonderfully goofy watercolor of Arthur & Flaco, yesterday, and I had to share it with you. Hopefully she won’t mind me posting it here:

(If you get a chance, drop Dylan a line and tell her how <a href="mailto:Dylan Meconis ?subject=Arthur/Flaco Artwork”>awesome it is.)

Sheldonista Michelle sent in the most amazingly cute photo from Halloween, and I had to share it with you. As she says

“Our son Corwin [went] as a duck for his first Halloween. Unlike Arthur, he can’t talk yet, but if he could, he would say, “awesome sauce”.

Seriously, I look at that photo and I just keep going “ohmygoodnessohmygoodnessohmygoodness”.