Unsolicited Gear Review

I was looking through the comments on this site recently and some unknown (and potentially spammer) said that my writing had gone downhill... Well, unknown person, let me tell you a little about myself. Winter is MY FAVORITE season and if you live in New England, you would see that there is NO WINTER this year!! This is making me very angry, bitter and sad!! I am trying not to put that into this blog but when I am writing about our adventures and I look around and see green or brown grass and no snow but caked on ice from days of melting and freezing and melting and freezing, it's hard NOT to put that anger, bitterness and sadness into all this writing so take your "I really liked your writing, but your blogs have become boring" comment and shove it into Mother Nature's behind where it belongs... and maybe that will make mother nature start dumping again... :)

Ahhhh... glad that I got that off my chest.... Moving on...

This is my completely unsolicited gear review! I am going to write about 3 of my favorite pieces of my "casual" cold weather gear - although the first piece is more technical! As I already said, I LOVE Winter! It's my favorite season!! I love when it's cold and I love when it snows. I love putting on all sorts of layers and going out to have fun. People all around me complain and complain about the cold, but I really think it's because they don't have the gear. Find some good gear, find some fun things to do in the snow, and I'm sure you can learn to love it too.

Piece #1: GoLite Running Tights - A few years ago, my mommy got me a pair of GoLite running tights for Christmas. I think I actually picked them out for her because I needed some tights that had ankle zips for snowboarding (the whole, don't have anything but your socks in your boots, concept) and so I picked them out from Title Nine or Athleta and my mom bought them and sent them to me. The first season, I used them exclusively for snowboarding, but then that summer, I started running with my dogs. Then I continued running through the winter and I found that the GoLite tights were A MAZ ING!!!! I coach in the winter as well and so I go run with the dogs at 5am. It's ALWAYS cold in the winter at 5am. These pants are perfect for the 15-30 degree mornings. They have a nice fleece layer that keeps you warm (none of the running pants that I have seen in the stores have that feature) and the outside are slightly windproof so those 30mph windy mornings, you can't tell. PLUS, they have ankle zips!!! You can see pics from the Turkey Trot from 2010. I have been scouring the world wide web for the same pair of pants so that I can buy a second pair and I haven't found the same pair. I'm assuming there was some exclusivity with Athleta or Title Nine and neither of them sell em anymore. These might be the same pants but they don't have the pretty reflective print on them (mine have a big hibiscus flower on the calf -- my favorite type of flower). So, I'm going to keep mine in really good shape so that I don't have to worry about replacing them soon.... but again, they are A MAZ ING!!!!

Piece #2: Last Winter, I was looking for some boots to wear in the snow. I wanted something that I could slip on quickly to take the dogs places or wear to work. I have these awesome pair of Sorels that I can slip on and they are uber duber warm, but I bought them at a sample sale for like $20 and they are slightly too big... Yeah, I can't really drive with them because I can't feel the pedals... Sort of a problem.... Three features that were a must: 1) Waterproof, 2) Slip On, 3) Warm!! So, you are probably thinking, "oh, she got a pair of Uggs"... Oh, no she didn't... :) Most girls models of uggs are missing the waterproof feature! At the time last year, there were a pair that were waterproof, but they were pushing the $200 mark and I do not pay that much for shoes or anything that will be worn casually. So, I scoured zappos and other shoe sites to see what I could find. I finally settled on a pair of Keens. Oh, look at that, more discontinued gear that Jenny loves... Awesome!! So, the boots are far from sexy and I have gotten teased at work for wearing them. But they are waterproof and they are super warm!! I can throw them on, trample through the snow, and my feet stay warm... EVERY TIME!!! For example, this Sunday, I went to the dog park with the little rascals and one of their friends. It was 17 degrees outside and I wanted to go to Target afterwards. So, I put the Keens on, took all the dogs to the park, lasted an hour and if I had on some warm pants, I probably would've lasted longer, and my feet stayed toasty warm the whole time!! Love toasty warm toes!!

Piece #3: Puffy coats from SteepandCheap. Prior to last winter, I used to tease Nate that puffy coats were not a requirement for winter. That was until he bought me one!! Now, it's like I have an addiction. I have 3 in 3 different styles. I have my long black fancy one that I wear to work and would wear out on the town if we went out on the town. It looks like this coat only it doesn't have the faux fur stuff and it's black... :-) Then this year, I bought this coat and another style that isn't on backcountry anymore. If you don't want to click on the link, the second style is a waist-length puffy that is 750 goose fill and it's so warm and the third style is a light weight puffy that has a big enough hood for a helmet, but is light enough that you wouldn't sweat your gonads off... All three purchased from SteepandCheap (because I love deals!) And I wonder why everything I love no longer exists... HA! :) And the bonus track of all three coats, they all fit my gorilla length arms!! The first coat even has thumb holes that I can wear with my gorilla length arms! Ahh... a little bit of heaven!!

I am becoming more and more of a gear head and I have a lot more awesome gear that I can share with you -- of course, I'm also a cheapskate and most of the gear no longer exists, but at least I am starting to know what to look for!! If you need any help with something to keep you warm (for next winter since I have officially given up on this winter) ask away and I can give you some suggestions! :)