"TO" aka technical outwear

i'm a big fan of clothing with utility and practicality.  gimme technical outerwear aka TO (think clothes for hiking, camping, climbing, skiing) any day over those fashion brands.  i may be a major poser since i ski once a year, have only car-camped a few times in my life and spend most of time in very non-threatening, climate controlled enviros BUT if i can get good deals on TO at the same price or cheaper than fashion clothes, I'll take it!  

Big makers of TO include Patagonia, Mountain Hardwear, Marmot, Smartwool, The North Face (more so from the old days)...  My favorite now is Patagonia whereas I started off w/ TNF, and dabbled some in Mountain Hardwear and others.  (more later on what brands I like for what items...)

TO is typically made of high tech fabrics such as Polartec, quick drying nylon/polyester, polypropylene, waterproof/breathable fabrics (GORE-TEX, proprietary ones).   The coolest thing about TO is how these clothes perform.  Imagine a fleece jacket offering incredible warmth for its feather-like weight, the ability to insulate even when wet and ultra-fast drying (nearly dry when you pull it from the washer).  Or a nylon/polyester shirt which wicks away sweat and dries really quickly.  Finally, a baselayer long sleeve top made of ultra fine New Zealand Merino wool, which wicks away sweat, resists odor (i've been told you can wear it 1+ wk with minimal smell) and keeps you at a good temp in a wide temperature range.  Wow!

popular TO brands:

the beginnning...

I've finally finally decided to start blogging after years and years of not.  my wife jo has been the biggest inspiration to me, since she's been a dedicated blogger since she was old enough to surf the web.  and so here marks the beginning of my random musings about my hobbies and whatever.  but mostly i'll prolly write about more practical life-focused things which i call BKMs (aka best known methods - finding the most efficient/easiest ways to do things in life/at work) I encounter since it's been a growing interest for me the last several years.  (stay tuned for a dedicated BKM site which a buddy and I are working on!)

note: that i do write in the emily dickinson style of no caps and strange punctuation...,,,,===  so hopefully you're good with that.  :)

mikee