I HAVE NEW BOOTS!

Well, YES, of course that is relevent! I mean, if you know me or have met me in a casual situation in the last 5 years I have had these boots on (and probably grey wool socks)! Listen to me - THE WORLD THAT I HAVE KNOWN AS A SINGLE MAN IS CRUMBLING! My Jeep has died (after 11 years) and moved on to a better place, and NOW my ASOLOS have BEEN REPLACED! I'm in limbo! Even my futon was replaced last year... It's no going back! ALL OF MY PAST REFUGES ARE LOST!

AND THESE ARE EVEN WOMENS' BOOTS!!!

Oh sure, YOU find size 7.5 backpacking boots of this quality for under $200. I have goat feet, it's just that way. My mother wears size ONEs (she's 4'10" for Pete's sake - Hi Mom!) and my Dad, who is like, 6' 2" or so (Hey Dad) wears like 9's so guess who I'm modeled after? But I'll tell you one thing - I'll race you up a steep grade any day. With my pack. And my camera. And my nephew on my back.

I bought very nice Asolos back in late Jan. 2004 while gearing up for the 70 mile Appalachian Trail trek through the Great Smoky Mountain National Park FEBRUARY of that year (read: highs of 10f) with my friend Leslee that we dared each other to do over a long and painful night of tequila and adventure talk. Leslee, by the way, had actually completed the ENTIRE Appalachian Trail hike back in her day. I mean really! She is currently running a successful alpaca farm in the Western Carolinas.

Anyway, back to the boots.

The original plan (like how I reference the shift there? Clever, I know) was to go to REI locally and try on their pair of matching Asolos to get the correct sizing and then order the boots through Campmor.com using a very generous gift certificate I received from Stacey's mom for Christmas. Yeah. That was the plan until we got to REI and they are running a HUGE twice a year sale. Most everything is discounted 20, 30 or even 50% on most clothing and winter items.

GO TO REI. NOW. err, TOMORROW - SUNDAY. Find one close and GET TO IT. Even if you are not a gear head, I bought 2 very nice wicking t-shirts for not even $7 a piece. See what I mean?

So I'm trying on boots (I had my orig's on, btw) and the sales person has NEVER seen Asolos as worn as mine.. Yeah. I'm not kidding. My current hip problems are pretty much due to the fact that I have worn these down so much, and if you look at them, you can kinda tell why. I'll prob post a pic in a little while. But hey - if I had an odometer in 'em I'm sure there would have been balloons and confetti and an oversized check involved.

The new Asolos of this comparable model were $230. I KNOW, RIGHT?? That's just crazy. BUT, again, the plan was to get fitted and then order online at Campmor with the GC and pay for the difference. remember? And that was going wonderfully as after a few different sizes on my feet ( the lady kept saying "boys don't usually wear that small... Hmmm") we find that, of course, they don't have any 7.5 size Asolos in that model. So she's giving me the spill about ordering them online and having them shipped to the store for free, etc...

Now don't forget that their Asolo boots are $230 on the tag. GOOD BOOTS.

So sales person #2 starts looking through some other stuff and bring me a pair of REI brand boots, womens', in the comparable size and asks me to try them on. Perfect. I'm looking them over and they almost look like the same boot! Goretex, same ankle support, a strong aggressive tread.. He's telling me the details (that match the tags and stickers on them - it's not just his own pitch), how they are actually made by Raichle, a Swedish company know for their quality and that these boots might just be even a bit more durable then the Asolos I was looking at. So that definitely helped peak my attention...

Now, if you know me, then you should know that I'm a very, very, visual person. I think in pictures, I understand diagrams better then text, and to be honest I don't talk a lot so words in general hold little value to me. Don't tell me something, just do it or show me a picture/movie of it. (yes, thank you, I CAN read) There are a few words and sentences/phrases however that instinctively jump to my attention and "SERIOUS FREAKING SALE" is one of those phrases. The guy, while handing the girlie boots to me says "oh and those are also on clearance, and plus the 50% discount of this sale you can get them for, what, $60?"

Ladies and gentlemen, the clouds parted and the sun shone right down on that little sales tag at my ankle... Actually it was another guy standing nearby trying out headlamps who had overheard our conversation and checking the tag for himself out of wonderment, asking "REALLY???"

Okay, so that didn't really happen, but that would have been SO damn funny...

But I bought the boots, and am wearing them around the house as I type. So far I have tripped twice and scared Porter with my Frankenstein stomping impression enough that he put himself outside. But they will break in soon and will join me and my new family in our next set of adventures - as a happily married man - hopefully for another 5 years or more.

Be safe.

Oh! And next I'll talk about the -5 degree pink sleeping bag that we got Stace for $55 from $125! Exciting!