If anyone needs shopping clarity this holiday season, quote writer Michael Easter who champions the idea “buy gear, not stuff.”
In order for us to maximize our experience, we need at least a baseline amount of gear to make the most out of Southeast Alaska’s offerings.
“It’s possessions that allow you to complete tasks and reach goals that improve your life. You can buy gear because your life will be better for it.”
Permission!
Here’s how I’d interpret his mindset:
Hobby enhancers:
I have found that I pay more attention to smaller details and angles when I hike with a camera.
I had a Walmart special camera kit that took nice pictures, but we upgraded knowing that part of the deal is being able to share memories. A camera won’t make you get outside, but if getting outside is not a problem then a better camera or lens can enhance the experience and enjoyment.
My wife has a more practical and purposeful shopping habit. Every few weeks there’s a box of seeds or something else for the garden. Upgrading her operation makes her life better and we eat better.
Packs/bags: A buddy and I were standing in the Juneau airport watching the contents of a ripped bag meander around the baggage carousel. It was a high school basketball trip and, being upperclassmen, we were anxious to see who owned the shirts and white briefs. He got quiet. They were his.
In adulthood, the consequences of having a poorly made or water-resistant pack are much more consequential than teenage teasing. A poor-fitting pack that distributes weight awkwardly makes hikes less enjoyable. Straps, buckles and zippers that fail halfway through an eight-mile trek will make you curse buying a cheaper bag.
I bought a premium hunting frame pack and as a result, longer hikes with heavier loads are more comfortable. The experience is better. Along that same threat I invested in premium waterproof packs (with zippers, not roll closures) for rugged, rainy travel and can rest easy.
“Buy once, cry once” only makes sense if you got ripped off. If you buy something that is worth the money, you should be excited because you won’t have to replace it in the near future and the experience is better, or you can at least trust your gear.
Our disposable economy churns out cheap products endorsed by recognizable people who got theirs for free. How many outdoor influencers come to Alaska, use a product for a week, then return to their home city that gets 20 inches of rain annually, to make Instagram reels about the “Alaska-tested” product? It makes me think of that scene in Tommy Boy:
Ted: “Why do they put a guarantee on the box?”
Tommy: Because they know all they sold ya was a guaranteed piece of s—-”
Books: Books are an interesting one. They are free at the library and available digitally. So why buy paper and ink? Because I can’t write on a book that is due or put it on the shelf to reference later or surround myself with any residual idea or history that seeing the spine mine evoke. Abby reads on her Kindle, but I never bought into an electronic library. It’s practical and I am often jealous of the variety she brings with her to read in the tent while I am stuck with whatever I happened to throw in the pack before we left. The amount of value that reading good books has brought to my life is incalculable. Books are emotional, intellectual gear and should always be on a list.
By the way, Michael Easter has two good ones.
• Jeff Lund is a freelance writer based in Ketchikan. His book, “A Miserable Paradise: Life in Southeast Alaska,” is available in local bookstores and at Alpha XR. “I Went to the Woods” appears twice per month in the Sports and Outdoors section of the Juneau Empire.
