Taking inspiration from EdwardCash and his interest in building a better backpack, I was thinking of contacting my friend in LA who designs clothes to have her make some wool pants since they seem to be such an elusive item. I don't know a whole lot about them other than what I've read in other posts so I'd like to gather your level of interest in the idea as well as any input into their design/construction. I'm going to meet with her tomorrow over lunch and discuss the idea and show her some of the other posts on here about them as well as the relevant ebay links from Gear Post 2012.

After visiting the Airstream factory in Jackson Center, Ohio I headed in a northerly path towards Detroit. It was a blistering humid heat during the course of the factory tour but within minutes of pulling out of the driveway I could see a storm brewing out on the horizon. As I got closer and closer to the freeway the clouds got darker and darker. Suddenly it looked as if I was headed straight into the depths of hell! The winds had picked up to a dangerously ferocious speed, whipping the RV side-to-side on the road. I let off the gas and slowed my pace in order to regain control of the vehicle. Just then a huge gust smacked the side of the camper and somehow managed to suck half of the awning out from around it's spool.

WOOSH! FWACKA FWACKA WFAWKA! The awning was now flapping vigorously in the storm against the broadside of the vehicle.

I found myself trying to keep this 24' RV in between the lines and was fighting to counteract the gale force winds that were magnified by the fact that I now had what amounted to a giant sail attached to this land-boat! Not a good situation. I turned off the road and into the first driveway I could find to let the line of vehicles behind me pass.

I opened the door to take a look at what was going on with the awning and the second I did, a giant lightning bolt lit up the sky followed by a thunderous rumble. I was now smack dab in the middle of the storm. To make matters worse it started hailing! So I was left with a decision:

Do I, A: venture outside and try to open up the awning all of the way in order to try and re-wrap it around the spool?Or do I, B: wait out the storm and risk having the entire awning and support bars get ripped off by a gust of wind creating an even bigger and more urgent set of problems?

I'm trying to make it a habit each year to reflect on the most memorable moments of the previous 365 days. Here's my top 101 experiences of 2012:

Hi Daniel, I was checking out your To Do list after reading through your GX1 post on Tynan's site and thought I'd let you know about a pretty insane deal to Maldives. 

Washington DC (IAD) to Male (MLE) for $675, round trip incl taxes. $1200 is a normal fare. Departure dates beginning February 18th, with returns up to a month out. This is an extremely limited sale.To book directly visit: http://www.turkishairlines.com/en-us/ and select "flexible with dates" to find the best pricing. Tip: Put in your United Airlines ( a Turkish partner) frequent flier number and earn an amazing 18,000 miles.

I've been looking for flights to India for March to photograph the Holi festival which I'm sure would be right up your ally! The colors there are incredible! So I'm using this flight deal to get me there and then just taking some short flight to India for about $250 one way and then back again. It'll work out to roughly the same cost as getting to India, but I get a free stop over in Turkey and Maldives. A win win.

I've been waiting for something like this! Just announced at CES, this ASUS WL-330NUL Pocket Router could be useful for "borrowing" some wifi from places that charge an arm and a leg (like Hotels). Just find their business center and plug the cat5 cable that was in their computer into this little guy and you should be able to get free wifi. Just remember to put everything back the way you found it so as not to screw over others that come after you. :)

I'm sure many of you that follow Tynan's annual Gear Posts are familiar with the magic of Merino Wool shirts. So I just wanted to share this KickStarter project by Wool & Prince for Merino Wool t-shirts and polo shirts that is ending soon. Wool & Prince is the same company behind the Better Button-Down Shirt that Tynan recommend in the most recent gear post, and now they are making t's and polos!

For comparison, the IceBreaker Tech-T is $65 if you get just 1 shirt on the Kickstart page it's only $58. There are other pledge options too which further increases the savings -- buying 4 brings the price down to $52/each which is pretty darn cheap for Merino Wool shirts.

The project is already funded so you're pretty much guaranteed to get the deal price. There's only 6 days remaining to get your orders in, and if they hit their stretch goal ($100,000) they will make the navy blue shirts.

Disclaimer: I want the blue shirt myself so that's why I'm promoting this campaign! :) I've actually pledged $426 myself for 2 polos and 2 t-shirts + and additional 3 t-shirts. I emailed them already and they are fine with that arrangement.

Support the project here: http://kck.st/1eA65IP