articulate
Expedition Leader
My old buddy: the basic white Nalgene wide mouth, blue lid, and 8 years old. She accompanied me to nearly all classes at ASU. I adorned her with gear stickers. We hiked, climbed, backpacked, and adventured for many years together, she and I. We've done the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Joshua Tree, Zion, and some other not-so-well-known destinations like Mount Lemmon, Little Granite Mountain, Pinnacle Peak, Camelback Mountain (innumerable ascents up the Praying Monk), Queen Creek Canyon, Aravaipa, the Chiricahuas, the Supes...
I'm getting dewy-eyed. How many liters of water has she provided me, slaked my thirst during backcountry romps? And for a one-time fee of merely $7.99. . .
I got gas after work one night, my bottle with me. Maybe only half full - yes, half full. I set her down on the bumper, paid for the gas, pumped --- and drove away.
I was home when I realized what I did. "Brooke!" I began, "I gotta go out again. I left my bottle on my bumper. Oh my GOD! I'll be back, oh GOD!" I went back to that gas station and searched and searched. But I knew where she had to be. I checked the street where I pulled out, but I couldn't find her. Daylight was fading, the clock was ticking.
So I did what any normal person would do: backed into on-coming traffic and turned on my high beams. I wasn't going home without my bottle, dammit. And there she was! In the gutter! Nearly flattened, the lid split, and a wall of traffic coming on...
I ran. I grabbed. I jumped into the Jeep, thankfully the doors were off. And drove home where I could properly nurse her back to life.
She'll still hold water, but the lid is history. We suspect she'll life a long life, but she'll never hold the same amount of water again. Shape Displacement they call it. It's just a fancy term for "Look what happens when you're negligent."
Long live good gear!
:sunny:
I'm getting dewy-eyed. How many liters of water has she provided me, slaked my thirst during backcountry romps? And for a one-time fee of merely $7.99. . .
I got gas after work one night, my bottle with me. Maybe only half full - yes, half full. I set her down on the bumper, paid for the gas, pumped --- and drove away.
I was home when I realized what I did. "Brooke!" I began, "I gotta go out again. I left my bottle on my bumper. Oh my GOD! I'll be back, oh GOD!" I went back to that gas station and searched and searched. But I knew where she had to be. I checked the street where I pulled out, but I couldn't find her. Daylight was fading, the clock was ticking.
So I did what any normal person would do: backed into on-coming traffic and turned on my high beams. I wasn't going home without my bottle, dammit. And there she was! In the gutter! Nearly flattened, the lid split, and a wall of traffic coming on...
I ran. I grabbed. I jumped into the Jeep, thankfully the doors were off. And drove home where I could properly nurse her back to life.
She'll still hold water, but the lid is history. We suspect she'll life a long life, but she'll never hold the same amount of water again. Shape Displacement they call it. It's just a fancy term for "Look what happens when you're negligent."
Long live good gear!
:sunny:
eepwall:
