One of the fun things about this forum is reading the posts from people in different walks of life and in different parts of the world. I'll see something like "It rains so infrequently here that it's not worth it for me to get any type of rain gear" and I'm kind of dumbfounded, especially considering the small fortune I've spent on winter gear.

But then I remember that the rain gear I have was a gift from my wife that cost me nothing. I also have to remind myself that when I first started riding to work, I only did it on mild sunny days and even then it was only once a week or so.

It's when you decide that riding is going to be your primary means of getting to work that you have to wrestle with the possibility/probability of bad weather. If we're talking about rain then a good set of fenders with a decent sized mudflap on the front can keep a lot of the grit out of your drivetrain and off of you. You've indicated that you'd rather not have your bike get wet. There's two choices there, either accept that it's going to get wet or do what a number of other people here have done, get a cheap bike off craigslist and use that if there's a possibility of rain.

Just a note about rain gear. The set I have is packable and wasn't particularly expensive. It's great for camping. For riding I really only use it in the fall and in the spring when it's colder. In warm weather I'm going to get just as wet from sweat so it really doesn't do much good to wear it. Staying dry often times isn't realistic. Staying warm is more easily attainable.