the clothing bit is interesting:
somewhere along the line, maybe 10 years ago, I started buying quality clothing that I would actually wear every week.
maybe it was some reading thru Patagonia regarding low energy use for maintaining the clothing, and sustainable fabrics.
I'm a big fan of Patagonia Capeline, which I wear almost every night. in return it allows me to run the heater that much less, if at all.
in the last 5 years I started wearing wool.
in particular I've been wearing 1 Defeet base layer shirt, or 1 Smartwool base layer shirt. just in the last few months the Smartwool shirt has started to tear. the DeFeet shirt is slightly heavier and is wearing much longer.
wool from
www.oregoncyclewear.com is awesome.
with the base layer pieces I rinse them out daily when I shower, and hang to dry. typically its dry enough to wear in the morning, otherwise I just use the other shirt.
with oregon cycle wear wool jerseys, I'm amazed to wear it in 90F while cycling, and of course foggy monterey mornings, my commute thru Pebble Beach, wool is perfect.
while out on tour, a wool jersey looks nice with a pair of light weight pants or knickers.
and I'm always amazed how long a wool jersey can go without actually using soap on it.