Patagonia Fan Boy

I’m not sure I remember my  first piece of patagonia clothing. I do remember going home for Thanksgiving in 2014 and it being really cold. I needed to borrow a hat. I went through the drawer where my mother keeps her extra warm hats and gloves for people to use in the winter. I pulled out the blue and green patagonia hat and asked if I could wear it. I used it the whole trip and asked if I could take it with me. My mom was okay with it, but my little brother, Alex, was not. He said the hat was special and it belonged to the family and the house and I couldn’t just take it. He made up some story about its significance, which I’m pretty sure was fake.

Still, it got me to think about how certain pieces of clothing have a story. The really good pieces of clothing have many stories, over many years. Most of my clothes didn’t. Much of my clothes served there purpose and were recycled or thrown out. I was tired of that. I wanted my clothes to be better. I did a bit of research and found out about Patagonia’s gaurentee on their products. More research uncovered more interesting details about the company.

I was particularly struck by an add they took out in a newspaper where they told people not to buy their new jacket. The subtext was don’t buy it if you already have one that works, but still. What kind of company out there tells you to be careful when buying their products?

So it started with a blue green hat. Now a large portion of my clothes shopping is done at Patagonia. I wear my patagonia gear with pride.

That’s an apt title for this blog post. Hello World! How’s it going? How’s the air quality? What’s the state of human rights around the world?

I’m not overly politically minded. Well, I’ve never thought of myself as a political person. Yes, I vote. I tend to go democrartic, but I’m not one to go right into arguing politics. I believe people should pretty much have their own beliefs (this last election being a big exception, sorry). I am, however, a big fan of the environment. I remember when I was a kid, probably around the age of 7, organizing an earth day party with my friends where we went around the neighborhood picking up trash off the street. 

Clothing also runs in my family. My father was once caught with 27 pairs of pants growing up and then he actually went into fashion. My entire life my father has been working in that world. I didn’t go that way, and just because he dresses with style doesn’t mean that I do. My clothing style has always stayed on the more functional instead of fashionable side. Still, I do like my comfort clothing.

Lastly, I’ve also been raised to be an honest and ethical person. Doing the right thing has always been important for me. I don’t always get it right, but I try to do the right thing every time. 

Patagonia, Inc fits a harmony of these beliefs. Their founder Yvon Chouinard has tried to the keep the company environmentally conscious. There clothes they create are functional and long lasting, and as a company they try to do the right thing, not just the profitable thing.

This site is about this company. About the products they make, and how I use them. Hopefully over time it will also talk about other’s relationships with their products.