I have a new favorite store.

I bought this rain jacket from them when I left camp, after hearing both Mel and Ernie rave about it, and they were right - I love it. It was expensive, but it's everything you could want in a rain jacket - folds up small, has a bungee-corded hood that will never blow off your head (an absolute must for biking! I used it on my bike the day the first rain/wind of Frances came in and it did GREAT!), and, best of all, the water simply rolls off it. I don't know what this magic material is, but five minutes out of the rain and the jacket is bone dry. You can literally pour a water bottle over yourself (as Mel spent a whole camp swim class period doing) and it just beads up and rolls off. I have never been fond of rain jackets - Mom might even go so far as to say I hate them, seeing as I never ever EVER put one on, preferring to simply get drenched - yet I can't wait to wear this one; I carry it in my backpack all the time, just waiting for a cloud. Consider this a turning point.

Anyway, so I discovered their website last week, and after much carefully conducted research (and a lot of 'I want!'s), I have concluded that my next purchase will be this jacket. The thinner it is, the better I like it, yet it still has to be warm enough for NL weather - and this seems to fit the bill. I was twijfeling between two, so I wrote to a customer service representative asking him to point out the warmer of the choices; he compared the linings for me and said this one would be much warmer, and that it was one of the most popular choices for women. I currently have two coats which are suitable for NL-type cold: one long, gray, and nylon; one short, white, and nylon. (Both from H&M, which we unfortunately do not have in America.) The long coat is nice-looking but impractical for biking (I nearly had a wreck the first time I rode with it), and the white one is good but very bulky; I feel like a walking snowman. After my 'real winter' experience this past year, I have discovered that my legs rarely get cold and that I prefer shorter coats with more freedom of mobility. This coat is thin while still being lined with down. And it even says there on the side, that its primary purpose is to keep you warm without it being huge. Shoulda known North Face would come though for me. :) Anybody got a color preference? I'm leaning toward the black, but the blue's nice too...

Anyway, now that I'm done with my commercial, I'm chalking that carefully researched item up on my "When My Financial Aid Makes Its Appearance" list (alongside the first three Dan Brown books).