Sunday, March 22, 2015

The Good Wife

No doubt the most astonishing fact of my upcoming trip to Yellowknife for the Frostbite 50 is the decision by my wife, Lindi Rosner (a virtually-born-and-bred, flip-on-the-heat-when-it-dips-below-68-degrees, Southern California girl) to tag along. Lindi has her heart set on witnessing the aurora borealis and Yellowknife purports to be the best spot on earth to accomplish that goal.

Obviously, such an expedition requires careful planning, and I, having spent a total of 8 days out of my 60-plus years in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic, have been appointed Lindi’s expert guide. In making my wardrobe recommendations, I adopted a classic layered strategy that favored practicality over fashion. 

You judge the results!


For the base layer, I chose merino wool tops and bottoms. Lightweight and breathable. They’ll keep her warm in the face of the most severe Arctic blasts, but still comfortable when snuggled on a polar bear rug back at the hotel.




For the mid-layer, the concept is simple: insulation up top, water resistance below while maintaining a soupçon of mystery and sex appeal.



The pièce de résistance! For the outer garment, I selected a Canada Goose expedition parka. Lindi will be able to laugh in the face of 50-below-zero wind chills while promenading with confidence with the crème de la crème of Yellowknife society. 



The parka was supplied by my good friend Ken Shifren who owns A.A. Surplus Sales here in Los Angeles. This particular garment was scavenged from the body of a retired Navy seaman who died of alcohol poisoning while working as a fry cook in McMurdo Station, Alaska. A trip to the dry cleaners and it was as good as new. Thanks, Kenny!



1 comment:

  1. Excellent post, terrific topic, brilliantly presented. But it leaves the following burning question: Did the dry cleaning get all of the cooking smells out of the park? (I presume the cook wore it in the kitchen.) Only Lindi can tell if all of the cook's BO was successfully removed.

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