Mug

This is my @gsioutdoors Fairshare mug. Without doubt the most abused bit of kit I own.

It’s been up El Cap eight times. A week on the Eiger North Face. Patagonia. Antarctica. Norway. Six months on the road.

On day one I sawed the handle off so it would fit inside an @msr_gear Reactor stove. An @alpkit titanium mug fits inside it. Russian doll style.

The loop is for clipping it in on portaledges and for hooking in your thumb.

The big ugly patch on the side? That’s where an XGK melted a two-inch hole straight through it. I remelted the plastic and pasted it back together. It’s not pretty. It works.

It used to have a lid. Too many knocks. Too many burns. It doesn’t fit anymore.

@fortybelowltd make a neoprene cover for it, which is brilliant in winter for keeping tea warm. The newer versions come insulated. Mine just has scars.

The size is perfect. Somewhere between a bowl and a mug. Big enough for food or drink. The internal measure means you can nail the exact amount of boiling water for dehydrated meals.

It’s also good for pissing in.

Every time I use it I think about how quick we are to replace the ripped, the worn, the torn, the battered and the bent. We’re hooked on the new.

But the things that survive — the ones we refuse to throw away, even when friends tell us to — have something money can’t buy.

History.

Even a simple mug.