never thought I'd do this, but...

Last week, I went on a ski trip in Park City, Utah. And I did something I thought I'd never do.

Here's the story:

It's somewhere around 3:40PM on Friday, and it's somewhere between 20 and 30 degrees.

I'm standing next to a ski lift, gloves tucked under my arm, blowing hot air on my bare hands. My heart is beating faster than it should be, and even though I'm trying to play it cool...

I'm worried.

The gloves I've brought for the trip are not ski gloves. They're not waterproof. And to make matters worse --

They're about 20 years old.

They've been collecting dust in a closet in my parents' house for the past few years.

In fact, it's not one pair of gloves -- but two. I've double-layered them, to try to make them more effective, but there's a major flaw in my strategy:

My "inner" gloves are wet as hell from taking a series of incredibly frustrating falls earlier in the day.

So, to clarify:

It's pretty damn cold, and one of the two pairs of gloves I'm wearing is wet.

Not a good combo -- especially when you consider the fact that, since I've had an affinity for nicotine for the better part of the past 12 years...

My circulation is already not that great.

So I can't really feel the fingers on my right hand, and they're not warming up, either.

I decide that the best thing to do is get off this damn mountain. So I jump on the ski lift, ride down the slopes, and eventually make it home.

The good news is that, over the course of the night, my fingers warmed up, and I realized that amputation was probably not necessary.

But the next day, before we hit the slopes, I walked into a gear rental shop and asked if they rented gloves.

"We don't rent them, but we sell them. They're against that wall over there."

"Awesome. Thanks man."

*a few seconds later*

"Hey man, can you come help me out? I don't really know what I'm looking for."

He walks over.

"Do you want gloves or mittens?"

"Honestly, I'm cool with either."

"Mittens will keep your hands warmer."

"Let's do mittens then."

I never thought I'd be the type of guy who would wear mittens. I mean, honestly. There's nothing cool-sounding about:

"Hey bro, can you pass me my fucking mittens?"

But I wanted to keep my fingers. So I paid $65.43 for a pair of mittens I'll use a few times per year, at most.

And I regret nothing.

My mittens fucking rule.

Make good products that solve problems. Sell them to people with a legitimate need. And you'll have happy customers.

Have you ever made any purchases like this? Things you never thought you would buy, but after you did, you fell in love with them?

Robert