Did you ever try drying out a cheap tent in a hotel bathroom after a week of rain? I did that last spring and it felt like I was trying to hide a crime scene. But honestly, I've got this old coleman stove that's been through three road trips and one bear encounter, still works like a champ. My buddy spent $300 on some fancy titanium setup and the valve seized up after two months. I think a lot of it comes down to how you treat your stuff, not the price tag.

Hold your ground and let them see those boundaries stick.

Nah, you're the problem. Clean the foot better before you pack it.

Lost my backup tablets in a river crossing near Tuolumne once. Had to borrow iodine from a German couple.

A buddy of mine lost $120 in a fantasy football buy-in once and had to skip his sister's birthday dinner because he couldn't make rent that month. @reese_nelson, for plenty of people sixty bucks is what stands between them and a late electric bill, not a night out. Reassessing what stuff is worth doesn't make someone dramatic, just means they've got different numbers to work with.