My nephew is in town from Ecuador so I decided to run over the mountains to P-Town to take in a Portland Timbers game and show him how the Yankee Hooligans do it! It was the MLS season opener and it was a cold rain-soaked mess, but what better way to earn your chops than seeing a footy game in P-Town with the obligatory P-Town rain?! The good news: The Timbers won in style. The bad news: My wool Filson Mackinaw Wool Vest and new  Timberland work boots were thoroughly soaked through.

The next day before leaving town and driving back over the snow-riddled mountains I made a bee-line for Portland’s premier work-fashion vintage-inspired store, Lizard Lounge, to get me a pair of selvedged denim jeans! I had been reading about Lizard Lounge and had made them my newest OCD target, so I was very excited to check out the store in the Pearl District, and upon arriving was not disappointed. It was the mecca of vintage inspired work wear from the likes of Woolrich Woolen Mills, Levis Vintage, Baldwin, Red Wing and more, in a great industrial setting with my favorite – vintage medical cabinets and industrial furniture everywhere. I tried on a couple of pairs of Baldwin Denim and was happy I was able to do so, as the sizing is always tricky when trying to figure it out from remote sites. I will post about the breaking-in process of the Baldwin Denim Reed jeans as I begin, so that other novices to raw selvedge denim, like myself, might gain some insight.

With bag in hand we headed out, vowing to return again as quickly as possible to shop again when the Missus is with me, otherwise future purchases in the selvedge denim high-dollar amount will frowned upon.

After getting in the truck (the BIG diesel, which is scorned at on a regular basis in P-Town) I looked over in time to discover the Filson store just up the block. A quick park, a fast run-through to explain to my nephew from a 3rd-world country why the jackets cost so much, and we were back in the truck to beat the snow storm.

Next visit will see us with more time, and hopefully more money, to further satisfy our need for great things. By then I am sure I will have gained a new obsession…