Jeans

I've always worn Levi's jeans so I started there only to find out that most Levi's are no longer made here. I went on their website and found some that were but they were really expensive. I'm sure some of you out there will pay over $100 for a pair of jeans but not this guy! They were charging $120-200 for one pair. Just one. Levi's 501 original fit Made in the USA blue jeans on sale for $139 down from $178. Wow, time to keep looking!
My first stop after a Google search was a site called Union Label. They sell a lot of different things, all Made in the USA, and they have an ok selection of jeans at reasonable prices. They sell three pairs of regular 5 pocket jeans for less than Levi's wanted for one pair of home grown blue jeans. They'll even embroider your union label on a back pocket for $10/pair extra. Pretty nifty. I'm hesitant to buy them though because while I'm no fashionista I don't know how they look or fit. The pictures on the website were small and only one view, and there was no comment section to get a feel for what people thought of them. It would be a shot in the dark at best.
I breezed through the more expensive options from Duluth Trading (seemed ok but a little expensive - $75 - might check back here), Bullet Blues ($150ish), Ball and Buck (some for over $200!), Zappos (searched Made in USA and found lots of $150-300, yes, 300 dollar jeans. Bet there aren't many guys swinging a hammer wearing those fancy pants!), Texas Jeans (good prices but they have a pair of bull horns embroidered in the back pockets, not sure how I feel about that), Amazon had one pair made from sugar cane or something for $300 and American Apparel is way too hipster-douche for me.

I ended up finding a pair at All American Clothing Company I liked for around $50. They have a free shipping offer right now if you spend $99 or more and the feedback on their items looked very positive. I might have to pick up a shirt or two as well for the free shipping! I'll let you know how it works out in a few days when they get here. Until then...

[UPDATE] from their confirmation email:
 "Our goal is to provide patriotic buyers, such as yourself, with a higher quality, USA Made garment. “Statistics indicate if every American cared enough to buy just one USA Made garment per year, the impact would be nearly $9 billion. That creates an amazing amount of jobs for just one article of clothing per American!” We would like to extend our gratitude to you for patronizing us and thank you for supporting American Jobs." 
Well said and you're welcome! 

Time Flies

First off I want to let you know how easy this really is. I've had to compromise on some food ingredients a few times at restaurants and there is no getting away from foreign oil but overall I feel good about the journey. So much so that I'm going to keep going indefinitely with a few exceptions here and there. One example is that while I'll still look for deals on Kona coffee I'm going to explore some of my local coffee roasters. The beans will be imported but if I can help support one of my neighbors or friends business venture and get some great tasting, freshly roasted coffee at the same time it's worth it!
Like I've said before, it's not about shunning the rest of the world, it's about supporting American businesses and jobs. I believe it should be part of the purchasing decision process to consider how and where a product was made. I was chatting with one of my neighbors this morning at the kids bus stop about how peoples priorities have changed away from making your neighborhood and town a better place to live. Many people seem to care less and less about their neighbors or the seniors and kids in town doing well and more about how they are doing compared to them, like it's some kind of competition.
We make some great products here and it is a genuine pleasure to find something made by folks that could be your neighbors that you see every day. It's great when it turns out that you would have bought that product anyways because it's better than the cheap imported ones they sell at Wallyworld or the red circle store. I might have to at some point dedicate a few posts to digging up Made in the USA products at these big chain stores but not today. Today I buy a pair of jeans.

Chilly Day

I went to my favorite outdoor outfitter today because I was one layer short for this cold and snowy day. I went skiing last weekend and froze my butt off their as well. It was due time to upgrade my base layer! I was quickly disheartened after browsing through their selections which included some of my favorite brands. Woolrich, Smartwool, Under Armor and all of the rest of the brands they carry are all made in some foreign land. I left with nothing to keep me warm on this cold day. Luckily I keep an extra fleece in the back of my car so I grabbed that and came back to work. SOL. I'll see what I can dig up for domestic long johns but I might have to stick with what I have for now. Stay warm!


UPDATE: Now that I'm back home with a real computer (no offense to my phone which is pretty close these days) I did an online search and found that my second favorite outdoor outfitter, REI,  carries long underwear made in the USA from Polartec material under their own (REI) brand name. Polartec® fabrics "range from extremely lightweight base layer fabrics for long underwear and T-shirts to water repellent soft shells to flame resistant fabrics for the military." That's right, because they are a US company they are allowed to be a supplier to our military. Want to know more about them? Check out this video is from their website:



A great American company and so close to home. I'm going on the REI site right now and ordering me up some nice warm skivvies Made in the USA from material manufactured in my home state. That alone gives me a nice warm feeling!

Domestic EVOO

When I started making my own salad dressing a while back I started buying those big 100 oz. cans. The problem is they sit around for a while and the last one I got tastes a little bitter now. I thought about trashing it and replacing it with something domestic and assumed I was going to have to go without a good olive oil for this stint. Someone recommended the California Olive Ranch EVOO and I was able to buy it right at my local Stop and Shop. It was priced reasonably ($8.99/25oz) and it tastes great. Really, I'd buy it anyways just for the taste. I'm very much liking when things turn out this way. There are a ton of great companies putting out some top quality olive oil right here in the good old USA so next time you're on the market, consider domestic EVOO. For a list of domestic growers try this link -  http://www.oliveoilsource.com/companies-profiles/growers. You'll see what I mean. All I need now is some fresh bread to dip and I'm good to go!

For some further reading on domestic olive oils check out these articles:

Local Lemons - Choosing California Olive Oil

Mercury News - California's Olive Oils Rival Those of Italy 

Eating Out and Cutting Things Up

[Link to previous post]  [Link to first post]

I went into a small Italian sandwich shop / restaurant a few days ago when I forgot to bring my lunch to work with me. It was around 4pm and there was no one else there. I told the owner/manager what I was doing this month and asked him about the ingredients he used and where the came from and he was actually nice enough to let me poke around with him a little bit. Everything was clearly labeled on the boxes like it is at a supermarket and most of it was domestic which made me feel pretty good about it all. He was a good guy and I ordered up a sandwich and chatted it up with him a little. His take on restaurants was that they were essentially making the food there so everything on the menu was Made in the USA. Hmmm, I like this. Not just because I really really missed eating out.

When I was younger I worked as a prep cook for a while and moved onto the line for a bit. We made everything there and it kept quite a few of my friends employed and provided a service to the community as well as the local economy. This was always more about national pride and commitment to our country's working people than it was about isolationism and nit-picking about small ingredients so I'm green lighting eating out and I'll just pay good attention to the primary ingredients and try to keep them domestic.

I've been struggling with how to write about this and if I should just not mention it and stop writing about food altogether. It still feels a little like a cop-out, at least until my food comes, freshly prepared and delicious. At that point I forget all about my concerns and dig in! I'll still only buy domestic foods at home. I think it's too easy not to. A few products are tough but ordering somewhat expensive Kona Coffee online is not the end of the world. In fact, it's very good so I don't mind at all.

________________________________________

I went online to order my new shoes from New Balance and picked up some socks as well. In my journeys I came across two brands that fit the bill very nicely. Smartwool socks are hands down my favorite socks that I own. The ones in the store were all Made in the USA and these thing kick butt and keep your feet comfortable and dry doing it too! I also own a pair of long underwear and a winter hat made by them. It all rocks. Having been there and done that though I decided to try out another brand I've heard great things about. Some people I know will only wear Thȯrlos athletic socks. They swear by them and I thought I should look into this so I went to the Thȯrlos site and, well, check this out:

Thorlos Heart and Soul : Made In America from Thorlos Videos on Vimeo.

That's what I'm talking about. I ordered two pairs on Amazon and they showed up two days later with my new shoes. I'll tell ya, my feet have never been so happy. These things are the real deal and worth every penny. Like I've said before, you don't have to sacrifice quality at all when you buy a domestic product. It seems to work the opposite way in fact. I've owned every major brand of athletic shoe out there and I buy New Balance because they are the most comfortable and they wear very well. I feel the same way about Smartwool and even with my limited experience to date, Thȯrlo socks. If you don't buy them because they're American products, buy them because they're better products.

________________________________________

While I was on Amazon I looked into pocket knives as well. A few years back my kids were in Cub Scouts and the wifey volunteered to be a Den Leader. The kids in their third year (Bear) learn about the safe use of pocket knives and some basic whittling techniques. I had no pocket knife at the time so I ordered up a swiss army knife for me and a "Cub Scout Utility Knife" for the boy. I taught the class after all the other fathers took a step backwards at volunteer time. After that I started always carrying a pocket knife and wondering how I got along without one for so long. I use it daily, much more than any other tool I own. I liked the knife but during the summer I found it slipping out of my pocket when I wore shorts. I was not going to go back to the dark ages of not carrying a pocket knife so I shopped around and bought a SOG Flash II folding knife. Made in the USA and I have to tell you, this knife is one hell of a tool. The blade holds an edge very well and the clip holds it firmly in my pocket when it's not in use. The real key to this knife is the deployment of the blade. In under one second I can have it out of my pocket and open. It's amazing. putting it away is easy too and all one handed. The locking mechanism is flawless and fit to finish it is second to none.

 I thought I'd never have to buy another knife and was perfectly happy. On Christmas Eve I was at my moms house and in line to get food from the amazing buffet spread they put on every year. She was right behind me and came across something that needed to be cut open and whoosh, click there it was. 3 1/2 inches of gleaming hardened steel blade at your service. She was horrified. "You carry that thing around with you?" she asked. It does make quite an impression and is a little bigger that I need for every day use, I'll admit. Then on New Years Eve we were all celebrating and I was drinking fancy Made in America micro-brews. I needed a bottle opener for every one and for lack of anything better on hand I started popping open my beer with the knife handle like you would with a lighter (if you know that trick). It worked great but gouged up the knifes resin handle a little and I found some small pieces in my beer. That just will not do.

Pocket knives are relatively inexpensive and I decided to shop around for a perfect knife for my needs: one handed deployment, sharp as hell, pocket clip, bottle opener, under $50 and of course, Made in the USA. I searched on Amazon and came up with a list of options, the most appealing to me was the Leatherman Crater c33Tx. It has a 2 1/2 inch blade and a carabiner clip that doubles as a bottle opener plus two screwdrivers. Lots of function in a small package, and it's Made in the USA. I almost balked at this knife because in my research I found a lawsuit by the State of California that disputed the Made in the USA claim on some of their knives/tools. Apparently to put that label on a product in California all the parts in a product have to originate in the US. There is a small screw they use in a few of their products that is made in Germany so California sued them and they can't advertise as being made here and still sell their products in California. It passed my litmus test for being a domestic product and I bought the damn thing. I'm sure the good folks at the Portland, Oregon Leatherman plant appreciate the business.If you're ever up there you can take a tour of the factory and watch them make knives for yourself. You can call them at (503) 408-5550 to sign up for a tour. They have them every Wednesday at 10am. If you're from California you might want to lie and say Nevada or something otherwise they might give you some funny looks (kidding of course). Check it out though. Real Americans making a real American product. 

The knife shipped promptly and arrived a few days ago. It feels very solid and all the tools work well. I had some doubts that the carabiner/bottle opener was going to work well but it turned out to be really cool. I like the fact that I can clip the knife to a backpack or a belt loop of a pocket isn't an option. I opened a beer with no problem and the gate held onto the bottle cap keeping it in my hand. By luck or design this feature is pretty cool. The deployment is not as seamless as the SOG but once I oiled the knife and worked it in it is perfectly acceptable. Once I get used to it more I'm sure it will be as automatic as my other knife but it requires a different hand position so I have to think about it when I take it out. Incidentally, when I grab it and don't think about it my hand is in the perfect position for the bottle opener. Are they trying to tell me something? 

________________________________________

We are still looking into furniture options and I'm still staring at the blank wall in my living room. We are thinking about small sectional sofas and the is a great brand that's not too expensive out there by the name of Klaussner that are Made in the USA but we haven't locked into one yet. I'll keep you posted!

Days 3-5

[Link to Previous Post]  [Link to First Post]



After a visit to my local New Balance store I decided that I would wait and look around a bit more. They make an awesome shoe and I have been buying their running style sneakers (do people still call them that?) for years and I wouldn't bother even looking elsewhere but for the purposes of this experiment I thought I'd check out what else was out there. I went to a local (Boston) store that sells outdoor stuff and checked out their offerings for waterproof footwear. I like the look of Keen and Merrell shoes and thought they might be made somewhere around here. Not so much. In fact every waterproof hiking shoe they had was made somewhere in Asia. Crap. I did find a store called Hiltons Tent City near the Garden that carried some American made boots but they were very high end hiking and work boots. What a great store though! Great staff and if you need equipment for an outdoor adventure it is the place to check out first. Anyhow, I'm more in the market for pseudo-sneaker soft sole style boots/shoes for under $100 that are good for walking 1 or 2 miles a day in the city through slush and puddles of who knows what so it didn't work out for me. I even checked Cabellas and Zappos searching for Made in USA but didn't find anything I liked. (There was a Keen boot listed as being made in Portland, OR so they might have a factory here as well but all their boots I saw when I was out looking were not made here and I didn't particularly care for this style.) I'm starting to think New Balance is the way to go at this point and after having perused their website I saw a couple of acceptable options. Back where I started I guess.

The thing I did learn about American made boots in this quest of mine are that they are typically very well made and in a few years when my work style boots are ready for replacing (again) I will definitely buy a pair. There are some great companies in the US that are putting out some awesome boots that in my estimation will last you through 20 years of hard work. Companies like Danner, Carolina, Chippewa, Red Wing and Wellco. They will cost you $200-300 for a pair but like I said, they are very high quality and will last forever (in boot time).


I did look around for a couple of chairs and found a couple of options at a Home Goods store nearby. After showing the wifey a couple of options she said she might prefer changing the room entirely and going with a sectional or something so that purchase is on hold for now. We have a big empty wall in our living room and limited seating in the mean time so I can't imagine we'll wait too long. I hope. The boss gets what the boss wants though so I'm standing by.

Food is a constant challenge and a pain in the butt. I haven't been able to get country of origin info for Sysco foods and I work in a big place with a cafeteria that uses them as their food distributor. Restaurants are the same way in a large part. I mean, who the hell knows where the tomatoes in the pasta sauce came from? I'm sure they don't want me poking around their cupboards reading labels before I order so I've been bringing my lunch to work. C'est la vie. Me and my kids Lightning McQueen lunch box. At least my coffee is great. 100% Kona freshly ground every morning. (I got lucky and found some at the Home Goods store while I was there but it was whole bean.) I think I'll go have a cup right now. Cheers!
[Link to Next Post]

Days 1 and 2 (Happy New Year!)

[Link to Previous Post]  [Link to First Post]

So, here we go. I stayed home nursing a hangover yesterday putting my rampant consumerism on hold for a day. I'm working tonight so this will present my first challenge come dinner time. If I was smart I'd bring my lunch and stay out of the North End of Boston with all those delicious imported meats and cheeses but that's just not the case. After seeing what veggies and meats are almost always domestically grown I think I have a pretty good handle on what to order at a sandwich shop type of place. There is a Whole Foods market nearby with a few options for take out kinds of food. What I should have researched further are the products that Sysco and Aramark use so I could eat at work occasionally. Enough about food for now though.

Christmas was a great time for China in our house with two school age boys with an affinity for video games and Japanese cartoon related games. The older guy is getting into rock collecting though and  I found a tumbler/polisher called Thumler' Tumbler that was made in the good old USA so I felt good about that purchase. I'm glad I didn't try this in December though. Old Santa might have been on the kids naughty list if they didn't get the requisite pile of Chinese crap on their Christmas lists!

You'd think I didn't have much to buy so soon after the holidays but like most people I generally put off buying myself anything until after I see what I get. January is here now and it's on like Donkey Kong! We are replacing a love seat with two chairs and a small table in our living room this week. I scoped out a few options but I think tomorrow is the day for that endeavor. A pair of comfortable waterproof shoes / boots are on my list also but I typically gravitate towards New Balance which thankfully are made here and there is a factory store right up the road. I need socks as well which might prove to be more problematic but I'm determined to get that done as well. Should be a busy day tomorrow! Happy New Year!

[Link to Next Post]