May 7, 2022

Table of Contents.

Why a Camp Chair is a Time Machine: A Memoir of Gear, Adventuring, and Very Real Life


By Tony Piff


Prologue: Strangers in the Woods

Part I: A Theory of Gear

   Chapter 1: Sad Sack

   Chapter 2: Fresh Wheels

   Chapter 3: Killing Everything

   Chapter 4: The Power of Gear or Why a Camp Chair Is a Time Machine

   Chapter 5: Religion, Sex and BMX

   Chapter 6: The Rat Race of Upgrading

   Chapter 7: Irreplaceable at Any Price

Part II: A Theory of Adventure

   Chapter 8: The Freedom Lifestyle Fantasy

   Chapter 9: The Divorce Gets Real

   Chapter 10: Sacred Time

   Chapter 11: Fucking Context

   Chapter 12: From Zero Friends

   Chapter 13: Precipice of Bliss

   Chapter 14: Find Sky on a Map

   Chapter 15: Sleeps of a Lifetime

   Chapter 16: Career Change and Calamity

   Chapter 17: Ride the Petri Dish

   Chapter 18: The Joy of Pooping

   Chapter 19: Bonded Like Cavemen

   Chapter 20: Broke Up

   Chapter 21: No One Gives a Shit About Your Amazing Vacation

   Chapter 22: Roadtripping With the Homies

   Chapter 23: Navigating Without Nav

   Chapter 24: Pit Stops, Bald-Faced Trespassing and Escaping the Bubble

Part III: Adventure as Pilgrimage

   Chapter 25: Concrete Destinies

   Chapter 26: City of Gold

   Chapter 27: The Impossible

   Chapter 28: Dad’s Ditches

   Chapter 29: Rhythm of the Road

   Chapter 30: Confirming the Impossible

Fourteen Theses

Works Cited / Recommended Reading / Recommended Viewing


Appendix: What I Pack and Why I Pack It

   List 1: Loaded Pockets

   List 2: Living on the Trail

   List 3: Car-Camping Like a Boss

   List 4: The Ultimate Roadtripmobile?

   Packing Sheets