Canada Goose time

It's been bitter cold for about a week now, and that means it's Canada Goose time. Canada Goose is the brand of parka that I wear. I have a Banff Parka and it's warm enough that the weather really has to warrant getting it out. In mild temperatures, the coat is simply too comfy-warm. But I've determined that from about -8C or below (with or without the windchill factored in), it's the only thing that keeps me warm.

I love my jacket, but I have one core criticism: the hood attachment and closure is wonky. The coat is sort of a convertible - you can take the hood on or off, and even take the fur trim on the hood on and off. When on, the hood closes in the front of the jacket over the collar with two small snaps. This is the part that really doesn't work very well. When you have a scarf on, and then you add the collar of the jacket that closes under the hood, it gets pretty thick around the neck, and those two little snaps just don't hold everything together very well. I think I'm going to take my jacket to a tailor and have them replace the snaps with two medium sized buttons and eyelets like the closures on the rest of the coat. That should fix it.

The only other thing I wish the jacket had was a wire armature in the hood. Some of their models have this feature, but I think it should be standard. Being able to mold the hood to the weather is really a plus when you've got 40-50km winds and snow hitting you.

Now in the winter months in Toronto you've got two issues to deal with: bitter cold outside and too warm inside. Christmas shopping can be a bear as you walk to a shop in the cold, go in and sweat, go out and freeze, in and sweat, over and over. The alternative is to constantly be putting on and taking off your outer gear, which is a pain in the you-know-what, but sometimes the only remedy.

I love the Canadian winter, and am grateful I can be out in it safely. Thanks to my Love, I have the parka to handle it.