When the ad popped up on my Facebook feed, I knew immediately that the Ol’ Tom Tech Stretch Turkey Pants would be the perfect addition to my spring hunting wardrobe.

According to the five-star customer review that accompanied the post, the pants are “light and breathable and the stretch fabric allows you to move easily…” and “…the panels in the seat and knees dry out quickly if they get wet from early morning dew.”

I needed no further convincing and, consequently, I also needed no more camo pants which means that, most likely, I’ll be wearing a pair at some point between now and the end of April. I mean, they dry quickly, and did I mention that the “pockets are well placed and sized”?

In his essay “A Scary Abundance of Water,” writer Barry Lopez writes that “We spend our lives trying to say what it is we want, sometimes in denial of all we have.” I have that quote inscribed in my writing journal, as I believe that it serves as a wonderful reminder of what is truly important.

There was a time in my life when I struggled with “things,” with the idea that acquiring that “next thing” would give me happiness and satisfaction. Fortunately, I eventually came to see that for just what it is–a shallow hope and a thirst that is never quenched.

However, I do belong to a couple of groups–turkey hunters and fly-fishers–that have tendencies toward being what could be deemed obsessive when it comes to their equipment.

I began to realize this more fully when I began preparing for the upcoming turkey season. As I have always been a proponent of the Boy Scout motto “Be Prepared,” I believe in having a back up for any necessary equipment.

For example, in my turkey vest, I have at least one camo facemask and I also carry in my truck or along with me on any overnight hunting trips a ditty bag, or as the British would say, a “kit” with at least a couple other face masks along with shotgun shells, calls, camo gloves, turkey calls, strikers, toilet paper, etc. If it is in my vest, it is in my kit.

Each spring, I pull out my well organized, labeled storage bins to make sure I have the necessary back-up equipment for both my vest and my kit. This past weekend while going through that process, it came to my attention that I may have a slight problem.

As it turns out, I have a lot of camo facemasks. I’m not comfortable revealing the exact number, but suffice it to say that I have more facemasks than a four-man tag team of lucha libre wrestlers.

The first word that came to mind when I actually did the count was “hoarder.” Fortunately, a quick Google search led me to a New York Times article by Randy O. Frost, a professor of psychology at Smith College, entitled “When Collecting Becomes Hoarding.”

According to Frost, “When Collecting is healthy, the display or storage of these things does not impede the use of active living areas of the home.” I’m in the clear here. When we remodeled the farmhouse, I actually incorporated a combo office/hunting storage room into our plans.

Frost goes on to state that, “When a collector expands acquisitions beyond well-defined collections and loses the ability to keep these possessions organized, it becomes a hoarding problem.” Again, let me state clearly that I have always prided myself on being well organized, a quality that dates back to my collections of Matchbox and Hot Wheels cars and baseball cards (I’m beginning to see a trend here).

Ultimately, reading Frost’s article reassured me that I’m ok. Yes, I have amassed quite a collection of turkey hunting clothing, turkey calls, turkey hunting literature, turkey guns, taxidermy and various and sundry other turkey hunting equipment and odds and ends (i.e., Wild Turkey Commemorative Bourbon decanters). However, I am reassured by the fact that my collection is well organized and in no way impedes our ability to walk through or live in our house.

Thankfully, I’m still in the “collector” category when it comes to my accumulation of all things turkey hunting, and since I’m still a relative newcomer to fly-fishing, my cache is small. The latter reality is bolstered by the fact that I used most of my new equipment to outfit our son when he moved to Wyoming at the end of last summer.

It has been fun seeing Dan put the gear to good use, and thinking about that just now while sitting in my office, I realize that by giving him the gear I have cleared out a little space for another turkey call or two and perhaps a new pair of quick-drying, breathable camo pants with perfectly placed pockets.

Until next time, here’s to seeing you well outfitted and thankful for what you have, and here’s to seeing you out there in our great outdoors.

Email outdoors columnist Brad Dye at braddye@comcast.net.