Do we ever learn? No we don't, or at least I don't. I've lost so many caps, Helly Hansen, Sealskinz, Lowe Alpine (at least 3 of them) and numerous cheapo ones (they're the ones I usually get now.)
I think my most memorable fox pah was on a camping trip to Keswick and based at the farm at Castlerigg. I met my oppo at Kendal and then we got the bus up to Keswick. Apart from talking about Everton, we spent a load of the journey congratulating ourselves at the way we had pared down the weight of our rucksacks and rabbited for yonks about the dafy amount of gear we took in the past.
Got up to the camp site and pitched next to a young woman who had brought a smashing big standu in tent, had a barbeque, camp chairs and two massive dogs. We were preening ourselves when she asked how did we manage to camp with so little gear. Told he we'd been camping for donkey's years and had now got it off to a fine art.
When I'd finished bragging, I thought I'd show her how quick the tent would go up....except there wasn't a tent to put up! I'd left it in the house and afetr everyone had stopped lauching, I had to tramp down to Keswick and, courtesy of a Mountain Warehouse sale, paid £18 for a sort of festival tent and when I got back and put the thing up, I was faced with a week end staying in a reasonable tent but covered in a design of butterflies all over the thing!
No, never learn!