My sleeping bag is my core survival item, # 1 on my essentials, don't leave home without it. # 2 is my teddy bear and #3 my knife.The purpose of any item; sleeping bag, cookset etc is not to be ultralight or compress to the size of an aspirin bottle but to keep you warm or fed. I have on two occasions been injured or ill with sudden influenza that left me just able to crawl into my bag and assume the dead maggot fetal position. One of my favourite quotes from a New Zealand kayaking club is ( to paraphrase) " Assemble the very best gear you can. But never make the decision to start an adventure based on having that kit." Yes, S/S is heavy. Has anyone tried using aluminum or Titanium as an expedient digging tool? The ESBIT will boil water. You just have to have an efficient container, a windscreen and lower your expectations to a cup of tea or soup. You are not going to heat a jacuzzi with one. But if your curled up in your bag with the flu, It's just right for a cup of chicken noodle soup before sleeping 8 hours and waking up to your group's calls and a very lethargic rattlesnake curled next to you. And no, I didn't kill the buzzworm and cook it in my ESBIT.Killing somebody you slept with is bad form, except in Hollywood.