Advice on roughing it from a softie

Ok so every great adventurer has tricks they pick up over time spent in the bush, on the road, on the trail, in the field... ect... well... I cant say that I am any different. After a few years in the Army and several on my own adventures there are a few things that I have picked up and modified into my adventuring routine to make life easier, and because I can be a softie, a bit more comfortable. Whether you are going hiking in the Florida plains, bicycle touring across the country, camping in the field on an archeological dig, or just going for an over nighter with the family, these are things I have found that have worked for me.

Mat advice... This picture is actually a pair of Thermarest Ridgerests stuffed into a pillow case.
The problem I had with buying the blow-up mattresses is that most of them cost nearly 5 times that of the closed cell mattresses... and the ones I could afford were twice the weight. Now the Ridgerests are a bit bulky but 70$ is better spent elsewhere. Well one way to minimize the size of the ridge rest is to cut it down, you simply cannot do this with any other mattress, and all you really need is enough to cover the width of your shoulders and the length from under your head to your tail bone. Incidentally this works out to be the exact width and almost the same length as a standard pillow case. On a hot night in the Florida plain when a sleeping bag is out of the question and the sweat is making your body stick to your mattress a cool silk or polyesther pillow case is a nice place to lay whether a closed cell or blow up mattress is used.
Another good reason to cut this mattress down is to save a bit of weight... at 9oz the small Ridgerest is already nearly the lightest of Thermarest's offerings... cutting this matt down proved to cut about 25% of its weight to less than 7oz. Less than any other matt on the market for a small fraction of the price, and though the bulk is still there, it is reduced enough to fit into my pack for a summer load(yes both of them). I use 2 matts because I am a wuss and need the extra cushion, but this is still less than 14oz, which is still less weight than many other more expensive matts on the market.
A couple more things about this matt is one; that it is very sturdy and does not get cut like other matts do on rocks, sticks, thorns, roots, etc... thus not requiring field maintenance or home maintenance for that matter. And second, because of this durability I have used them as camp chairs on logs or even on the ground for added comfort, because once again, I am a wuss.

Pillow Advice... Now some purists scoff at the use of a camp pillow in the field... I cannot fathom how on Buddha's green Earth how anyone could possibly go without this loving ball of soft, fluffy down and nylon. Now I have tried the rolled clothing method, the stuff sack method, and even the soft sided stuff sack method... but nothing was comfortable enough for me to get any amount of what I could call sleep on a first night in the woods, on the ground, on a hard and possibly tilted(and usually the wrong way) ground. I use a camp pillow, and I DO NOT regret it, it is worth every bit of its weight and I would bring it before any other piece of sleepy time equipment.
You may also notice that my pillow seems slightly modified... well after severl nights on this guy it has lost a little bit of loft and I have had to use it in tandem with the stuff sack full of clothes so it would hold my head in the right position... well this stitch job kinda serves both purposes in one. By folding the pillow in half i double up the loft and effectively raise my head to a comfortable position, by leaving the opening in the middle I can also stuff a couple things in there, a t-shirt or my pant legs, to improve that loft even more so.
Camera Advice... Now this advice can probably be found in photographer's and journalist's blogs and for good reason. My camera is attached to my backpack by means of backpack straps... These are made by Op Tech USA but other brands are out there. These pack straps take the weight of the camera and distribute it into the backpack straps, instead of on your neck. This also keeps the extra heat of the strap off of your neck as well, which is nice in Florida... anytime of the year.
Clothing advice... Now here in Florida especially the tendency is to wear shorts in the summer... and I couldnt agree more. BUT... I wear the convertible pants that zip off into shorts... two reasons: mosquitoes and mosquitos. As the sun starts to hang low in the sky the stagnant pools of Florida's swamps (and marshes, and swimming pools, and puddles etc...) become a mess of swarming mosquitoes ready to search for your bare ankles and annoy the BLOODY HELL out of you. I dont care how much repellant you use for some reason they always get your ankles and the itch makes it hard to sleep.
When it starts to get late just zip the legs back on (which weigh next to nothing) and tuck the bottoms into your socks. This keeps both mosquitos and other nasty critters out of your pants. They weigh very little so the added comfort is well worth it and if a night should turn cold they are an added layer of warmth as well. You can probobly pick up a pair at REI for around the price of a pair of jeans.
Other tidbits... bring a book, not 3; Leave the Peterson's guide at home, and leave the Edible Wild Plants book at home(trust me if you cant ID it by sight anyway, you probably shouldn't risk it, ask the McCandles Family).
Wool or synthetic over cotton, DUH.
Bring extra socks, and dry wet ones on sticks NEAR the fire at night. dont cook them.
Thin sock liners inside of thicker hiking socks keeps blisters down.
Moleskin... should always be in your first aid kit if the sock trick doesnt work.
Dont forget to restock said first aid kit... not having that itch relief in the morning after you forgot to zip the tent less than an inch further is another annoyance you could avoid by not being stupid.
I've said it and Ill repeat it, bring a water filter, tabs are slow and dont suck water from puddles.
Bring enough dry food that you don't have to cook if you cant find enough water or have stove issues, which is an inevitable annoyance when you're looking forward to that beef stroganoff and only have trail mix to eat.
Do you really need that flask of tequila? the answer is a most certain and resounding yes.