Shoe-Shoe Baby

This Week: Have your footwear choices changed as your life, or lifestyle, has changed?

In summer I wore flip-flops, but I don’t think that I ever got in a car wearing them. I did walk up the hill past four or five  other houses to go to the little strip mall that was there. I gave up on flip-flops as I got to be a teen; I found them too uncomfortable. I have no idea how people wear them all the time nowadays, but I digress.

This was my idea.

When I was a kid and we moved from an apartment to a house, I sometimes went barefoot. Never off of our little yard, mind you, but even then, it was fraught with danger; (I stopped on more than one bee in the clover.)

In school I generally wore sneakers or loafers.

As a teen I had nice cut-away flats, as special as I could find them. I had not realized that I had out-grown one really special pair that I had not worn for a while. I pulled them out  to go walking around Washington, DC to see the museums with a young man when I was just shy of 17.

I was in agony for hours.

When I got home and peeled the shoes of, my feet swelled and my big toenails turned black. I swore that I would never, ever, under any circumstances wear uncomfortable shoes again.

Over the years I search high and low for nice-looking, comfortable, affordable shoes.
As you can imagine, I had shopped a lot. (I have no business being away from malls!)

My family situation changed so much that I didn’t get to all the fancy dances, so high heels did not become part of my life. In fact, when I was in my 20s, I found a wonderful pair of wide-strappy Italian leather, with 2-inch heels. I showed them to my mother who said, “Why such high heels?” (Mind you, this was a woman who wore 3-inch heels to do housework and bought my sister 4-5 inch heels for all of her dances.)

I LOVED those shoes. I could run in them, (really). I kept them for many years until finally, the leather gave out.

Those were the only real heels I owned. I had some dressy shoes with a bit of a heel, but all of those are gone. My feet, knees and back make even a short, chunky heel treacherous.

My feet used to get hot, and so I wore strappy sandally things all the time, including black ones in the Winter, when it was dry. A wealthy, older  woman friend tried to ‘groom’ me when I was younger to not wear them; she was of Old Money and thought they were gauche, but I declined her advice. I wore them until I became diabetic some years ago and decided that I needed to be careful with my feet, especially when out in the world.

More than likely, I now opt for the nicest flats and loafers that I can find. It isn’t easy, especially since moving here, where there is limited shopping. I found that Cobbies fit the bill for most of my needs and I could get them at Kmart. Well, you know what happened there. ThomMcAn was always a go-to store when I lived in Virginia, and Kmart carried those, too. I loaded up on some shoes before they closed, but others need replacing. The Earth Shoe  ‘Mary Janes’ that I bought here are wearing out, but they are comfortable. Walmart had a nice ballerina shoe that was very comfortable to me but they cheapened them down some years ago. The last of the ones that I stocked up on are wearing out,(they never were made to last.)

I did not think that I could bear to be a little old lady in sneakers, but when my pair of Dr.Scholl’s mesh Mary Janes started looking less than great, I got hysterical. They stopped making them. They were breathable and washable; I wore them all Spring, Summer and Fall when it was dry.

Last year I found a sale on Sketchers. I had looked at them before, but 1) they were pricey, 2) they never had my size when there was a sale and 3) they were gaudy.

(The only thing worse than being a little old white-haired grandma in sneakers to me was being one with shoes that look like a second grader without taste would want to wear.)

Yet, like so many other things that I cannot bring myself to do or wear, it does not bother me to see others enjoying life in sneakers, even purple and shiny pink ones.

I almost never wear boots. I have never worn ‘fashion’ boots. They are not for me.

If it makes someone comfortable and happy to wear pink and purple-flecked sneakers, or knee boots, I am all for it. I just don’t feel comfortable and confident in them. Confidence, (or lack thereof), shows, as does comfort, and I will not be uncomfortable. Life is too hard as it is without looking for more pain.

Oh, I do actually have sneakers. I wore them when I could walk on park pathways while grandkids had soccer practice, etc. I can’t do that now. One pair is by my treadmill. I have worn them, but they have to be reasonably conservative-looking and…well, except for when I may not get out of the car and to Walmart, I don’t go out and about in them.

Besides, I tend to trip on the shoelaces.

However, the two that I found left in my size were a gray, denim-look semi-sneaker and a brown/beige walking shoe, and my feet are in Heaven. 

I put them away for the Winter, because even though they are also washable (!!!), I can wear them without socks and feel cooler in the Summer,and I don’t know if I will find anything like them again.

It’s time to pull them out.

Otherwise, you will almost always find me at home in Isotoner ballet slippers.

I love those things!

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