No Cruel Shoes

It's a new-shoes kinda day.  I think my choice yesterday at Big R is gonna turn out okay.  

The poor clerk earned her money yesterday after I announced to her that I had big feet and needed a new pair of Merrell's.

After all, I'd worn my last pair, purchased up at Far North Outfitters two years ago had done me well.  Most comfortable walking shoes I'd ever owned.

Part of that could be that I've finally learned to put comfort over pride.  It's not been easy living a lifetime with big feet.  I always look at the other shoes in the room and pray that nobody's looking back at mine.  

Cuz they're big and there's hardly anything stylish them. 

For years, I squashed my big feet into shoes too small----and suffered.  As a youngster, I had no choice cuz the feet were growing every day, it seemed.  And, the one pair of shoes that had to do for months and maybe years (at least, that's the way it seemed to me) had to last.

I wish I had a digital camera back in those days to record just how bad my shoes looked before I got to go to Del's or Penneys or the Bootery to get a new pair. 

They were usually missing heels; inside the heel portion nails that no longer had a lower heel to hold them created pointy humps that required wads of toilet paper as cushions to save me from total torture.  

The sides up by the toes usually had holes where toes had burst out after just so long of being crammed inside that shoe like sardines. 

Often the from soles separated from the top of the shoe.  People heard me coming as those soles slapped the floors.

Shoes were seldom a plus in my wardrobe history, but as I've gotten older and remained away from general audiences who keep track of one's dorky fashion quirks, I've resorted to paying a little more and even more gradually allowed myself to wear shoes that actually fit my big feet.

It takes time, though, to figure out the best fit, and my daughter-in-law Debbie has benefitted from my slow shoe-size learning curve.  

I know she owns at least one pair, maybe two rather nice pairs of walking shoes that seemed okay in the shoe store but soon caused my feet to scream out in protest. 

So, yesterday, besides telling the clerk that I had big feet and needed new Merrill's, I informed her that I did not want my daughter-in-law to add to her shoe collection.

So, the Merrell's came out----not the high tops like the clerk kept suggesting.  The first pair I tried felt good, but I've learned that if the toes touch, plan on ouch. 

She again suggested high tops.

No, I don't want high tops, I said.

She brought out some bigger Merrell's, which felt like I might walk out of them.  That's not good.

Then, I asked if she could recommend another brand.  She thought for a minute, then told me she has a whole selection of Keens. 

"I have square feet," she said, and they fit me perfectly. 

"Let's try them," I said, never having cued in to Keens. 

Well, we finally arrived at a pair of Keens, bigger size but a seemingly good fit. 

"They make your feet look smaller too," the clerk said. 

"Sold," I said, thinking anything that made my feet look smaller would be great.  Maybe I could regain a little of that pride. 

So, I brought them home and showed them to Bill, who's always been quite "keen" on the best brands and all the specific features of any outdoor gear. 

He looked at the box, and said, "If you buy Keens, just make sure they weren't made in Italy cuz Italians have those little feet."

I gulped, wondering out loud if my Keens came from Italy.  

"No, they didn't," he said, having studied the fine print.  "They're from China."  

What a relief, I thought, then quietly wondered if maybe that was all a myth where I'd heard all my life about tiny Chinese feet.

Whatever country my new shoes have come from, I don't care.  I wore them on my morning walk, and my feet are not complaining one bit. 

So, no cruel shoes, and I don't have to give them to Debbie.  Plus, my feet look smaller. Can't beat a deal like that. 

Happy Friday!  Also, remember to vote for Nikki's Super Bowl commercial hopes for Out of Step:  https://www.smallbusinessbiggame.com/WA/The-Out-of-Step-Tool/384737