Speaking of shoes…
Two weeks ago the damage to my Red Wings™ finally got to the point where the soles started to delaminate, and I can see where the damage will spread soon, and extensively. Great! I’ve had those shoes for the past ten years or so, and hated them most of the time. I got them – because I needed them – at a time when I couldn’t afford really good work boots. They never fit as well as I would have liked; they weren’t insulated; the soles never felt “right”, and to top it off, they didn’t have steel toes, so I couldn’t wear them on a lot of our current jobsites where our rules have changed to require steel-toed boots. So I was stuck… until two weeks ago. (Because I can’t justify new boots while the old ones have any life left, even if I hate em. I’m from New England, where the motto is “Use it up; wear it out. Make it do, or do without.”)
So last week I got to splurge and get my own Timberland Endurance Pro™ boots. Had I known these boots existed, I would have thrown my Red Wings into a fire years ago and just said “Oops!” These things are well padded (and insulated), have steel toes (with rubber caps, too, for external protection of the boot itself), anti-fatigue soles. They are ugly as sin, except for their beautiful utility and comfort. What a dream to wear! I was so happy to have the bitter cold weather and snow this week as an excuse to wear them… into the office.
Hell yes, buy the shoes you want. If they’re good enough you can outrun the bandits or, failing that, kick them in the balls. And if they’re not “that kind of shoe”, then perhaps you’ll look so good that you’ll charm the bandits.
The bandits you really need to watch for are the ones who promise to “watch over you for your own good”. So few on Fluther get that, though. One day you will, though, “good and hard”, as Mencken said.