Friday, January 06, 2006 (repost)

My wide feet.

Okay everybody, here's another tidbit about me. I have wide feet. Furthermore, the problem is worsening as I get older. And I seem to be less-and-less tolerant of uncomfortable shoes.

So on my own time, this means shoes like Airwalks, Teva's and the like. At work, my shoe of choice for the last decade has been Clarks.

Clark is an English shoe company and my first pair in the 1990's were, in fact, made in England. They were ugly and felt like heaven on my feet from the moment I slipped them on. If used as my main shoes for work, they will last years before the rubber sole even shoes signs of wear.

Pair two purchased just before Y2K. Now made in Belgium. Okay, it's not England, but so what! They changed-up the outsole but otherwise it was basically the same shoe. Comfort level - the same. They lasted until this fall.

Pair three. Now made in China. This is for the same price, mind you. The leather looks like the same full-grain stuff. Sole is the same as the last pair. The welting? Is that the right word? Stitching along the side... seems to take up more room now. Hmm. Leaving less room for the part where my foot goes, it seems. Not good. I try the usual size at the shoe store. Too tight. I order a pair in that side in wide. Takes a month to get here. And the fit? Mmm? Not the same. Still a bit tight, but close.

This was November. Now FFWD to Xmas. Mom, bless her, gets me a pair of goofy clown-shoe looking things by Keen. They look like a caricature of Converse All-Stars. Black leather with black rubber toe cap. Bright white stitching. I LOVE THEM. The heels are narrow-ish and the front is kind of bulbous - and they feel great.

So a couple of you have gotten bitch emails from me today, moping about my attitude and my day. Was in a crappy mood this AM at work. Thought it might be due to sleep, or lack of. Or one or two other issues. But - even though the Keen's aren't exactly business ware, I've been using them exclusively since Xmas. Today I wore the Clarks. The tight Clarks. Hmm. Tight shoes = bad attitude.