Too many shoes!

I don't care what the calendar says, I'm declaring this the perfect Autumn day morning.  Overnight it dipped into the upper 50's, and just now I checked and it was only up to 75.  It will be borderline summer again by 5 PM (88 degrees forecast), but, hey, it beats 104!

Oh, the shoes....I was so overwhelmed by the great weather I strapped on my running (OK, who are we kidding....walking) shoes and checked out the neighborhood.  Everybody must either be at church or sleeping in because there wasn't a sound except for the birdies out there this morning.  That's unusual considering we live in a fairly dense urban setting.

As I was settling in to my walking I got to thinking how comfortable these shoes are.  Then I began mentally comparing them to the other shoes in my closet and I realized, dang.....I have a LOT of shoes! Way more than a man is supposed to.  I've seen pictures of celebreties' shoe collections, but those are always women's shoes.  How many pairs of shoes do most men have?

My guess would be a couple of pairs of dress shoes (black and brown), maybe a couple of pairs of sneakers, a pair or two of casual weekend shoes (like Sperry's), and maybe some old worn out ones to mow the yard in.

Not me.  (I'm thinking I might need to go to one of those meetings where you confess what a dork you are for collecting shoes.)  I have dress shoes (to go with my wedding / funeral suit), two pair of sneakers, too many casual weekend shoes to count (my current faves are my Patagonia slip-ons), and two pair of low-top outdoor shoes and a new pair of high-top hiking boots (which I've only worn once because it's too darn HOT here!).  I wear some old Crocs to take the dog for a walk around the block, and even some nicer Crocs that look like Sperry Top Siders, but have that comfy, cushy sole.

I had some really nice ostritch cowboy boots at one time, but couldn't wear them because they were 1. hot, 2.  heavy, and 3. uncomfortable.  I'm convinced guys that wear cowboy boots are just going for the look, because the new wears off fast, like as soon as you leave the store.  I sold 'em in a garage sale for a few bucks, and felt guilty for taking the guys money.  Poor sap.  They're probably like that one fruit cake that keeps getting passed on from one person to another, over and over. Wonder how many garage sales those boots have been through after mine?

OK....enough writing.  Time to go for some coffee and the Sunday newspaper.  Have fun, y'all.  ;)

S

Pretense

In the mail yesterday I received my yearly REI Co-op dividend, so I went and bought a new pair of super-light casual summer shoes.

I bought the ones I did for two reasons:  They're comfortable, and they're Patagonia brand.


Patagonia is a cool company, the kind of company I want to reward with my business. As a young man Yvon Chouinard lived to surf and rock climb.  He would work just long enough to make a few bucks, then he and some friends would take off on some pretty grand poor-man's expeditions, such as a month-long drive in a clapped-put old van to climb in the Patagonia region of Argentina and Chile.  He eventually realized he could make better climbing pitons than he could buy, so he bought some blacksmith's equipment and did just that.  Other climbers saw how good his stuff was and wanted some too.  Later he realized his pitons were damaging the rock faces he so loved, so he stopped making them (giving up 3/4 of his business) and instead perfected hexagonal chocks that would do no harm to the environment.  From there his business grew and grew to become the worldwide company it is today.


Here's the cool part:  I've seen Yvon on several TV outdoor documentaries and he seems to be totally without pretense.  He looks like the kind of guy who would sit next to you on a lunch counter stool and you'd have no idea he was anyone "special".  He could have sold his company years ago and made (even more) mega-millions of $$$, but decided he wanted to keep his company private and on the high ground, doing good for his employees (they say it's a GREAT place to work) and the environment by giving back for all he's been given.  I'm not saying this because I'm a big tree-hugger (I'm not really), but because I respect a man for doing what he believes in and not prostituting himself for a buck.  He's now in his 70's and still doing outdoor things many people half his age can't.


Like most everybody I've often daydreamed about winning the lottery.  Even with all that money I don't think I'd change too much.  I'd still wear my jeans or shorts and t-shirts, live in a modest apartment/home, etc. I would probably travel more, but that's all I can think of I'd like to do that I can't do now.  Heck, I even like my 5-year old car.


I don't like pretense.  If you have to tell me how cool you are, you're not that cool.  I doubt Yvon gives a shit what anyone thinks of him.  My kinda guy!


S

The glitch in my "Buy American" plan

I don't buy many things sight unseen.  I do buy a lot of things online, but I'll usually go to a store first, see / feel  the product, then go online to price-shop and buy.  (If it turns out my local retailer has a reasonably competative price, I'll just buy it there and be done with it.)  This is compounding the difficulty of my "Buy American" plan.  It doesn't do me much good to get a list of products made in America if I can't see / feel it at a retailer in my area.


Yesterday I went by REI Co-op, an outdoor products supplier.  I perused sleeping bags for K (I've had a good quality down one for years) and found that every single one they had was made in China.  Then I looked at vests they had on sale.  (I figured if everyone thought a vest was enough to keep them warm, maybe they knew something I didn't.  It just seems like half a coat to me.)  Again, none were made in America.  Their REI house brand, Patagonia, North Face, Marmot, Sierra Design....none made here.  A few were made in Vietnam, Bangladesh, or Indonesia, the rest from China.  The same with bicycles.  My one ray of hope was in kayaks.  I found one I like very much that was made in North Carolina.  It made my short list.  Actually it's a list of one.  It was a rather depressing trip.

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I have to work this afternoon and again next Sunday afternoon, but after that, the weekends are all mine.  Unfortunately, my weekdays will be all mine, too.  I haven't heard back yet from the doctor who I bid recently.  I do know they visited Friday with a banker I referred them to, so things are moving, just at a snails pace.  But after I get the current home I'm working on finished in a couple of weeks (photos forthcoming), and until I get a firm contract signed to start another, I'll be effectively unemployed.  It isn't as bad as it sounds as there will still be a nice income stream from the recently completed home.  Trouble is, I don't like to rock.  Or whittle.  :(

S