Cinderfella

I have a shoe problem. Not exaggerating, sixty to seventy pairs adorn my closet which is not really a closet anymore as opposed to a giant shoe box. Sandals, boots, clogs, slip ons, loafers, sneakers, lace-ups I have them all. I enjoy basic black and definitely red.

"Mother Cressley always said, 'the only two people in the world allowed to wear
red shoes are school children and streetwalkers'." -Carson Cressley, Queer Eye
For The Straight Guy

I have them in all colors of the rainbow and for all occasions under the rainbow. I am the Cinderfella sweeping the hearth in hopes to put on my special slippers to go to The Ball with the Prince. What I do for shoes is beyond me. But I just have to.

I also have shoes for active living. Hiking boots, flippers and running shoes. As of late my running had been halted by my bunions. Yep dear readers, I'm old. Dancing, Tae Kwon Do, Food Service and Running have given me a malformed foot prone to generating extreme pain as of late. I've grown in to this new footable condition. I play it easy and wear insoles in my special shoes. Then next logical step would be a helmet in the evening when I sleep. I'm falling apart at forty. What to do in the face of adversity? Dance.

I have found a new obsession and am telling anyone who'll listen or read about the Vibram Five Fingers. I am completely hooked on the little bastards and am wearing them proudly though I look like a damn fool. My shoe obsession made me take notice as I saw them on the feet of Mick's roommate. "What in the Sam Hill are those gloves on your foot???" I queried with a fervor that betrayed my normal cool. He was afraid as I dove for his foot to hoist it up to further exploration. He was as big a proponent as I am now. He also had bad feet that removed him from his running regimen. With this fabulous footwear he was back on the trail and even the road. The comfort and support are unchallenged. The selling point was him telling me that it best replicated running barefoot and the merits involved there. I was hooked. I had his leg in the air and wasn't ready to part from viewing the magic of the slippers. I was Margaret Hamilton for a moment, determined to get them, my pretties.

I have them. And I can't stop telling any active person to get a pair. They have me back on the road enjoying running which hasn't happened since the marathon four years ago. Training for that little epic left me with little to no love for the exercise and just became something I had to do to keep my body in shape. Now I'm back. From outer space. I just Five Fingered in to find that look upon your face. Get a pair. Or at least take a look at the website, they are the damndest thing I've ever had on my feet and that's saying something. Peace.