I have not blogged all summer, despite all of my good ideas, thoughts and intentions, and here I am today about to go all Forest Gump on you and offer nothing but musings about my magic shoes. I am in the midst of a week of crazy coincidence and heavy heartedness over things as far away as Syria and as close to home as friends and family who are going through trials, and while all of this is on my mind and I certainly have strong opinions on the subject matter, I am finding a happy place and doing a shameless product plug for a pair of shoes. My friends seem to like to hear my opinion on all sorts of things, so like the advice that Forest's mother gave to him, I may do you some good by telling you about a pair of shoes that you cannot wear out. I've tried.
It was maybe 3 years ago that I was in the JCPenney Outlet Store in Decatur, Alabama that I came across what to others might be viewed as the ugliest pair of sandals on the planet, but since I am a diehard Birkenstoker, to me they were beautiful, AND were my size. I paid $14.99 for them. It was not until recently, when I thought about replacing them that I found they retail at right around $80, although I am not surprised. These sandals were magic from the moment I put them on. For those of you who have never seen me in the flesh, I am almost 6 feet tall and wear a size 38DD bra...my feet have to be quite sturdy, or I would simply fall forward. I have big and wide feet and comfort to me is the most thrilling thing of which I can think! I forget where I actually wore my Eastland sandals for the first time, but I have not wanted to take them off since that day. They have been on every major excursion I have undertaken in the past 3 years. They have been hiking in the Sahara desert and worn into the Mediterranean Sea. They have been to WalMart, West Virginia, Texas. They can be soaked with water while working out in the yard and polished to go out to the coffee shop. There is not a crack in the leather or a stitch missing.
So, am I drunk or just crazy for blogging about a pair of sandals? Neither. I am just sharing something that makes me happy; to find a little reliability in a world of slipping sand. Take a minute and think about your old faithful and see if it doesn't give you a spiritual lift to remember something you can count on. Go ahead, give it a try.
