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Hi! “been away so long I hardly knew the place, gee it’s good to be back home” The Beatles once sang. My sentiments exactly! Thought I would pop in and say hello with some pics of me in my black Jessica Simpson 4 inch heels, and also some of my open toe open back platforms.

They’re great boots

That is so cool!

Cool! I love wearing them, and have gotten several compliments...

Thought of you today when I was walking into town and came upon a guy wearing black hunter boots!

It’s even more downhome friendly among boaters - the kind of neighbourliness that went out of fashion in most places back in the Fifties. It’s a kind of funky offbeat community that drifts around the canal network, open and friendly. Last year for example, I was moored in a secluded spot with a couple of other boats nearby. A woman who ran a cafe boat decided to take a few days off and came up through a couple of locks to this quiet spot and was moored next to me. Next morning I hear a knocking on the swan hatch, when I open up I see her standing in the towpath - she wants to know if I’d like an espresso. She’s just fired up her generator to make herself one and thought her neighbours might like one as well. The couple in the boat moored behind me used to run a pub. They piped up and asked if anybody wanted poached eggs, avocado and toast. I brought out my well stocked fruit bowl. Next thing you know we’re all having this glorious breakfast on the towpath. We all still keep in touch too. This sort of thing is not at all unusual among us water gypsies

A long hoodie is a great accessory with leggings for sure.... I should have recommended this to the fellow I responded to So true. For sure, "showing off" like this can detract from the total look of the outfit.

That is downright Iowan of you!

I believe the phrase was originally written by Justice Potter Stewart in one of the several important First Amendment cases ruled on by the Supreme Court in the 1960s. I can't remember the name of the case, but 30 years later, I still remember that phrase, "I know it when I see it." I would prefer not to see the moose knuckle, and I don't really think it's a very good look. Of course the problem with Stewart's little catchphrase it that it leaves so much up to the discretion of the beholder, and is not really an objective standard. If memory serves, this was actually addressed at some point in a later case.

It is a tough question for sure. As the Judge in the Larry Flint trial once said, “I cannot define what art is, but I surely know the difference between pornography and art when I see it”. While different, the idea is the same here for me. I cannot define what is inappropriate, but I know it when I see it. I fully understand freedoms and have always said, “Freedom is indeed scary”, but kids… kids is where I draw the line. They should not be subjected to seeing anything inappropriate; they already see that enough without my sense of “freedom” adding to it. I thought your reply was spot on. I love the human figure too as I LOVE art, and in fact as I type this have a large lithograph of John Collier's Lady Godiva above my desk, but there are places to appreciate art... and the human form, and places that should be sanctuary from seeing that. Just because YOU CAN do something, does not mean YOU ALWAYS SHOULD!

A long hoodie can mitigates the moose knuckle. And the pouch is great for holding things (wallet/cell/keys) because most leggings don't have pockets. I have many different types of leggings depending on the event and weather.

Someone ripped me a new one on reddit for my reply to a guy's question about wearing his leggings in public for the first time. I responded that he might consider wearing a pair of gym/cycling shorts over the leggings in an effort to help get over feeling self concious about it. I also mentioned that leggings on a guy can be quite revealing, perhaps not appropriate for all occasions or audiences. Someone wrote back saying my advice was the worst ever, and that the world should "get over" the fear of seeing the human form because it is completely natural.... Well, I didn't really respond back but disagree for sure. Like I say, leggings can be pretty darn revealing on guys, no secrets for sure. The rest of the world might not be interested in knowing quite that much about this man's physique and endowment. Just the same way I would prefer not to watch a woman breast feed, especially when she refuses to cover up. I'm not really interested in accidentally walking into a stall while someone is relieving themselves. All of these are natural acts indeed, but not ones most of us are interested in witnessing. I guess sometimes we/guys need to consider the audience. Leggings at the gym, great. Leggings while jogging or biking, great again. But perhaps leggings might not be the best choice for going to the food store, or other places with alot of kids, family type restaurants, etc. Needless to say, I think guys can look great in leggings, but not all of us can "pull off the look successfully".

Leggings for winter cycling, and wearing under trousers during winters along the canal

I think a lot of women who wear them, wear them as we do, for the aesthetic. There were always those who wore them because they liked them, enjoyed wearing them, for the emotional and physical lift - and not merely because heels were expected in certain environments. They will continue to wear them, long after dress codes became more relaxed. The same with neckties. There are those who will always wear a tie. The writer Tom Wolfe was one. I remember reading some quote by him that it would be unthinkable not to be wearing a tie. Stephen Fry is another. He wrote quite an entertaining book about his love of ties starting from when he was a very young boy. We are more conscious of wearing heels because we are not supposed to be wearing them in the first place according to the dictates of society, but take that away, and our view of heels is probably not that dissimilar to those of female high heel aficionados.

more commonly called "moose knuckle" Leggings all the time outside of work, longer shirts, dress shirts, jacket or coat and sweatshirts. always look appropriate and aware

On the towpaths it is very normal not only to say hi but often to engage in conversation- even with total strangers

That brings back up a very interesting subject once again. Why do women still wear high heels? I think increasingly, it's all an illusion of what used to be fashionable in years past. It is certainly not required anymore, but even young girls hold on to this image of a high heeled life. It's just that very few of us are actually willing to do what it takes to actually live it. I went to school with a girl who wore heels regularly. In fact, she was notable for wearing higher heels than practically everybody else. She, unlike me, got a job right out of college in the financial sector, and she's still there to this day, not far from retirement. She recounted at some point that in her first years at the job, she was expected to show up every day in a skirt and heels and hosiery. That's how she dressed a couple of times a week in high school by choice, so I'm thinking, "What's wrong with that?" As it turns out, as work dress codes have relaxed, she gladly ditched all of that stuff, and now brags about how she hasn't worn heels in years. This tells me that there is simply a fundamental difference between how we view high heels and how the general populace view them.

Yeah, that's one of the major reasons I never wear leggings as a substitute for pants. They're always in conjunction with something, usually other pants for the wintertime. In the same vein, I have discovered a pitfall of wearing shorts the length that I like, and that is when you sit down, you have to pay particular attention to where the plumbing goes.

I've never actually been to the British Isles, but from what I hear, I'm very surprised. Where I live, if two people pass on the street (and it's not a crowded place), it's almost rude not to acknowledge each other somehow, but I understand that people from other parts of the world think this is very strange, if not downright creepy.

Over here it’s mainly in the north that you see heels - Manchester, Leeds, York - not so much in London. I’m sure there is some demographic significance but I don’t know just what it might ge

For us flying is a little different because we got private planes. Because of clients my wife's family carts around for real estate sales, they keep the planes very clean, but they are also very small planes. Since we are not "out in public" and usually flying into camp via the float plane, we seldom are dressed up. And... as sad a reality as it is, small planes are known for not always flying so we like to be ready for a swim or night stay in the forest after a plane crash. A lot easier to do that in jeans and a t-shirt then be dressed up nicely. But as much as I like high heels and pantyhose on a lady, I am conflicted with the dress requirements of flight attendant's. I can see where if they make it a career their compression stockings (they don't wear average pantyhose they wear compression tights) helps in the compression/decompression of take offs and landing for their better blood circulation, but in a crash a few flight attendant's have suffered severe burns because their nylons melted to their legs. It would seem to me that due to the unlikely event of a crash for a commercial plane, maybe compression tights would be better? Thoughts?

Nice to hear! It seems it takes about a year for fashion to arrive from Europe to where I live in the United States. I remember being over in Ireland in 2008 for the first time, and a lover of the miniskirt, I saw a woman wearing and ultra-miniskirt but with leggings worn under it to tame the audacity of it. It just caught my attention, but a year later I noticed the same "new look" over where I live. Whether you love or hated the fashion trend, it just verified what I saw over the years, a year delay in fashion trends.

We have always called them sneakers here, but I live in a strange locale where we are different even from the rest of the United States. We got some strange terms for things I consider are everyday words and others have no concept of what I am talking about. As a writer I have to be wary of that because not all readers will be from around here. But oddly my wardrobe is changing, and I am not sure why. I used to NEVER wear sneakers, but after discovering Sketchers Step-in's which are sneakers you do not need to tie. You literally just slip them on. I even went out and got composite toe step in work shoes by sketchers. I have not worn boots in over two years and before that I LIVED in them. But its beyond changing boots to sneakers. For 50 years I wore crew socks. Loved crew socks. Only wore crew socks and recently discovered ankle socks and now only wear them. Who know, if I keep sticking around you guys, you will convince me to wear high heels! 🙂 (Said all in good fun)

This pretty much describes me too. I wear leggings a lot and while I have tried to buy better ones, the ones I like the most, and fit best for me are the $5 kind found at thrift stores. I have worn them for so many years that I don't even pay attention to them anymore. I don't wear them in public except for maybe mowing the lawn or working in my woodworking shop. In all the years I have been doing this I have only had issues twice. Once was when I was sitting on the couch and the wife took a picture of a woodworking coffee table I had made. I was out of the picture... I thought... but the reflection in a mirror showed me which my mother-in-law just said, "Mr. Crushed Vamp looks very relaxed"... The other issue has been... well... women in leggings SOMETIMES get Camel Toe, but being tight pants and male, let's just say sometimes I show "Missile Toe"! 🙂