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It is true! We will give you honest, real-life answers on here that you won't find on Instagram. It's strange that I have never actually seen a pair of Louboutins in the wild, but you'd think everybody was wearing them if you looked at my social media feeds. I am not sure that I've even seen 12 cm in real life either (non platform). There are only a handful of folks on Instagram who can actually walk well in 12 cm, and I can tell you I'm not one of them. Maybe I will be sometime in 2026. But yeah, I'm not going to blow smoke up anybody's nether regions about it either. It's not an easy skill!

Yeah, that sucks. Cracked heat exchanger, eh? Did it sound like a firecracker was going off in your basement/utility room every time the furnace kicked on? Adds a little too much excitement to life. I was offered a furlough, but I turned it down. Yes, contracts are signed for the next building, and prep work has already begun, but all it takes is for one engineer to change something, and then we're talking May or June before they need me, instead of March. I will not sit for a contractor anymore. I don't foresee not getting back to work before unemployment benefits run out, so the worst case scenario would be that I don't get to take the exact job I want, I would have to take what's available. I am seriously thinking about bundling up this morning and going for a walk, even though I don't want to. It is definitely weather where it would be problematic if the furnace went out, plus it's very windy. A famous saying in Iowa, and I imagine other parts of the Frozen North, "Ya know, this really wouldn't be all that bad if it weren't for the wind."

Yes, I understand. It surprises me too how a Pinterest Algorithm can set myself up to be bombarded with high heel wearing depictions. It is as if the whole world wears high heels and we have not seen that since the 1950’s and 1980’s. Yet we know the truth, but that is just the world today. No one actually does the things they claim they know so much about. Not to get into a tirade railing against “youtube influencers”… which I think is a misnomer because really, who the heck are they truly influencing? But I digress. It just seems so many people have an opinion on something that they never actually engage in… like having many depictions of how to choose comfortable high heels when no one is wearing them. I think it is why I come back to this site so often: most members on here are authentic. I appreciate and respect that.

Oh, how I can relate! I got a job when I first moved to the island, but I realized quickly taking it was a mistake. We were also doing a lot of work on two houses that were 2-1/2 hours apart from one another. Between the three, something had to give, so I gave up the job. It’s been nice getting so much done around the island house; I put in a new kitchen floor yesterday just as an example, but we are also hemorrhaging money. But now that I am ready to find another job now that things are stabilizing on the home front, I am finding there are slim-pickings out there. But, part of that is island life. Fishing is seasonal and so a lot of people are looking for winter jobs right now. Of course, they do not say they are going back to fishing in the spring to these employers, so it leaves me competing with a lot of other people even though I would be full-time. The other bad thing: our furnace cracked its heat exchanger which is a non-repairable part. That means we have not had heat for several days and have six days to go until they install a new one. That was $6000 which had to be paid up front. But it is also 13 degrees (-10 degrees C), so while not overly cold outside, it is still cold enough to want to have heat in the house. We got electric heaters going, but it’s not really working the best. I hasten to wish my life along, but Friday cannot come fast enough for me! That being said, I am sorry to hear you were laid-off from your job. Bitter-sweet by the sounds, but I hope the length of your work-departure is only as long as you want it to last. Best wishes to you @mlroseplant

I’m sorry to hear of this too - for both of you. I too am finding work hard to come by as the magazine world collapses around my ears. On the bright side I’ll have much more time to write that novel and to practice in my 12cm heels.

So sorry to hear this. Hoping you got some sort of financial/insurance benefits that might carry on for awhile. I was ready to leave the airlines as well, but didn't think this retirement thing through very well. I really need to find a little job to get me out of this house and keep my mind engaged. Would love to be able to wear my boots at work also.....

I totally get that last part. Go-go boots are just for retro parties and sold at costume shops. I would still love to have a pair, but the longing is based more on unrequited desire and fond memories than any practicality - what would I wear them with? I’m not really a mini skirt kind of guy

I have found the same to be true--as long as I'm on an even, hard surfaced walkpath, stilettos seem to be just as easy as any other heel. Better, in fact, sometimes, because you don't have the shoe directing you exactly how to come down on your foot--there is more flexibility and grace there. Add in a few cracks and bumps, however, and suddenly the disadvantages rear their ugly heads! In addition to stilettos, I have a fondness for wooden heeled sandals. This seems contradictory at first, but it's probably a result of the time I grew up in. Like @Shyheels and his go-go boots one decade earlier, by the time I came of age, all the cool girls wore wooden heeled sandals, and I wish I could have. Now all the cool girls are not so cool anymore, and I am the one wearing the wooden heeled sandals!

I can remember very clearly the first time I experienced this phenomenon, albeit on a slightly lower scale. At the time, I was wearing around 9-10 cm pretty much all the time, and got to where I felt pretty good at that height. Then one day I wore those 7 cm sandals that I just got rid of, and I thought, "Man, I can really zoom around in these things!" I almost started running everywhere, because I could. I never much advanced beyond the 9-10 cm range until recently, thanks to this challenge. I don't want to say I can zoom around in 10 cm, but they feel much less like heels than they used to.

I personally do not use earbuds when I am out and about. That is a foreign concept to me. Half the reason I walk early in the morning is to enjoy the relative silence of a small town. In addition, and I hate to think this is even a concern, but I wouldn't want someone to be able to sneak up on me unawares. As you know, I've had very few problems wearing heels in my locale, but not zero problems. I would like to take this opportunity to share the news that I will be laid off today. I thought this day would never come! I am very much ready to go, but I wasn't ever going to actually ask for a layoff. I have a list of things around the house that I've been putting off, and I hope I have the discipline to get them done reasonably quickly, now that I will have the time.

Oh, I was the Logger who saved Little Red Riding Hood from the Big Bad Wolf!

I am the opposite in that without a radio on, I am less distracted. On especially long rides, with the radio off I can think through the plot problems, characterization tidbits, and plot twists on my latest novels that I write. I have even noticed when I do lots of long car rides, my novels get done in even shorter times because I have had more time to think them through. Typically a 90,000 word novel takes me four months to write, but with a lot of long car rides, I can finish one in three months instead. But that to me is the issue with noise pollution such as having music on all the time and everywhere: people do not have time to think. And what is wrong with that? One guy at work told me, “I always have a sound track running through my head”, to which I had to reply, “are you that scared of your own thoughts where you have to have something someone else came up with, occupying your mind? How sad! “Think for yourself man. Think for yourself, don’t just be fed other people's creations”. A look at music today and you see such a decline in quality. The classical composures had to have the brass section, the string section, the solo performers and the chorus all come in at the right time and intensity. That took amazing skill. And in one study where they took the number of words to a song and found that in the 1970’s there was something like 400 different words per song, whereas today they might only have forty words. The reason? They are repeated to a synthesizer. Whether you like their music or not, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Seiger and the Eagles told stories with their songs which was very creative which is NOT what we are seeing today.

As a cyclist I could never understand why so many other cyclists go around with ear buds listening to music. Aside from the safety implications - I’d much rather hear what’s coming up behind me - why would you want to miss out on hearing the dawn chorus, the birds and insects, nature coming alive. One of the joys of cycling is the way it immerses you in the landscape. Why miss out?

I couldn't imagine my life without music. I don't play any instruments myself but I love listening to music. On the other hand, I'm not a fan of the continuous music playing everywhere, there I'd rather choose silence. I'm more the type of choosing my own music when I want to, mostly at home or in the car.

I have fond memories of listening to the car radio on long road trips when I was young - driving through the night, hundreds of miles for no better reason than the sheer joy of being in the road, fiddling with the dials on the radio to try to find a radio station somewhere in the middle of the Great Plains. These memories come with a 70s soundtrack.

I am a guitar player and lover of music. I also play a little bass, and electronic drums. I could not see my world without it. Music in the car is a must for me. Music at work is a must. And I can also sit in front of my stereo and do nothing but listen to music. And just in case anyone ever doubts my love of music. I just show them pictures of all my guitars and instruments. And if that still doesn't work, I just show them pictures of my roughly 1500 CD's. And then I top that off with pictures of my roughly 300 or so records. So yeah, It's in my blood.

That is too hard to Handle

I know you’re right. It’s just that I’ve become quite proud of my new abilities and can’t resist showing off to myself! Tomorrow morning it’s back to the 12cm stilettos! I’ve a goal here!

It can be tempting to stay with the lower ones because they've become so easy 😉 But it really pays off to keep practicing. Shorter walks in my 13+ cm boots already feel like second nature, I only have to gain some more endurance.

I was only talking about the block heels that get thicker towards the bottom 😉 Other than that, I like block heels and also own many. But my favorite is the stiletto heel, I just love the sleek look. Yes, it has the downsides that you mentioned but for me they're fine for everyday wear. I don't really feel a difference in stability and comfort as long as I'm walking on even pavement. Only on uneven pavement, grates, grass and so on it's more difficult. And the heel tips wear quicker. All in all, if I had to wear only one heel style for the rest of my life, it would still be the stiletto 😉 @CrushedVamp I can't really feel a difference between the two styles, I guess it's personal preference.

So true! I have been amazed by the difference practicing in my 12cm boots has made with my ability to walk in 10cm stilettos. I am very at home with them now - in fact, I’ve been so delighted with my newly earned ease in 10cm heels I’ve been neglecting my harder work 12cm heels. Must get back to business!

I can confirm this. You only really get better with higher ones if you wear this height or something above it. All the usual everyday walks in 10 or 11 cm heels don't make me any better in 13 cm heels, but short walks in my 13+ cm boots sure do. By now they feel way easier already. I see your dilemma 😀 I would break the rule, otherwise you won't have that many chances to practice in higher ones. I also walk a lot in stilettos, and of course have to change the heel tips more often but it's a quick routine work.

Reminds me of the note on the music teacher's door: 'Gone Chopin; Bach in a minuet. Offenbach in half a minuet.' (I hope he remembered his Chopin Liszt.)

Beware of meeting the big, bad wolf!

I solved the dilemma yesterday by choosing my big and ugly (but steep) chunky heeled mules (pictured somewhere above), but we are in the midst of a January thaw, and within a few days, if not hours, those open toed shoes will not be an option, even for me. @CrushedVamp, very nice photo that turned out well from a mere snapshot! I also like candid photos, but generally of OTHER PEOPLE, haha.