mlroseplant

I should probably stay out of this, but I never had much common sense. Let me keep this brief and free of f-bombs. As a Christian myself, I am very tired of outrage in general, and especially this. Let's pretend for a minute that this was, in fact, a depiction of the Last Supper, which it's not at all clear that it was. That Da Vinci painting was merely a depiction itself. Does anybody really believe that's how it happened in real life? I have no time for fundamentalist nonsense anymore. What does it say in the Bible? Last time I looked, Jesus said to love your neighbor as yourself. Love your enemies. Feed the poor. Spread the wealth. Welcome the immigrant. You know, things like that, plus a whole bunch more stuff so-called Christians don't really want to do. I don't recall where it says get outraged at every perceived slight to your sensibilities.

I have returned! And in one piece. Nobody wants to hear about my trip or my reunion with my university classmates, but I'm going to tell you anyway. I used to play in a string quartet with the two gals pictured here, and we were the best of friends. Actually, that's not how it happened at all, but we will pretend for the sake of brevity. As is so often the case, we came to appreciate one another much more when we became real adults instead of whatever you are when you're 20. Anyhow, each of us has continued with our music in different ways, and we were glad to get the chance to see each other again for the first time in 34 years. In the other photo, my son and I were getting ready to embark upon our trip. Luckily for us, nothing went wrong, even though he was riding a 43 year old motorbike. We barely even got rained on, which is nothing short of amazing. Even though it was probably inadvisable, I did not bring any flat shoes with me, and I got by with it. This is sort of why I got a scooter style motorbike in the first place. One humorous aside: My son is actually taller than I am by more than an inch in bare feet. Even with heels, this photo is deceiving. We may need to work on his posture.

I would definitely tune in if the balance beam in gymnastics were done in heels. In fact, everybody is getting so advanced these days, why not make it a requirement?

I will be absent from this group for a few days. This very morning, I will be traveling by motorbike(s), with my 15 year old son, to visit the wonderful Twin Cities of Minnesota. During that time, I will see my best friend from university, whom I have not seen in the flesh for 34 years! I will try to take some photos to share after I get back.

I know it's popular to complain about a certain group of females who are perceived as being overbearing, but it's the internet. All filters are off. You wouldn't get this crap in real life, at least not to that extent. It has not been my experience at all in my real life that women hate high heels. What they hate is when they are told what to do, as far as their own choices. It disappoints me a great deal that we too often devolve into running down a group of people for what amounts to a little bit of nothing. I cannot say that I haven't been guilty of the same, but I have noticed that over the past decade, I care less and less about what what my wife or any other woman has on her feet. That's because I have allowed myself, and to some extent, society has allowed me, to wear what I want. Yes, I enjoy seeing a woman in high heels, but I don't crave it like I used to because I no longer have to live vicariously through them.

Here's where we get into speculation, so I don't like to say, but there has got to be more to it than the explanation they gave in the letter returning our cheque for the annual fee. I don't like to toot my own horn, so I'll toot my wife's. She was a very successful vendor. Even compared to the food trucks (or roach coaches, as I am wont to call them) which cost their owners tens of thousands of dollars to buy, equip, and license, and we're just a couple of folding tables and a tent. I understand we've got lots of people asking where we are. I have absolutely zero evidence, but something is fishy in Denmark. Maybe they just didn't like my shoes.

The short answer is, "I don't know." The long answer is, "I have a pretty good hunch, but I really don't know for sure." Our application was rejected this year because there were too many vendors selling Asian food, they wanted more variety. Why we got cut instead of somebody else is a mystery. That gig was replaced by other, more sporadic things, where I have far less responsibility. Now that I think about it, a good deal of the reason why I used to see a fair number of heels is because that farmer's market was in the evening, and was in close proximity to several bars and restaurants. Perhaps people do still wear heels in those situations, I'm just not around to see it. Where you don't see heels anymore is at church or at the grocery store, the two places I'm most likely to visit. So here's a thought: Does it even matter whether high heels are actually worn? As long as there is some idle desire to have these shoes, and they are bought, manufacturers will keep making them. There does still seem to be an idle desire among younger women to wear heels, but nobody thinks of wearing them casually at all. They are strictly special occasion shoes. Therefore, there is no need for the cobbler because they don't wear out. Even in my own collection, the percentage that actually sees wear is fairly small. Nowhere near 1000 to 1, but I bet it's like 10 to 1. I should check sometime. That would be another interesting data point.

Man or woman, I am noticing lately that I am the only person wearing heels, period. To be fair, I don't get out much these days. Since we lost the "big" farmer's market gig for this year, I really don't get out much. During the summer by nature, church services are even more casual than they normally are, and they're pretty casual these days. There ain't no such thing as "Sunday Best" anymore. That's pretty much gone to "Easter Best" or "Christmas Eve Best." My counterparts in the other band, who play in the service before me, could always be counted on to wear heels, even if they were only 2 1/2". No longer. At any rate, I have been remiss. I have forgotten to post church outfits for two weeks in a row. Here they are. The pink-ish one features cheap Chinese mules by a company called Bella Marie. Maybe I'll talk in more detail about those later, because there's a story. The purple shirted one features Michael Kors Oksana sandals, which I have owned a very long time, and am barely competent at walking in them now. I wonder how awkward I looked 10 years ago wearing them.

Sounds similar to when one has just gotten off an overseas flight. Ain't that the worst?

I am not the king. I'm just the most normal weird guy you'll ever meet. And yes, I do gather all sorts of useless data, like keeping track of how long my razor blades last. One thing I have noticed since I set a goal of 300 miles a year in heels, and in the grand scheme of things that's not all that much, is that other than the occasional blister from walking three miles in a two mile shoe, there is no pain associated with heels anymore. The other thing I've noticed is that despite consuming more grain based beverages than I should, my weight has remained under a certain mark much more easily than it has in the past. It is quite true that, unlike either @Jkrenzer or @Cali, I am not in heels really all that much, even though it might seem like it. That is because you have to subtract out at least 10 hours every weekday for work and 6-7 hours for sleep. The rest of the time is mostly domestic stuff, and I'm not really walking anywhere. I cannot think of too many times when I've spent what I would call a full day in heels. Therefore, I must purposefully walk to get the practice I desire to maintain my endurance. I just happen to keep track of that, being a completely normal yet weird guy.

I don't know that I'd want to be out there for 11 years, though. It even seems a little bit ridiculous that under the best of circumstances, it would have taken me about 6 years to accomplish the same. Which is why when somebody says they have walked "hundreds of miles" in heels, I kind of take it with a grain of salt. I have no way to prove it, but I get the feeling I have walked many times farther in work boots over the past 11 years than I have in heels.

It's quite amazing how different people react to changing conditions. My feet do not much seem to care what temperature it is as far as their physical size, but rather they seem to care much more about what time of day it is. You know how they always tell you to buy shoes in the afternoon when your feet are bigger because of activity? Well, mine are the opposite. My feet are at their biggest the moment I roll out of bed. Go figure.

That's definitely an interesting way to spend 30 minutes. That's really neat that they do that every week. I sometimes wonder how one learns to play the carillion--I mean, there's nowhere to practice in private when you're really bad at it! I do not mind grocery shopping, it's the meal planning I hate. I feel like I've got about 12 dishes in my arsenal, and I keep doing them over and over again.

I know that we've discussed this subject before, perhaps a number of times, but I'm bringing it up again for two reasons: 1) We might have some new folks here who have never thought about this before, and, more importantly, 2) I am a victim of not following my own advice. I have said many times that in order to gain stamina in high heels, one must walk in them. A lot. To the point where you're on a first name basis with your cobbler because you're in there so often. Once you've achieved the ability to walk a couple of miles without thinking too much of it, then we can talk about standing. For many people, the thought of walking a couple of miles in heels just doesn't compute. To them, it's foolish talk, practically impossible, and if they were forced to do it, severe damage or at least severe temporary pain would occur. And they're right. It would. I can now sort of understand this thinking, because it has happened to me. For a number of reasons, December was a non-heel-wearing month for me. I walked on December the 1st, and I walked on December the 31st, and that was pretty much it. Other than that, I wore heels to church for an hour a week, and that was pretty much that. I was a little bit disappointed that when I showed up to choir rehearsal in flat boots, nobody seemed to notice. That hasn't happened in years. The point is, when I took my walk on December 31st, I could definitely feel it, even though I only walked a scant mile. So yeah, I can understand why somebody would be ready to get out of their 4 inch heels after an hour. That's me right now. Hopefully not me in a couple of weeks.

I ran across this picture somewhere, and after doing a bit of research, found out it is the Korean pop star and actress IU. The caption on this translates, "Top 10 female talents." Also in the course of my brief research, I found many several pictures of the singer Rihanna walking on grating in stiletto heels. I have never personally tried it, but I have my doubts. Judging from some of the stills, I want to see video before I believe it's possible to step that accurately yet casually. Still, it makes a pretty cool picture. What do you think?

Hello all, I have been considering starting a "jaunts" type thread for some time, but I don't really "do" jaunts. In other words, I don't ever dress up for the sole purpose of going out dressed up. I just simply go about my everyday life wearing heels and usually close-fitting women's jeans. So, in light of that, I thought I would start a thread which will feature probably rather random thoughts about high heels and perhaps other traditionally women's fashion that I might like to incorporate into my wardrobe. I have decided to start this thread with an introduction, or re-introduction, rather than jumping right in with thoughts and insights into the world of a male who likes to wear high heels. My name is not actually Melrose Plant, that is a work nickname which has fallen into disuse over the years. However, it persists on the Internet, as I prefer it to my current work nickname, Squirrel. I am married and I have two sons, aged 6 and 16. The boys are fine with my choice of footwear, even the teenager. My wife tolerates it, but I am sure she wouldn't mind a bit if I decided one day to throw all my heels away. That ain't gonna happen. As I said, I plan to share random thoughts about wearing high heels and perhaps other traditionally women's clothing from time to time, and I hope it becomes an interesting thread. I welcome all comments and opinions.