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6 hours ago, P08C said:

Thanks for all the great responses. 

@MackyHeels to me it seems like your heels are serving a double purpose. 1. They make you look and feel great. 2. They're helping you filter out the people type of people you don't need in your life anyway. Life is too short to surround yourself with close minded people. 

Just to echo @HappyinHeels, thanks for sharing the piece.  References to men in heels in media are far and few between, so I like to know everything that is out there, even if it is biased or has alternate agendas.  As with almost anything else at HHP, it gives us a chance to evaluate, critique, and even act on it, which I think is healthy.  

Pitch

2 hours ago, Cali said:

We have two choices: sit back and complain or take action to change that association. All I have seen so far is complaining and I am guilty of it too.

Maybe a letter such as this to Huff Press might make them think about fashion expression independent of sexual expression.

 

I was not sitting when I wrote this, but standing in my boots :p.  More seriously, we all do our part when we wear heels out and about as a fashion expression.  I have had many conversations about my heels now and no one has ever even brought up the topic of sexual orientation.  Even if someone initially thinks it, I think it is an association that can be released at a personal level.  There are many such associations out there, such as wearing pink, being artistic, etc.  There are many people who think that wearing cowboy boots is gay.  I am not about to change my choices in life based on fear of being labeled gay.  

I don’t have any experience writing response letters to the media or any indications if it would have any effect.  It’s a good idea, and I might be more inclined to do so in the future, especially towards an outlet that I felt would be open minded.  

1 hour ago, Cali said:

Stop complaining about wearing heels being associated with being gay and do something about it.

Aren't you @Shyheels a journalist?  Then write a op-edit piece from the view point of a straight man in heels. And submit it. I might do it one day very soon, but I like to get a contract with $ before I start writing.

I highly doubt HuffPost would publish anything about a straight man in heels, but I hope to be proven wrong.  HuffPost and other media has an agenda of portraying  LGBT+ suffering through systematic persecution against them.  A piece describing the same experience of a man wearing heels as a pure expression of fashion will probably get ignored.  

All guys who wears heels will have similar experiences, whether gay or straight, because the experience has nothing to do with homosexuality.  The writer of the article has the agenda of creating that association, and does so when he uses wearing heels as a way to start conversations about LGBT+ topics.  That is not my agenda for wearing heels, and it would be nice to see some more diversity in the media rather than a single, narrow association.  Meanwhile, I think I would be being unfair to claim that I have any more understanding of homosexuality, simply because I wear heels.  The association is a lot looser than what the simple minded media would like to portray.  

56 minutes ago, Tech said:

In 15 years, I "think" I can count on just my hands, how many members actually "Just get on with it" instead of hiding indoors.

:O no wonder people are saying to me “I’ve never seen a guy wear heels before.”  Twelve men have walked on the moon, and we don’t even know ten that wear heels in public?  Guys, if you are holding out, you are missing out on an opportunity to walk on the moon, without any of the risks.  

It’s weird to hear about A380s being scrapped already.  I imagine these airframes have lots of life left, but are not economically logical to run on daily routes.  But there are many ways to use a plane that size, which would not involve a lot of expensive time in the air. Some humanitarian purposes come to mind (bringing high tech medical services to places in the world that don’t have them)

1 hour ago, Shyheels said:

I really like the A380, on which I have flown many, many thousands of miles but I guess they are heading for the boneyard - they had too much of what passengers wanted and not enough of what the beancounters at head office liked.

As for carriers, I am quite spoiled I think by flying Qantas and Emirates regularly.

As much as I like the 747, I picked the A380 over it on trips over the years because of the novelty of it.  I really like the upper deck.  

13 hours ago, Shyheels said:

Sounds as though you have totally normalised the notion of men in heels within your sphere. That’s great!

It’s still a learning process.  I’m comfortable taking compliments and replying “thanks!” but am still getting used to talking more in depth about heels in person and outside of HHP.  People almost always start talking about the effect of heels on height, saying things like “it must be nice to be taller.”  This is somewhat awkward for me, because I am already 6 feet tall without heels, which is above average, especially for an Asian.  

One lady said “I need to wear heels like that, I am so short,” and I started to reply that the additional height is not the reason I wear heels.  She very promptly interrupted and said “oh of course not, you do it for the style!”  This morning I realized she nailed it on the head!  When people ask me “why are you wearing women’s shoes” or “why are you so tall” I want to help people understand my motive.  I am not trying to be a woman or be taller or alter anything anatomically, but rather I am expanding my enjoyment of the rich diversity of different styles and looks in fashion.  

4 hours ago, jeremy1986 said:

And I love the 747. Wow what a plane!!

I will always have a soft spot for the 747.  My parents immigrated to the United States on a 747 with their 3 year old son (me) and 2 suitcases, starting a new life here.  Now I have way more than 2 suitcases just in boots!!

3 hours ago, pebblesf said:

You know it buddy....In my humble opinion, they have stretched those 737s out beyond their flying comfort zone/capability...The 757 is a much better plane than the stretched out 737s.   The 767s are great also.  The problem is that the airlines have not taken good care of these older planes, so mechanical delays are more common.  Those 737max planes are a horror show from a passenger comfort or FA working stand point, too many seats, shrunken galleys and lavs.  Needless to say, I am not a pilot, so can not comment on the current issues/grounding on the 737 max planes. 

Now, back on topic, tell us more about all the compliments you got!

 

I have always wondered if we were pushing the old 737 design, which started as basically a 100 passenger regional jet, a little too far.  It’s nice to hear someone from the airlines have the same questions.  When I first saw the stretch 737-900 on the tarmac on the first time, my jaw dropped.  Airplanes are already an impressive engineering feat in itself.  The way engineers can evolve a design is all the more fascinating!  And in my view none of this is Boeing’s fault, at the end of the day.  They asked the airlines what they wanted next, and the airlines responded resoundingly with economics, not comfort or service.  At the end of the day, in flight entertainment is proving to be effective in dulling the blow of modern economies of air travel.  Southwest delivered free 2018-release movies to my iPad on one leg of my travel, so I put on the headphones and escaped the reality of being in the middle seat of a completely full flight...

Raising your own food can be done even in suburban environments.  Our fruit trees are flowering and when the sun comes up here I’ll be heading outside to let the chickens out of the coop and collect their eggs... in knee boots of course.  

I put my knees together, point the heels out right and left, and dig in with the heels.  It’s a routine I deliberately practice every morning after doing floor exercises, and I like the ankle workout.  

9 hours ago, pebblesf said:

OK, so it looks as though you are sitting in the exit row on a 737...Were you on AA?  Loving the great boots, sure wish you were on one of my flights....D

The training budget was tightened so I had to fly Southwest and zig zag on connecting flights across the midwest.  But I am now way more comfortable power walking through the terminal in heels, so it was fun.  

6 hours ago, jeremy1986 said:

Good for you. Loving the look of these!

Hope it wasn't one if those wonky 737 Max 8's

The Maxes have been pulled out of service.  I welcome slowing down the pace of replacing current fleets with marginally more efficient equipment.  I love classics like the 757 and 767.  

I spent the last 3 days meeting some new colleagues in a training class at our office HQ, wearing the 4+” heels.  Today multiple men and women complimented them, and we had positive conversations about shoes, style, and what it felt like to wear heels.  I’m at the airport now, heading home...

In New Jersey and Oregon it is illegal to pump your own gasoline and there has to be an attendant.  But still no one has offered to checking oil and tyre pressures, or wash windows, which is basic maintenance that I do when I pump my own gas.   

On 3/26/2019 at 10:40 PM, kneehighs said:

Has anyone in here ever visited a fabric store?  You'll see hundreds of yards of fabric, denim included, all rolled up like giant paper towel rolls. Stacked on top of each other.  Same goes with shoe leather rolls too if I'm not mistaken.   Most of the clothes we wear, just comes from a sheet of fabric.  And that sheet of fabric doesn't hold intrinsic masculine or feminine value.   So all this value I ascribe to wearing women's shoes or boots literally comes from a sheet of fabric, which in it of itself has no male or female value.    

It's male/female value comes from social consensus achieved via advertising, marketing, media, and in today's world social media.  Yet, I'm still susceptible to outside definitions of what is male/female.

 

This is what I love about visiting and buying from custom shoe store or a tailor. You start with the rolls of material and the whole world is yours.  

12 hours ago, Cali said:

Still men's stretch denim is not even close to how nice women's stretch denim.

Once I stopped limiting myself to just part of the store, my choices opened up.  Does it fit and can I wear it to work are my only two main criteria I consider.

The stretch denim in the men’s department is usually only a 10% elastase mix at most, whereas in women’s they will use 30%+ to get the “jeggings” look and feel.  

It’s amazing all the fabrics most men miss out on because they are not used in their styles. I wonder if it is because we ignorantly gobble up the trash that gets dumped in the men’s departments.  You want trousers?  Polyester.  Oh you don’t like polyester?  Then we can move on to the higher end of the store where we will have wool.  That’s it, we’re just stupid men that would not appreciate anything different.  

When I am shopping trousers in the women’s department, I probably look like a kid in a candy store, running my hands through all the new materials and finally understanding why certain pieces there look and feel so good.  Cotton, silk, leather skins, Lyocell, rayon, viscose...  There is so much to enjoy about the different ways these materials feel, wear, drape, and move.  

The same goes with shoes.  The different hides, skins, shapes, and heels feel and move differently, and it’s a big part of your overall wardrobe experience due to all the physical movement of your feet as you go through your day. 

There are plenty of people wearing boots in the office - it’s still boot and suede season up north.  

Nebraska

Chicago

Taking another trip in heels.  TSA lady looked at my boots on the conveyer belt and asked me to take my shoes off.  I pointed down to my feet to confirm that they were off... guess she didn’t think they were mine at first lol.  

To me, the distinction between a hobby and a lifestyle is not mutually exclusive.  I think @Cali’s original encouragement is to make wearing heels a lifestyle, not just a hobby for your spare time.  Yes, your passion for this lifestyle may result in certain hobbies like going shopping in your spare time, taking pictures, and posting on this forum.  But ultimately it is the lifestyle that normalize heel wearing.  

The same goes for my other hobbies.  Spending a significant amount of spare time learning an instrument can be a hobby, but the full enjoyment of listening to all the music around you and in your head as you go to work and carry on with life is the lifestyle that enriches the whole world we live in.  

I have “boots” listed as one of 3 hobbies in my profile but that is, like Shyheels said, a reference to time spent during free time collecting and shopping for boots.  My actual wearing of boots every day is not a hobby, it is a lifestyle.  

15 hours ago, flavio said:

Today's boots. These get a lot of wear, borderline guys/girls boots. Not high heels but I like them a lot under jeans.

Nice boots!  The shape and thick soles look just like dress cowboy boots that are fairly common for men to wear here.  Not borderline fashion at all - it’s a nice look.  

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