Heelfan Posted July 26, 2004 Author Share Posted July 26, 2004 As the creator of this thread over a year ago, I'm delighted that a couple of members have just revived it. More interesting postings from all you street-heeling guys, please! Cheerfully yours, Heelfan Onwards and upwards! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 Xa - truly hilarious! This happened about three weeks ago: Worst reaction: Walking through the Venetian one evening with my wife. I was wearing black jeans, my Franco Sartos, and my white "pirate" shirt (lace top, slight frill at cuff, and vertical bands alongside the laces from collar to waist. The mall area in the Ventian is relatively quiet, and the floors use light-colored marble, so my black heels really stood out, both visibly and audibly. I was standing there, holding my wife's hand, watching the muses (I call them muses, but they're human statues, people who hold still in one position for a few minutes before switching), and a middle-aged woman came up behind me, then slowly walked around me, towards my right rear quarter, then my side, and finally my right front quarter, half way between myself and the muses, inspecting me, looking me up and down. This is when I first noticed her. Her face was all screwed up in mental anguish. At first I thought perhaps something horrible was wrong, like I'd ripped my pants in half or something. I checked, couldn't find anything. Then it dawned on me that when she saw our backsides, she probably thought we were two girls in heels holding hands, which evidently shocked her silly. What shocked her more was my voice, high for a guy, but still definately belonging to a guy. Then, she spoke: "You ought to be ashamed of yourselves, carrying on like that." Most of you know me pretty well by now - I meet challenges head on. "Ma'am, whatever do you mean by your comment?" "Like THAT," she said, almost hysterically, pointing to my heels. By this time her loud voice near one of the Venetian's attractions had attracted the attention of security, and they were walking towards us. I was frustrated, embarrassed, and angry at the scene she was creating, but I didn't want to just slink away, so I blurted out, "Lady, where in the world do you think you are? Kansas? You're in Las Vegas!" and held my hands up in the air with a big grin on my face. She flapped her lips together a couple of time in time with working her jaw, and when the two security men came up, they said, "Ma'am, is this man bothering you," to which one of the younger mothers in the crowd, pushing a stroller and standing about six feet to my right, spoke right up and said, "Is he bothering her? Boy! Have you got it backwards - he was minding his own business, watching the statues with his girlfriend, when this lady came up and disrupted everything, including their performance!" At that point, the security guard turned to me and said, "Is this true?" I nodded, and he turned back towards the lady and asked her to leave! She sputtered, just sputtered, fluttered, flabbered, and flastugated at how much the world had changed from her limited understanding. At one point she stepped forward like she was going to say something, or worse, but the security guards just closed the gap, and she finally went, "Ooogoogohhhh!!!!," turned, and walked away. The remained crowd were all smiling, looking like they could have clapped, but were refraining from doing so out of respect for the lady. I turned to the mother and thanked her, and she said, "Don't mention it. You wear those quite well, by the way. Well, I'm off. Good luck!" The others didn't say anything, but I could tell by their glances and appreciative looks they were interested in, and not put off by the fact I was wearing heels. A couple of them made eye contact, nodding approval, one said, "way to go," to which I gave a short bow of thanks. Best Reaction: Same incident, courtesey of the mother who came to my defense. It ended up being an enchanting evening! We ate at Canaletto's, and after being here for quite some time, since before the Venetian was finished, I finally broke down and sprung for the gondola ride - after buying my wife a body splash of her choice from Acca Kappa, one of her favorite shops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new_look Posted July 26, 2004 Share Posted July 26, 2004 excellent stories. i obviously havent been around and out enough to post a nice story yet, but time will im sure produce one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loveheel Posted July 27, 2004 Share Posted July 27, 2004 Genebujold, That is just the nicest story. It is interesting how many people appreciate someone doing their own thing, even though they would never do it themselves. Can you remind us what the Franco Sarto's are ? Are they boots ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockpup Posted July 27, 2004 Share Posted July 27, 2004 Gene: I guess some people are still amazed that there are those other then themselves in the world. Do not travel if you wish to never see anything diferent. Jim "When in Rome, do as the Romans.. When in Greece, watch your ass" (formerly known as "JimC") Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raponchigo Posted July 27, 2004 Share Posted July 27, 2004 well i've got lot's of stories about this intersting topic.... but i'm just telling something about a situation.... Worst: dressed as a casual guy(t shirt & jeans),i went to sears & asked the guy attendant for a 4" black & white heels i picked for my number....he was kinda shocked i was asking for heels to try on.... so he just madly answered "that model isn't available in that size" (well,c'mon i'm a 9 us woman's....) so i'd said,that's ok & leaved.... Best: so i returned the next weekend dressed up in a fancy zara dress, make up,etc... & asked for the same heels to try them on....some other attendant was nice at me,first he thought i was a girl,but i in-porpose talked the most manly i could....hehe,with the heels on,i just started walking in the sears shoe dept carpet walking a couple of times near the other narrow minded attendant....i don't know if he recognized me ,but i'd felt great about trying them on.... Just Love High Heels... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arctic Posted July 27, 2004 Share Posted July 27, 2004 Israeli customs gave me a hard time a little while ago, they desperately wanted to know WHY I had a pair of 4" blade boots in my luggage. They made a security incident out of it, as I didn't have any explanation for my "behavior". What's all the fuss about? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arctic Posted July 27, 2004 Share Posted July 27, 2004 "When in Rome, do as the Romans.. When in Greece, watch your ass" Great quote. I guess now with the Olympics in Athens your ass is watched for you. What's all the fuss about? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jante Posted July 30, 2004 Share Posted July 30, 2004 I wear my 4 inch black stillettoes daily in the privacy of our bedroom and home office, But trueth be known I long to wear my heels in public and hear the click ...click of high heels on pavement. I have 5 inch heels in the closet that I can not walk in at all but my 4 inch heels are like sneakers to me. I only wish I could get the courage to wear them outside the house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heelfan Posted July 30, 2004 Author Share Posted July 30, 2004 Hello Jante! Take heart! We all started out just like that! But as you are new to the board, just pause for a day or so and try and real ALL the postings (new and old) on this "For The Guys" forum. You will read that time after time, reports from guys just like you who thought the world would cave in if they ventured outside the house. But then you will read that they eventually took the plunge, the world didn't collapse, no-one called a policeman (it's not again the law anyway, anymore than a girl wearing masculine builder's boots would be) and suddenly they are liberated and feeling on top of the world! And then they never look back. So first, read all the guys' postings, and second, if you are in or close to the UK, come to our regular Heel-Meets (see "Real Life Meetings" section). Heels are not compulsory, but you'll be amazed at how a dozen of us can street-heel along some of the nations busiest public streets (some like me even wearing 5" stilettos) without any fuss whatsoever. There's nothing like a Heel-Meet or two to build confidence and banish the (largely imaginary) fears! Cheerfully yours, Heelfan Onwards and upwards! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted July 31, 2004 Share Posted July 31, 2004 Genebujold, That is just the nicest story. It is interesting how many people appreciate someone doing their own thing, even though they would never do it themselves. Can you remind us what the Franco Sarto's are ? Are they boots ? Yes, they're the very worn boots shown in my avatar to the left. Advertised with a 3.5 inch heel, but they arrived with a 4 inch heel in my size. Perfect fit, and very comfortable for extended wear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted July 31, 2004 Share Posted July 31, 2004 Israeli customs gave me a hard time a little while ago, they desperately wanted to know WHY I had a pair of 4" blade boots in my luggage. They made a security incident out of it, as I didn't have any explanation for my "behavior". Tell them "I like wearing them. Do you need to see me walk in them? What seems to be the problem?" Put it back on THEM to re-define the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted July 31, 2004 Share Posted July 31, 2004 I wear my 4 inch black stillettoes daily in the privacy of our bedroom and home office, But trueth be known I long to wear my heels in public and hear the click ...click of high heels on pavement. I have 5 inch heels in the closet that I can not walk in at all but my 4 inch heels are like sneakers to me. I only wish I could get the courage to wear them outside the house. Hi, Jante. Just put them on and go! What's stopping you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted July 31, 2004 Share Posted July 31, 2004 ...no-one called a policeman (it's not again the law anyway, anymore than a girl wearing masculine builder's boots would be)... Cheerfully yours, Heelfan Actually, I was stopped on the strip by a bicycle policeman about ayear and a half a go. He asked me, "Why are you wearing women's shoes?" I said, "you mean to tell me that a woman can wear men's shoes, men's pants, men's underwear, men's shirt, a man's haircut, and men's cologne, and you wouldn't dare to stop her but because I'm wearing just one item of women's apparel I'm somehow suspect? Have you any idea how discriminatory that is?" He let me go with no further comment after approximately 2 seconds of thought. Smart cop. No long after that I told the story to my neighbors (lesbians, and both 15+ - year veterins of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police, one of them on the IG staff). Both of them assured me that they would see to it that that it would never happen again. And it hasn't! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new_look Posted July 31, 2004 Share Posted July 31, 2004 thats a good point gene. i think if you tell people things like that and actually bring them out of their own stereotyped world, it makes them think twice about what theyve said. They realise that it doesnt really matter, or in more direct cases like yours, that it SHOULDNT matter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dressboots Posted August 1, 2004 Share Posted August 1, 2004 Worst. The teasing and negative comments directed at my heeling (2" block heels) when I was in high school. It was the early 70's so even though they were women's boots, men's fashions were looking a lot like that. Many were doubtful in their teasing and could be realtively easily stopped. The Best Years later my mother talking to an aquaintence in her community who told her that to her son (who was a year behind me in shcool) I was his hero and he admired me greatly. I was friends with her son as was most of the shool. He was very popular. I concluded the heeling had something to do with the admiration (he never let on to me that). I did little else in high school to set myself out from the crowd. I was very flattered by the story. My mother was very pleased too. Would love to ask someday of my old friend about the admiration as to why but have not seen him since the 70's. My (future) wife ran into him briefly in the 80's. classic style high heel boots Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loveheel Posted August 3, 2004 Share Posted August 3, 2004 thats a good point gene. i think if you tell people things like that and actually bring them out of their own stereotyped world, it makes them think twice about what theyve said. They realise that it doesnt really matter, or in more direct cases like yours, that it SHOULDNT matter This is so true. I think there are about four types of reactions: 1) The ones that just don't care. You could be wearing burger buns on your feet and these people wouldn't notice. Lots of guys are in thsi category. 2) The people that are supportive and give you the thumbs up, or start chat with you about shoes. These encounters make it all worthwhile 3) The petty minds. These people disapprove and will never approve. The old lady that chastised Gene in the Las Vegas casino is in this grouo 4) The people that are surprised, but when they give it some thought, actually like the style. If have found many people in this category. We can't blame people for being surprised. After all, they don't see guys in heels all that often. But usually there reaction becomes positive. In my opinion by far the largest group is (4). I have had very few tru negative reactions, and only once in a while get the ultra positive reaction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raccoon Posted August 3, 2004 Share Posted August 3, 2004 Loveheel, You forgot to mention the sheep. They laugh behind your back. If fashion changed overnight, so would their opinions. Some people just have no mind of their own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuckedintoboots Posted August 3, 2004 Share Posted August 3, 2004 boy racoon, you really hit the nail right on the old board!! the sheep DO laugh @ ones back a lot, cause they would not DARE do it to your face you see! they do not think for themselves on the whole, hell, they dont even know WHY they laugh half the time! as soon as any one style becomes "cool" in fashion, they always seem to sing a VERY different tune. yours, Brad men still look good with pants tucked into the right boots! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xaphod Posted August 3, 2004 Share Posted August 3, 2004 I just note that the probability of overhearing the words 'OH my God', or the like, is about 50 times greater when I'm wearing heels than not. Xa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted August 3, 2004 Share Posted August 3, 2004 2) The people that are supportive and give you the thumbs up, or start chat with you about shoes. These encounters make it all worthwhile 4) The people that are surprised, but when they give it some thought, actually like the style. If have found many people in this category. We can't blame people for being surprised. After all, they don't see guys in heels all that often. But usually there reaction becomes positive. In my opinion by far the largest group is (4). I have had very few tru negative reactions, and only once in a while get the ultra positive reaction. I would have to say it's a toss-up between categories 2 and 4, with a lot of overlap between them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted August 3, 2004 Share Posted August 3, 2004 I just note that the probability of overhearing the words 'OH my God', or the like, is about 50 times greater when I'm wearing heels than not. Xa Really? Wow - I'm surprised. Maybe because I'm in Vegas and you're in a more conservative town? Then again, I think of Vegas as being both very conservative, overall (very few "fashion statements"), while still being very tolerant, perhaps because of the large variety of clientelle that comes through Vegas from all over the world. About two years ago I remember visiting friends at the Hard Rock Hotel and seeing Sheiks dancing a groove on the floor. I think most cities would have reacted with a gasp, but here in Vegas most people just gave a quick grin and said to themselves, "that's Vegas...." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubba136 Posted August 3, 2004 Share Posted August 3, 2004 Xa wrote:I just note that the probability of overhearing the words 'OH my God', or the like, is about 50 times greater when I'm wearing heels than not. Of course! The visual stimulation of a man wearing high heels in public triggers others (people) senses to focus upon the aberrant scene their minds have been trained to recognize as normal. "What's wrong with this picture! Ah, a man wearing women's high heeled shoes." Is the exclamation uttered one of surprise or one of revulsion? I doubt that any immediate reaction would be one of revulsion because that type of reaction requires more time to mentally process than it does to recognize an unusual occurance. Being mentally comfortable in your own mind is the key to wearing heels in public. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted August 3, 2004 Share Posted August 3, 2004 Xa wrote: Of course! The visual stimulation of a man wearing high heels in public triggers others (people) senses to focus upon the aberrant scene their minds have been trained to recognize as normal. "What's wrong with this picture! Ah, a man wearing women's high heeled shoes." Is the exclamation uttered one of surprise or one of revulsion? I doubt that any immediate reaction would be one of revulsion because that type of reaction requires more time to mentally process than it does to recognize an unusual occurance. Bingo! Hence the double-take I've experienced here in Las Vegas. Nevertheless, it's just a half-second beyond that whereby people realize that you're just another individual walking down the path of life... At which all attention to the issue returns to normal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarrenB Posted August 4, 2004 Share Posted August 4, 2004 Just think of it as Life Liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, I'm from the Earth.Now wearing HH Penny Loafers full time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hiheellover23 Posted August 6, 2004 Share Posted August 6, 2004 Well this happened to me in Jacksonville, FL and here are two scenarios that I had. WORST: I had went to blockbuster in my 7 inch platform ankle boots and dress pants to try my luck I was walking around looking at movies to go check out and well I was getting a couple of looks but I was not trying to pay attention and my goodness I was nervous. So I came to the checkout line and the girl and guy cashier looked down at my feet and the girl asked me "Are you going to the club??" and I replied " No I just do this because men's shoes can be boring and I am basically trying to break the monotony of what people call normal." So then the guy responded "So what's next you gonna wear a dress? (and laughed)" For that quick minute I wanted to kick him in the face with my boots on but I just said " I don't think so PAL!!!" and then he had just said well you decided to wear the shoes ( in a disgusted tone) BEST: I had went to this gas station with the same ankle platform boots on and little did I know that there was a classmate that I remembered all the way back from middle school. She was always nice to me. But at this time I was about 18 or 19 and I was paying for gas plus I was real nervous walking in. So I spoke to her and then she had spoke to me and then she had walked from around the register and as soon as I got ready to walk up out the door she had seen the long spike of my heel and was like (OH no you don't you know you got to come back and let me see your shoes) So I was like OH SNAP maybe this was a mistake. She asked me if I was going out to a club or something. And I was pretty much like no I just wanted to try something different. Asked me where I got them and she thought they were so cute and was just so surprised that I could walk in them. So that was a true big head trip after that. What ya see is what ya get no more or less!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asdf174 Posted August 10, 2004 Share Posted August 10, 2004 The otehr night I was wering my white 6 inch ankle straps plats out and a guy on a bike slowed down a looked at me nearly hit the telephone post. Kind of funny. It's all good. ~Arron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted August 11, 2004 Share Posted August 11, 2004 The otehr night I was wering my white 6 inch ankle straps plats out and a guy on a bike slowed down a looked at me nearly hit the telephone post. Kind of funny. Would have been funnier if he hadn't slowed down... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarrenB Posted August 12, 2004 Share Posted August 12, 2004 Many years ago I was wearing my MIA High Heel clogs. I got gas and went to pay. A girl said to her boyfriend 'Do you believe that guy?' I just ignored them. That was in the late 70's. I'd love to get another pair of those clogs. Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, I'm from the Earth.Now wearing HH Penny Loafers full time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genebujold Posted August 12, 2004 Share Posted August 12, 2004 Many years ago I was wearing my MIA High Heel clogs. I got gas and went to pay. A girl said to her boyfriend 'Do you believe that guy?' I just ignored them. That was in the late 70's. I'd love to get another pair of those clogs. Perhaps you can! Or at least a reasonable fascimile: MIA Shoes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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