Seen out and About

[HappyinHeels]

Mlroseplant,

Your curiosity as to the bank lady “may be one of us.” It’s more plausible than you think. Banking is a more receptive environment for either trans people or maybe just someone who wants to present a more feminine image. Iowa is an interesting case of a big farm state which is fiscally conservative but is quite open-minded on a societal and policy level. These factors will bring out more diversity than Iowans have seen in the past. The difference is, as in Wisconsin, these people will be largely be treated with respect.

If you went to the bank dressed impeccably with the required heels my guess is any interaction with this bank employee will be good and, since your wearing the goods, your question will be answered. I saw a black trans woman in Menards a week ago walking alone in ankle boots with I’d guess 5.5” heels headed straight to the building materials counter. I simply said “I love your ankle boots” and this person smiled and thanked me. I purposely mentioned the footwear style to send the right message. There’s an opportunity here for a nice interaction and meet one of your fellow community members. Let us know how it goes. HinH

Edited November 13 by HappyinHeels
Omitted word

[mlroseplant]

HiH, that's not what I really had in mind when I used the phrase, "one of us." Number One, I'm not a member of the LGTB community, as I do not meet the technical requirements, and Number Two, though your postulation is not beyond the realm of possibility, it seems almost certain that the woman in question is cisgender.

What I did mean by "one of us" is someone who actually enjoys wearing heels for their own sake. I do not believe I have ever met such a woman before, at least not to my knowledge.

[Shyheels]

I understood your meaning, and from your description of her I'd say you're exactly right: someone who loves wearing heels.

 

[HappyinHeels]

Whatever the case may be she likes heels and you do as well so an amicable encounter may well occur. Your curiosity will be satisfied and questions answered. I know you’ll make great strides in finding out 🙃HinH

Edited November 14 by HappyinHeels
Spelling

[Shyheels]

As I’ve mentioned before I think I must be the only person living on the canals who owns a pair (three pair in my case) of stilettos. I saw a thread on a canal boat forum listing things boaters never own. Top of the list? Stilettos. And a chorus of snorting joking agreements followed. To be sure only an idiot would try working the locks or doing any of the physical work of moving a boat down the canal in stilettos or any sort of high heel, and they wouldn’t be practical on muddy towpaths. And there is not much room for extraneous possessions on a narrowboat. So I may we’ll be unique.

at least a couple of boaters now know I wear stilettos, as I was wearing my OTK black suede stiletto boots this morning while writing. I looked out just before dawn  and noticed the light was beautiful so I grabbed my camera and went out on the bow - while I was shooting several went past walking their dogs. I could tell that a couple of them noticed, but nobody said anything. People here may not own stilettos but they are a bohemian lot - were all a bit odd and that’s more or less understood 

[Puffer]

Having myself often been crew on a UK narrowboat, I would consider that a cowboy boot or similar with a heel that can 'dig in' a little would often be an advantage when working lock gates.   It can be difficult to get a grip on the ground when literally putting one's back into moving a gate beam and (as cowboys found when roping steers etc), a boot with a heel gives a better anchor.   I agree however that 'high' heels would be a hazard in most other canal pursuits.

[mlroseplant]

12 hours ago, Shyheels said:

As I’ve mentioned before I think I must be the only person living on the canals who owns a pair (three pair in my case) of stilettos. I saw a thread on a canal boat forum listing things boaters never own. Top of the list? Stilettos. And a chorus of snorting joking agreements followed. To be sure only an idiot would try working the locks or doing any of the physical work of moving a boat down the canal in stilettos or any sort of high heel, and they wouldn’t be practical on muddy towpaths. And there is not much room for extraneous possessions on a narrowboat. So I may we’ll be unique.

at least a couple of boaters now know I wear stilettos, as I was wearing my OTK black suede stiletto boots this morning while writing. I looked out just before dawn  and noticed the light was beautiful so I grabbed my camera and went out on the bow - while I was shooting several went past walking their dogs. I could tell that a couple of them noticed, but nobody said anything. People here may not own stilettos but they are a bohemian lot - were all a bit odd and that’s more or less understood 

 

1 hour ago, Puffer said:

Having myself often been crew on a UK narrowboat, I would consider that a cowboy boot or similar with a heel that can 'dig in' a little would often be an advantage when working lock gates.   It can be difficult to get a grip on the ground when literally putting one's back into moving a gate beam and (as cowboys found when roping steers etc), a boot with a heel gives a better anchor.   I agree however that 'high' heels would be a hazard in most other canal pursuits.

Perhaps that is an idea for another topic someday, though it's not "high" heels--one's preference for work boots. I know my own preference has changed over the years, and I've settled on something rather unusual in my trade. I would start the thread right now, but I think some pictures would be rather helpful, which I'll have to take later.

[Shyheels]

That’s a great idea. I’ll definitely contribute thoughts to that thread 

18 hours ago, Puffer said:

Having myself often been crew on a UK narrowboat, I would consider that a cowboy boot or similar with a heel that can 'dig in' a little would often be an advantage when working lock gates.   It can be difficult to get a grip on the ground when literally putting one's back into moving a gate beam and (as cowboys found when roping steers etc), a boot with a heel gives a better anchor.   I agree however that 'high' heels would be a hazard in most other canal pursuits.

I don't think cowboy boots or anything with a heel would give you any advantage in shifting lock gates. I travel a lot on the Leeds & Liverpool which has probably the heaviest lock gates on the network and I'm a single hander. The more of your boot that's on the ground, the better. as you will have no doubt noticed at the locks they often have little brick ridges within the arc of where you push the beams to give your feet some purchase as you shove the heavy gate beam. Bear in mind too that it isn't just a matter of shifting lock gates open and closed - there's mooring on the lock landings and scrambling up slippery lock ladders as well, some of which can be quite high.  Lemonroyd Lock on the Aire & Calder, for example, is about 16 feet and the ladder wet and covered with algae. Sensible shoes - work boots, really - are a really good idea.   

[Puffer]

On 11/15/2024 at 2:30 PM, Shyheels said:

That’s a great idea. I’ll definitely contribute thoughts to that thread 

I don't think cowboy boots or anything with a heel would give you any advantage in shifting lock gates. I travel a lot on the Leeds & Liverpool which has probably the heaviest lock gates on the network and I'm a single hander. The more of your boot that's on the ground, the better. as you will have no doubt noticed at the locks they often have little brick ridges within the arc of where you push the beams to give your feet some purchase as you shove the heavy gate beam. Bear in mind too that it isn't just a matter of shifting lock gates open and closed - there's mooring on the lock landings and scrambling up slippery lock ladders as well, some of which can be quite high.  Lemonroyd Lock on the Aire & Calder, for example, is about 16 feet and the ladder wet and covered with algae. Sensible shoes - work boots, really - are a really good idea.   

You are right on all counts.   I'm certainly aware of the brick or other protrusions or gripping aids that assist lock beam movement, but equally there are places where a slippery but soft or grassy surface exists and when a boot heel would aid traction.   I have slipped when wearing the sort of rubber soles that one would typically find ideal for working boats and locks, or even in wellies with a cleated sole.   Some work boots can be lethal if they have a smooth sole too.   I doubt there there is any one shoe or boot style that is ideal for all canal applications - working the boat and the locks and walking the towpath.

 

[Shyheels]

Vibram soles seem to be the best all-round sole for the canals - in my experience anyway. As you say, smooth soles would be disastrous. Gum boots are great for muddy towpaths but not for locks and swing bridges and the like. I like a really sturdy sole. I’m fortunate in having a couple of pair of knee boots with Vibram soles 

[mlroseplant]

I had occasion to go the bank yesterday. We got off work a little bit early, and I decided I needed to move some money around. This time, I made sure I was cleaned up, looking halfway presentable, and wearing heels. I chose burgundy colored pants to go with burgundy Carressa mary janes. I considered wearing some super stiletto-y Steve Madden pumps, but thought the mary janes were a better choice for what I was trying to accomplish, which was to talk to the bank lady about heels.

I entered the bank with my paperwork in hand, looked around for an open teller (and the high heeled bank lady), and soon a teller called me across the lobby to her counter. No sign of the bank lady. Figures. I went on about my business with the teller, and the next thing I knew, there was this person standing right next to me, which just goes to show that you can't always be situationally aware unless you make a constant effort to be.

The person who sneaked up on me was the bank lady, and she said, "I don't mean to bother you, but your shoes are incredibly cute. I heard someone walking across the lobby who sounded just like me, and I had to see who it was. I'm glad it wasn't just somebody wearing cowboy boots, and WHERE DID YOU GET THOSE SHOES?" Whoa! That was not at all how I figured this was going to go down.

You would think that after what, 12 or 13 years of this that I'd be perfectly comfortable with this sort of encounter. I did manage to get out my line that it was indeed heartwarming to see someone out there who still wears heels besides me. Mind you, this is all right up there at the counter in front of the teller who was helping me.

So as it turns out, bank lady wears heels every single day and loves wearing them, and the rest of the people at the bank think she's crazy. I think she was glad to have someone else tell her coworkers that heels don't necessarily have to hurt at all. I don't think we gained much traction on that assertion. After the transaction was over, I went over to the bank lady's desk (I still don't know her name), and we talked about shoes for another five minutes or so. Her boots on this day were nothing very special, they were plain black with slim (not stiletto) 4 inch heels. She said she had most of her extensive shoe collection already packed away for the move. Move?

Now for the bad news. This interaction will never happen again. Evidently, today (Wednesday) is her last day at the bank. I asked her where she was going to, and she said that her husband had gotten a new job in a town about 75 miles away, and that they would be moving there. I know the town reasonably well, and we talked about her impending move. I wished her well and departed. It's not really a big deal, but that's exactly my luck. I'm going to be the only one again. Sigh. At least you won't have to read any more stories about the bank lady, and I know for sure she doesn't think I'm a creep for liking her shoes.

[Shyheels]

What a lovely outcome though! And how nice that she approached you with the same comment about seeing another heel lover. It’s lovely. A pity she’s moving away, but what a nice memory 

[mlroseplant]

I went to a high school jazz band concert this week. I saw what I expected to see, a lot of low-to-mid block heels, and largely on strappy sandals. Despite the temperature being around the freezing mark, there were an awful lot of sandals in the band. Perhaps it comes of these younger girls having but one pair of dressy shoes, and they happen to be sandals. Heels do not appear to be dead, they're just a lot lower and clunkier than they used to be.

Which brings me to the reason for this post. On my way out of the building, I saw a girl/young woman wearing actual high heels. She was obviously not in the show, because otherwise she would have been wearing black, and I couldn't tell you exactly how old she was, but she looked quite young, had braces on her teeth, and was wearing this rather outlandish flannel blanket/dress thingy. I don't really even know how to describe it. It didn't look horrible, but it did look rather odd with her black strappy sandals. They looked pretty similar to all the other girls' sandals, except they were easily at least twice the height. Chunky block heels, but I would estimate about 4 1/2 inches tall with maybe 1/2 inch platform. In other words, actual high heels. So they are still out there, even in Gen Z.

[at9]

I was in Margate the other day. In a supermarket I saw a very tall  guy wearing pink high heel ankle boots and a short skirt. I'm pretty sure he was presenting as a guy, not trying to pass as a TV. People hardly seemed to notice.

[Shyheels]

That’s certainly not something you see every day 

[pebblesf]

On 12/16/2024 at 3:29 PM, at9 said:

I was in Margate the other day. In a supermarket I saw a very tall  guy wearing pink high heel ankle boots and a short skirt. I'm pretty sure he was presenting as a guy, not trying to pass as a TV. People hardly seemed to notice.

Cool!

[at9]

In central London yesterday evening. Saw lots of heels, from the usual 2.5" boots to 4" stilettos. All on women, mostly being worn well, walking confidently.