These boots are made for walking

I got the most amazing boots for Christmas!! Question: I struggle to buy shoes for myself. How did you buy shoes for me - WITHOUT me - and they fit perfectly! Guess what I’ve been wearing ever since? hAhA

This is me: My foot is slightly wider in front like so (ex ray pic). Naturally shoes are designed for the tiny models walking the Paris board walks and not for REAL woman; mothers running after a mischievous 3yr old toddler, working woman spending most of their day on their feet (walking, driving or standing) and certainly no one that wears a size larger than petite. I certainly struggle – a woman walking 6 ft tall with a slightly broader foot. Heck! I used to buy a brown and a black pair of the same shoe whenever I found a shoe that did work for me! - A shoe that doesn’t just fit but also compliment your foot and your wardrobe. Anyone else like that out there? Luckily too few people actually pay attention to your feet to notice *wink*. Don’t get any ideas now *wink-wink*.

Everywhere you look you find shoes that are either one of the extremes: either too flat when you want to dress up just a little, or heels so high you can touch the sky. Oh, I forget I already do *wink wink*. I don’t understand the logic. What about everyone else in between?

Initially I was told that new shoes always hurt your feet. Just “walk them in”. Now imagine me with chilblains in winter when even the shoes that DO fit you don’t fit you when you need it most. Then I read somewhere that if shoes hurt your feet when you fit them in the store, they are not right for your feet, and how walking in them anyway actually damages your feet. I’ve had those little bunions for as long as I can remember, but combined with lower back ache later on when wearing high heels, I made a firm decision to take better care of my feet. I’d have that over a scalpel and the risk of lifelong problems walking any day. Not all the stories you hear about surgical correction have happy endings, you know.

When I opened the box with booties I took one look and thought they were too narrow. What a disappointment it would be to have to exchange it first, but then I slip them on and they fit like a glove! As if they were made for me in every way: the right color, the right height, the right size… GOOD GOLLY, even the furry trimmings; exactly what I liked!

Later on I inspect them in more detail and tip it upside down: Wait a minute - is that a six or a nine? No, it is underlined, showing you which side is right side up. AAAARRRH! In the US I wear a size NINE shoe! Compared to the size 7 in South Africa I take a few moments to decide whether I should laugh or cry. Instead I choose denial. I tell myself, I don’t have big feet, I don’t have big feet, I don’t have… WAIT! If this 6 ft tall woman had feet any smaller I’d fall on my face. I tell myself I’m perfectly proportioned. I take a deep breath as I drift off in thought, absent minded, inspecting the box.

I always keep the box. It protects the shoes when they are stacked in your closet. I had to leave all my boxes in South Africa… HEY! WAIT! I look again just to make double sure. Forget about the US size 9, according to the Mexican standard (MEX) I wear a size twenty six, and the European standard (EUR) …. A size FOURTY ONE!

THAT’S REALLY IT!! I’ve made up my mind: No more reading the soles of my shoes. Don't think I'll find any diamonds there anyhow. These boots are made for walking and that’s just what they’ll do..!