“The time has come,” the walrus said, “to talk of many things: of SHOES and
ships – and sealing wax – of cabbages and kings….

A shoe commercial just informed me that “I can never have too many shoes.” I find this odd. I mean, how many shoes can one wear at one time? I can only wear two, i.e. one pair. This is because I only have two feet. Perhaps if I had more feet, I would better understand the need for so many shoes.

Actually, I do own about a dozen pairs of shoes, most of which are collecting
dust. I like comfortable flat shoes, loafers and sneakers and tend to ignore
all other types of foot decor. And I never, ever even notice what other
people are wearing on their feet. Perhaps this is because I do not look 
downward when chatting with a person. I tend to notice the other being’s 
face and I rarely can remember details about anything that person is 
wearing, especially his or her shoes. I assume that person likewise, is 
unconcerned with my fashion choices. So when the announcer in the television commercial warns me that “I can never have too many shoes”, I am perplexed. 

I have, on the rare occasion that I walk through a clothing store, noticed
how the style of shoes has changed dramatically over the years. No longer
something worn for comfort and to protect the feet from the elements, shoes are now in contest to see which pair sings the loudest color and wields the (ouch!) highest heel. I am reminded of the shoes worn in medieval times with very high very thick heels meant to protect the wearer from the mud in the streets. Today’s shoes are not meant to be worn anywhere near mud. These are covered with rhinestones and bangles and are meant by those wearing same, to be NOTICED! Oh, I am so lame…….

And I wonder where this love for shoes was born? There is the childrens’
fantasy, “Cinderella” wherein the prize rests upon the fit of a glass shoe.
When I read that, as a child, I wondered, “what if some old lady has a small
foot that could fit into that shoe and she beats Cinderella to trying it on?
Would the prince have to marry her?” What would Disney have done with that??  The Cinderella slipper was simple looking with a slight heel and a rounded toe, unlike the pointed, pointed, pointed shoes we see today. If Cinderella’s stepsisters had trouble pushing their feet into an undersized but comfortably shaped shoe, however would they have managed with a shoe intended to force the foot into an unnatural shape? All that pain just for a Prince??? No, Cinderella’s shoe had to be relatively comfortable, or there would have been no ‘happily ever after’. 

I think about those people who actually do remember what shoes the people they meet are wearing and I wonder if, inside their brains, there are 
hundreds of tiny shoe racks, each labelled with some designer name with 
shoes stored by size, color and design. Do they dream about these shoes? 
Do they seek them out at sales? Do they hang them on the wall? Do 
they worship at shoe shrines? 

My feet are hurting just thinking about all this………