Ugly Shoes

It's been a long time since I've worn heels of any considerable height. When I was a teen / early twenty-year-old, I could traipse around in pumps, dance even. Now I don't get much over two inches of heel height, if that!

I am trying to decide which shoes I should bring to the Cotswolds. I know tons of people do the whole walking tour of the Cotswolds, but we are renting a car and can drive anywhere we want to go, so it's not like we need hiking boots. As well, I don't think we are going to be doing "fine dining", so I don't feel the need to bring dressy shoes and dress clothes (a relief, really!).

I was out looking for comfy shoes and had heard that Skechers are a good choice. The first pair of Skechers that I was considering looked like a two-tone light brown pair that were a bit like topsiders, but they just weren't quite right. Another pair was too tight in one size and too loose in the next size up. They did not have a half size. Then when I went into an athletic store with my daughter, I found a pair. They are called Skechers Go walk 3. They had them in the half size, and so they fit perfectly. I am not used to how these feel, like you are walking on a mattress. Normally I'm not great in squishy shoes, they make my knee ache after a while, but these are different. They aren't just squishy in the heel, they are squishy everywhere. I quite liked them. Then my sixteen year old son saw them, and with an exaggerated "Nice shoes, Mom", I started to question my shoe choice.

You tell me... are these ugly?

They feel like slippers. Do I in fact, look like I just walked off the ward without signing myself out?


And just when you thought you might be sporting ugly footwear, you check out these...

I always hated Birkenstocks. I thought they were just too earthy/hippy for me and the idea of wearing socks and sandals makes me ill. Instead of the Birkenstocks that are the two strap over the top of the foot kind, I tried these. Ta Daaaa!! Totally so much better. I can just hear my mother saying, "How can you stand those things between your toes???" I find these very comfortable and I've been living in them since I bought them for myself as a Mother's Day present. They are perfectly worn in and conform to my feet.

So, I guess what I'm saying is I will be bringing two butt ugly pairs of shoes to England with me. Fashion is not my main concern. I'm going for comfort.

Let's see what other ugly shoes are out there on the "Interweb":

Do you remember this little pieces of sweaty jellified plastic we used to wear when we were young?

Ahhh, yes, the Earth shoe. Who decided it was more comfortable to have your heel lower than your toes, in an attempt to stretch out your Achilles tendon, or your hamstring, or both??

Lord help me, I'm probably destined for these. My poor old grandmother had a few pairs like this, hers often padded in different sections with Elastoplast and moleskin.

My apologies to those of you who wear and enjoy these. I think they are really quite awful and they would be like wearing flippers on my narrow feet. Shrek feet, anyone?

Then there's these. I think my Skechers are better than these.