My Quest for Good Shoes

For the past year I have been on the quest for a specific kind of shoe. A cute comfortable one!
After years of abusing my feet in pretty, yet impracticle shoes, I went in for a podiatrist appointment. Doctor man told me that I had Plantar Fashitis in my left foot. And prescribed me some pain reliever, as it had really been hurting.

The doctor then bandaged up my foot in a block of gauze and tape, making a make-shift arch support.
He then told me to not take a shower for the next week, and then come back in a week to have it removed. He then told me to switch over to athletic shoes full time. Nikes, to be specific.

I hate athletic shoes! *sigh*
The last time I had owned a pair I was a teenager. At the gym I wore Barefoot’s. Which turns out, are horrible for your feet. Disputes their claim.

I wanted to be a good patient. So when I got home, I cut the make-shift cast thing off my foot, tossed it I the trash can, and hopped in the shower.
Then I went to the shoe store and bought a hot pink pair of Nikes.
He told me to size up, in the event that I decided to get a pair of fancy orthopedic insoles for them. Which I did…

I wore them home and was amazed how comfy they actually were. 
While in the shoe store I tried on some Air Jordan’s, Coaches, and New Balance sneakers. But none of them were as comfortable then the ‘sized up’ Nikes. 

So I got home and started looking on eBay for other Nikes. Cheaper ones in different colors. Dual Fusions have the best arch support I have found. Nikes are anywhere from $74- $199 YIKES!
But by the end of the month I had Nikes in pink, blue, and yellow. Along with a black pair of vintage Filas, that are almost as comfy as my Nikes. Almost. 😉

But then I had a dilemma hit me smack in the face.

Church. 😐 Date-Night. 😐
What on earth would I wear with my skirts and dresses?  My pretty clothes.

Sneakers just look awful, in my opinion.
I don’t even think Keds look good with denim skirts. Although I know many other ladies seem to think so.

So I decided to cave  and I bought a pair of high arch insoles and placed them in my cute old school flats. This is done at the doctors office. They take your bare feet and place them in a mold. Then hand make special PVC insoles that are suppose to fit in just about any shoe.
They were okay, but they made my shoes feel a bit too tight.  I’m glad I have them though. 
The following week inwent to Walmart and bought a good ol’ pair of Dr. Scholl’s sandals. They are very similar to the ones that my mother use to wear back in the 80’s. 

Yes, they are comfortable, but not as comfortable as my Nikes. And my feet just don’t feel very protected in them. What if I needed to flee on foot? 

Next, I bought a pair of Birkenstocks, which I have owned before, but was never one to wear the same shoes daily..
(I bought mine on eBay, so don’t have a store to share.) They were only $40 though. Regularly, $129 

I’m

Told that QVC has the best deLs on them. 

Next I bought a pair of red ALEGRIAs. ALEGRIAs have removable insoles for any and all foot issues. They are pretty great! I just wish they didn’t have any heel at all. Mine look like the ones below, but in red..

And lastly I bought a pair of camo colored OTZ Cork-Lites. They were out of the size and color I wanted, so just went with it.

I’m so glad I did. They are so comfy! The kind of shoes you can wear for 12 hours straight, and have no blisters. Not to mention, pain. They have a serious arch support insole made from cork. 

So while they just look like an average air of Bobs or Toms, they are really so much more. I bought mine on eBay for $20. They retail for $100

I also just recently bought my daughter a pair in goat leather. There site says to size up. So if you are a size 8, you’d buy a 9. If you are a size 9, you’d buy a size 10. 

My current practical shoe collection. 
I also have four pairs of boots with insoles in them. The days of heels and flip flops are gone…

So, how are YOUR FEET? 

Proper Etiqueitte

I started reading through this book with my youngest two daughters.

And this section about dress stood out to them….

Story Time

I went to our local grocer today and noticed that they had the new chocolate covered Ritz crackers. I’m dying to try them, but they were simply too expensive.
So this evening I popped into Walmart to see if that had them at a cheaper price.

 I looked on the cracker isle, but I didn’t see them. Then I noticed a man to the right of me placing some Kellogg’s crackers on the shelves.

 I said, “Excuse me, do you know if Walmart has the new chocolate covered Ritz crackers in stock?”

He said he wasn’t sure. 

I’m always annoyed when employees just brush off questions…so I asked him to help find out if they had them. 

He said okay, and then walked me over to the chip isle, telling me that maybe they would be there, or maybe over on the candy isle, seeing as they have chocolate on them. 

So we walked over to both isles and checked, and then back to the cracker isle to look. But nope! They were not anywhere.

He then aploligized that they didn’t have them, and then told me that maybe I should just ASK AN EMPLOYEE. 

He said he didn’t work there… but was happy to help. 

😂lol
I was SO embarrassed. I apologized and walked away as red as a lobster.

Packing for a tropical vacation (LIST)

1.Bathrobe

2.Two night shirts

3. Undies/bras

4. Two pairs of yoga pants

5. One Dress

6. One Black skirt

7. Four tank tops

8. One short sleeve top

9. Two Swimsuits & cover up

10. One Towel

11. One sheet/pillow case

12. Neck pillow

13. Pads (just in case)

14. Hair stuff (travel sized shampoo,conditioner,barrette,scrunchi)

15. Makeup (tinted lip balm, cc cream, mascara)

16. Unscented Deodorant

17. Travel Size Lysol

18. Sanitizer for plane, etc

19. Off/Deet

20. Travel size Sunscreen

Everything gets rolled, therefore it fits perfectly in a 27″ gym bag that you can carry on. You dont want to chance, checking your bag and having it all get lost.

Awesome read!

A couple of weeks ago I had a discussion with a friend of mine about what it takes to achieve our goals in life. The main conclusion of this conversation is that a large amount of how successful we are in life comes down to the people we spend our time with. Strange as it […]

via Who Are You Spending Time With? — Jay Colby

3 more weeks

More traveling. This time to the tropics. 😉

Hidden gems downtown

Why so many options?

Why do we need so many options?Why fix what’s not broken?

Maybe I’ve just just had too much time to think lately.
Or…
Like mother keeps telling me, “Michelle, you are getting old dear.”
But seriously, back in the days…

1. You wanted fast food you decided between Burger King or Mc’donalds.
2. Steak? You went to Sizzler.
3. Ice cream? Carvel or Dairy Queen?
4. Pizza? Pizza Hut.

Everyone went to Pizza Hut!
5. Hot Dogs? Oscar Meyer or Ball Parks?
6. Shopping? Kmart. Just K-mart!
If K-mart didn’t have what you needed, then you headed to the mall for Sears and JC-Penny’s. Or you simply did without.

But more often then not, K-mart had it all..  
Why have they filed bankruptcy? Oh yeah, because we all have TOO MANY OPTIONS NOW!

Now let’s talk about Soda…trival, I know…

Coke or Pepsi?
Some sort of clear soda…7-up? Sprite?

And if you were “extra” you went for Mountain Dew or Mellow Yellow. What more did you need?

I remember when Cherry Coke came out but you couldn’t get it at a restaurant…
Mom had to buy it from the market.
All This takes me back to earlier today…

I ran into Burger King. It’s been a while. 

The soda station was like an algebra problem..
One in which I needed help with. 
Diet Coke and regular coke were still the main options. Yay!
But they also came in every flavor imaginable!

Why do we need all these options?
Same went for all of the other fifteen soda choices. 
If you are in a hurry you could always opt for sweet tea I suppose.

Well, that use to be an easy remedy..
But not any more. Ice tea? 

First you must choose between diet or regular. Then you are given the options of raspberry, peach, or lemon flavored…
And do you want it with sugar, Splenda, Stevia, or simply unsweetened?
I went with sweetened. I was in a hurry. 😐
I also noticed that onion rings and fries also branched off. 

Now you can choose cheddar tater tots as a third option.

I’m sure it won’t be long until they add curly and sweet potato options.

I can go on, but you get the picture.

Maybe I am just getting old. I want simple and right to the point nowadays.
Today has been ‘A DAY’
Even my  local grocer had to change on me, with those stupid self check out cashiers. 

Why do I want to spend an hour grocery shopping, only to have to check myself out and bag my own groceries?!

What’s more, why strip everyone from their jobs?! 
And don’t get me started with all the chain restaurants having tablets on all the tables so we can all order our own food when we go out to eat. 😡

I suppose my parents had to go through similar  changes themselves… 
I remember my mother swearing at the phone because she didn’t want to push 1,2,3 or 4.

She wanted to talk to A HUMAN!
Like.. back in the days.. 
Aww.. it’s only a matter of time before WE CEASE TOO….

Where have all the real men gone?

I was sitting at the Raleigh airport for a couple hours earlier when I noticed something…
Five out of ten men look very feminine.

In fact, I pointed to what I thought was a women carrying my dream purse, only to realize that it was a man carrying my dream purse…

Maybe there are simply more homosexuals then there use to be?

I simply wouldn’t know what those statistics are, but one thing was very certain; men, simply do not look ‘manly’ anymore.
And it’s not long hair and make-up.. like it was back in the 80’s.
It is their whole walk, talk, mannerism, and dress.
In the past few years I’ve noticed how incapable men have also become.
(Disclaimer) No, I’m not bashing ALL MEN.
It is simply something I’ve been observing as of late..

And yes, I know many women are not into being women anymore…

Running a house, having children, getting married…the list can go on as well.

I know. I know.

But being a very womanly woman, or something of the sort…
I miss the days when men were men.

Dependable! Fearless! Capable!

Somewhat unpredictable…
There is nothing more unappealing, and dare I say, depressing… then a wimpy cry baby of a man.

Someone who’s afraid to get his hands dirty.
Whether it’s fixing his own mechanical issues with his car and home… or working his ass off for a better life…

These are things I respect.

Alas’ Men are just not interested in being men anymore. And the few who appear to be doing it, are complaining and whining along the way..

(Another feminine trait)

Is their anything worst then a whiny man? I think not! 🤢
So, Where have all the real men gone?

Why have men decided that they are much too delicate to be who God created them to be?

Do they think that women have had it easy?
Having babies, planning, teaching, cooking, cleaning, up all night with sick kids..

Easy?! 

What happened?!?
The jury is out on this one. 🤔

2017 winter storm

A short video clip of our snow storm yesterday.

I’m from the North, and grew up with lots of snow. I loved it as a kid/teen. Nowadays though, I just want hot weather! 

Yes, it’s very pretty. Who can argue that…
But that’s where it starts and ends. 😐
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