Elise Skidmore

Barefootin’

Women like shoes.
Not all of us are obsessed with them,
but enough are that it’s a useful stereotype
for writers and filmmakers,
and too often, even those only slightly obsessed
will suffer for a pair of shoes
that are just too cute to pass up,
even though standing in them
for more than twenty minutes
is like traveling through Dante’s nine stages of hell.

The Cinderella Jimmy Choo’s cost $5000
while his Tokyo high tops were only $825–
the shipping and returns are free,
but only in the US, of course.
Manolo Blahnik’s new line
looks like Salvador Dali vomited
over high top shoes from 1890
for a thousand-plus dollars a pop–
international shipping is free,
though only as a limited time offer.

Steve Madden’s prices seemed
more affordable for real people;
there are actually shoes for under $100
and boots for under $200.
There’s even a pair of high top sneakers
that visually compare with Choo’s
for about twenty percent of the cost–
shipping is free when you spend $50,
so not a problem there.

And yet.

I can’t do it.
It goes against the grain.
If I’m wearing something on my feet
that costs more than what I have
in my bank account
on a average day,
I just can’t justify it.
When clever knock-offs are the norm,
no one would believe
I’d splurged on the “real thing,”
even if I had.

I feel much the same way about pocketbooks.

Just point me to the discount rack.

~Elise Skidmore ©2016