A Closet Full of Shoes

How did I not know that Shel Silverstein has a poem called "A Closet Full of Shoes?"  It must have been in the book I didn't have, but I found it today while wandering around looking at other stuff and now I share it with you:

Party shoes with frills and bows,
Workin’ shoes with steel toes,
Sneakers, flip-flops. And galoshes,
Brogans, oxfords, satin pumps,
Dancin’ taps and wooden clumps,
Shoes for climbin’ shoes for hikes,
Football cleats and baseball spikes,
Shoes of shiny patent leather,
Woolly shoes for winter weather,
Loafers, rough-outs, sandals, spats,
High heels, low heels, platforms, flats,
Moccasins and fins and flippers,
Shower clogs ballet slippers…
A zillion shoes and just one missin’--
That’s the one that matches this’n. 

It might not be my favorite of his, but I still love it, and it's about shoes, so of course I need to know it!  Now in honor of one of my favorite authors, I give you the poem visually (and with commentary):

Party shoes with frills and bows.  These are VERY froofy!  I think Fancy Nancy and Pinkalicious would approve.

Workin’ shoes with steel toes.  These might be the cutest steel toed shoes I've ever seen.

Sneakers, flip-flops. And galoshes.  Turquoise!

Brogans, oxfords, satin pumps.  I've heard the word brogan before, but never really thought about it or looked to see what kind of shoe it was.  So now I've learned something new!

Dancin’ taps and wooden clumps.  I don't actually know what wooden clumps are, but I figure wooden clogs make a clumping sound when you walk.

Shoes for climbin’ shoes for hikes.  I'm terrified of heights, but the green is pretty.  You know, for climbing walls not higher than 5 feet or so.  Love the hiking boots. 

Football cleats and baseball spikes. I like the colors.  That's about all I've got on these.

Shoes of shiny patent leather.  You know I love these.

Woolly shoes for winter weather.  So snuggly looking.

Loafers, rough-outs, sandals, spats.  Again, not sure what rough-outs are, but I thought worn-in cowboy boots seemed appropriate.  Also, I think spats are cool.  Weird, but cool.

High heels, low heels, platforms, flats.  I would wear all of these.  Of course, I'd only wear the platforms if I was really drunk and bowling, but hey, they're bright!

Moccasins and fins and flippers.  3 things I really never wear and don't have much desire for, despite the pretty colors.

Shower clogs ballet slippers.  Who wears clogs in the shower?  These were the closest I could find because trust me, you do NOT want to google the phrase "shower clogs," especially if you're like me and the sight of hair in the drain makes you gag...

I probably spent way more time on this post than I should have, but oh well, I need some entertainment in my day.  Especially today as I've felt yucky all day.  Just weird tummy issues, but I'd really rather be home in bed than at my desk.  Thankfully I have Shel Silverstein and shoes to help be through the yuck.

Memory Lane: 2013. 2014.

Anniversary

Sunday marked the 45th anniversary of the ordination of women in the predecessor churches of what became the Evangelical Church in America.  My Facebook timeline was full of stories celebrating this anniversary, including this cover from the Lutheran:

That picture was often placed alongside this, more recent, cover:

This is the first female presiding bishop of the ELCA, elected a couple of years ago.  At least it didn't take 50 years to happen?

So, what kind of red ordination shoes were around for the 1970s pastor?  Let's take a look!

I don't fully hate these, but I'm definitely not fond of the pattern.

These, on the other hand, I'm quite fond of.

These, too.  These are vintage 70s shoes evoking the style of vintage 20s shoes?

I feel like I should hate this more than I do.  It wouldn't be my first choice for an ordination shoe, though, that's for sure.

Whoa.  These certainly make a statement of some kind.  I have no idea what that statement is, though.

These are very similar to the 2nd pair, but in addition to being red t-straps, they are also suede and peep toe.  I'm thinking these are my choice for my imaginary 1970 ordination shoes.

It was fun on Sunday to see all of the posts on Facebook, but I didn't post anything myself, nor did I post here, because I had majorly mixed emotions.  I absolutely celebrate the women who forged the path for others to follow to become ordained.  I thank them for their work and their commitment.  But on a personal level I felt weird because they fought to give me the right to be ordained and now I'm not ordained any longer.  I'm still having a hard time putting my feelings into words, beyond the word "weird."  I feel weird.  Thank goodness SKD came over to  make snowmen or I probably would have spent the whole day crying instead of just part of the morning.  Overall, though, I am happy we have women pastors, so I will just focus on the amazing women I know who are pastors, thank the ones who helped to form my faith life, and be happy the anniversary gave me a chance to look up red shoes from the 70s.

Palm Sunday Birthday

Today is Palm Sunday, the beginning of Holy Week and the day when we celebrate Jesus' entry into Jerusalem.  I had really good intentions of going to church but woke up with the sinus headache from hell and stayed in bed instead.  Which stinks, because I enjoy  Palm Sunday.  Although, I'm not as fond of reading the passion on the same day.  I get it, lots of people don't go on Good Friday, so don't hear the Passion, but still.  I guess I'm a Palm Sunday purist.  Oh well, let's look at shoes:

Very Beachy, not so much Palm Sunday churchy, but I'd still wear them.

Shoes made out of Palms!  This is waaaaay more complicated than simply making a cross out of your palm.  Not quite as symbolic, though.

Also Beachy, but I really want a pair like this for next Palm Sunday.  I do love a theme!

Or these!  Although the above pair would show better under my alb if I'm back in the parish.

These are kind of tie-dyed looking palms.  But I love the colors.

Today is also extra special for another reason:  It's DJ's 18th birthday!  I can hardly believe it's been 18 years since this little bundle of energy came into our lives.  She's about to graduate high school and go into the navy.  She wants to be a nurse.  She's currently taking EMT classes.  She's amazing.  Since she was born in 1997, here are some shoes from that year:

Ahhh...clunky platforms.  Not palms, but plant related.

Whoa.  And damn.

Doc Martens.  I never owned a pair, but man were they popular.

Stripes, good.  Rainbow colors, awesome.  Platforms this crazy, well, crazy.

This is the exact shoe I wore for a good chunk of 1997.  This or hiking boots.  I did have some dress shoes, but I wasn't going through much of a shoe craze at that time.

DJ, of course, spent 1997 in adorable baby shoes, and being adorable in general.  Happy Birthday, oldest niece!  Love you to the moon and back!

Cinderella

This link was shared on my Facebook wall today. It's Cinderella's glass slipper as reimagined by modern designers. As I wrote on the post, I really like the idea, but not so sure about the actual shoes. Let's take a look:

This one isn't bad, actually. I like the sparkles.

This doesn't make me think glass slipper. It does make me think OUCH!

Speaking of ouch, I'd probably slice myself or someone else open with this.  Not exactly the stuff of Disney fairy tales. Brothers Grimm, yes.

Glass spectator pumps?

I think this person got confused and designed Cinderella's wedding shoes instead of her glass slippers.

Don't like the heel, really don't like the platform.

Blue! Sparkly! Ankle strap! It was going so well until the front.

Oh come on, a glass bootie? Seriously?

So what do you think, any of these Cinderella-worthy?

Let's Play Catch (up)

I know, I know.  But I got a sinus infection and slept a lot, went to the dr on Tuesday so I could get antibiotics before I flew home on Wednesday.  The flights actually went fairly well thanks to the antibiotics, sinus Tylenol, gum, orange juice, and plane sleeping.  So then I got to snuggle with my hubby, and get the world's most fabulous welcome home from the puppies.  We were pretty exciting on New Year's and went to bed at 9:30.  At any rate, I haven't posted in awhile.  When I got home  I had 6 weeks (can you believe I was gone for SIX weeks??) of the shoe calendar to go through.  Here are a few pages for you:

Not sure about the parents, but I like the shoe on the day of their anniversary.  It kind of reminds me of a dress my mom got to wear  in another wedding (this time when she was a flower girl) that was shimmery gold and pink.

I have no idea what this has to do with Thanksgiving.  I'm not sure the auntie would appreciate it for her birthday, either.  Although I guess it would probably keep your ankles warm on a cold November day?

 

These 2 are...interesting?  And by interesting I mean oh hell no.

I like these.  I think they would have been perfect for my Christmas lights post.  They aren't Christmas lights,  but they could be with a little imagination,

Another for the oh hell no category.

December 15th is my uncle's birthday.  I wonder if he would like these?  (heehee)

Do these say Silent Night to you?  Because they aren't really working for me for Christmas Eve.

This I can see for Christmas, though.  It's like a present with a fancy bow.

Ohhh...so THIS is what I should do with all of my old cassette tapes!

And finally, New Year's Eve.  It's shiny and sparkly, so that works, but It's not doing much for me really.  I don't think I need these for my next New Year's Eve party, thank you.

The end of another calendar.  When I got home the hubby was shocked I didn't have one for this year and kind of insisted I order one.  It came today (Sunday delivery?!).  We'll have to examine some shoes from the new one soon.

In other news, the hubby and I went to our friends J&S's house today to watch the Cowboys-Lions game.  I was watching football AND wearing a Cowboys sweatshirt.  Damn, am I a good wife or what?  I even (kind of) paid attention!

OH!  One more thing:  December 30th was my second blogiversary!  Apparently the calendar knows it's my anniversary:

Blue!  I don't need the fuzzy, but Blue!  And it was blue last year, too!  I approve.  Now let's go eat some chocolate to celebrate.