Friday, July 01, 2005
Shoes (as an indicator of one's mindset)
I write off my weakness for shoes by blaming it on the genes. When my father slipped away, we were cleaning out some of his life’s accumulations and found shoes. Not some shoes, lots of shoes. Shoes still wrapped in tissue paper in boxes. Bottoms un-scuffed, just waiting to be worn on one of his neighborhood perambulations. I have a weaker strain of that mania while his grandson has the full blown version, to the point that he transports his shoes from home to college and back in their original boxes. I’ve seen that logistics thing before so I smile and shake my head.For me, the simplification of morning rituals is not only comforting but necessary. I maximize pillow time, so going from fully relaxed and prone in bed to shaved, showered, caffeinated, and behind the wheel is a matter of 20 minutes, max. Anything that will decrease that 20 minutes thereby increasing the pillow time is a welcome addition to the morning ritual. Long ago, I figured out that work clothes should be painless and automatic. No need to fluff one’s peacock feathers in the office; chameleon dress was the most appropriate. To this end, only 2 colors of socks and 2 colors of shoes were necessary. Brown & Black. Only 2 styles of shoes were necessary (yes, I could have gone with 1, but that mania thing I mentioned…well, you do have to feed it, if only minimally). Putting on brown socks triggers putting on brown shoes. Dressing without Thinking. Perfect. Well, almost. If I could put on a khaki colored jumpsuit..? That would be perfect.
It’s been a week, it has. Last Thursday marked the beginning of the Summer College Tour. With the Youngest.
The Always-Amazing daughter.
The one who can major in anything she wants.
Succeed in any college she attended.
The one that my ever-loving wife says could learn from a stone.
Ever capable.
Ever sweet.
Ever un-sure.
We spent a 4 day weekend racking up 2,200 miles traversing the states of Pennsylvania and Ohio in search of the Perfect Fit. Student-led college tours in various colleges resulted in potential choices and general conclusions and specific inquires.
General Conclusions & Specific Inquiries
1) My ever-loving wife and I will be working until we stop to rest in our coffins to pay off college loans.
2) Why hadn’t we moved to Europe years ago to take advantage of free college education? If not Europe, Canada. The cold keeps the whiners out, the people are witty and self-deprecating, and the colleges are top-notch.
3) !!! Possible Racial Slur Alert !!! African-American students at every college we visited were the best-dressed students. No contest. I found myself averting my eyes each time a pasty Caucasian gave the tour. Didn’t want to look at their t-shirts hanging out under a wrinkly suspiciously colored shirt combined with shorts of undeterminable age and sandals/Birkys revealing un-manicured (and un-washed) toes. I apologize here; presentation is big for me. Ironing and washing are skills every high school kid, not to mention college kids, should have. That, and bow-hunting skills.
4) The best college is the college just visited.
5) There is no worst college, only a non-descript one.
6) Pittsburgh is an under-rated, interesting, and gorgeous city.
7) Every street, road, freeway, and alley is under construction or repair in Pennsylvania. Oh yeah, sidewalks too.
8) I am the subject of an Anthropology course conducted by my ever-loving wife and always-amazing daughter. Or is it a Biology course? I’ll find out which if they start dissecting me. They’ve noticed, among other quirks, that I start humming when signs warning of road construction loom up 5 miles before the worksites.
9) Carnegie-Mellon University LOVES concrete. Not just a little.
10) Did I mention Pittsburgh is a lovely place?
Upon our return, work happened the next day. Where I discovered that 2 day’s absence resulted in 5 days of additional work. I’m still working out the geometric progression on that one. But, it is Friday and a 3 day weekend of rest (NO DRIVING ANYWHERE!!) is welcome.
And needed. How do I know?
I’m looking at my feet. I have brown shoes on.
Two different brown shoes.
One has a buckle.
One does not.
I’m scooting them under the desk and pulling my pants down as low as they can go before I feel an urge to start rapping. Have to cover the shoes. I have to work on my Dressing without Thinking algorithm this weekend.
Comments:
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Excellent blog with cute pics...We can easily observe someone's mind set by their shoes...Great people wears only Carolina shoes......
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