Shoes: A Foundation of Fit, Form and Function

As a result of being in the fashion business for twenty years, I've fallen into a habit of creating metaphors for clothes that relate to life. I've given quite a lot of thought to shoes.

Shoes are the foundation of life, the things that connect you to the earth. If you invest too much in how they look and don't pay close attention to the fit and feel, you could cripple yourself in the future. You could make walking on this earth a painful experience.

I used to think shoes and men had a lot in common, if you invest too much in how they appear to the eye and don't pay close attention to how they fit and feel, you can cripple yourself for years to come and make life more painful than is really necessary. But my understanding of my relationship to men has changed. Men are no longer the foundation of my life.

I kind of wish they were because I found it very romantic to think a man would come along and give me the foundation I have always craved. But it's too risky. If I am not the foundation of my life, then I have no strong base until a man comes along and gives it to me. That just doesn't fit.

So when I look at shoes now, I look for fit, feel, comfort, style, sexiness, heel height. How high will I stand? How long do I have to wear them? Will they look good when I enter the room and how long will I have to walk around with them? Are these shoes going to make me feel sexy, stable, sophisticated, fashionable?

Okay, I guess shoes still remind me of men.