Shoes

Last weekend, I finally had to admit it: my favorite old leather sandals are kaput. Done for. Rolled up the curtain and joined the choir invisible.

I bought these sandals when we first moved to Jay, and I wore them every summer. I wore them throughout the summer when I was pregnant with Colden. I wore them to Texas numerous times, to Bead Fest Philly when I taught there, and to California. I've worn them out in the boat and the canoe, and I've worn them for trekking around New York City, shopping for beads.

I think I only paid around twenty bucks for them, so you can say I've gotten my money's worth. Only problem is that now that I know I have to replace them, I can't find anything as well-made in a similar style. Do a search for women's sandals on Amazon or Zappos, and all I get are these sky-high platform crappy sandals that look more suited for a ten minute strut on the catwalk than a walk in the woods.

However. Last fall, I bought a pair of Merrells loafers from a store up in Malone, and I am absolutely in love with them. I did a little search on the Merrells website and found these beauties:

And while they're a little sportier than I'd like, I think they'll work just fine. Not sure if I'll be able to just slip into them the way I could slip into my old pair.

When I told Tom that I wanted to replace my old sandals with a pair of Merrells, he said, "Expensive. Those are top-of-the-line, you know." Of course, I know they're top-of-the-line. I'm sure if I spent another twenty bucks on a pair of sandals, I'm most likely not going to get the same kind of mileage out of them. So I'd rather spend a little extra money and have a pair that I can rely on, year after year.

Wonder what new adventures my new sandals will have in store for me...?