Them's some weird shoes...

Over there on the right you'll see my latest pair of shoes, the beyond bizarre Vibram "Five Fingers" shoes. As you might have guessed, they're not called Five Fingers because I stole them -- as in "Five Finger Discount" -- but because each toe has its own little pocket, making these more like gloves for feet.

The "VFF" is designed to be as close as possible to walking barefoot... and that's why I decided to purchase such a goofy shoe. I've always loved walking barefoot, and would often take off my shoes and carry them just so I could walk around barefoot. On a hot summer day, I looked forward to getting home and taking off my shoes and socks so I could experience what I called "Happy Feet". Well, it turns out that there's actually some medical reasoning to walking barefoot beyond "it feels good".

The big problem with walking barefoot everywhere is it's typically viewed as "wrong". (Although, I have to say, having worn these around for a day, you'll get less stares walking just plain barefoot than you will in these arrest-me-red freak shoes) Then, there's also the problem of walking over very hot or sharp/irregular surfaces. So, that's where the shoes come in.

So, today, after buying them, I put several miles on them. They're interesting... they fit very close but not tight, so in that they are in very comfortable. The problem is, they feel like shoes, so I actually walk more like I have normal shoes on than I do when I walk barefoot, and that means more on my heels... so my heels hurt a little at the end of the day.

Still, they are very, very light, and work pretty well.

Update - I got a chance to do some very limited trail running with these shoes, and they were incredible! They protected my feet from the rocks and sticks on the trail, but since they were so light, I felt exceptionally light on my feet. (no, not light in my loafers!) I didn't go far (wasn't the time) but they worked really well and I hope to give that a try again.

Also, Grace has bought a pair (and not surprisingly, they look really cute on her, as opposed to absolutely goofy on me) and uses them often when she trains her clients.

I still go barefoot around the house most of the time, and in retrospect wish I'd bought a less obvious color scheme (like the all black "KSO") but they are a good shoe. I've even used them for working on the house, including standing on a slanted roof while we repainted the outside walls.

I'm not a flippin' speedbump, man!

Ok, if you're reading this, please just do me a favor. Think when you drive. That's all I ask. Walking to the train today I came within about a foot of getting hit by some person in an Infiniti G35 who just couldn't be bothered to actually stop at a stop sign, and either didn't bother to look for me or didn't bother to care. All I knew was I was crossing the road on my way to the train, and this car came zipping up Clinton, slowed a *little* at the stop sign, then hooked a left right at me in the crosswalk. I literally had to jump forward and was just missed by their mirror. I yelled, and they stopped just up the road, I guess maybe they were trying to figure out what the hell that was that "just jumped out" in front of them.

Who knows. All I know is it shouldn't be this fucking dangerous to cross the road at 6 in the morning. I mean, had they actually came to a stop at the stop sign, I'd have been all the way through by the time they went by. If they didn't get on the gas so hard after "stopping" I'd have been all the way through. Hey, I've been there, I know it's fun to go fast and I've driven a G35, I know it's fun to accelerate in one of those... but the simple fact of the matter is even at 220lb, I'm a bit out of my weight class against a car, and just a LITTLE bit of paying attention would go a really really long way to me being able to remain healthy.

Just please pay attention out there. It was too dark to see, but who of us would have been surprised if the driver was on the phone?