(no subject)
Apr. 24th, 2009 03:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
janradderEvery now and then, I think about those things in shoe stores that are used to measure feet. I really have no idea why, but I kind of miss them.
I remember going to Shoe Town when I was a kid, in Waterbury, and my sister and I would pull off our shoes and then sit in one of the chairs with our mother, waiting for a salesman to come by. Soon, he'd be there, carrying his foot-measuring tool, and he'd slid up a stool in front of us that had a little foot rest for us to put one of our feet on so he could help put the shoe on and lace it up. He'd lay the measuring tool down on the floor and have us stand on it. I still remember the cool feeling of the metal through my sock. Then, the salesman would slide a few dials and knobs to get the exact length and width of our shoe and, even though my feet were unbearably ticklish, it was an almost delicious sensation.
With the correct size determined, the salesman would speed off to the backroom and return with an assortment of shoes for us to try. After he'd lace them up for us, we'd stand and he'd check to see how much room was in the toe and then we'd walk around the store, up and down an aisle, to see how it fit. Once we'd gotten the shoe we wanted, we'd either wear them home or the salesman would box them back up for us.
There was something soothing and pleasant about the whole experience and I always looked forward to getting new shoes. Maybe it was just the fact that I was being waited on -- that someone else was putting my shoes on for me and even tying them up. Regardless, I really liked getting new shoes.
There's an old-fashioned shoe store a few blocks away from us where I can get an inexpensive pair of high tops. I usually go there every year or year and a half for a new one. The store is populated by old shoe salesmen, most of them in their seventies, and they sit around on chairs, waiting for a customer. There's an area over in the corner where you can try the shoes on and they even have those measuring tools. But, being an adult, I always know my size and there's little to no chance of it ever changing, so there's never a reason to get my feet measured. Still, sometimes I think maybe I should go in one of these days and pretend I've forgotten.
I remember going to Shoe Town when I was a kid, in Waterbury, and my sister and I would pull off our shoes and then sit in one of the chairs with our mother, waiting for a salesman to come by. Soon, he'd be there, carrying his foot-measuring tool, and he'd slid up a stool in front of us that had a little foot rest for us to put one of our feet on so he could help put the shoe on and lace it up. He'd lay the measuring tool down on the floor and have us stand on it. I still remember the cool feeling of the metal through my sock. Then, the salesman would slide a few dials and knobs to get the exact length and width of our shoe and, even though my feet were unbearably ticklish, it was an almost delicious sensation.
With the correct size determined, the salesman would speed off to the backroom and return with an assortment of shoes for us to try. After he'd lace them up for us, we'd stand and he'd check to see how much room was in the toe and then we'd walk around the store, up and down an aisle, to see how it fit. Once we'd gotten the shoe we wanted, we'd either wear them home or the salesman would box them back up for us.
There was something soothing and pleasant about the whole experience and I always looked forward to getting new shoes. Maybe it was just the fact that I was being waited on -- that someone else was putting my shoes on for me and even tying them up. Regardless, I really liked getting new shoes.
There's an old-fashioned shoe store a few blocks away from us where I can get an inexpensive pair of high tops. I usually go there every year or year and a half for a new one. The store is populated by old shoe salesmen, most of them in their seventies, and they sit around on chairs, waiting for a customer. There's an area over in the corner where you can try the shoes on and they even have those measuring tools. But, being an adult, I always know my size and there's little to no chance of it ever changing, so there's never a reason to get my feet measured. Still, sometimes I think maybe I should go in one of these days and pretend I've forgotten.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2009-04-29 11:35 pm (UTC)