Thank you so much for taking the time to post it! I am a barefooter and like yourself wear shoes only occasionally.

Sadly, I live in a northern country and am required by self-serving, prejudice social morals to wear shoes in cold weather.

You are in…

Trouble is, recycling glass is going down the gurgler.

Anybbody got positive suggestions here?

(Local recycle centres here in faroff neverneverland are under deep…

That's a bit extreme for me, though useful perhaps for demonstrating to OSH/shoe police in cinemas that my going barefoot in their cinema is not really going to cause a problem. (Though I have to say I have had major…

There might also be a strong cultural component, that a result of our Polynesian, british aristocratic blacksheeps partnerships.

I'm sure that Steven is correct, that the acceptance of barefooting in society in New Zealand is the result of the interplay between cultural, and geographic influences.

shoelessness is more predominant in…

Am I loading too much on to my geographic argument?

No, I don't think so. That lack of dangerous wildlife thing is a factor (I spent a couple of summers in Oz as a kid) and also it almost never gets too hot to not wear shoes in summer. I've…

I wanted to write a little more of the barefoot theme which was at the heart of Emma's original entry.

Whilst I went through schooling – primary, secondary and tertiary as an occasional barefooter,…

You can stay. Mental masticators, eh?

I did fly at the end of November, and caved and just had sandals in my luggage to slip on. Yesterday I couldn't walk on the footpath because it was too damn hot, and melted tar is a bitch to wash off. I…

I venture gently into two oh oh nine
walking unshod alongside the railway line
the train is coming for me
to take me to the city
for a lunchtime conversation
and some mental mastication
where not one…

Does the first registration of the new year count as a traditional first footer? And what would be the internet equivalent of the gifts?

I'm quite happy not to spend all my time looking to the simple pleasure of the past with L&P-tinted spectacles, but to enjoy the complex pleasures of adulthood, such as Martinis, sex, bespoke suits, coffee, dancing until dawn and wearing really, really elegant shoes.

Yeah, but one of the complex pleasures…

I had a couple of old ladies incapable of understanding I hadn't been robbed, and a curious policeman who was too curious.

Avoid America.

Done.

The worst pasting I ever took for having bare feet was from an American woman, she was genuinely deeply disgusted. I try to be calm and adamant, but y'know... I'll be flying a few times in the next few months, and I probably will chicken out and…

Avoid America.

I've been tossed out of restaurants in Indiana and Colorado for having bare feet – the first time as part of the culture shock of living there, the second when I was back in the states on holiday and had forgotten – and each time the manager…

Preferably all at once, Tom?

Don't be silly, Megan! One would spill one's Martini.

...but to enjoy the complex pleasures of adulthood, such as Martinis, sex, bespoke suits, coffee, dancing until dawn and wearing really, really elegant shoes.

Preferably all at once, Tom?

I am still working on a list of shoes a well shod woman needs. I'll be a while.

Onehunga weed.

And the memories come flooding back ... that probably explains a lot about why I like shoues, and don't like grass. It was everywhere in ChCh in the 80s.

Ok, I may be romanticising my childhood slightly.

I think that's the nub of it. So much of the…

Heh, I stubbed my toe the other day. That hurts! I really don't remember it hurting that much when I was a kid.

Banging your little toe on something, like a table leg as you walk past, is the most painful thing I've experienced (and I have a tattoo on…

Heh, I stubbed my toe the other day. That hurts! I really don't remember it hurting that much when I was a kid.

You know what else really hurts? Bee stings! Yow!

It's not that I don't remember it hurting, more that I'd come to assume that it was because…

Ok, I may be romanticising my childhood slightly.

Heh, I stubbed my toe the other day. That hurts! I really don't remember it hurting that much when I was a kid.

Being as I am in the US now I get interesting looks when I fire up the chainsaw wearing jandals. I have to explain (slowly and carefully) the concept of Samoan safety shoes... I…

Onehunga weed.

Ew, gross feet!

The thing was, i didn't mind the prickle, because it was such a nostalgic feeling of wandering on the grass, in hot christchurch summers, back when I used to come home with feet that were black from the tar on the road.

Ok, I may…

About a year ago, I went to Christchurch, and walked barefoot on my parent's backyard. I immediately got a prickle, and couldn't remember when the last time that had happened was.

Onehunga weed. I hate that stuff so bad. It used to be really uncommon down here when I first…

I think there's a Hans Christian Anderson story about that sort of thing...

There is

I don't want to admit how many shoes I own, but it is probably safe to assume I am going to need a podiatrists/orthopedic surgeon's help in my future.

About a year ago, I went…

which featured a story where a girl was digging her garden in bare feet, and put a fork through her foot.

Ha. I managed to put a garden fork right through my boot and pin it to the ground as a young lad. Luckily it went between my big toe…

it's christie innit!! bet he's the guy with the unicorn on his heel.

Ah, this has the makings of a fun game.

Yeah, see I was totally gonna guess dolphins

it's christie innit!! bet he's the guy with the unicorn on his heel.

Ah, this has the makings of a fun game.

You counting me? If so, who's the fourth?

Yes, and I dunno if I'm allowed to say.

it's christie innit!! bet he's the guy with the unicorn on his heel.

If you love her, don't encourage it!

She can do what she likes, and really i'd be hard pressed to stop her dancing.

couldn't walk in them, but dammit, I was sexy when I wore them. Yeah, right.

You know what, you would've been. They* did a study a few…

And. of course, a heavy padded jacket, with armour, pants ditto, a helmet, and armoured gloves. Getting kitted up to ride is akin to a knight preparing for battle.

– they're like my hands -…

By the way she did a post about how high your heels should be based on your height

My ex-stepdaughter is 6'2", and while most of the time she wears sensible flats, on special occasions she'll wear 4" heels. The results are spectacular to say the least.

By the way she did a post about how high your heels should be based on your height

I used to know a woman the same height as me – just over six foot – but who insisted on wearing huge high heels (and large buckles on those shoes).

She…

You counting me? If so, who's the fourth?

Yes, and I dunno if I'm allowed to say.

By the way she did a post about how high your heels should be based on your height

One of my problems with judging heel height (for boots, of course) is that I…

And that takes us to four! Four glorious PA writers* with tattoos. That I know of...

You counting me? If so, who's the fourth?

By the way collarbones and the elbow (outside and inside) super-frickin-painful! But my tattooist reliably says feet are the most painful (oh and she's a she).…

I like shoes, hate wearing them

What do you like them for then? Wall ornaments?

I like shoes, hate wearing them – and discovered one can get too many beestings and develop allergy symptoms – racing heart, sweats, nausea…

Once I tried wearing a nice pair of high-heeled lady shoes. My big toe ended up turning bruised and black and the nail fell off.

This seemed rather unladylike.

I occasionally hang round on a Kiwi wedding forum (because sometimes the only other people who will tolerate your whining/glee are…

And I wish I had the balls to wear a cravat

cravats. ur doin it wrong.

Yes, try tying it at the other end.

I like nothing better than feeling the grass under my feet & the sand between my toes. Supermarket vinyl is lovely & cool on barefeet in summer, after walking there on th ehot pavement.

Beach 4 Square Shops. The refridgerator on permanent hum. Feet flopping in across the worn lino floor, the…

This seemed rather unladylike.

But I do have troublesome feet (high arch, short, wide). I'm lucky if I can find a pair that fit and…

And I wish I had the balls to wear a cravat

cravats. ur doin it wrong.

taking my skateboard into movie theatres

Maybe they feared you would take rolling JAFAs down the aisle to another level.. :)

And I wish I had the balls to wear a cravat, or a cravat for that matter.

Well, like, duh!

Assuming that anyone other than a Zambesi mannequin would actually wear such an ensemble, of course.

But while a pair of Loake brogues will look the business (in many senses) when paired with a pinstriped Zegna suit, they would be somewhat out of place when worn with an open-necked black muslin shirt untucked beneath a three-piece acid-washed denim suit.

Well, like, duh!

with a straight face

You're making a big assumption.

But while a pair of Loake brogues will look the business (in many senses) when paired with a pinstriped Zegna suit, they would be somewhat out of place when worn with an open-necked black muslin shirt untucked beneath a three-piece acid-washed…

one doesn't want to look like a corporate drone when going to a gallery opening dressed in Zambesi

with a straight face.

Feet, people, feet.

And tattoos. But only if they are on the feet.

I believe that Tom may be what we used to call a 'dandy'! Capital.

I am merely what we used to, in more enlightened times, call a 'gentleman'. It is only in these troubled times, when we are overrun by besneakered oafs, that a chap with a modicum of dress…

I believe that Tom may be what we used to call a 'dandy'! Capital.

i've often thought that tom was born a century out of synch.

I have a strict '2 pairs max' policy

That's craaaaazy (and expensive?)

Surely there are a few basics that any proper gentleman should have:

– black dress shoes or boots
– a second pair of black dress shoes (because you shouldn't wear the same pair two days in a row)
– brown dress shoes (the old strictures against…

The standard wasn't high and they quickly became known as tire-treads.

which would be painful, because along the spine was *agony*.

*blushes* and the spine.

And that takes us to four! Four glorious PA writers* with tattoos. That I know of...

Anyway. Tattoos next week. Feet, people, feet.

*Once a PA writer, etc.

On the feet is one of the most painful places to get a tattoo

which would be painful, because along the spine was *agony*.

but to answer michael's question. the only person i know with a foot tattoo is a woman. so there's 100% from a representative sample.

I tried once in Lombok but they told me only girls did that.

On the feet is one of the most painful places to get a tattoo, like hands and neck. You catch me in the middle of ghost-writing a tattooing e-book. I'm actually planning next week's column to be…

I've always had a hankering...

I tried once in Lombok but they told me only girls did that.

It's totally true. I can't even vacuum the house unless I put on shoes first. :)

dude, that's a level of weird i'm not prepared to accept. i'm going to suggest to your other half she hide or your shoes and muss the place up to see if it'll drive…

Check: I've had to sign a waiver or two in my time; one particular cinema flatly refused to let me in and the manager wasn't available to discuss the matter.

I also discovered this upon trying to enter an aeroplane a number of years back. Luckily purchasing a pair of…

or me not wanting to do things if barefoot?

that bit.

Lauredhel Hoyden's Shoes / Not Shoes post seems apropos.

that's scary. Some of those shoes, I would wager, go against the Geneva Convention.Or something. I don't know if there is any correlation between my having ugly feet that don't…

I've also had…

How many pairs of pants do you own? :)

I wash my pants way more often than I wash my shoes.

I have a graduated scale with my shoes.

1. New and fairly tidy, good to wear to work, out for dinner etc.
2. Starting to get a bit rough,…

I just don't get the need for mountains of shoes...you can only wear one pair at a time!

How many pairs of pants do you own? :)

Now Hadyn, that can't be true

My owning heaps of shoes or me not wanting to do things if barefoot?

It's totally true.…

2nd hand shoes? Ewwwww...

Think of them as well-priced loot from the battlefield of life.

Such freedom brings risk of course.

I used to work for DOC and once had the pleasure of doing some hut maintenance at Masons Bay on Stewart Island. After hours we used to build a driftwood bonfire and frolic on the beach…

Women's feet always smell like flowers

Hahaha judging by personal experience there must be some pretty...ummm, how to put this nicely...fragrant flowers around!

2nd hand shoes? Ewwwww...

Women's feet always smell like flowers. It's genetic.

50 pairs? That's craaaaazy (and expensive?)

Crazy it may well be, but expensive it is not. I am also a secondhand and sales-hound. My last pair of shoes cost $10!

(It should be noted that a lot of my shoes are vintage and aren't actually worn very much. I just…

1. When my kids were much younger we had friends visiting, one was from England and he visibly winced at our kids running up and down our gravel drive in bare feet. He couldn't believe that they could do it.

2. In Spain earlier this year. Shoeless is…

I just don't get the need for mountains of shoes...you can only wear one pair at a time! I have a strict '2 pairs max' policy; one pair for work/formal…

Of course a certain amount of flexibility is required.

I counted once, and I have over fifty pairs of shoes. Do I get pelted with old jandals for even venturing into this thread?

I have to admit I can't even picture what this looks like. I'm basically a hedonist, so I have no problems with taking pleasure from having…

I counted once, and I have over fifty pairs of shoes. Do I get pelted with old jandals for even venturing into this thread?

I have a vast array of sneakers at home and I love shoes. For some reason if I'm barefoot I can't get anything done. I'll just…

and yup, driving without shoes is one of lifes little pleasures. especially the prickly walk from the forecourt to the counter across the…

I really enjoy driving barefoot too.

Just reading that sentence brings back delicious memories of summer camping holidays. Driving in jandals comes a poor second, and of course is dangerous to boot (ooh, dontcha love subconscious puns?).

And once I even managed to raise eyebrows in that other haven of the bare sole, Hawaii, by doing an eighteen mile…

I recently read an article about a new movement of shoelessness. there's the idea that shoes stop the foot from naturally flexing as we walk, which can cause various problems with feet, legs, spine. While in…

I do, however, wear shoes whenever i leave the…

(I am, however, pro-bare-feet in general. It's one of the great delights of living in New Zealand, and a visit to the beach with shoes on…

They're broad and flat and peasanty, and I don't care.

Mine too, and neither do I... except when it comes to buying shoes.

If you'd have been David Haywood your barefootedness would no doubt have been the cause for a sever beating. Lucky for you, eh?

I'm starting to wonder what didn't get Haywood beaten up. It's a wonder he's as normal as he is.

I'm very careful about my inflight foot and…

I've worn Birkenstocky-like things for 30 years, barefoot round the house – my feet smelled so foul as a kid,…

Hamish Keith tells the story of having to find shoes for the potter Barry Brickell when he went to Government House to receive an honour. Brickell's feet were so broad from years of going shoeless that all they could find to fit him…

Part of our routine was to 'excitedly' welcome the kids as they exited their bus. This generally led to…

Luckily she got over it…