They fit!

Much like a more ungainly version of the ‘Cinderella’ story, where the footwear in question is a pair of chunky walking boots rather than a dainty glass slipper, the outcome is a happy one. OK, my new Karrimors (Pair no.2) won’t grant me entrance to a ball (not that I plan on going to a ball…) - but I SHALL go trekking! (Well, providing Swine Flu hasn’t made life as we know it impossible in the interim, of course!)

Sadly the rather fantastic deal I landed a few weeks ago on Pair no.1 turned to colossal disappointment on discovering a manufacturing fault on the inside of the left boot. Merely strolling across my local park found the protrusion in the lining (seemingly caused by the back of one of the metal lacing-hooks sticking out) trying to gouge a painful crater in the front of my ankle.

Disappointed? Damn right I was! The footwear in question was already reduced from 90 quid to 45. Then, spotting a very junior assistant on the till of the shop (that shall remain nameless), I thought I’d try my luck with an additional 10 percent discount awarded to employees of the company I work for. I expected to be told I wouldn’t be able to get a discount on a sale item – but I wasn’t. So I left the shop with a bounce in my step, feeling rather pleased with myself for acquiring such a bargain.

Needless to say, discovering I’d then have to take them back (by which time they were no longer the ‘offer of the week’) left me feeling extremely peeved! Maybe it served me right for being cheeky…

So when I snapped up Pair no.2 (still a good deal, but not quite as cheap as Pair no.1), I was delighted to find, following another stroll across my local park, that they fit so well they wouldn’t even need breaking in! Not only was that quite astonishing, but also rather handy, particularly when you’re pushed for time. Like I was last year...

It was just before a trip to Borneo that I decided I’d HAVE to buy some jungle boots. I’d previously been hoping that my Goretex walking ones would suffice, but reading up on jungle trekking suggested they’d retain any water that entered the boots and give me trench foot. (See what I meant last time about never having enough gear?!)

So, returning home from Nomad with a pair of jungle boots, safe in the knowledge that my feet now wouldn’t rot and drop off, I realised that the time I had available to break them in was somewhat limited. There was only one solution to the problem: I’d have to wear them to work. So I did.

Not often do people wear jungle boots to the office. But then I’ve never been one to follow conventions. And it wasn’t like I was stupid enough to wear them with a skirt or anything. Besides, they wouldn’t really notice under a pair of black trousers, would they? Well, true, they didn’t stand out a mile; but they did make me walk in a somewhat heavy fashion. And more than once, as I strode across the Sales floor, I heard people sniggering about the Terminator.

Resisting the urge to go and terminate them, I still felt a little smug. After all, I was going to Borneo. They weren’t. Who was laughing now?

Alas, seeing as not even I am unconventional/ foolish/ brave enough to team chunky, khaki-coloured walking boots with smart black trousers and march through the Sales department – combined with the very slim possibility of any Prince Charming scouring the land for the owner of a chunky khaki-coloured walking boot should one happen to fall off as I flee the building at 5pm - I can now breathe a sigh of relief for multiple reasons!

http://twitter.com/MetalJo