It was a great weekend. While I didn't achieve being barefoot for the whole weekend, I did spend most of the weekend without shoes. My previous post discussed my successful hike. While not of epic proportions, it was still a first for me and I was definitely encouraged by the success.
The remainder of Saturday was spend without shoes, except for a short trip to the grocery store where they have requested I wear shoes. The hardware store was a much more positive experience. When I told the owner what I needed he suggested I wait there since there might be glass on the floor in the back. The part I needed was behind where they repair screens and windows, so his concern was genuine. Putting people's perceptions that that the city streets are fill with broken glass, I told him I walk on the city streets all the time. He asked if I also walked on fire as well and I responded that his parking lot was pretty close. (The parking lot was recently paved so it a nice deep black and was hot.) The owner told me he know of a customer that went everywhere barefoot and to the dismay of his wife, even a wedding. So Leblanc's Hardware in Manchester, NH is certified barefoot friendly. Yes I did follow the owner our back and we got the parts I needed.
Sunday, I arrived at church and dropped everyone off at the front door and then found my parking sport. I was half way to the front door when I realized I had left my shoes in the vehicle. I wear shoes at church on Sunday morning mostly out of respect for my mother, who does not wholly embrace my bare footedness. The rest of the day was spent without shoes and even in church my shoes were off most of the time I was sitting or standing in the pew.
Monday, was almost another 100% barefooted day. I visited Wal-Mart in the morning without a single comment by the employees. Upon my return to Wal-Mart for my cell phone which I has somehow left behind I was told I needed to wear shoes. It then dawned on me that Wal-Mart does probably not tell it's employees to kick shoppers our that are barefooted, but rather the employee takes it upon themselves to enforce what they believe is the law or what is socially acceptable. This employee was concerned I would get hurt and I said I hike and do most things barefooted. She was not impressed, but the gentlemen in front of me in line were. I did have to pick up a few groceries for supper, so returned with shoes in had to shop at the nearby Price Rite.
Overall a great week.
Tuesday, May 31, 2016
Sunday, May 29, 2016
Challenges of Hiking with Toddler
Saturday I went on another barefoot hike. This time a proper hiking trail through the woods. I was pretty excited to give my feet a test drive on the trail. For this trip I brought three kids with me, my daughter age 11, and two foster boys ages 8 and 3.
My first few steps on the trail were surprisingly soft. I could feel the ground give beneath my feet, even more so than a carpet. I eventually did encounter roots and rocks, but nothing that was too difficult for my bare feet to handle. The most challenging aspect of the hike was where to put my feet. In the past with boots, I had a lot more options on the placement of my feet and now I have to take a bit more care. To make matters even more challenging, I was holding he hand of the three year old who was constantly tripping and falling. Pretty typical for a toddler, since he even falls crossing the kitchen floor. So I tried to steer him onto the best path for his feet, which left me with a less ideal option.
Now add challenge number two, the toddler is not always predictable and will often choose the more difficult of the options in front on him. So he takes the spot where I planned to step and now I need to reroute my steps into even less desirable options. And when he did slip and fall his leg or body was often laying right in front of me, causing me to abort whatever step I had planned and take evasive action.
To me the trail is easy to follow and any person with half a brain should be able to stay on the trail. How difficult could that be. Well, I guess dirt, stones, wood, leaves, pine needles look nothing like a path to a toddler. Especially when they have been taught to stay on the sidewalk walk or paved path. Now I'm telling him to stay on the trail, he is probably thinking, "What trail!". At one point we came to a fairly straight section of trail, that was all swept out and only the bare earth showing. I let go of his hand and told him to follow the path. He immediately veers off the path and steps off the path down the bank onto the loose debris on the side of the path and falls. I pick him up and tell him just walk down the path, and then had to straighten him out several times before he managed to walk on the path.
On the way down, another challenge is as the toddler stumbles down the trail holding onto my hand, I am required to be slightly bent over, since he is usually slightly in front of me on the downhill side of the trail. Then as he lurches this way and that his 50 pound body is constantly tugging me in unexpected directions. Once again I need to change where I plan to place my feet, due to the influence his little body has on my center of gravity. It didn't take long for my back to feel the effects of holding onto the toddlers hand.
Probably one of the best parts of the day was early on in the hike, my daughter decided to join me in being barefoot and asked if I had room in my pack for her shoes. We also saw a handful of people hiking the trail and no one commented at all on our bare feet. The hike was a success and I'm already planning another hike, a bit longer this time, without the toddler though.
My first few steps on the trail were surprisingly soft. I could feel the ground give beneath my feet, even more so than a carpet. I eventually did encounter roots and rocks, but nothing that was too difficult for my bare feet to handle. The most challenging aspect of the hike was where to put my feet. In the past with boots, I had a lot more options on the placement of my feet and now I have to take a bit more care. To make matters even more challenging, I was holding he hand of the three year old who was constantly tripping and falling. Pretty typical for a toddler, since he even falls crossing the kitchen floor. So I tried to steer him onto the best path for his feet, which left me with a less ideal option.
Now add challenge number two, the toddler is not always predictable and will often choose the more difficult of the options in front on him. So he takes the spot where I planned to step and now I need to reroute my steps into even less desirable options. And when he did slip and fall his leg or body was often laying right in front of me, causing me to abort whatever step I had planned and take evasive action.
To me the trail is easy to follow and any person with half a brain should be able to stay on the trail. How difficult could that be. Well, I guess dirt, stones, wood, leaves, pine needles look nothing like a path to a toddler. Especially when they have been taught to stay on the sidewalk walk or paved path. Now I'm telling him to stay on the trail, he is probably thinking, "What trail!". At one point we came to a fairly straight section of trail, that was all swept out and only the bare earth showing. I let go of his hand and told him to follow the path. He immediately veers off the path and steps off the path down the bank onto the loose debris on the side of the path and falls. I pick him up and tell him just walk down the path, and then had to straighten him out several times before he managed to walk on the path.
On the way down, another challenge is as the toddler stumbles down the trail holding onto my hand, I am required to be slightly bent over, since he is usually slightly in front of me on the downhill side of the trail. Then as he lurches this way and that his 50 pound body is constantly tugging me in unexpected directions. Once again I need to change where I plan to place my feet, due to the influence his little body has on my center of gravity. It didn't take long for my back to feel the effects of holding onto the toddlers hand.
Probably one of the best parts of the day was early on in the hike, my daughter decided to join me in being barefoot and asked if I had room in my pack for her shoes. We also saw a handful of people hiking the trail and no one commented at all on our bare feet. The hike was a success and I'm already planning another hike, a bit longer this time, without the toddler though.
Sunday, May 22, 2016
Shoeless Weekend - Day Two Saturday
Saturday rolls around and I roll out of bed and head out the door shoeless once again. It is much easier this time, I had no worries about being harassed. I packed up all my stuff and brought it out to my vehicle. Then spent the morning indoors attending different sessions.
At noon the convention ended and I was ready to drive the three hours home. My first stop was the bathrooms. This definitely made me do some thinking. I had to go and my shoes were in the vehicle out in the lower parking lot. I already had been shoeless for around 42 hours and the two day mark was fast approaching. So with a little hesitation I headed into the men's room and almost walked back out. Around the urinals the floor looked all wet. I decided to straddle the wetness and figured that the carpets outside the bathroom would soon wipe my feet clean again. After I finished my business I got to thinking, sure my feet will be wiped clean on the carpets along with everyone else who cleaned the soles of their shoes off, and they probably stood right in the middle of all the wetness. So that means I've been walking on some of this stuff all weekend long.
After chatting with some friends I was ready to leave again and realized I probably should visit the restroom again and this time take a seat. I felt more awkward having my bare feet showing under the stall wall than anything else. We humans can be real funny in our thinking at times.
On the way home I stopped at a convenience store to pick up a Mt. Dew and some chips. Then after a few hours pulled into a McDonald's for some more food. I opted for the drive through since I didn't want to push things and was looking at making it barefoot for 48 hours.
Overall I was thrilled with the weekend. Can't wait to repeat and to actually stay barefoot for a longer period of time. Unfortunately Sundays at home I always wear my shoes to church, so I was barefoot from around 5:00 pm on Thursday till 8:30 am on Sunday. That makes about 63 hours going without shoes and no ill effects. A great start to a barefoot lifestyle and a definite boast after being rejected at a third store near my house last weekend.
At noon the convention ended and I was ready to drive the three hours home. My first stop was the bathrooms. This definitely made me do some thinking. I had to go and my shoes were in the vehicle out in the lower parking lot. I already had been shoeless for around 42 hours and the two day mark was fast approaching. So with a little hesitation I headed into the men's room and almost walked back out. Around the urinals the floor looked all wet. I decided to straddle the wetness and figured that the carpets outside the bathroom would soon wipe my feet clean again. After I finished my business I got to thinking, sure my feet will be wiped clean on the carpets along with everyone else who cleaned the soles of their shoes off, and they probably stood right in the middle of all the wetness. So that means I've been walking on some of this stuff all weekend long.
After chatting with some friends I was ready to leave again and realized I probably should visit the restroom again and this time take a seat. I felt more awkward having my bare feet showing under the stall wall than anything else. We humans can be real funny in our thinking at times.
On the way home I stopped at a convenience store to pick up a Mt. Dew and some chips. Then after a few hours pulled into a McDonald's for some more food. I opted for the drive through since I didn't want to push things and was looking at making it barefoot for 48 hours.
Overall I was thrilled with the weekend. Can't wait to repeat and to actually stay barefoot for a longer period of time. Unfortunately Sundays at home I always wear my shoes to church, so I was barefoot from around 5:00 pm on Thursday till 8:30 am on Sunday. That makes about 63 hours going without shoes and no ill effects. A great start to a barefoot lifestyle and a definite boast after being rejected at a third store near my house last weekend.
Friday, May 20, 2016
Shoeless Weekend - Friday Day One
This weekend I attended our district's men's convention and I spent the entire time barefoot. I checked in barefoot Thursday night and am still barefoot at home as I write this on Saturday evening. Over 48 hours without putting shoes on once. It was great.
The event was at Sunday River in Maine. During the whole weekend I got about a handful of comments: you look comfortable (I replied yes I am); nice mohair socks ( I replied, yes, very comfortable and they never wear out) and a few others. Nothing negative.
After the first session we broke up into groups and I went to find the hiking group. I grabbed my small pack with my VFF inside (just as a precaution) and headed back to the lobby. I was wandering around when Bill found me and asked if I was going on the hike. He had also been looking and hadn't found anyone yet. I said yes. It looked like it would be only the two of us. He noticed my bare feet and simply asked if I planned to hike barefoot, like it was something he saw all the time. Though I didn't know Bill to well he was aware of my hiking expertise, so that may have helped break the ice.
We headed up the ski sloop. It was rougher then most hiking trails, with the gravel and small rocks. I'm not sure if I would have made it up and back, it it wasn't for the patches of cool refreshing snow that I was able to walk across. Bill walked around the patches of snow, not wanting it to fall inside his sneakers. Point to barefoot.
On the way back down Bill felt something stabbing his foot so he stopped and took off his sneaker. Then he felt around the bottom of his foot and pulled out a small thorn out of his sock. Point to barefoot. A little further down the trail we encountered some mud in the middle of the trail. Bill walked around the mud and I walked right through it and was surprised how quickly it came off with just a little rinse in a shallow puddle further down the trail. Yet another point to barefoot.
The total distance hiked was 2.6 miles. That is now the furthest distance I have gone barefoot and my first hike. I'm very pleased. My Garmin Vivoactive had me at 6.4 miles at the end of the day, but most of that was on carpet and a nice dirt/sand trail.
I think this trip proved the barefoot may be superior to shoes, but do have to admit that we took it easy, if we had gone at a fast clip, I would have been eating the dust and if the distance was longer I probably would have gotten into trouble. As it was, the snow seemed to work to my benefit this time around, so shoes still have some merit.
Upon returning we stopped at the grill and I got a tuna melt and sweet potato fries, still barefoot and no comments. I was sitting at the end of the table closest to the cash register and I'm sure she noticed my feet when she brought my meal. Well actually I did received some feedback, the other people we sat with were a bit surprised that I hiked up the trail barefoot. They thought that made me a real hard core hiker.
That night they had a BBQ in the parking lot which was real easy to attend barefoot. The only think I noticed throughout the day was that I was much more aware of my feet and concerned about my toes getting stepped on. Not sure why I would think like that since my feet normally don't get stepped on in a crowd. Funny how your mind thinks sometimes.
The event was at Sunday River in Maine. During the whole weekend I got about a handful of comments: you look comfortable (I replied yes I am); nice mohair socks ( I replied, yes, very comfortable and they never wear out) and a few others. Nothing negative.
After the first session we broke up into groups and I went to find the hiking group. I grabbed my small pack with my VFF inside (just as a precaution) and headed back to the lobby. I was wandering around when Bill found me and asked if I was going on the hike. He had also been looking and hadn't found anyone yet. I said yes. It looked like it would be only the two of us. He noticed my bare feet and simply asked if I planned to hike barefoot, like it was something he saw all the time. Though I didn't know Bill to well he was aware of my hiking expertise, so that may have helped break the ice.
We headed up the ski sloop. It was rougher then most hiking trails, with the gravel and small rocks. I'm not sure if I would have made it up and back, it it wasn't for the patches of cool refreshing snow that I was able to walk across. Bill walked around the patches of snow, not wanting it to fall inside his sneakers. Point to barefoot.
On the way back down Bill felt something stabbing his foot so he stopped and took off his sneaker. Then he felt around the bottom of his foot and pulled out a small thorn out of his sock. Point to barefoot. A little further down the trail we encountered some mud in the middle of the trail. Bill walked around the mud and I walked right through it and was surprised how quickly it came off with just a little rinse in a shallow puddle further down the trail. Yet another point to barefoot.
The total distance hiked was 2.6 miles. That is now the furthest distance I have gone barefoot and my first hike. I'm very pleased. My Garmin Vivoactive had me at 6.4 miles at the end of the day, but most of that was on carpet and a nice dirt/sand trail.
I think this trip proved the barefoot may be superior to shoes, but do have to admit that we took it easy, if we had gone at a fast clip, I would have been eating the dust and if the distance was longer I probably would have gotten into trouble. As it was, the snow seemed to work to my benefit this time around, so shoes still have some merit.
Upon returning we stopped at the grill and I got a tuna melt and sweet potato fries, still barefoot and no comments. I was sitting at the end of the table closest to the cash register and I'm sure she noticed my feet when she brought my meal. Well actually I did received some feedback, the other people we sat with were a bit surprised that I hiked up the trail barefoot. They thought that made me a real hard core hiker.
That night they had a BBQ in the parking lot which was real easy to attend barefoot. The only think I noticed throughout the day was that I was much more aware of my feet and concerned about my toes getting stepped on. Not sure why I would think like that since my feet normally don't get stepped on in a crowd. Funny how your mind thinks sometimes.
Sunday, May 15, 2016
Turning Point Saturday
It is beginning to feel more natural to be barefoot. Sounds kind of silly when it is actually unnatural to wear shoes. Unfortunately I was also told I had to wear shoes in a third store today. You really can't change their minds. They do not believe you should be barefoot in the store. It doesn't matter if it is legal or not. This time I was asked to wear shoes next time I visited the Price Rite store in Manchester. Since it is not a religious believe, nor do I need to go barefoot for medical reasons I believe it is not possible for me to be barefoot 100% of the time.
I have not given up on being barefoot. Rather I realize that most people do not believe it is something legal I can do. When I went to the barbershop on Saturday I carried my shoes and put them on before entering. The couple who run the shop are very nice, but I didn't feel like I wanted to test the waters and cause a stir because I had the right to be barefoot. The shop feels like it is part of the couples home with games and things for their kids. At some point when I visit and they are not busy, I may ask if I can enter their shop barefoot but until then I will put shoes on before entering.
My local hardware store seems to be a safe haven still, we visited there again on Saturday and had no problems or even a single comment. I'm sure they will someday bring it up. So I'll continue visiting their establishment barefoot. Maybe I'll get some of them soleless sandles and give them a try someday.
I have not given up on being barefoot. Rather I realize that most people do not believe it is something legal I can do. When I went to the barbershop on Saturday I carried my shoes and put them on before entering. The couple who run the shop are very nice, but I didn't feel like I wanted to test the waters and cause a stir because I had the right to be barefoot. The shop feels like it is part of the couples home with games and things for their kids. At some point when I visit and they are not busy, I may ask if I can enter their shop barefoot but until then I will put shoes on before entering.
My local hardware store seems to be a safe haven still, we visited there again on Saturday and had no problems or even a single comment. I'm sure they will someday bring it up. So I'll continue visiting their establishment barefoot. Maybe I'll get some of them soleless sandles and give them a try someday.
Sunday, May 8, 2016
Sad Shoe Day on Saturday
This past week has not been a good week for being barefoot for me. It has been cold and rainy just about all week long. I didn't get much barefoot time in at all.
On Thursday, our city has what is called Taco de Mayo in celebration of Cinco de Mayo. Many of the business in the downtown district will create mini tacos and sell them for $2. Each business also picks a charity they are sponsoring during that event. It becomes a contest of sorts on who can raise the most money for their charity. They have ice cream tacos from Ben & Jerry's, a Rueben taco at the Queens Pub and I even saw a fish taco. They do have more traditional style tacos as well, like chicken and beef. It is fun reading all the different style tacos and figuring out which ones you want to try. I was very disappointed that I did not attend this event barefoot, it was just too cold. We even went home early due to the cold.
On Saturday we went to the garden center to pick up some vegetable plants for the garden. Once again it was too cold and wet for me to try shopping barefoot. We did buy some tomato, broccoli, red peppers, lettuce, flowers and lots of organic fertilizers. We had planned to do some planting on Saturday as well, but it started to rain again.
Sunday, I went to Price Rite and was finally able to leave the shoes home. My daughter even joined me being barefoot. Then I stayed barefoot as I planted the tomatoes. So the new week has started off nice and the weather looks to be improving, so I'll be doing more barefooting in the days to come.
On Thursday, our city has what is called Taco de Mayo in celebration of Cinco de Mayo. Many of the business in the downtown district will create mini tacos and sell them for $2. Each business also picks a charity they are sponsoring during that event. It becomes a contest of sorts on who can raise the most money for their charity. They have ice cream tacos from Ben & Jerry's, a Rueben taco at the Queens Pub and I even saw a fish taco. They do have more traditional style tacos as well, like chicken and beef. It is fun reading all the different style tacos and figuring out which ones you want to try. I was very disappointed that I did not attend this event barefoot, it was just too cold. We even went home early due to the cold.
On Saturday we went to the garden center to pick up some vegetable plants for the garden. Once again it was too cold and wet for me to try shopping barefoot. We did buy some tomato, broccoli, red peppers, lettuce, flowers and lots of organic fertilizers. We had planned to do some planting on Saturday as well, but it started to rain again.
Sunday, I went to Price Rite and was finally able to leave the shoes home. My daughter even joined me being barefoot. Then I stayed barefoot as I planted the tomatoes. So the new week has started off nice and the weather looks to be improving, so I'll be doing more barefooting in the days to come.
Barefoot Gardening
Gardening
A friend mentioned his wife had planted peas in their garden, which reminded me to do the same. I seem to always wait till to late and my peas don't do well. So on Saturday I headed to the hardware store to pick up the seeds, barefoot of course. It was a quick trip with no chatting with the employees, so still no reaction from them on my bare feet.
I have often heard that gardening barefoot, more specifically digging in the garden barefoot is something to be avoided if possible. Despite this apprehension I decided I should at least give it a try. So I got out my spade and started turning over the soil and discovered it was easy and not at all uncomfortable. I think the reason being is that we have raised beds and the soil doesn't get compressed by our bodies when we work the garden. We planted just two rows of peas and I got my shod daughter to assist with one of the rows.
Past Week
The past week has been a bit cool so I haven't been pushing being barefoot to much. The warm spell we had the previous month really had me spoiled. I've also been a bit down or depressed as of late and haven't had much energy the last few weeks. I'm still managing to plug away at the body weight exercises, but have let my running drop for the time being. Besides being tired, another contributing factor is a little pain or discomfort on the bottom of my right foot. I tired to dig something out of my foot this past week and left a little hole in my sole. I didn't find anything, but it seems like the discomfort has been reduced, only to be replaced by the discomfort caused by the small hole I dug into my sole. My thought is the problem is probably caused be a small blister under the pad of my foot which developed by using improper technique when I first started running barefoot. This is just all part of the learning curve.
A friend mentioned his wife had planted peas in their garden, which reminded me to do the same. I seem to always wait till to late and my peas don't do well. So on Saturday I headed to the hardware store to pick up the seeds, barefoot of course. It was a quick trip with no chatting with the employees, so still no reaction from them on my bare feet.
I have often heard that gardening barefoot, more specifically digging in the garden barefoot is something to be avoided if possible. Despite this apprehension I decided I should at least give it a try. So I got out my spade and started turning over the soil and discovered it was easy and not at all uncomfortable. I think the reason being is that we have raised beds and the soil doesn't get compressed by our bodies when we work the garden. We planted just two rows of peas and I got my shod daughter to assist with one of the rows.
Past Week
The past week has been a bit cool so I haven't been pushing being barefoot to much. The warm spell we had the previous month really had me spoiled. I've also been a bit down or depressed as of late and haven't had much energy the last few weeks. I'm still managing to plug away at the body weight exercises, but have let my running drop for the time being. Besides being tired, another contributing factor is a little pain or discomfort on the bottom of my right foot. I tired to dig something out of my foot this past week and left a little hole in my sole. I didn't find anything, but it seems like the discomfort has been reduced, only to be replaced by the discomfort caused by the small hole I dug into my sole. My thought is the problem is probably caused be a small blister under the pad of my foot which developed by using improper technique when I first started running barefoot. This is just all part of the learning curve.
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