I bought a pair of Keds shoes several years ago.  As a long-time Keds girl (from my majorette days), Keds are my go-to not-working-out-at-the-gym all-around shoes.  I find them to be sleek enough to wear with a skirt, comfy enough to wear all day long, and not insanely priced.  In essence, I love them.  This pair was no exception.  I have worn them to work, while going out, on errands, and most recently while working in the yard.  You can probably tell from the photo that they have had a life well-lived.  Seeing as they have a large unsurmountable stain on the toe that defies removal, and the sides are starting to break apart and unglue, it’s time for a new pair.  That’s where the trouble started.

I wear a 7 or 7.5.  I can also wear kid’s size 6 or so, depending on the shoe.  Little kid boots usually don’t fit me because I don’t have tiny kid-sized calves anymore at 46, but tennis shoes and the like typically do.  After looking for the same style online, in the stores, on Amazon, and even resorting to eBay, my search came up empty.  It was not meant to be.  But, as is typical for me, I don’t give up very easily.  I continued my search.

I bought another pair of twill Keds.  They looked like they would be fabulous.  I have weird tendons and my arches are pretty flat, so not everything fits just right.  The new shoes were a bust, and I can’t return them since I wore them all day at work, trying desperately to make them work.  When girls get a shoe style in their heads, it’s there.  It’s not something that just goes away.  I have tried wearing them without socks, with thin socks, with thick socks.  Nothing works.  Finally, I put them back in the box they came in, hoping that someone else can wear a nearly brand-new pair of shoes at my loss.

I went online today, as Keds kept sending me ads saying that things were on sale.  Sale!  It’s like another four-letter word that moms should teach their daughters to avoid.  But, they don’t, so there I was, twenty minutes in, still searching for the elusive pair of shoes that I just had to find.  We are traveling again soon – and it will involved a LOT of walking (ancient ruins and all), so I have to have something that I can actually wear for a full day.

The new leather pair that I bought online before we went to Oahu are good, but they are leather, which means they are hot.   I may still end up taking them with me, as leather also doesn’t keep dust like twill does, but I’m not settling.  No sir-eeeeee.  I bought another pair online today – the elusive pair I’ve been trying to find for months.

They may not be these good old shoes that have been there done that with me over the years, but they are new ones, which will be ready for new adventures I’m most certain.  They arrive in 6-8 days.  I’m going to have to pretend they were buy one get one free, as I might have purchased two pairs.  Why?  That four-letter word flashed on the screen, and I simply could not resist two pairs of shoes for $63.