Tuesday, December 11, 2007

news alert: i obsess over things.

i know, i know, this comes as a shock. but let me tell you about it.

i have this new pair of boots. i got them on clearance (woot) at DSW. they are black, with about a...hmmm....i'd say two-inch heel. maybe two and a half. they are kenneth cole reaction (not bad, not bad) and they're all synthetic, which is a negative for most people but a positive for a vegetarian like myself who is attempting to avoid hypocrisy at most turns. finally, they are knee-high.

the last part is where the obsessing comes in. because "knee-high" boots are a bit of a misnomer, right? they come to somewhere just below your knee, usually. and of course, there's a bit of variance even in that generality - some pairs come a little closer to your kneecap than others. and a few weeks and couple wears after purchasing my boots, i became convinced that they were - gasp - too short.

now mind you, this was not an evident problem when i purchased them (read: it is a virtual guarantee that this is not an actual problem at all). however, slowly but surely, the doubt crept in. are these things like, just maybe half an inch too short? i would study my calves while sitting at my desk, swinging my legs out to one side of the chair, then the other. did they look to short this way? how about that way? what if i stand up? what if i cross my legs like this?

i wish i were kidding about this internal monologue. i am not.

despite repeated assurances by (a very patient) BoyCat that no, they are certainly not too short, and yes, they look like everyone else's boots, i still harbor misgivings. i found myself at the dupont circle station the other day, waiting to meet up with someone, and mentally cataloging the kneecap to boot-top ratio of nearly every woman who walked by in knee-highs. i felt like some kind of addict.

i guess there is no real moral to this story. (unless, of course, the moral is that i am crazy, but that is a implicit - not to mention redundant - moral around here.) i will keep wearing the boots. i will probably continue to allow some sick little corner of my brain to gnaw away on the issue of their reverse inseam. hopefully i can just avoid acknowledging said gnawing by focusing on something else. like how i desperately need some brown knee-high boots.

6 comments:

Kate said...

This only means you must have fabulously long legs. If your obsession with worrying about the length of the boots is bothering you, use it as an opportunity to admire your long legs. You can think, "wow, that woman's boots are just TOO TALL, she must have stubby legs. My boots are just right, which means my legs are elegant and long."

kate.d. said...

oh kate that's a great idea, except funnily enough i have a long torso and short legs, instead of the other way around! even more perplexing, right?

but a gal can pretend...

Anonymous said...

you could turn your obsession into a funky (weird) hobby... like take photos of the boot to knee distance on every woman you come across, and then analyze and critique each one.

because that wouldn't be creepy at all.

at. all.

Cinnamon said...

I think it is better to have boots that are a little too short (and I'd say that as long as your boots cover the widest part of your calf you're okay) than to have boots that are a little too tight so they slip down as you walk. Of course I say this after purchasing a pair of boots that did this, but since I'm too cheap to get rid of them I've worn them for the last few winters anyway. But now they're looking bad because the bulges around my ankles rub against each other, so I'm looking for new ones. Of course the ones I find that I like are all $250 a pair or more. Lordy, it's hard to be a frugal fashionista in training.

kate.d. said...

cinn, do you mean too loose? i think i know what you mean about the ankle area, but i feel like looser boots would do that. hmmm.

and what kind of boots are you looking for? knee-high, or mid-calf, black brown, heel size, etc? i'm all about the procrastinating online thing lately, i'll poke around for ya :)

and two words as you look around for yourself: franco sarto. good shoes, decent price.

Michelle said...

have you ever checked out the boots @ http://www.vegetarianshoesandbags.com/women/vegan+boots/search.aspx ?

They even offer free shipping for oders $75.00 and up!

I think they're great, personally!