Southeast Sneakers

X-tra Tuff Boots and high heels

Shelly

Kaz

    I figured I'd do a blog post now, while it's still daylight and I'm semi-able to think. If I wait until this evening I don't know what will result. I'm usually pretty tired by the end of the day. Of course if I screw this up and it comes out crappy, I won't have any excuse I guess. Although in my defense, I would like to mention that I'm kind of tired right now; kind of feeling a little wimpy actually. I should probably go take a nap. However, I guess I'll persevere. The other day my friend Shelly Yandell showed me a post card that her daughter had sent her and she wanted me to do a blog post on it. It's a pretty nice post card, but I usually don't do blogs from what other people suggest. For some reason she's under the impression that I can pull a post out of my ear or other parts of my anatomy on a whim. It doesn't work that way, but because I like Shelly so much, I figured I'd give it a try.
  As you can see in the top picture, we have a pair of rubber boots and a pair of high heels or pumps or whatever ladies call them. The boots are X-tra Tuffs made by the Goodyear corporation- or they were until recently anyway. I think some outfit in China bought them out, and frankly, the quality took a dump. I've heard of a number of people complaining that  the Chinese model, we'll call them Commie- tuffs or Reds, start falling apart almost from the minute you walk out of the store with them- and you don't even have to be wearing them! Not exactly the kind of thing you want to have on your feet when you live and work in a rain forest. X-tra Tuffs were given the nick-name Southeast Sneakers because they're so prevalent here in Southeast Alaska. Not only does it rain and snow a lot here, but quite a number of people are employed in the fishing industry and industries related to fishing where your feet are constantly being immersed in water. A pair of Nikes just won't cut it out on a troller, no matter how cool you want to look. Aside from the obvious soaking that your feet would take, there's the fact that fish slime and blood would work its way into the fabric so that you'd be ready to cut off your own toes just to escape the stench. It might be something to keep in mind if you ever wanted to enter a Odor Eater's contest though.
   I can't say for certain what the post card is depicting. If the boots belong to a man, it's kind of like a Lady and the Tramp type of deal. No doubt there are a number of ladies who seem to be attracted to the tough Alaskan kind of guy. Of course I wear boots all the time and live in Alaska, and I'm not the least bit tough. Good thing Jan married me before we moved up here, or she might have been in for an unpleasant surprise.  Now, if those high heels belong to a man, well.... I don't really want to go fishing with him. However, if the boots and the shoes belong to a lady, which may well be the case, then it goes to show that our Alaskan women are all around gals, capable of wooing a man as well as shooting a deer or catching a fish. Shelly goes hunting and fishing and clam digging and then cans what she harvests. I've witnessed Kaz- Kazmataaz as I call her, out back chopping firewood, and I'm still enjoying some smoked salmon that she canned last year. They both have children and I know that Kaz has some training in the culinary arts. When you live in Alaska, there's room to be feminine, but you better be tough also. That goes for you ladies too.