That Certain Pair of Shoes

Maybe not every guy who reads this will agree but I think I'll find support among the women in the audience:  There are certain pairs of shoes in life one just never seems to get over. Then again, even for guys I would think it must be true to some extent.  I mean, remember your first pair of Keds, Converse, or Jack Purcell's?

In my life there are a couple of standouts.  One is the Adidas Kansas.  It looked like the Olympiad model, white, narrow toe, three black stripes (called the "Olympia" in its reincarnation, shown above).  The Olympiad was the first real "athletic" shoe and it quickly slammed the door on all the canvas competition. It was the shoe that launched the leather sports shoe in the U.S..  The Kansas was a similar shoe in shape and color. The primary difference was the Kansas was made of kangaroo, or some such exotic, and the price was almost twice as high if memory serves me. But, oh, what a difference. You wore Superstars if you liked basketball, Robert Haillet's for gym (endorsed by no less an authority than Emerson Jr. High's Mr. Steve Miller) but you wore Kansas for cool. (Nothing really changes, does it?)  I got mine at Smith's Sporting Goods in the Village. Alas, Smith's is gone, the Village is unrecognizable, and the Kansas model just a memory.  I do have a call in to Adidas but, as yet, no response and no hope.

For some strange reason I stumbled upon and fell in love with another shoe a few years later. It was a Sperry Top-Sider, but not the usual brown moccasin type boat shoe.  No, this shoe was green, had laces, and a big thick white sole. How I ever came across these babies I can't recall but, man, I loved 'em. I think they appealed to a diverse cross-section of Southern California culture, from burn-out surfer type to San Diego sailor-dentist. Unfortunately, to the detriment of longevity, I would drag along in mine and, after a year or so, wore the outside of the heel down to nothing. I had to retire them lest I slid sideways and broke my ankle. I had one pair resoled but it just wasn't the same. And then they were gone.

I've looked here and there and always to no avail. A couple of weeks ago I was at Nordstrom and asked one of the older salesmen if he recalled the shoe.  He smiled wistfully (seriously) and shook his head.  "I haven't seen those in years." Sadness.

Well, I have news for that fellow at Nordstrom: My Sperry Captain's Oxford in Smoked Elk arrived today.  Boatshoes.com. Free shipping. No sales tax. Suddenly I have something to love about Florida. Although, at recent recheck, I think I got the last pair. But Amazon's got 'em! Go ahead. Dive in. You might just fall in love.