Footwear

I am no Imelda Marcos or anything - boy, is that showing my age. Some of you may remember that in the late 1980s Imelda Marcos "and her family gained notoriety for living a lavish lifestyle during a period of economic crisis and civil unrest in the country." She was also famous for her more than 1,000 pair of shoes. I like shoes, but not that much. I should clarify. I really like having the appropriate foot wear for the task at hand.

Internet Photo

I like slippers on cold days, waterproof boots for rainy days, sandals when it's hot, tennis shoes for running, my Converse sneakers for hanging out, and heels when they're called for. I also take very good care of my shoes. I have a pair of Laredo ropers that are at least 25 years old.

The rest of them are on other shelves, in another closet, outside in the garage, at the ranch, and even in my horse trailer.

And of course, I have a variety of boots for different horse related tasks. I have my show boots; they live in my horse trailer. I have a pair of schooling boots which live in the tack room. I also have a brand new pair of schooling boots that are still in my office waiting to be called up. My schooling boots still have a few more miles left in them, so until I have a zipper blow out or a sole falls off, I'll keep the new ones in storage until the old ones die.

I bought them on Black Friday, and they're STILL in storage.

I also own a few pair of really old Ariat Terrains left over from my endurance days. I only keep them for emergencies. One pair lives in my horse trailer, and another pair lives in a trunk in the tack room. I've actually needed them once or twice over the years. Although as funky as they are, I should just get a new pair to keep on hand.

Boots in my trailer's "boot box."

Besides my schooling boots, the pair of shoes that I wear most often are my muck boots, or as I call them, my barn boots. Even my husband knows which pair I mean when I mention barn boots. I replace these every one to two years. They take an absolute beating, but they save my schooling boots from at least some of the daily wear and tear.

Back in October when they were new.

For a long time, like close to ten years, I wore the mid-calf Mudruckers. I liked them a lot until I found the Noble Outfitters version, Muds. For the first year or two, I wore the mid-calf version which I really liked. This fall, I bought the tall boots which I REALLY liked in the winter. When it got sloppy muddy, I didn't have to worry about splash over.

You know what I mean. You're squishing through the mud and suddenly you hear a squelch and poopy water suddenly squirts over the opening into your boot top and drips down onto your socks. Or when filling the water trough, the hose goes a bit wild and you feel icy cold water trickle down the front of your shin bone. That doesn't happen with the tall boots.

After a hard winter, they look nearly as good as the day I bought them. Just dirty.

A few weeks ago, we had some days in the 80s. I quickly realized that the tall boot version of my Muds wasn't going to work when it hit 110℉. At 80℉, my socks were soaking wet, and I had to scrape my boots off over my sweaty calves. I never had that problem with the mid-calf boots as the opening was pretty generous which allowed more air to circulate.

Muds Stay Cool 6" in Blackberry

I did a quick search on Amazon and found the answer to my problem. Noble Outfitters makes a super short version of their Muds which comes to just a couple of inches above my ankles. they're going to be so much more comfortable when it gets hot.

As a bonus, when they arrived, I noticed that there was a special offer on the hangtag for a free pair of Noble Outfitters' "Best Dang Boot Sock™- Over The Calf" - my all time favorite socks. I immediately sent in my proof of purchase.

I love the boots, but the day after they arrived, the temperature dropped twenty degrees, and it rained for several days in a row. I had to drag my tall boots back out. Very funny, Universe, very funny!