how it All started... for you

what barefooting is all about for you? how did you start? was it an option or a habit in your family and/or place ?
i can recall that as a child i didn't dare to shed my shoes while others couldn't care the less . i found myself hoping that going barefoot would come into fashion , some day. then one day i realized that since it was not going to happen any soon i was going to start it myself :biker: .

 

I was painfully shy about going barefoot in any social situation. I began to loose my inhibition when at 15 I befriended this girl from my school. She loved to go barefoot indoors and out so I began to follow her ways. A few years down the road I lived next door to a woman 17 years older than me. It was quite common to see her barefoot outside during the warmer months. Instead of life passing me by, I decided my feet were better off bare or in flip flops. Nothing like other barefooters to set you off into the right step!

 

I wanted to strengthen my ankles for barefoot skateboarding.

 

For me, it was seeing all the sexy girls at my age in high school walk home barefoot, and how I wanted to be like them...even by being them. There was Tanya, Leslie and another girl I can't remember her name.

Even now, 25 years later, if I like a girl enough, I will start to mimic her clothes and try to be like her...weird but true

 

also i found that being unable to walk without shoes on some surfaces like gravel was an absurd self inflicted limitation.

 

gravel piles are easy, gravel on flat walk is not..
ice and snow are easy, cinders and salt on ice is not..

 

Not only did my friends and I do that, but on some warm spring or fall afternoons after showering in gym class, we didn't wear shoes to class for the rest of the day. The teachers didn't care.

 

i've never experienced salt on ice. how does that feel like under the feet?

 

its cold lol.,, but the cinder and salt usually burn.

32F-0C snow is doable .. below freezing is a challenge..

 

Always wanted to but didn't have the guts to do it until I went to college. Then there was no looking back.

 

It hasn't yet 'started' in any meaningful sense of the word, as pertains to this forum here! If I move to somewhere where it would seem expressly appropriate, like a location near a beach, this may change. At the current time, I remain a happy wearer of lightweight, thin-skinned/soled shoes.

 

ah ok. i must've stepped on something like that , a few cold winters ago. harsh low temps dont happen since quite some years here

 

cinders are usually very sharp too. I would say worse than glass. I walk thru on park at night barefoot. If you walked in the day you would see all the glass. Some reason Im not bothered by this during my walk. Once met some gas-line workers whom asked me arent you afraid to be walking around with no shoe. And I said "you must be the ones that are afraid wearing boots and all" and merry about my business.
However Im not about barefooting all the time. Its usually situational for me. Spirit moves me. I do like it for the most part.

 

I never knew going barefoot was a big deal. My dad never did but my mom is always barefoot unless working so we did any time. We always had sandals and could kick them off anytime. I do remember stubbing some toes tho. I wear slides or sandals almost all year and in summer I kick them off on good surfaces.

 

When I was a kid I saw another kid going barefoot. His soles were extremely dirty. I liked the idea and the look so started.

 

in fact it shouldn't be. it's a hostile world full of broken glass and looks:nopity:

 

Wow, I do see broken glass sometimes but the city does clean stuff up pretty good. Looks? Never noticed any but maybe my eyes were shut, will have to pay attention this summer and see if I get any.
I did get lots of cuts on my feet as a kid because we played in some rough areas like the edge of the woods I guess and weren't watching like I would now and a good few injuries riding my bike barefoot. That's when we were told not to be stupid.
One problem was stubbing toe nails, I did lots of those as a kid not paying attention, especially on the farm but we usually had to wear shoes there because of the risks. For some reason I don't lift my toes when walking and never did like the foot is naturally supposed to do so stubbing is still a risk.

 

All we need to do is remember to look down every now and then. Not a big deal.

 

this page covers pretty much the topic, Sally

 

Depending on when and where she grew up, it may not have been a big deal.

These days, doesn't almost everything ultimately come down to money? When you aren't wearing shoes, nobody makes any money from it, and you aren't bowing down to materialism.