Birkenstock(Boringstock)

Love my Birkenstocks...and I ain't no yuppie...as far as I am concerned, (as others have said here) they are a good investment...if they are resoled when needed, they can last up to 15 yrs., at least in my experience. And, they can be good for certain kinds of foot problems. I can't go barefoot a lot because of some of those foot problems, but, for me at least, going Birkenstock-footed (smile!) is the next best thing!


To each his own, and I respect everybody's individual opinion, but this older hippie lady LOVES her Birks!!

 

I don't particularly like the look of birkenstocks. For me, I prefer to go bare. If I need footwear for any reason, I like to wear thick soled flip-flops. (thongs)...

...When I was a litttle girl, they were always called thongs. Now usually if you say thongs, peole think you are talking about underlillies, and it turns into sexual thoughts. Which isn't too bad, but funny though.

 

I love going barefoot... but when it comes to shoes, sandals in particular, I have tons! I'm not name dropping brands to seem cool, but I have several pairs of birkenstock sandals and clogs, and also have flip flops and sandals by Doc Martens, Airwalk, and even Wal-Mart. The reason so many people are sporting Birks, I would believe is that they are comfortable (for when (or if) you have to wear shoes) and, as is the case with a lot of clothing choices, they look good to the buyer.

You know, 5 years ago I bought a Jeep Wrangler because I go on road trips in the mountains of Colorado and the back roads of Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, etc... places where having a 4x4 is really handy. I didn't worry about whether people would think I was suddenly trying to be in the "jeep club"... I bought it because I don't want to get my Toyota Land Cruiser all scuffed up! This is a bad analogy, but I think it works. Who cares what other people are wearing, or not wearing. Go barefoot if you want to, wear Wal-Mart flip flops if they feel good, and if you like the way a sandal looks or feels then skip everyone elses opinion.

Personally I like the look of barefeet, but unlike some of the "so called" hardcore barefooters in here (whatever the hell that's suppose to mean) my time is far more valuable that to spend 20 minutes arguing with a supermarket clerk who makes $5.15 an hour and is itching for some excuse to exercise what little authority he/she has about where my shoes are, and barefeet aren't allowed in here. And while I completely agree with the points some have made about their freedom to go barefoot just about anywhere, when it comes down to it, I'm just glad to kick off my shoes after a long wek of work and hit a festival in my barefeet.

 

WOAH barefoot boy... stop right there.


i had to register for this board just to reply to the intensely ignorant post that initiated all this. granted, you make a valid point about overpriced shoes/corporatizing... BUT!...


& let me make sure i've got this right...


you're against the birkenstock-wearing "materialistic yuppies" of the earth, but it's just fine to get COFFEE FROM STARBUCKS?!?

talk about lable-dropping, and perpetuating, "the status quo."

"Im sure I,ve ignored many of you when I've walked barefoot into
a starbucks beceause I needed a coffee,not to impress."

don't you see a brutal hypocricy here?!? compairatively, $tarbucks is FAR more evil. at least birkenstocks are made to last longer than the plastic sandals that stuff up our landfills and litter our beaches. it's like buying tons of paper plates and not recycling them, when you could just do a load of dishes. not to mention that birkenstock's synthetic leather is better for the environment than that damned petrolium-base (which won't biodegrate by any means) which most other shoes contain... $tarbucks' war on the environment and blatant disreguard for workers rights is much more of a travesty than what some head puts on his/her feet!


if you're against the concept of yuppies, don't buy their fucking coffee.


or is it too late, now that starbucks has run all of the local coffee shops out of buisness in your town? nice work.




i mean, you MUST be proud... your favorite $tarbucks screws up the rainforests (and our southern neighbors' land) through deforestation, water contamination, species erradication, loss of wildlife habitat, pollution and land erosion... never mind the fact that $tarbucks recently teamed up with the WORLD BANK. and did i mention they use rBGH, which is banned in EVERY industrialized nation except the states? not to mention that the farmers/field workers are paid less than the minimum wage and child labor is permitted. these people are working long hours in extreme temperatures with little -- if any -- breaks.
but hey, at least you don't wear sandals.

$5 for a cup of coffee, though? that's even more of a mark-up (percentage-wise) than those sandals you curse so self-rightously.


(to everyone else, i appologize for the anger and confusion i've spewed here. hopefully i can make a better impression with my next post... but i couldn't sit here, idle, and say nothing).

 

Ah, well put, lawngirl! To think, I didn't even notice the starbucks refference, or I would have had a touch to say about it, too.

 

how strange is the law of commerce...


it seems that overseas (US and Canda) Birkenstock are a kind of status symbol... strange..here in Europe is quite the opposite...

"yuppies" do not use sandals like that... they wear much more "posh" and "stylish" shoes... or maybe some Prada or Gucci flipflop.. but not sandals like Birkenstock or similar brands... WE use them

 

AMEN Lawngirl!

 

First off ..who is the pic of with the Doc Martins of? WoW!! Really hot feet!! I luv to go barefoot as much as possilbe ..I dont consider where I am in society or anyone else by there shoes.. I do find what shoes someone wears tells alot about there personality..as well as so true what there feet look like. I personally luv flip flops no matter what brand...I have tons of flip flops and luv to see people admiring my feet.

 

I'm not big on sandals at all. I have no idea what the difference between birkenstocks and any other kind of sandals or flip flops is because we don't really have birkenstocks over here (or if we do we have another name for them).

If it's too hot for shoes I go barefoot. even if it isn't really too hot but I can get away with going barefoot anyway, I will go barefoot. Sandals are no different to shoes in that in covering the sole they insulate the heat generated by the feet, stop the sweat from evaporating off and causing a bad odour as a result. Not to mention that the feet get hot between the sole and the sandal so it's still a pain in the arse to wear them.

 

I guess you haven't had a good day Lawngirl.That seems obvious.
I don't pay $5.00 for a
coffee.$1.50 that's it.The only reason I go in
Starbucks at all is beceause theres nowhere else
to go for coffee.They've taken over.
Coffee is addictive as well.

 

I went with my Aunt to a shoe store last week, and finally got to see what

Birkenstocks were..sandals that cost $100. How stupid can people get to
spend that much on footwear. I like going barefoot so I wouldn't spend $100
on something I don't wear much.
There were some sandals there I liked from Italy & Germany, and they cost
$60-$85. They were fancier sandals and I have no reason to buy or wear those
either.
My Aunt broke her ankle years ago and had pins put in her ankle so she said she needed $85 sneakers.

 

Blimey, your aunt seems to be a victim of marketing. The only shoes I ever wear cost no more than £35 so all less than $50

 

so, you're addicted to $tarbuck$' coffee? that's by far the most LAUGHABLE, ridiculous and sad reasoning i've heard for supporting them yet. great decision, though, continue to support them again and again and again... lot's of things are addictive, but does the end justify the means? HARDLY!

have you ever considered brewing your own? it's cheaper (thrift stores can hook you up with a badass coffee-pot for less than you pay for a starbucks coffee). you can also make a much tastier brew, and you'll still get that caffeine fix.


...but that's just my opinion. i think i made my point well enough last time ("if you don't like yuppies, don't buy their fucking coffee"). why don't you pick your battles more intelligently and go after a cause that's really worth fighting for?
that is all.

 

no, i lied, that was not all...

i just noticed your info says you're from vancouver.

now, call me a snoop, but that makes me curious, and i look in your info... you claim to work in a cafe.

this makes me curious because you said the only reason you support $tarbucks is because, and i quote, "theres[sic] nowhere else to go for coffee" than good ole' $starbucks.

huh. weird. the coffee shops and cafes that i know of in vancouver most certainly serve coffee.

what the FUCK, dude?!?

 

why don't you pick your battles more intelligently and go after a cause that's really worth fighting for?

Lawngirl,I wasn't looking for a battle but you sound like
you are.As far as coffee goes you sound like you drink too
much of it you should cut back.
You must be from Vancouver I assume.It sounds like you
didn't get your fix from hastings street or the methadone didn't kick in yet.

 

yea i used to get mad at yuppies and the abercrombie followers too...but i mean man people are into different things (even if its because they're conformists) so just let them be, its not hurting you it's just annoying.

and about the birkenstocks...i myself dont have any real ones...ill be damned if i pay $100 for shoes...but i have birkenstock-like shoes and i like them because you can put them on really fast and they are comfortable.

peace

 

I don't like them that much, maybe because they are mostley made of leather. But people seem to enjoy them and that's fine with meeeeeee.

 

starbucks boy: when i reply to you, i go against what you say, not who you are as an individual. there's a marked difference. you, on the other hand, have a single belief questioned, and start slinging accusations that the questioner must not have gotten her "methadone fix yet" or is, "obviously having a bad day." wow. good one. now i have REALLY gained the insight i needed to see your point.


when i say, "pick your battles more intelligently" i use the phrase in the proverbial sense. obviously, i'm not trying to "battle" you.. i'm trying to get a reply with a little bit of thought and substance.


if you are so very adamently against birkinstocks, it's ridiculous to support $tarbucks. in my opinion, you have no grounds to bash birkinstock (or their customers) if you support a company which not only incorporates their values, but then goes to a much worse extreme in pretty much every other way.


...or maybe you do have grounds? perhaps starbucks does good things in canada that someone who lives in the states wouldn't be as familiar with... for example, being that you're in canada, starbucks doesn't use rBGH (which they do use in the states)... but you failed to offer ANY perspective. maybe birkin$tock$ ARE far worse than $tarbuck$. i guess i'll never know... you've most cerainly failed to defend your beliefs.


you started the thread off by asking what everyone thought. i didn't realize that if i disaggreed with you, it would insinuate i have an addiction to methadone.

i really don't understand when you support $tarbucks by claiming you have no alternative. you work in a cafe, but don't know where to get a cup of coffee? you live in a large city & if you're not able to find good coffee there, i figured i could offer some suggestions. the idiocy of what you said makes it hard for me to believe it's actually being said, hence my questions.


enjoy what you like, be it starbucks or shoes. just don't pretend to be "holier than thou" (this phrase is also used in the proverbial sense, barefoot_boy) for hypocritical beliefs.


...so i guess we'll just call this the end, since i'm unable to get a real, or at least thought-out, response. sorry for trying to offer you some perspective, and i'm even sorrier i couldn't get any out of you.

 

I luv any brand...no big deal just as long as I have on flips or sandals OR barefoot! ITs ALL GOOD as long as you have sexy feet! Here are 2 pics of mine

 

Thanks for the complements.