The Serious No Shoes Option

If you've been used to being shod up until this time, then there may be a psychological effort involved. For me it was quite psychological but I had a fairly early start after having a mostly shod childhood.
I remember one time in day camp my sneakers were missing for a whole period and I felt traumatized being the only barefoot camper in the group. It wasn't until I was in my first summer of sleepaway camp at age nine that barefooting really started to catch on with me. The following summers, I began extending my barefoot time even more almost never wearing socks. I went to private school most of my schooling where there was a dresscode. In 7th & 8th grade I noticed that some girls in the class started to come to school sockless (this was the 80's when colorful socks were very much in).

In my freshman year of high school almost all the girls went sockless in the beginning of the year and would kick them off under the desk.

In my first step into a lifetime of non-conformity I started coming to school sockless as well and kicked off my shoes in the classroom. I made no effort to hide my bare feet from my classmate or teachers. My male classmates taunted me but this only led me to become more persistence defiant, even to the point of stretching my legs out under my desk and crossing my feet so my soles were fully visible. By the winter time, I was still barefoot in class, and now the girls, who were donning the 80's trademark pointy lace-up boots with thick black socks over black stockings or leggings , were pointing at my bare soles and toes and giggling. A real turning point came when one day in January I was set up. Prior to the teacher walking into the classroom, a classmate next to me grabbed my pen from my desk and threw it across the room. I went barefoot to the area near the board to retrieve my pen. It was in an area where there was a lot of colorful chalk residue and I think he knew it didn't bother me to get my soles dirty there. By the time I got back to my desk, lo and behold, my shoes had disappeared. It was actually a very liberating moment for me as I now went freely throughout the school barefoot while the entire building population, male and female alike were wearing both shoes and socks. In the classroom I would cross one foot over my knee to show off my chalk covered sole. At some point in the day, one of the teachers walked over to my desk. I thought I was going to get the riot act about my bare feet, but instead she told me that if I wished to go barefoot to at least go to the restroom and wash my feet. I was more than happy to oblige. Before the last period, one of the girls told me the whereabouts of my shoes, seeing that I was in no way upset about being barefoot the entire day. She had thrown them out the window in the bushes. She offered to get them for me since she was wearing boots, but deciding to live life on the edge, I rolled up my pants and walked barefoot in the snow to get them. My classmate thought I was going to put them back on, but instead, I ditched them in my locker and remained barefoot the rest of the day. Ultimately this began a fantasy to never be seen again in footwear. The next few days, as soon as I left my house in the morning, I took off my shoes and placed them in my bag. I entered the school building barefoot and transferred my shoes to my locker. After a couple of days, the school administration, not finding more important things to worry about, actually started giving me detention stating that I was violating dress code rules, firstly by not wearing socks and and secondly by going barefoot around the premises. Of course grade school employees are not taught to think logically, so my argument that female students seem to be allowed to go sockless and barefoot fell on deaf ears. The next week, I wore socks for the first period and then when eyes were off, I ditched them and was barefoot in the classroom for the rest of the day and sockless in the hallways. By the end of the week, the APB on me was lifted, so I was back to sockless and barefoot. Spring came about a few months later so now most of the girls were once again sockless and barefoot so my feet were no longer such a conversation topic, though I was the only one of the boys who did not wear socks. I transferred to a different school for the remainder of high school. I was playing a lot of basketball. Sneakers were allowed in the dresscode and I generally wore those until the warm months where I went sockless and was barefoot in class and on the ball court.

The summer after high school graduation, (about 22 years ago) I got my first taste of barefooting full time when I went to Israel for a couple of months before starting college. The weather was really hot there and going barefoot was not seen as a big deal, so I walked barefoot everywhere and did a lot of hiked barefoot as well. It felt great to finally go barefoot without any comments or criticism. By the time I went to college, socks were pretty much foreign to me. I was in an urban campus so outside in the street, I wore usually my sandals or flip-flops and in the dead of winter shoes without socks. In the classroom I was always barefoot while the rest of the room, male and female alike had on shoes and socks. When talked about, I was always characterized by my bare feet. My group of friends always wore shoes and socks so I used to really stand out when I was around them. Prior to my senior year I went backpacking in Europe where I went barefoot and shirtless almost the entire time. I continued going that way during the fall semester of my senior year. I got plenty of looks and chuckles as in mid November I was still going about in only one article of clothing - my cut-off shorts while the rest of the student and teacher body male and female alike were all in coats, sleeves, shoes or boots and socks. Usually I threw on my shirt while inside school buildings and took it off again outside. In the winter time I wore jeans and a pair of Indian sandals and March I was back to topless, barelegged and barefoot.
After graduation when I began working in corporate America, my barefoot time became much more limited. Initially I was wearing suits and shoes and socks to work. I was performing really well and since my job was a desk job, I had my shoes off most of the time and went about in my socked feet. Being indispensable at that point (so I thought but corporate America never works that way no matter how well you dress or perform), I started coming in sockless and leaving my shoes off at my desk. My bosses didn't really care that I was barefooted and my co-workers (this was before nylon began to go out of style as an everyday thing in warm months), sometimes cracked jokes about my feet, but we got along really well. I always considered corporate meetings a useless waste of time, and the only thing that got me to go was the thrill of walking into the conference room barefoot and peering under the table to find my bare feet unanimously surrounded by a sea of shoes and socks or pumps and stockings.
When I left my job in favor of a higher paying and more challenging one, I was in a stricter environment and had to start dressing corporate again. My barefoot days were all but forgotten until I went to Hawaii for my honeymoon - the best barefoot spot in the world! Ironically I was fired two weeks after getting back (and thankfully - I was really unhappy there). Immediately I decided to start freelancing and was back to sockless. That summer, while taking a train to work, I came across an article in the New York Times about people who loved to go barefoot and the Society for Barefoot Living. This was actually the first time I realized that I was not the only person who had such a strong passion for going barefoot, but in fact there was a whole community. This alone helped me with my decision to go for it. I now had my own business and I could dress how I wanted.
My first day out I commuted without any footwear whatsoever. It was a really hot day and the pavement was burning. Since I hadn't done any extended barefooting on pavement for years, I got these nasty blisters on the soles of my feet and had to medicate them and keep them in socks for about a week. After my feet were cured, I continued to go barefoot, avoiding really hot surfaces and got my feet conditioned by the time the winter came around.
Going barefoot all winter long without relying on even flip flops was a blast and even easier than I thought. I gradually built up my resistance to snow and discovered that when shoveling snow barefoot, your adrenalin rushes to the point that your bare soles actually melt the snow under your feet. After a full year of going barefoot anywhere and everywhere, the following winter I began to go in bare legs again. The amazing thing about it is it could be thirty degrees outside and a shod person walks up to me asking me how my feet could not be cold, while totally disregarding that my legs were bare as well.
I know I'm really giving an earful here, but I think being self conscious about being barefoot in my childhood and overcoming that obstacle led me to my insistence to be barefoot always.

 

I liked that entry. Being barefoot in HS would have been hot to me. Growing up in the same era, college saw no shoes on me ever.

 

So today, after 7 days of no choice barefooting, was the most challenging from an if looks could do something deal. The bank went ok. Liquor store, same disapproving look, diff check out person. CVS ( chain pharmacy with huge nsnsns signs), staff ok but stares from 3 customers. As nospam says goes with the territory but def more attitude than normal, maybe cause of the rain? I am SO wounded, not.

 

Today was a difficult place....recycling center. Only because people miss the bin an awful lot and so there's broken glass everywhere. Some people apparently can't even make it to the bin. Just required extra care and in the week and a half my soles are getting really tougher than normal for a summer. Onlookers were amazed tho...Should have stomped out a cigarette for a flourish.

 

That's the kind of odd stare that I actually would welcome, rather than displeasure at my soles. I think you should have stomped out a cigarette without a flinch. I'm still working on that "without a flinch" part, but it's tolerable enough for me to stomp out a cig.

 

OK, I broke down this morning and bought some shoes and socks. I figured a month of not owning any was enough of a milestone. Glad I went thru with this little experiment. It was a little exciting the whole time knowing that there was no safety net or security blanket. At least now I can say that I spent an entire month barefoot.

 

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Um, 100 degrees f out, crossing streets makes me wish i did have shoes. Maybe if i get a squirt gun and step in the puddles. Nospam, nice work all in all and I still am glad you did it, thus causing me to try the experiment. It IS interesting some of the looks and some of the situations one can get into. The mall today was fun and reminded me of the fact that this is still exciting and not old hat. And, yeah the no choice aspect is very cool....so thanks again.....mike

 

Went to the mall today it was fun. Here's what happened...

 

So today is day 21 without shoe possession and barefeet everywhere. I am def more used to it, cause how can i not be? I was in a department store today looking at suits (in case I am forced to buy one for a job). One salesman did a double take but that was it. I also lurked round the shoe dept (in case, God forbid, I have to buy dress shoes....eww). I totally like this self imposed cannot wear footwear cause I have none deal.

There is a store round hear called Hollister that leans heavily to California lifestyle. The mannequins are all barefoot as are any illustrated people. The salespeople all wear flips. Trying to figure out how I can get a job as a barefoot mannequin. That would eliminate the horror of suits and dress shoes.

 

Hey nospam. It's not unthinkable. I did it and have been living totally barefoot for over a year now. The last pair of flips I owned broke last May and I have not bought shoes ever since. I work at my own home business and also go to college. I don't need shoes for either, so I really don't see a need to buy any.

 

shoes.. who needs them?

 

I need a home business! I'm gonna graduate this year with a master's degree and need a job. I've been enjoying going barefoot all semester and everywhere I go. Unfortunately, I still have shoes. I'm not sure how I'll do during the winter barefoot, though.

 

I'm a nudist guy, I live nude at home, and when I go out I'm barefoot and commando 24/7. When the weather's warm I like to wear a mini-skirt so I can go barelegged too. The odd thing is, on two occasions now when I've worn my mini-skirt, people have come up to me and said: "I hope you don't mind me asking you this, but... why do you go barefoot?" People seem to think that going barefoot is stranger than a man wearing a skirt.