Ridiculosity.

pitbullmamaliz

Barefooters
May 24, 2012
116
44
28
Cleveland, Ohio
So I've been wearing my VFF's to work for weeks now, every single day, no matter what I'm wearing. I work in a prison so they get quite a lot of attention. The inmates are fascinated by them and I hear about 10 times a day, "are those comfy?" I really want to say, "no, they're miserable but they're such a fashion statement I wear them anyway" but I settle with "yes, they really are." The staff are fascinated as well and have tons of questions. Kind of entertaining.

However, I found out that the Warden's office has been receiving TONS of complaints about my shoes. Women there wear mules (slip on shoes with no back, for the men out there *wink*), strappy sandals, flip flops, etc. and nobody says crap, yet I have on shoes that enable me to run and protect myself and others, and people complain. A couple days ago I managed to sprint two housing units over because a man-down alarm went off. I've helped out in use of force incidents. Cracks me up (in a bemused way) that the people complaining about my shoes are probably the ones who are incapable of assisting in the security of the institution.

Anyway, this was a pointless thread, just wanted to share my entertainment/head shaking.

On a side note, I wasn't even out of breath after sprinting through two housing units. Granted, it wasn't that far, but I would have been huffing and puffing before I started running. :)
 
Are they saying you can't wear them anymore at all? If they are saying you can't then state those exact reasons to them as to why you should. Stand strong, Liz, as you are.
 
And who was complaining? About WHAT, precisely? I wouldn't think looks would matter in your work position in the same way an employer could argue, if, say, you did sales or pr or something.
How irritating.
 
Fortunately the Warden's office told me they haven't found any reason I can't wear them, so I'm good. Trust me, I'll fight it if they change their minds. My boss says his only concern is that if an inmate stomps on my foot it'll hurt, but I pointed out that unless I have steel-toed boots on, it would hurt in any of my shoes. I'm not in uniform which helps my fight - my required attire is business casual, so it's usual khaki's, or nice capris (which really show the VFF's off to their full glory). However, one of the CO's who overheard the Warden's assistant telling me this said that in another Ohio prison, a CO actually fought for the right to wear black VFF's and won (unless he has to go out on transport or into the public then he has to wear real shoes). So if a CO was able to win the right to wear them, I should be golden.

I will say that I do wish they came in normal, less obnoxious colors so they wouldn't be QUITE so attracting of attention. Walking through Target last night I heard people talking about my shoes. As an introvert, constantly getting stopped by strangers to chat about my shoes is awkward, LOL.
 
My boss says his only concern is that if an inmate stomps on my foot it'll hurt,.

in direct contrast to the women wearing safety-flip flops, right? lol
 
I run into something similar here at the office; women can wear flip-flops (they are decorated so they call them sandals) but if I wear my flip-flops I'm questioned about it. Women can also wear "pants" that come to their knees but if I were to wear shorts that come to me knees I'd probably be asked to change. One day I will come in wearing shorts and flip-flops and cry discrimination if they say anything.
 
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This is what I wear most days, they are slip on and very comfortable.
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I often wear my VFFs to work in the library. Got a few questions and comments from my colleagues, none negative. My boss even said they were funky :)
 
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I will say that I do wish they came in normal, less obnoxious colors so they wouldn't be QUITE so attracting of attention. Walking through Target last night I heard people talking about my shoes. As an introvert, constantly getting stopped by strangers to chat about my shoes is awkward, LOL.
I wish all minshoes were made less loud. I hate that you can't hardly find minshoes that look more like a normal shoe in coloring, instead they are infused with bright neon colors that scream look at me and I'm so bright you can't wear me as an everyday shoe.
 
Yep. I like the Stems (I mean Lemings), but I'm afraid they wouldn't hold up for working out. I want a shoe that will work for both working out as well as being a casual shoe for everyday wear. I don't think I am asking too much there...
 
They have brown VFFs and khaki VFFs too. You have to keep looking for them on the net. I'm glad you're "golden" though, so maybe some gold ones would work. ;)
 
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Hey, I just had an idea: since some of the women wear flip flops, have you thought about huaraches? They kind of look fancy, and not all that unusual.

Also, I have a pair of $25 huarache style but not huarache shoes that I got from dsw early this summer. The sole is super flat, no support, the leather is soft and doesn't rub my toes, and they look trendy. The only downside is that they are not flexible, but this doesn't bother me when walking/standing. They also look relatively fancy with a skirt/dressier clothes.
 
I will say that I do wish they came in normal, less obnoxious colors so they wouldn't be QUITE so attracting of attention. Walking through Target last night I heard people talking about my shoes. As an introvert, constantly getting stopped by strangers to chat about my shoes is awkward, LOL.

Why don't you get black color VFF ? People can hardly notice those are not "regular looking" shoes.

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