The Great Shoe Debate
I need some help from my readers to settle a discussion Mrs. Expat Teacher and I have been having on and off again since Christmas.First a little background. You see, I spend more on shoes now than ever before. I want stylish shoes. Contrary to my teens and early twenties, Adidas Gazelle's are not the height of fashion. I'd like to think that I've matured and that my latest shoes are very fashionable.
However, even though I'm paying more for shoes, they seem to be falling apart faster than ever before. My memory might be tricking me, but I believe I used to get one years service from shoes. Now I'm buying a new pair every six months.
Obviously I don't like buying expensive shoes every 6 months, so the discussion between Mrs. Expat Teacher and myself goes something like this...
Mrs. Expat Teacher: Your shoes wear out because you wear the same pair of shoes every day.
Me: Yeah, but a good pair of shoes should be able to handle that.
Mrs. Expat Teacher: If you gave your shoes a rest, they'd last longer.
Me: True, in calendar days, but I'd have to buy 2 pairs of shoes then. Would I get more than 1 year out of the duel-pair option?
Mrs. Expat Teacher: Yes
Me: I don't think so.
So here is where I need some help. I think that shoes have X number of miles in them before they wear out and have to be replaced. One can "extend" the life of a pair of shoes, but only by not wearing them and thus not adding more miles to the overall total.
Mrs. Expat Teacher believes the life of a pair of shoes is variable. She thinks shoes need a sabbath. If given that sabbath they will last longer.
Neither one of us have any empirical evidence for our position.
What do you think?
posted by Expat Teacher @ 1:50 PM
