The Tool Trilogy, Part I: Toes, Reconsidered

Nearly three weeks late, but who’s counting?

Ah, so much to post, I’ve decided to break it into three entries.  The actual concert will be Part III.  (Until then, my review, in a nutshell:  HOLY FUCKING SHIT!)

Let’s see … when we last left off, our headstrong heroine was threatening to take down anyone who might cause harm to her toes, which would be left relatively unprotected by the heroine’s insistence on wearing flip flops to her 19th row seat at the Tool concert.

Two nights before the concert, I finally started to come to my senses.  Besides the possibility of crushed tootsies, another possibility crossed my mind:  What if a flip flop (or two) came off, and I couldn’t find it (them)?  Not a good place to be barefoot.  Walking back to the car through the huge, poorly lit parking lots post-concert, where there’s bound to be more than a few broken beer bottles?  Shudder.

But I didn’t want to wear my leather Keds (too dorky) or my clunky Reeboks (ugly when paired with black cropped pants).  What are the cool kids wearing these days?  How about some kind of a slip-on sneaker/sport shoe?  I checked Bob’s Stores online.  The slip-on athletic things were fugly, but functional.  Then I saw it – canvas skimmers.  Cute.  Hip.  Protective.  Now, those I could do.

Next, I checked out the Payless site.  I needed a bargain.  Yes!  They had canvas skimmers!  Oooh, look at these: 

I would totally wear these out and about, and that rubber toecap was just what my toes needed.

Of course, it being midsummer already and my having a common shoe size (7½), I feared there wouldn’t be any left in the store.  There were other styles, though, and even if I had to go to more than one store…

And I was out the door to Ye Olde Neighbourhood Payless, which was closing in a half hour or so.

Oh my god, THEY HAD THEM!  IN MY SIZE!!!  On sale, no less.  Just $14.99.  Somebody loves me.  I continued to browse and saw these: 

Heh.  Black and white, skulls and crossbones.  No pink, no flowers.  More badass.  Note also the badass upgrade from satin ribbon bow to metal buckle.

Hmmmm.  More appropriate for the concert, perhaps, but seriously, would I wear them elsewhere?  Would I even wear them to the concert?  Me?

Decisions, decisions.

So I did what any sensible woman would do.  I brought both boxes to the register.

“Did you find everything you were looking for?”

Normally, I wouldn’t engage in much chitchat, but I was so giddy, both about the shoes and the upcoming concert, that I replied, “Yes.  I’m going to a concert on Thursday, and it occurred to me that flip flops might not be a smart choice.”

“Oh, no.  I made that mistake once before and lost one.  What concert are you going to?”

“Tool.”

Her jaw dropped.  “Ohhhhhhhh!  I want to see them so bad, but my boyfriend is working that night.”

I told her I was concerned about crowds and moshing and pushing and shoving because we had close seats.  She then told me about going to see System of a Down and being near the stage and feeling unnerved when she saw the guy next to her pop in a mouth guard before getting into the mosh pit.

I explained to her that one of the pairs of skimmers would be coming back on Friday.  I told her I just couldn’t decide between the more concert-appropriate skulls or the more wearable flowers and that I was leaning towards the flowers because I didn’t think I could pull off the skulls.

“Oh, if you’re cool enough to go to Tool, you’re cool enough to wear skulls and crossbones.”

Which at first seemed like a compliment, but then I realized she probably just thought I was old.

Still, she was sweet and personable, and if I still had that extra ticket, I would have given it to her. 

I tried on both pairs a couple of times that night and decided I likely would go with the pink, black, and tan flowers.  By the time I left for work the following morning, however, I was all about the skulls.

At work, I emailed Tina the link to the Shoes of Death.

Tina:  Those are really cute.

Me:  Yeah, I’m a badass, but in a really cute kind of way.

Tina:  Ha.  Exactly.

So that was it.  I could and would wear them, and not just to the concert, dammit.

And keep the flowered ones, too.  Of course.

=^..^=