Put Some Shoes On

Can some one please explain to me why it is that Afrikaners small and large do not wear shoes in public places? In the mall, in the parking lot, in the grocery store. I wouldn’t be surprised if they just didn’t wear shoes to work. Could you imagine a guy in a suit waltzing into work without any shoes to complete the ensemble? In my mind shoes have become a very necessary part to completing any fashionable look (and unfashionable looks). I mean people have entire closets dedicated to shoes. Maybe we need to lend some to these South Africans.

Maybe it is a cultural piece I am missing? It can’t be because they can’t afford shoes, because I regularly see people get out of very expensive cars sans shoes, or could it be that now they can’t afford shoes because they spent all their money on that car? Trade down, my friends, trade down. In order potentially come to terms with this very strange phenomenon, I have decided to look into the historical and current trends of shoe wearing, mixed in with a little germ action.

So we all know that the primary purpose of shoes is to protect your feet, though some may argue that stilettos do little if anything to protect your feet. For me they mostly destroy my feet, which is why you will rarely see me wear them. Anyways back on topic, did you know that the earliest evidence of protective covering for the human foot date because almost 40,000 years? Wow, that was a long time ago, so why haven’t South Africans picked up on their use yet?

Okay I am no scientist and I have not done any experiments or studies around this, but I am quite aware that most floors, parking lots, etc. are pretty dirty and quite germ infested. Hmmm, apparently there was some study done that recently identified a myriad of dangerous and health-threatening germs carried unknowingly on your shoe. So here is my conclusion, again you don’t have to agree with it because I am not an expert…but, if there are dangerous and health-threatening germs on your shoes, which you are trekking into your house, then I would guess that if you are walking around barefoot, there is a pretty good chance you are just sucking those germs up right then and there, no need for transference into your house. Oh, so maybe the South Africans are protecting to floors of their homes, or maybe they are still transferring them just without shoes. 

Alright in the study discussed above these are the germs regularly found on shoes according to Suite 101: “Escherichia coli (E. Coli) - causing symptoms ranging from severe stomach pain accompanied by diarrhea to kidney failure and potential death in 1 out of 50 victims. Klebsiella pneumonia – a gram-negative bacteria that can rapidly destroy lung tissue and in 25 to 50% of patients will cause death. Serratia ficaria – causing gallbladder empyemas and sepsis as well as biliary infections. The study also found that the transfer rate of bacteria from the shoes to uncontaminated tiles ranged from 90% to 99%. Given that most home flooring includes porous wood, throw rugs and carpet; direct transmission is virtually certain.” I’ll stop there with all of this disturbing information, but do note that there is more. Okay so while this started out a way of understanding the lack of shoe wearing I see here, I may have uncovered that even us people who wear shoes may want to consider taking them off upon entrance to our homes. Sorry.

Now, moving along to current trends of shoes, the most recent is the concept of barefoot running. Apparent benefits are that of better balance, posture, less joint stress, and more muscle tone. Barefoot running can be exactly as it sounds, running without shoes, or it can be running with a new type of foot covering with “barefoot technology” that matches your foots natural arch and contours without adding any additional support or cushioning. I’m not exactly sure I would enjoy running without my Asics, but I guess I can’t knock it until I try it. Almost coming full circle, from barefoot to shoes to barefoot, but I don’t think that the barefoot running idea will force people to ditch their other shoes, so that really leaves us still in the shoe category.

While mostly out of my research I have decided that shoes should be disinfected and removed upon entering a house (the Japanese have always had it figured out), I still believe that all South Africans need to start wearing shoes and putting them on their children. Just doing what I can to try to save some shoeless Afrikaner at a time.