Thing About Shoes

Richard Freitas has this thing about shoes.

He could go several months without wearing the same pair twice. And pholks, no matter how you cut it, that's a lot of shoes. And we're not just talking cheapie foot coverings.

In fact, some of Richard's shoes cost more than probably the combined cost of all my shoes put together. I have six or seven pair of wearable shoes including one or two pair I wear maybe three or four times a year.

Of course, I don't buy any Air Jordan's or special Nikes or any other of those things since I'm not an active basketball player, or any other serious athlete for that matter. Not that I wasn't at one time, but even them sneakers, lo-tops or deck shoes were relatively cheap compared to today's footwear. Even paying $15 to $30 wasn't easy. And finding the right size was more critical that any of the special effects, stripes, laces, cushions, padding, décor, color schemes or whatever else is part of the ongoing footwear feeding frenzy. I never had to worry about getting conked on the head by someone wanting to steal my shoes.

I learned my lesson when I somehow lost one of the custom Tiger Woods slip-on golf shoes my loving wife shopped several weeks for, paying more than I would have. I still have the one shoe despite dwindling hope the other will show up after three years.

Richard's shoes are all pairs. The 28-year-old bar manager at Visalia's Lamp Liter Lounge has been collecting shoes for about seven years. Although he has worn some during pick-up street, school yard or gym basketball games, Richard doesn't have any worn out shoes. In fact, there are at least 15 pair which have never touched the street or even the carpet in his home. Some, he admits aren't likely to even be worn just because they are special.
Richard is single and lives at home, a fact helping him afford the $130 to $150 average cost of his nice shoes.

n addition, he collects caps, most of them official Major League Baseball headgear which sell for about $30 each. Like his shoes, Richard's baseball caps are pristine. Cap bills must be just right, he says. It's pretty well known that you don't mess with Richard's shoes or his caps.

He has shoe and cap shelves in his room. Several pairs remain in their original boxes. Richard generally buys locally and doesn't shoe shop on the internet.

“I guess it's just because I have a thing for shoes,” he said last week, adding, “I've always liked having nice shoes so I started collecting them when new models began coming out all the time.”

Some of his regular afternoon customers at the lounge tease him a bit, but Richard handles it well, noting that he never has any dirty shoes and sometimes gets genuine complements about his footwear.

Richard, who moved to Visalia right after high school in Dinuba, has been in the food and beverage service business for several years and is on his feet almost all the time, which justifies the need for having good shoes.
But pholks, it's a good bet he won't wear out his shoes any time soon.

Miles can be reached at mshuper@valleyvoicenewspaper.com