While many Americans are still in full pandemic panic, some of us Floridians know another major disaster could be looming around the bend: HURRICANE SEASON.
Florida Hurricane Season
It officially starts on June 1st. For us, that means the afternoon thunderstorms kick off and from time to time we will be hunkering down in fear of lost electricity, flooding, falling trees and just general shoreline destruction.
Here in Jacksonville, we have both the coast and St. Johns River flooding to worry about.
Protecting Plants & Feets
As someone who doesn’t own land – no beach condo or house for me to stress about – hurricane panic doesn’t usually hit too hard. I hope a tree doesn’t wreck my car, then just hold out for hopefully a few days off of work. Well, usually I look forward to that. With the quarantine, I’ll take driving out in stormy weather as a nice change of pace. The cabin fever is real.
My way of prepping is to make sure my outdoor plants aren’t in danger of being tumbled by gusts of wind and making sure I have the proper summer footwear. Hurricane season positively demands new rain boots.
RIP My Old Sloggers
They go by a lot of names; wellies, sloggers, dickersons, gumshoes, overshoes, galoshes and rainboots. Depending on where you are from and whether these boots are stand-alones or slipped over other shoes, these shoes can look a bit different.
Basically, all of these serve a similar purpose. These boots protect your feet when you go squishing through the mud or trapse right into a big ol’ street puddle.
I used to have some very adequate rainboots. I bought the basic black mudding boots they sell at Walmart when I was preparing to go to Redneck Yacht Club. The boots served me well through four-wheeling rides and battling the rainy campsite for one fun-filled weekend.
The boots last for many years. I discovered that I could wear them during the Florida rainy season and even make a little bit of a fashion statement. They would tide me over as we transitioned into fall boot season, and I wore them until they got holes and water seeped in.
On a Boot Hunt
I threw out those boots a few months ago, and it was time to replace them. I started to get excited about shiny new rain boots. I was motivated by dreams of Paddington Bear and past trips to Target with lines of polka dot and ruby red boots standing tall in the the shoe section. So, I headed out on foot to find my new pair.
Target. DSW. Walmart. Dick’s Sporting Goods. Shoe Carnival. Academy Sports and Outdoors. My husband Michael accompanied me on a day long mission of searching for some new boots. The only ones I found had probs. There were men’s boots, clunky black and green boots, rain booties that stopped at the ankle, tall boots with no room for my calves, and basically just a very slim selection overall.
Michael told me not to settle. He told me to keep looking. This boot drought couldn’t last forever.
To the Mattresses (or the Internet)
I took my boot hunt online. Maybe it just wasn’t the right season. Certainly things my be different up North. But the Florida skies weren’t friendly, and I knew those hurricane rain clouds were only weeks away.
I googled. I amazoned. I poshmarked. I facebook marketplaced. Anon and alas, my search was fruitless. Thing is, my calves are not slim. The standard boot size just might suffocate my muscle-bulked and rather short legs. I also didn’t want just any boot. They HAD to be cute.
Forget the fact that size was a problem. There was also a major style issue to solve.
Poll: Yellow Vs Polka Dot
In the midst of these days of shopping (I really need a day job again!), I decided to kill some time by polling my friends to help me choose between classic yellow rain boots and rainbow polka dot black boots. I grabbed some screenshots and asked the Facebookees.
First, I heard a lot about polka dots. Do the polka. Choose dots. It seemed nearly unamimous. Then someone responded with the ol’ Porque no los dos? And I thought, yes, Jesse, in a perfect world I would have ALL the shoes. But it was my birthday, and my mom promised me a single pair so I HAD to make the right choice.
The winds shifted.
I started getting some classic yellow votes. Expect for my friend Michelle’s husband. He stated that Michelle was the only one who could pull off polka dots. And, outrage upon outrage, someone even suggested YELLOW POLKA DOTS. This was turning into a true Lizzy Maguire level fashion emergency.
| RAINBOOT FASHION POLL | ||
| *3 votes for both excluded | Classic Yellow | Rainbow Polka Dot |
| Votes | 17 | 10 |
The results were in . . . the public demanded boots the color of sunshine to don on rainy days. Paddinton Bear was winning.
Upon looking for a photo of Paddington, I discovered that this fuzzy bear also wore some pretty splended RED BOOTS. Not another choice!
Maybe what I really needed was some sassy red boots. I have yellow heels already. Maybe I’d missed my ruby red calling this whole time….
Waiting for My New Boots
I finally made a decision.
I finally choose one magical pair. I put in my very first ever Zappos order. It didn’t quite break the bank. But I will tell you corona times are slowing my shoe delievery down!
I will tell you everything about the size, style, brand, fit – oh, AND COLOR! – I chose whenever they finally arrive.
The suspense is killing me.
Read the Conclusion to my Boot Hunt Here!
In reading about this fashion emergency, you may have discovered my slight shoe obsession. Want MORE? You can get frequent updates on my shoenanigans by following me on Instagram at @CouplesWearingShoes