Someone else's shoes

 

No, I'm not going to rehash that tired old admonition about judging a person only after walking a mile in their shoes. Rather, if you find yourself in a situation where someone has stolen your shoes, go ahead and steal someone else's shoes. The sum total of shoes to feet will remain the same, so fuck it. Last night's dream was pretty lame fare, so that's all I'm pulling from it. 

I was in the odd situation of having walked from Loma Rica to a college somewhere nearby. I was taking a side trail that went through someone's farm. I stopped to talk to several dogs along the way. One was a pitbull whom everyone described as "a real pussy." I felt my normal kinship to all animals as I listened to the conversation of the dog's owners.

I managed to get to the college without being late, which is unusual for any dream I have regarding school. At the entrance to the school was a gym locker type of place where everyone left their shoes, for some reason. It was odd because, while walking around the school, one didn't necessarily need shoes or feel barefoot. But when the time came to go home, one would need to be wearing shoes again.

It was late in the day as I was leaving, and there were gatekeepers and gates one needed to be sure to be on the right side of before dark. I was having a hard time locating my shoes in the locker room. I went through each and every pair before determining that mine were just not there. 

I began asking around, and no one seemed interested, even the guard whose job it was to guarantee their safety. I tried on a pair of shoes of a different color, but equally ratty appearance from the ones I had lost. A little loose and worn on the insole, but they'd do.

"Someone stole my shoes," I announced to the thinning, indifferent locker room crowd. "So, I'm stealing these. Fuckers!" 

I felt the pride of defiance as I sprinted toward the rapidly closing gates. One had already closed, but someone was holding another one open for me. 

"Thanks," I told them, as I sailed past. No need abandon my manners just because I was now a shoe thief.

I was now in the process of trying to remember where exactly I had parked my car. I jogged past a girl wearing a jacket that said "Soho Chic" or something like that in large, luminous stencil type letters on the front. I was sure that I was going to find my car, but I eventually woke up without finding it. It only occurred to me after awakening that I had walked to school, so I would have been looking for my car for a long time. 

My LED blinked off as I've been typing this. I have a lot to do today, so presumably I'm being prodded to get off my ass and get to it. Or maybe the electrons are just doing their own scientifically explainable thing irregardless of my day's activities. I really don't know. I really do have a lot to do today, though, so au revoir for now.

Ha! A final blink for "OK." Love you, too, Sharon.