Several years ago, my three college besties and I gathered at a cabin in the Smokey Mountains. One of my girls lived near there and made the arrangements. The other three of us drove down from my house in Kentucky.
As we were getting close to our destination, we stumbled upon something curious: A box of shoes right smack-dab in the middle of the road. All different kinds of shoes, just neatly sitting there. We all fell silent and looked at it for a moment and then burst into uncontrollable laughter. There is very little better than three old friends in a fit of laughter. I almost had to pull over. Not only did this strike us as hysterical, it also posed the question: How does this happened?
I guess a box of shoes can fall out of the back of your truck during a move, but this one was sitting perfectly in the middle of the road with all the shoes contained in said box—none had fallen out.
Then we got to thinking, what about all the times you just see one shoe laying by the road whist driving? How does this happen? Did someone get so angry during transit that the only option was to just say, “Fuck it!” and throw a shoe out the window of a moving vehicle? Did it prove a point? Did they have remorse about the lost shoe?
There is also the possibility they were not driving at all. What if they were out for a walk? Was it an intense power walk? Did one of their shoes become untied? Did they walk right out of it and just kept on going? So many questions. It all seems uncomfortable at best.
Some shoes in the road are easier to explain than others. For example, kid’s shoes, I get. Kids are loose cannons (and assholes). They will get pissed off about running out of Goldfish and wing a shoe out the window. Some parents would go back and look for it. I’m not one of them.
Some of the abandoned shoes I see appear to be really nice. I just can’t believe they wouldn’t be missed. I immediately start considering the scenarios where this particular type of shoe could have lost its mate and found itself abandoned on a stretch of highway. I have come up with some pretty entertaining stories in my head. Yes, I’m easily amused.
I was on a walk in my neighborhood recently and there was an adult-sized Croc just sitting in the street. I immediately took a pic and sent it to the girls. We all chuckled and again wondered about this lone shoe phenomenon.
I guess it will go down as one of life’s little mysteries. However, I have to tell you, I kind of hope one day I get my panties in such a twist the only way I can express my total frustration and anger is to throw my damn shoe out the window at top speed. So, if you happen to see a size six Chuck Taylor on the side of the road, I may have snapped.
Angela Traver
What is this blog about? Well, it's a general blog, but it is also a very specific blog. If you get that reference, you get a gold star! I have been a public relations professional and writer of press releases for more than 20 years—primarily in the booze biz. I decided to do some writing for fun and embrace the humor that gets me through most days. Hopefully it will make you chuckle—or at least smile. I’m a certified crazy magnet, and more than a little nutty myself, so buckle up. Also, I have two vices—profanity and red wine/whiskey. You’ve been warned. It should also be noted, that I’m a HUGE Bob & Sheri fan. I’ve been a listener for more than 20 years. This opportunity is a dream come true and it may have made me cry. That being said, I cry at everything. If you are into booze, dogs, food and/or knitting, hit me up on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter (although I’m terrible at Twitter and it scares me) @kyspiritsgal. You can also find all my previous blog posts at www.kyspiritsgal.com.
