I was on the prowl for some new sneakers a couple of weeks ago. I wanted something simple and unique, comfortable and humbly stylish. I decided on P.F. Flyers, and thought I would share my thoughts on them, along with some background information.
I bought myself some new shoes this past week, something I haven’t done in a long time. After extensive research, I decided on going with some old school, Bob Cousy PF Flyers. I am exceptionally happy with my purchase; I think the shoes fit my personality and design sensibilities. But that is not what’s got me thinking this evening.
What’s got me thinking is just how different the retail market, and the whole process of buying something, is today. Thanks to the internet, I can, and did, shop around to dozens of different sites, looking at hundreds of different shoes, reading reviews and specs, and finding the lowest price. This is a luxury generations before ours did not have.
This is certainly not a new realization; however I did something tonight that made me think. I, a 21 year old, grown-ass-man Googled “how to lace up and tie your shoes”. Why you ask? Because I wanted to t figure out the absolute best way to lace up and tie my new shoes, which I spent so much time and energy picking out. And, of course, I found exactly what I was looking for, a nice man named Ian who seems to know everything there is to know about lacing up and tying one’s shoes. Basically, the internet allows me to appease my perfectionist tendencies, allows me to do almost anything, no matter how simple, in the best way imaginable.
I am interested to get you people’s thoughts on this. Is this kind of diversification of information, including the mundane, allow each of us to uniquely pick our path through this world from the countless choices before us? Or, is this kind of obsessive perfection a detrimental waste of time to society, suffocation original ideas? Let me know what you 400 anonymous subscribers think!
Ian on How To Lace Up Your Shoes (I decided to go with the Over-Under)
Ian on How to Tie Your Shoes (Secure Shoelace Knot for me!)
