What if they had a free-for-all and a shoe sale broke out?
Elbows were flying, ladies were running, I was sweating and running barefoot. This recent craziness took place during a shoe sale at Dillard’s. It wasn’t pretty, but it had to be done, and in order to snag a good pair of shoes, you had to be ready both physically and mentally. I didn’t plan on going crazy, but when my bargain radar intercepted the 70 percent off signs above the racks and racks of shiny shoes, all bets were off. Seeing me go into bargain hunter mode was nothing new for Parish and he sought safety in another store. He’s a smart man.
I wear a very feminine size 10, so I thought I would find the lonely rack and wouldn’t have to wrestle with the other little feet people. I was wrong. There wasn’t any organization, and size fives were next to eights and size sixes were hanging out with nines. It was complete mayhem!
On the outskirts of the racks I found a couple lost boxes and lo and behold, a beautiful pair of my-size 10, faux snake skin heels. Trust me, these shoes are absolutely lovely and it was must-have-at-first-sight. I clutched the box tightly as I went in to the main arena. You had to keep on eye on your treasures; one lady interrogated me about where I found the good-looking pair.
At this point, I took off the shoes I came in, plus my socks, and was trying on shoe after shoe. I have honestly never had that much fun wrestling – I mean shopping for shoes – ever.
Parish finally came out of hiding and found a safe spot to sit while I continued my mad spree. He actually turned out to be very helpful and commented on every pair I tried on. After I was done trying a few on, he would say, “Go back in there!” So I did. About 25 shoes later, I surrendered. I had made it out alive with three pairs of beautiful shoes.
Parish told me to pick one pair and I nearly cried. One? I panicked and looked at the snakeskin pumps, that had been with me from the beginning. I also found a pretty pair of deep purple, patented shoes and a cute pair of black flats. He could tell that I was on the verge of tears and calmly said, “OK, let’s get all three.” I exhaled and hugged my understanding, patient and great partner in crime.
Please understand that this is not a normal occurrence. I don’t get treated to shoe shopping sprees every weekend. This was the first time since we’ve been married (three years, eight months) that I can recall such an event taking place. I wear shoes until something breaks, rips or becomes dangerous. My mom sends me shoes from Colorado, which helps with my inventory. And if I do treat myself, I usually look at Payless or TJ Maxx first. Most of the shoes were originally $99 each and came to about $35 on sale. One pair was $26. So we got six shoes for the price of two. Isn’t that exciting?
I was beside myself for the rest of the day – I floated home and gingerly unpacked my new finds and arranged them neatly in my closet.
Retail therapy does exist, and I think it works even better when you participate in a women’s wrestling tournament disguised as a great sale and live to tell about it.