Succumbing to the Swoosh

Last Saturday, on the way back from dropping off my pictures at the Big E, I stopped at the outlet store complex off Exit 2 on the Massachusetts Turnpike.

I walked around some of the stores, doing some window shopping – even at a discount outlet, some prices can be staggeringly high – and then, just for a lark, I walked into a Nike outlet store.

And it was at that point that I realized… I needed a new pair of athletic shoes.

Bear in mind, I’m a Converse kind of guy.  Always loved wearing Converse Chuck Taylor canvas hightops.  They just felt comfortable and egalitarian – and, as an added bonus, they were manufactured in America by American men and women earning an American union wage.  As for the other shoes – Nike, Reebok, adidas – I remember reading reports of those companies manufacturing shoes in Vietnam, using workers earning what, ten cents a week, workers inhaling the fumes from poisonous glues that bind the sneakers together, just so we can pay $150-$200 a pair and wear them in the misguided belief that wearing them will give us some serious game.  No.  In my mind and in my heart, I couldn’t support that.

And here I was, wearing my three-year-old Converse Chuck Taylors – a pair so old that Reverend Alan Rudnick could say a blessing over them, they were so holey.

I looked through the racks and racks of running shoes and basketball shoes and cleated footwear.  Ugly.  Ugly.  Garish.  Can they make this swoosh any larger?  Expensive.  Junky.

And then I saw, over in the discount racks, what looked like a decent pair of sneakers.  Nike Dart 7, which apparently is a very popular type of running shoe.  According to the information on the box, the shoe is part of Nike’s “Considered Design” initiative – the fabrics are crafted with less waste, the shoe is made of recycled materials; a less toxic rubber compound was used in construction.  Yes, it’s still manufactured in Vietnam, and I still have to wrap my head around the concept that I can’t find affordable athletic shoes that are completely crafted in the United States.

And there was something else I had to consider. And I call it the “Barry Scott Insurance” factor.

About a couple of decades ago, there were a chain of car insurance offices throughout the Capital District, operating under the aegis of “Barry Scott Insurance.”  I remember that when people insured their car through Barry Scott, they received a promotional T-shirt that said, “I Got Mine Through Barry Scott Insurance.”  My Aunt Dolores had one of those T-shirts – and she wore it as part of her regular wardrobe rotation.

And every time she wore that shirt, she was essentially advertising Barry Scott Insurance – just as when you receive a free New York Lottery T-shirt whenever the Lottery sets up a kiosk at a festival or fair and hands out “free gifts.”  As far as I’m concerned, it’s not considered a free gift when you’re using your body as a walking advertisement for the company, whether it’s low-cost insurance or a “dollar and a dream.”

So I went through the boxes on the shelves, looking – looking – 9, 10, 11 – then I found it.  10 1/2.  Just my size.

I tried on one of the sneakers.  It fit snugly.  My feet felt better in the shoe than in the Converse Chuck Taylors I wore that day.  Hmm… Plus, as a person with Type II diabetes, I needed a shoe that was snug and secure for my feet.  If I’m supposed to start running and exercising and taking better care of myself, then I have to get a shoe that will help me in that regard.

Then I looked at the price.  Suggested retail price – $55.99.  Nike Outlet Store price – $44.99.

Up to the register I went.  The cashier remarked, “Did you know that all our shoes are on discount today?”

So what was $55 got marked down to $32.99 – straight, since Massachusetts charges no sales tax on clothing or shoes.  Which is about what I would feel comfortable paying for a pair of what I will consider casual footwear.

Out came my wallet.  A few moments later, I walked back to my car – a new, heavily discounted pair of black Nike Dart 7 sneakers in my shopping bag.

I guess if I have to balance out all the pros and cons of these sneakers, the most important thing I have to consider is – will they fit.  And they did.  And could I afford them – both financially and conscientiously.  I could handle the former – and it’s going to take me some time to get used to the latter.

Maybe if these shoes actually help me lose a few pounds in exercise, I won’t feel so apprehensive about them.

We shall see.