Let's Talk with Maggie Toussaint
Let’s Talk with Maggie Toussaint
June 25, 2020
These boots were made for walking
By Maggie Toussaint
In any other year, June would be chock full of celebrations. Weddings, graduations, milestone anniversaries, retirements, and more would be toasted with family and friends. June 2020 has a much different look, especially for the “elderly.”
Everyone keeps talking about the New Normal and like the dinosaur that I am, I want the Old Normal. That’s what dinosaurs do, they cling to what’s familiar.
Similarly, prior to the opening of SEAS THE DAY. my catering sleuth, River Holloway, experienced a cataclysm of events that skewed her version of “normal.” Her ex-boyfriend is her boyfriend again, though he lives across the country. Her mother died, and her brother got arrested for doing something stupid. Now her childhood friend’s gone missing.
Worse, she has all the time in the world for her business, but she still can’t make ends meet. So much for dreams and happy endings…
No two ways about it. This wasn’t the life she’d envisioned, but it was the hand she’d been dealt. She kept going by putting one foot in front of the other until her new life started to fit better.
Seems to me her way of dealing with those uncomfortable changes is one many of us can adopt: keep putting one foot in front of the other and eventually it will feel less scary.
For a chance to win SEAS THE DAY in ebook or print, leave a comment about your favorite shoes, and keep on keeping on. (Print book is available to a winner with a US mailing address.) Entries for the contest closed on July 4, but we always welcome comments!
Posted in Let's Talk, with Maggie Toussaint • Tags: BLB Discussion, Let's Talk, Maggie Toussaint, Seas the Day, These boots are made for walking | 39 Comments
My favourite shoes are a comfy pair of walking boots/trainers for Summer hikes. I love to take off with my dog and head up to the hills. Somehow looking down at things from a height helps put life in perspective. I also get to enjoy God’s wonderful creation. I live in an area of England listed for it’s outstanding natural beauty. Pretty cool.
That sounds so beautiful, Fiona. I enjoy nature photography so I’m always looking for nature in it’s finest glory. Good thing you have the right shoes for the job, too!
My favorite shoes are any that feel comfortable. For some reason I have a hard time finding comfortable shoes and will spend hours or even days searching for a pair. The worst part of this, though, is that I’m very hard on shoes. They wear out too soon. Of course, each time, invariably the manufacturer has discontinued the comfy shoes. So I have to begin the search process all over again. 🙁
I feel your shoe blues as that happens to me, too. Sometimes in the shop I can tell that the pair on my feet are abso-smurfly perfect, so I’ll get a second pair in the same color. That way I beat the trend of my shoes being discontinued. Once I even bought a second pair in the same color and pulled them out as soon as the first ones wore out. I find that comfortable shoes is right up there at the top of things I prefer every day. If my feet hurt from the wrong kind of shoe, I am pretty miserable, though I am always thankful to have shoes.
Sounds so very familiar, Carol. We’re in the same shoe horn!
Glad to know you are good at finding shoes that work!
I agree, Maggie. We have to keep moving forward, not yearning for what was but reaching for what will be. Change can be painful, more for some than others. Getting into stride with something new or different takes that deliberate one foot after the other to become comfortable or to tell us this isn’t our path.
I don’t know if you’ve ever received this compliment, Claire, but I think you are an “old soul” like me. I’ve been told that all my life and I think that may have been because I spent a lot of time with older people when I was a kid. In any event, I learned the skill of listening and absorbing. I also learned how to filter out what worked for me. Putting one foot in front of the other has pretty much been a motto my entire life, especially when life changes came along. Always good to connect with you here!
Good advice. We have to live more in the present, being grateful for each day and accomplishing what we can under current circumstances. As for shoes, I am wearing sandals around the house and to the grocery store. They’re the strappy kind. I can’t walk in flip-flops.
Focusing on the present helps me as does planning for the future. My entire life I’ve been a goal setter and I’ve never been so glad of that habit as I am now. I like feeling that a shoe is secure on my foot. Now that I’m “of an age”, barefooted won’t work for me so I’m always wearing shoes. Sneakers are my jam and I have several pairs. I also love the flipflops that have a built-in arch support. Those totally rock for me.
We’re the only creatures on this earth who can long for the past, so I don’t think we should be so quick to suppress that desire. Re: shoes, I’m not a shoe person — if I have a choice I go barefoot, much to my husband’s dismay. My favorite shoes have all given up the ghost in the past year and I’ve had a hard time replacing them. Currently for throwing on something to run outside, my fav is my pair of camo crocs with a heavy duty sole. My nicer shoe favs are my Sperry boat shoes; however, someone (not me!) left the baby gate open to my office and someone’s (not mine!) dog ate my favorite pair. However, someone did replace that one pair with three for my birthday, so all is well (though the new ones are taking a while to properly break in). 🙂
careful with those Crocs. They could be a chewy delight for someone’s dog. Cool that you scored 3 pair of Sperrys for one chewed pair. Maybe I should get a dog. I’m loving this shoe math!
I’m either wearing Birkenstock or Easy Spirit – difficult to find the proper width in other brands.
I hope to be able to visit with family soon.
I also need wider shoes now thanks to my not-so-good friend, Aging and her cousin, Degenerative Changes. I’m a big Easy Spirit fan. Haven’t worn Birks in a while. Perhaps I’ll go with them again. I hope you are able to visit family again soon. Thanks for stopping by.
My favorite shoes are my Ethletic sneakers. They’re vegan and fair-trade. I haven’t needed to buy any in years though, and I fear finding some will be difficult when my current pair falls apart.
Isn’t it great when you can narrow it down to a certain brand for the best fit? I have a few go-to brands that I find give great satisfaction. Thanks for visiting!, Marla
I have outdoor shoes and indoor shoes. Slippers were not providing enough support. Current indoor shoes are Easy Spirit.
Barbara, that’s such a good idea. I finally got the right shoes for slippers. They’re cork-soled clogs with fleece lining and arch support. They are a veritable foot heaven. Not sure if they were intended to be slippers or outside shoes, but now I can just call them inside shoes. Nice wordsmithing!
sneakers….. and one pair of really great black boots.
A woman can never have too many pairs of sneakers! And black boots really say a lot about the wearer. Sigh. My last pair of black boots are now too tight in the wrong places. I might be past the black boot stage.
Maggie, black boots are a state of mind, not age. There’s a pair out there, somewhere, looking for you.
Love my sneakers. Did love those fancy high heels in my younger days. Now give me comfort and stability.
Me too, Roseann. Sneakers are my jam.
The best, most comfortable pair of sandals I’ve ever had just broke a couple weeks ago. The strap snapped as I was walking through the grocery store. Granted, they were probably about 10 years old. But now I have to find a replacement pair and nothing’s living up to my expectations after these. 🙁
Oh, man! I hate it when that happens. I had a sandal top come completely unglued while at an outdoor summer funeral. Guess what? I was the only barefooted person there! Small towns, and alll…
I love my sandals so much, I buy the same ones every year. If I could wear them in the winter, I would.
My sister wears her flipflops year round. I’m not such a Spartan, but I am in love with several pairs of good fitting yet comfortable and supportive shoes. Thanks for clicking over from Cheryl Hollon’s Launch Pary!
I’m a sneakers girl. Avia’s are the best. In my younger days, I would wear 4″ heels. I wobble around on 2″ heels now. If I need dress shoes–they’re flats.
Like you, Barbara, I now favor sneakers. I’ve decided that life is short and I might as well wear comfortable shoes! Thanks for popping over!
Apologies for the delay in selecting winners. Since I did miss Thursday online, I am selecting two winners. They are Julie McDonough and Sandra Marshall. I will contact you ladies by email. Congratulations!
I love my Skecher sneakers! I have several different pairs and even a dressier pair of Skecher flat shoes. Got to be comfortable! Too old for the feet to hurt.
I have exactly the same attitude about shoes, Martha. Life’s too short to wear shoes that aren’t comfortable!
My favorite pair of shoes are my black opened toe shoes. They are so comfy. I wear them everywhere. I say they are my favorite because they are not only so old but they’ve been falling apart on the bottom of shoes and because they’re so comfy and easy to wear and I can’t find another pair like them. I just can’t bring myself to throw them out. They’re not expensive shoes they’re Walmart shoes but very, very Comfy. I have no income coming in nor do I have a job but I live in the beautiful USA.
I can relate because just when you think things are going well you’re dealt a totally hand.
I love books like this and hope I win the print version of the book so I can read and review it. Always looking to try new authors, books and genres. It’s my main way of finding my favorite authors.
Hope I Win.
I’m sorry you missed the one week window of the giveaway. If you click over to http://bookloversbench.com/win-a-free-book-july-2020/ there’s a giveaway going on where the winner may select from 6 books including Seas the Day.
Did you select your winners already? I saw this contest still open tonight(7-7-2020) so I entered but now not sure if you had winners already picked. I saw later on 7-7-2020 you did.
Would love to read and review paperback/hardback/print books. Let me know.
I sent you an email, Crystal.
My favorite shoes were a pair of red butter-soft leather pumps with a 1.5 inch stacked heel. A perfect height for my high arches. They made me feel strong and lady-like. It took years to wear them out and, of course, the shoes were no longer made. I had a moment of silence for all the joy they brought me.
Bless you, Sunnymay. I feel that personal connection to all of my fav shoes. Glad you had such a long runin those lovely red shoes. Hugs!
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