I took a picture of my pre-owned SAS Siesta work shoes while waiting for the subway on my way home today.  These shoes are arguably really ugly, but there’s something unconventionally charming about them.  I’ve found myself reaching for them daily ever since it got cold in New York.

Here’s what I love about them:

1. They’re comfortable for long periods of standing at work.
2. They make me look taller without feeling like I’m wearing heels.  (SAS makes taller versions as well).
3. It’s top to bottom black, even the metal shoelace holes and stitching are black.
4. They are great for autumn weather and rain.  No need to buy a separate pair of rain shoes if you have an umbrella for downpours.
5. They come in a gazillion width sizes. (These are “slim” or extra narrow!)
6. And you can find pre-owned versions all over the internet for less than $30, although they are worth a lot more ($130)!  I got mine on eBay for $26.
7. The design has been around for decades so you know you’re getting something tried and true and can replace them easily when they wear out.  Plus they are still handmade in America.
8. They make your feet look two sizes smaller and hug your feet (unlike Danskos which were always too wide and clunky for me)
9. And lastly, they’re humble and smart looking, and go with literally everything I wear to work.  Socks that peak out look fine with my more cropped trousers, at the expense of looking like the nerd that I am (something I embrace wholeheartedly).

In other news:  My vintage coach bag from the 1980’s is falling apart.  Today the leather on the zipper tab broke off.  I’ve realized that really old leather (like >20 years old), even if it looks fine on the surface, is a lot more fragile underneath.  At the end of the day, leather is dead skin, and it will disintegrate with time no matter how well its cared for.  I think it’s time to retire my coach bag, sell my APC half moon bag, and buy the Baggu cross body for a happy medium.  I’m hoping to at least break even on the exchange.

Another update, I’ve been looking for jobs in LA, and need a blazer for job interviews.  I think job interviews are the only times it’s important to wear a blazer and look like everyone else, no matter how that pains me.  Once I didn’t wear a blazer to an interview, and that became the topic of discussion, and I didn’t get the position which probably has nothing to do with what I was wearing but I fretted over it afterwards.  Lesson learned.  In the end, I’d rather stand out for my merits  only and not on adventurous outfit choices in a situation like that.  I bought the Everlane oversized wool blazer to try out, but have a feeling I might end up exchanging it for their classic blazer in surplus.

I tried searching for pre-owned blazers but they all looked frumpy, wrinkled,  or mis-shapened.  Online secondhand retailers need to do a better job displaying their clothing.  I mean c’mon at least iron out the wrinkles!

An update on these Kamm pants, they are feeling better with each wear.  Maybe they can be broken in or maybe I’m losing a tiny bit of weight?  Although I’m relatively thin, my proportions make fitting into clothes difficult.  I entered my measurements into a body type calculator and it turns out I’m an “ectomorph”, which is supposed to be “model-like” proportions, but for me it means any weight gained is super noticeable around the abdomen because there’s no curvy hips to balance things out.  Oh well.  Not that important.

This led me down a rabbit whole of quackery information about body types and actually think there is some truth to what my body type says about my personality.  “Ectomorphic: characterized as linear, thin, usually tall, fragile, lightly muscled, flat chested and delicate; described as cerebrotonic, inclined to desire isolation, solitude and concealment; and being tense, anxious, restrained in posture and movement, introverted and secretive.”  That’s totally me! (except for the tall and flat chested part). My BF is a light version of the endomorph and he sort of fits that personality type too (he enjoys food, people, moves slow, very easy going, complacent, etc).

It’s totally unscientific and shouldn’t be taken more seriously then let’s say astrology or the chinese zodiac, but there are disease examples where catecholamine levels and particular body types are related, via linked genes perhaps, and in that sense there could be some very loose correlations between body type and personality.  Experienced doctors do develop pattern recognition for various invisible disease processes just by looking at your appearance, ie. someone doesn’t have to be morbidly obese to look like “a walking heart attack”.

[outfit:  sas siesta shoes*, jesse kamm ranger pants, apc nepal parka (old)]