Going barefoot

[txim_asawl]

To avoid the dangers of sunburn, I put some suntan lotion onto my feet (the instep, the top of them, that is) onb the first sunny days of spring. And since I have changed to my warm weather hairdo (first, a buzzcut down to 2 mm, then using a razor to shave that down, too, giving me all that Buddha-esque appearance), I also apply that to my head as well - wouldn't want any sunburn or peeling up there, either.

Tan lines on bare feet - well, I won't get those from flip-flop straps, but from wearing anklets and toe rings.



(bare feet in the sun at the bus stop yesterday, before going to the movies... I finally found some nail polish close to Na'vi skin tone - yay!)

Wiggling bare toes, that got some sun last weekend,

~*Txim Asawl*~

[txim_asawl]

Normally, we would think that a podiatrist, like most physicians, has a strong interest in making a profit by prescribing some expensive stuff for his patients (which is true in some, but not all cases - I don't want to go into bashing all MDs...). Here is an example of a British podiatrist who once thought, that orthotics and other corrective measures are the only answer to foot ailments, and recently has realized, that there is a simpler remedy: go barefoot.

There is a quiet revolution taking place in the Westcountry as walkers and runners plagued by repetitive injuries discover the joy of going barefoot and the benefits it can bring.

One nice example of a professional barefoot convert.


(Incidentally, Steve Bloor, the aforementioned podiatrist, has also joined the Society for Barefoot Living mailing list and reports there about his attempts to educate people in the field of barefooting being healthy...)

Wiggling bare toes,

~*Txim Asawl*~

[Human No More]

Good

I've been going into university barefoot this week, has been epic, surprisingly few questions though, although a few people look, and that makes me feel great as I am almost trolling them without even saying anything. Hopefully people will find out more though

[Pa'li Makto]

I saw a few people at Uni last year who had the 5 toed shoes but no one was barefoot though.
I'm always barefoot at home which is great. My feet are tough enough that I don't get cuts or bruises but stepping on rocks is still annoying.

[Human No More]

Sadly I managed to get a blister on one foot, maybe not quite unexpected as in the last few days I have not worn shoes out at all , but I guess that's the end of seeing how long I can go without shoes for at least a few days

[txim_asawl]

Ouch... I hope it gets better soon, so that you can enjoy the delights of spring barefooting - such as playing with daisies, as I did yesterday on my lunch break, making them part of my foot decorations:





Wiggling bare toes in the sun,

~*Txim Asawl*~

[Pa'li Makto]

I have to say. You have very small but cute looking toes Tsmukan.

[txim_asawl]

Originally Posted by Pa'li Makto

I have to say. You have very small but cute looking toes Tsmukan.

Irayo! Fortunately, the pictures don't show that when wearing shoes, I have to wear size 12 (US, that's a 46 in European shoe size...).

So, in relation to that, my toes aren't really that small... but they still stay cute.


Wiggling bare toes, cutely,

~*Txim Asawl*~

[Pa'li Makto]

My toes are longish in comparison to yours but I have smaller feet.

[txim_asawl]

With sunny weather and temperatures around 15°C/60F the cool spell that was forecast for weekend seemed to be over. On going to the park, I saw that some trees were showing hues of green, where first new leaves were poking out from their buds. New blossoms were out as well, and in addition to more daisies in the grass, brightly yellow pilewort was growing, too...





The nice weather lured quite many people into the park, and my favourite big lawn area in the western corner of the park was crowded with people who used it as a field to play a game that is not quite common in Germany - cricket. Yes, indeed, it was cricket they were playing. Even though I do not know the fine points of the game, I recognized those sticks in the ground as a wicket and also the typical shape of the bats as well as the pitching technique. This means, of course, that my usual walk over that lawn was blocked by about two dozen people vacating that area, half of them playing, the other half sitting beneath a large chestnut tree.

But even though I was constricted to a shorter round in the park, I was able to feel soft grass and soil underfoot, enjoy the sights of blossoms near my toes and sit on park benches, soaking up the afternoon sun.

And though it was mild enough, as mentioned above, and even warmer in the sun, I was again the only person baring my feet to the sun and Earth.

With its sunny and bright weather, Sunday was the opposite of a cloudy, sometimes overcast and comparingly cool Saturday - temperatures were only as high as about 10°C/50F - which saw me barefoot in the city for a short weekend grocery shopping trip. I received two reactions, one at the tram stop, where a woman bummed me for some change and a cigarette and then commented on my toes and toe rings, saying that they're beautiful. The second reaction was after shopping, when I waited outside the mall, having a cigarette (unhealhty habit, I know...) and an elderly man asked the C- question ("Isn't that too cold?"), to which I replied (loud enough for all within earshot to hear): "Absolutely not. I always walk barefoot as soon as temperatures are above 0°C (32F), and sometimes in snow, too..." which made him shake his head disbelievingly, and sent him off inside the mall. Other than that, there were no more reactions than "The Look"®

On Saturday evening I went to our usual roleplaying game session. On the way there, one reaction was a car passing by, honking the horn and yells from the inside - most likely not reacting to my bare feet, but to the fact that I was wearing my purple sarong instead of pants. Even though it was a cool evening, and by the time I returned home at around 1 am as cool as slightly below 5°C (40F), I did not feel too cold being barefoot to the waist. As far as the gaming is concerned, we were able to close another chapter on our fantasy adventures in a medieval-style world by successfully finishing off an evil demigod on a parallel plane of existence... everyday stuff for fantasy games. Next time, I will again assume the role of a Proximan starship pilot, getting ready to wreck another ship. I kind of have a reputation for landings comparable to the one Anakin Skywalker made in Star Wars, Episode 3 (where Obi-Wan observed "Nothing to worry, we're still flying half a ship...."). But that's largely the game master's fault, robbing me of options to bring the ship down in one piece... he most often uses a crash as a basis for the story to unwind.

Next week will be the third out of four weeks of my in-job training and according to the weather forecasts, it will be another flip-flop week, giving me again multiple opportunities to bare my feet in the seminar room as well as outdoors during the breaks - and of course do my barefooting before and after work, too.

Wiggling bare toes in spring,

[txim_asawl]

The weather forecast for Germany this coming Saturday: sunny in most places, temperatures between 20° and 25°C (68 to 77F)... this sounds like perfect conditions to spend a barefoot Saturday outdoors, most of the time.

And with temperatures like these, it will also be the opening of the outdoor naturism season, too.

My barefoot plans for that day include some barefoot decadence, which will be a visit to an Italian ice-cream parlor and have them serve me a large portion of something cold, fruit-laden and creamy stuff (I will make sure to take pictures!).


After a very sunny March so far (monthly sunshine hours way above average in our region), a little rain set in yesterday evening and overnight... But rainy days can't bring me down! My bare feet love walking through puddles and through wet grass, feeling soft soil underneath too much to be sad or depressed about it. And with current temperatures around 10°C/50F at 6 am, it's certainly mild enough to really enjoy some puddle-footing on my to work.

Wiggling bare toes in anticipation of near-summer weather in two days,

~*Txim Asawl*~.

[Theorist]

Originally Posted by Human No More

Good

I've been going into university barefoot this week, has been epic, surprisingly few questions though, although a few people look, and that makes me feel great as I am almost trolling them without even saying anything. Hopefully people will find out more though

ahh, I wish I could do that. I get yelled at for going barefoot at my school. Had a friend who tried it, and they got pretty mad at him

[apache_blanca]

we walked through a small creek barefoot ...it was kind of funny. Especially the people looking with me and a friend and 3 dogs walking barefoot through that icy creek.

"funny" - I bet! some time ago we went to the sea, it was too chillly to swim or even wet your feet but I did - and I was hissing a lot! (literally & very loud )

Add to that the strange habit of people wearing coats in winter even if it is warm. ...They think "it is winter, winter is cold, I need to wear a coat" - instead of "how comfortable am I? What is the weather like?"

that's the key question. Me, i get cold too quickly & easily so when it comes to that I do look weird with long sleeves on while evb is in T-shirt but what to do! I feel cold... Maybe I should eat more & get more calories in...

@apache: I meant more in your area - if you do have snow there. In the mountains, yes sure, I know that. I was thinking at some time to go there for a ski vacation even, but not for many years now...

Montseny with its snowy tops is relatively in my area but there were no big snowfalls this winter. However, the Mediterranean climate is as unpredictable & hot-tempered as people that live here (the two probably have a connection), so it can well snow in... April.

I mentioned a barefooted walk the past weekend on Eywa Exists thread by Hunter of Glade, it was an awesome feeling... Again, the already familiar sensation of becoming "a part of the forest", as if I were just another animal or a plant between many - when I took the shoes off, felt the ground, & stopped "making noise" like a skxawng...

[Human No More]

heh, I'm the same with coats where I generally don't bother.
Didn't get much of a chance for any barefoot this week , it was a bit wet and cold.

[txim_asawl]

Indeed, this Saturday was the first official summer day of 2011 in the Ruhr megalopolis, with temperatures rising as high as 25°C (77F) - in some places even above that mark - and the sun shining from a brightly blue sky.

Certainly, such a day just has to be spent outdoors and barefoot, too.
So, I went barefoot into town to take a stroll along the ped zone shopping street and to celebrate an early summer day by sitting down in my usual Italian ice cream parlor/café place - in the outdoor seating area, right in the sun, of course. As the waiter came up to my table, I had decided, that the right choice to properly enjoy this summerly weather would be something cold, fresh and delightful... I ordered an ice cream cup with mixed fruit ice cream, fresh fruit, whipped cream and it came even with a cherry on top:



I guess on the next occasion of a warm summer weekend, I will order something more Na'vi blue-ish and post a picture of that, too.


Although the weather was perfect for barefooting, I was once again the only barefoot person in that café, and the people passing by were wearing summer outfits, but never without footwear. Pity the poor souls (and soles) for missing a treat by keeping their feet from breathing freely and feeling the sun's warmth. Even sandals or flip-flops are too constricting in such glorious weather, I think. At some point, a young couple - college students, by the looks of their outfit - sat down at the table next to mine and the young woman decided to enjoy the summer sun by slipping off her chucks, rolling the cuffs of her jeans up to the knee, and propping her feet up on the chair opposite of hers... wearing dark green socks. A slight breeze was blowing, fortunately away from me, so that I wasn't hit by any smell which would have been likely, since those canvas and rubber sneakers are true heat and sweat traps. While she was baring her shins, but not her feet, I wiggled my bare toes under the table, enjoying my fruit ice cream cup.
As they got ready to leave, I wondered if she might take a cue from my barefoot state and pull off her socks to bare her feet, too... but, alas, she rolled down the cuffs of her pants and slipped her socked feet back into her sneakers, and off they went as shod as when they arrived. Another poor sole missing a barefoot treat...

After finishing my ice cream and having soaked up some sun in that café, it was time for the usual Saturday trip to the supermarket - and it was there where I saw that I was not the only person enjoying being barefoot. One of a trio of young men (college student age) was indeed barefoot without having shoes in sight. All three wore similar outfits: camouflage pants, loose-fit t-shirts and had long hair, the barefoot guy wearing his in a ponytail. The other two were wearing sneakers. Judging from the tenderfoot appearance of the guy's bare feet, I reckoned that he wasn't a habitual barefooter, and that he might have started his day with sneakers on and later on took them off and stuffed them in the backpack he was wearing. At least then and there I wasn't alone in being barefoot.

Another peculiar sighting happened on my way home by tram, when I spotted a teenage girl on the opposite side of the road, waiting for the tram going the other way. She had her dog on a leash and stood barefoot on her flip-flops... she did not wear them, but had slipped out of them and was standing on them rather than having her bare soles touch the paved sidewalk. It was enough to make me raise an eyebrow at that sight. Perhaps she was afraid of touching the dirty ground - but then, standing on foam-rubber sponges, soaked with her own feet's sweat did not seem very hygienic to me, either. In fact, the sidewalk might have been the better option to stand on and the trashbin the best place to put the flip-flops in.

The young man at the supermarket remained the only other true urban barefooter I spotted.

With this fine weather, I just had to spend some time in my usual park, too. So, I changed my outfit slightly, taking off my cut-off pants and put on my sarong and walked down from my apartment to the park, carrying my shoulder bag with something to drink in it, a book to read in (Sabine Kuegler's Call of the Jungle, the sequel to Jungle Child) and some suntan lotion, since I did not only want to walk barefoot there, but find a spot to shed my clothes and open the outdoor naturist season, too.

On my way to the park, I saw evidence of Mother Nature prevailing over civilization: dandelions pushing through cracks in the sidewalk... a little botanic anarchy, so to speak.



On arriving in the park, some trees were showing new leaves, others beginning to sprout and on the grass, more daisies, pilewort and now also dark-blue speedwell (veronica filiformis) were showing their bright faces.

I saw quite a couple of people reclining on benches, some on blankets on the grass and others were playing on the grass, tossing balls, frisbees and other toys at each other. Among one mixed group of young people, again, college student age, the women were barefoot on the grass, while the men wore sneakers - seemingly finding it uncool to bare their feet. Judging from the gait of one woman, who wore neo-hippie clothes, she was a habitual barefooter, too, and it was nice to watch them frolic and play, while I was sitting on a bench, reading in my book, listening to some chillout music.

While sitting there, I had a funny encounter with a young boy, about two years of age, and his young father. The boy walked past me, then stared at my bare feet, pointed at his shoes, then at my feet and said "I got shoes... you don't". I grinned at him and replied "Oh, I have shoes... they're at home". His father then grinned, too, and told his son: "When it's warm, it is nice to walk without shoes" - and he is absolutely right, too.

At about 5 pm, the people who had played on the grass were getting ready to depart, and the barefoot women (who had come to the park by bicycle) all put on shoes before mounting their bikes and leaving. So, they were only part-time barefooters. With less people around, I stood up from the bench, found me a nice place on the grass, took my clothes off and sat down on the grass, giving again the impression of a reclining Buddha and gathered some positive energy by soaking up sunlight and feeling the mild breeze around my body. I already had gathered power from the Earth through my bare soles. The only element missing was water, but since it is only April, the lakes in our area still have water temperatures below 10°C/50F, which is too cold for skinnydipping as yet. If we have more than a week of sunny and warm weather as on this Saturday, I might try it at my favourite lake... as of now, I refrain from it. However, bathing in sunlight and warm air is already possible and very pleasant, for sure.

Today, the sky is overcast, and temperatures have dropped to around 15°C/60F... Still OK for barefooting, but a bit too cool for being skyclad outdoors... well, there are more summerly days ahead, I'm sure. Spring has only just begun.

Wiggling bare toes,

~*Txim Asawl*~