"Buying Shoes Online" written by Paul on estrip.org

Category: shoes

03/22/11 12:25 - ID#53891

Buying Shoes Online

Does anyone buy shoes online? I never do it as I am so picky about the fit of a shoe. That, and I find they very often don't have my size 13 (46). I was surfing the shoe sales over at gilt.com

and found these.

I freakin' love these shoes. Either one would make me happy but both are sold out and not available in my size anyways ;(

I get the feeling I would like a lot of Elia Maurizi shoes.

I seems impossible to believe they are $149 when the retail price is like $500-600. I just wish they had my size.

These last ones would be so nice if I lived somewhere that dry and clean instead wet and dirty. Imagine how disgusting they would be after one week of life in Buffalo. Imagine how nice they would look on white carpet.

tinypliny writes at 08:50:37 03/26/11 - Comment #61449: If I got that last shoe, I cut put cross my legs, turn up the soles and chuckle at that funny bird in dull meetings. Imagine the potential.

tinypliny writes at 10:48:59 03/22/11 - Comment #61396: I bought 2 pairs of shoes online. I hate one pair and love one pair... so I guess its a hit or miss. I am too lazy to pack stuff up and return them. That is a drawback of online shopping.

tinypliny writes at 10:47:29 03/22/11 - Comment #61395: Heh, I love the last shoes. How cute! :-) I bet they are awesome for dancing. Are they on gilt as well? Imagine if you walked on the beach, you would have a string of little cute birds following you...

paul writes at 10:24:50 03/22/11 - Comment #61394: Ya I am sure I wear a men's 46 euro which is size 13 US. I had a couple 45s but he 46s are usually better.

kookcity2000 writes at 10:18:00 03/22/11 - Comment #61393: you sure 13US is 46 European? also, you wear size 13?

paul writes at 10:16:32 03/22/11 - Comment #61392: (e:keithT) - those shoes are really cute but they aren't italian. I really like these ones :::link:::

metalpeter writes at 05:55:31 03/22/11 - Comment #61390: I have never bought Shoes or boots online ..... Sneaker sizes vary by company Nike's used to run right and some one else run big and wide so you really need to try them on.... I have no idea if this is true boot wise......

KeithT writes at 02:30:50 03/22/11 - Comment #61387: Allow me to add to your indecision P :::link:::

jbeatty writes at 09:33:42 03/22/11 - Comment #61386: I have bought shoes online only when I have worn the brand before and know the size. The fit is usually the same. You could always send them back if they don't fit

libertad writes at 07:43:39 03/22/11 - Comment #61385: Grrr, how elitist that Gilt website. I don't want to become a member, I just want to look at their shoes.

libertad writes at 07:41:51 03/22/11 - Comment #61384: I buy footwear all the time online. Much more selection. Zappos includes the cost of shipping and return shipping so you know exactly how much you will pay. Unfortunately online shopping you do find lots of things you really want that are out of stock. At the stores you just wouldn't see it. I definitely read reviews.

flacidness writes at 02:44:16 03/22/11 - Comment #61383: Those are are cute, so you for sure. Too bad about them being sold out. I'm sure they will get more in stock soon.

Permalink: Buying_Shoes_Online.html
Words: 153
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/22/11 12:26

Category: body

03/21/11 08:59 - ID#53890

Bound Feet Are Insane

I had heard of Chinese bound feet but never realized what exactly it was until I was watching this documentary about Albert Kahn

where they had some early 20th century film of women walking with bound feet.

So I looked it up on wikipedia

- I just could not believe how totally deforming it was. I thought it was just bound as in toes pulled together or prevented from growing. Instead it is totally broken and reshaped in many ways. It looks kind of like high heels shoes on the outside and kind of like a pig hoof.

It was generally an elder female member of the girl's family or a professional foot binder who carried out the initial breaking and ongoing binding of the feet. This was considered preferable to having the mother do it, as she might have been sympathetic to her daughter's pain and less willing to keep the bindings tight. A professional foot binder would ignore the girl's cries and would continue to bind her feet as tightly as possible. Professional foot binders would also tend to be more extreme in the initial breaking of the feet, sometimes breaking each of the toes in two or three separate places, and even completely dislocating the toes to allow them to be pressed under and bound more tightly. This would cause the girl to suffer from devastating foot pain, but her feet were more likely to achieve the 7 cm (3 in) ideal. The girl was not allowed to rest after her feet had been bound; however much pain she was suffering, she was required to walk on her broken and bound feet, so that her own body weight would help press and crush her feet into the desired shape.

I took this picture from the wiki article references above. It seems hard to imagine this.

Permalink: Bound_Feet_Are_Insane.html
Words: 336
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/21/11 08:59

Category: games

03/20/11 10:34 - ID#53883

The stupidest game ever

I know this is a children's game but what a stupid concept. What is it even teaching them?

Permalink: The_stupidest_game_ever.html
Words: 20
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/20/11 10:34

Category: holidays

03/20/11 09:55 - ID#53882

St. Patrick's Day 2011

I actually had a great time at the parade. I didn't drink too much, stayed out of fights, and cheered for union workers along side my best friends and a good looking navyman.

The corner of Allen and Delaware was a freakin madhouse. The warm years always are.

Out of all the pics, I think the picture of some random pile of puke and beads in the street really sums up the holiday.

metalpeter writes at 04:03:28 02/26/12 - Comment #67728: it will be here soon.......

paul writes at 03:47:15 02/26/12 - Comment #67727: Its almost that time again.

james writes at 11:48:19 03/21/11 - Comment #61382: That picture is amazing.

paul writes at 08:38:58 03/21/11 - Comment #61375: Ya, (e:paul,52778) - that was an awesome moment.

KeithT writes at 07:07:16 03/21/11 - Comment #61370: Hey P, do you remember at the dirty when you napped in a feild and woke up to the 4 leaf clover?

metalpeter writes at 05:25:44 03/21/11 - Comment #61367: (e:libertad) that would be great you sure would need a bunch of crews....... Those Beads have to be Mardi Gras.........

libertad writes at 03:08:09 03/21/11 - Comment #61365: If I were a documentary film maker I would definitely document the Buffalo St. Patrick's day parade. Someone should do it for sure.

heidi writes at 01:13:50 03/21/11 - Comment #61364: I had a great time, too, once I got over my panic attack from being squished in the crowd. Thanks for hosting (e:pmt)!!

KeithT writes at 12:17:30 03/21/11 - Comment #61363: Cyn and I had such a great time as we always do with all of you wonderful ppl.

That navy guy was kinda sloppy drunk. Sure most of were well on our way, but he was slurin! Paul, matt, cyn and I were talking with him for about an hour before he left. Shame he didnt wanna come hang at the house after.

Lmfao! The pile of puke with beads! Cant really tell if it was fat tues or st patties.....well unless you inspected close enough to find the ingredients for shepards pie :P The best thing was not even 50 paces away on the ground was the guy who most likely deposited his beads and lunch. He was being picked up by a friend who had blood just pouring from above his eye. That has to be one hell of a story.

Permalink: St_Patrick_s_Day_2011.html
Words: 87
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/20/11 09:55

Category: war

03/19/11 08:20 - ID#53874

Libya Attack

WASHINGTON - The United States on Saturday unleashed a barrage (110) of Tomahawk missiles against the Libyan regime's air defenses but ruled out using ground troops in what President Barack Obama called a "limited military action"

Here we go again with another war. I can't freakin believe we are attacking Libya. I don't believe this mission is about protecting anyone - its about Britain, France and the US protecting oil. How many fronts can their be? If its about protecting people, where were we in Dafur? The only reason we are there is because there is oil and we need to make sure its safe.

jbeatty writes at 10:41:59 03/20/11 - Comment #61346: (e:tinypliny) there has been plenty of money in nuclear medicine for research if you are studying traumatic brain injury. None of it is coming from the NIH. It's all from the DoD. Apparently you have to have a war wound in order to get some federal dollars.

metalpeter writes at 10:05:22 03/20/11 - Comment #61342: The thing that is kinda funny is Friday Night on Bill Maher actor/Comedian/ and conspiracy theorist Richard Belzer said we are in 3 or maybe he said four wars something about Pakistan and Afghanistan and Libya now the response was no we aren't we aren't fighting Libya and he said check the news in an hour.... I missed it Friday night and watched it Sat. Morning when I went on line the 1st thing I saw on Yahoo was a picture of a Fighter plane on fire falling through the sky.... The Picture was amazing I wish I was that skilled.....

I doubt many believe in "The American Empire" but we have armies all over the world.... Yes I get it that if they are needed they can go from Germany to put down a French uprising or what ever instead of leaving from here.... But I do think that "The Industrial War Complex" is real.... If there isn't an enemy then one is made up... See if you don't have an enemy than who needs Government Protection.......

There is a lot of money to be made off of war and weapons and Death... Not to mention all the companies that make weapons and if you want to really go insane sell them to both sides.... And sell the better weapons to the side they want to win.....

james writes at 02:37:24 03/20/11 - Comment #61338: Meanwhile in Bahrain Saudi troops are mowing down protestors. And yet the US just can't seem to bother with them. Libyan oil production is pretty small, particularly for US corporate interests. This is France's baby. But, Jesus Christ, this wont stop us from launching $62million dollars worth of missiles.

tinypliny writes at 12:21:05 03/20/11 - Comment #61334: And this year, everyone has been told there is no money for any research either. But yes, there is plenty of money for killing faceless people in some other part of the planet if it will give people with the money more oil to fly around in jets.

tinypliny writes at 12:17:20 03/20/11 - Comment #61333: Freudian slip and possibly true.

Actually, I believe it and it's not so conspiratorial anymore if you look at most of the incredibly self-serving and downright short-sighted rich-serving policies of "governments" all across the planet.

paul writes at 10:02:08 03/19/11 - Comment #61330: Oops. That should have said, "as puppets."

paul writes at 10:01:16 03/19/11 - Comment #61329: I know this is so conspiracy theorist but I really think the actual government doesn't really make any decisions. Thats why superficial changes like party affiliation make no difference. The world is surely controlled by some elite mix of the super rich who use politicians ass puppets.

jbeatty writes at 09:44:42 03/19/11 - Comment #61328: I agree more BS from Washington. I regret voting. Obama is just as bad as every other president in my time. I'm so sick of the war mentality this country has. We have no fucking money for healthcare or education but when it comes to bombing dark people with oil we have unlimited funds. Stop killing people in my name with my tax dollars fuckheads!

Permalink: Libya_Attack.html
Words: 127
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/19/11 08:22

Category: hardware

03/19/11 06:42 - ID#53872

Windows 7 EEE tablet

I don't normally promote anything windows but I think this might be exactly what (e:tinypliny) is looking for

Permalink: Windows_7_EEE_tablet.html
Words: 47
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/19/11 06:44

Category: birthdays

03/18/11 03:49 - ID#53865

Happy Birthday Matty

Dearest (e:matthew),
May your year be filled with silver trays of oysters and no pollutants. At least we started it out right.

Permalink: Happy_Birthday_Matty.html
Words: 25
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/18/11 03:52

Category: bugs

03/17/11 03:21 - ID#53857

Ladybugs meet lightbulb

Apparently ladybugs big and small love warm halogen light bulbs enough to fry to them.

Note: This bulb was outside.

paul writes at 05:28:30 03/18/11 - Comment #61295: Although someone told me once that the reason they add iodine to salt is that our great lakes region soil is iodine poor.

paul writes at 05:24:21 03/18/11 - Comment #61294: The best for us is local produce. Its priceworthy, the carbon footprint is low, its super fresh. Only problem us we live in a 6 months of winter climate. I can't wait for the farmers market to come back.

tinypliny writes at 12:53:52 03/18/11 - Comment #61286: I can't believe I just said all that. I don't think life is worth giving up for any level of comfort at all. Those bugs were foolish. It is a gift to be alive and healthy and I probably would like to go down due to uncontrollable causes instead of a wimpy OD-ing on some chemical. That is just not me at all.

tinypliny writes at 12:24:54 03/18/11 - Comment #61285: I think muscle relaxants are a better way to go. :::link:::

Not that I am recommending anything...

I actually don't know if morphine is more painless and comfortable or skeletal muscle relaxants are. In my med school, skeletal muscle relaxant overdose was a lot more popular among people who were ready to move on.

paul writes at 11:45:56 03/17/11 - Comment #61283: Isn't that the magic of morphine.

tinypliny writes at 11:26:52 03/17/11 - Comment #61281: That is such an interesting observation... to die by choice in comfort. I would prefer to leave this planet that way...

metalpeter writes at 06:40:29 03/17/11 - Comment #61272: Is it a Chemical attraction like with bug zappers or a heat thing... Cause I know I love heat and have been burned more then a few times (never bad enough to be a burn burn like real damage) but i wonder if it provides such a sense of comfort they die by choice .....

tinypliny writes at 05:37:17 03/17/11 - Comment #61265: It's probably like their personal incubation chamber.

tinypliny writes at 05:36:54 03/17/11 - Comment #61264: There are a quite a number of bugs in each of my CFLs indoors.. I clean them out once a year or so.

Permalink: Ladybugs_meet_lightbulb.html
Words: 22
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/17/11 03:22

Category: history

03/17/11 12:18 - ID#53856

The Magic of St. Patrick

I saw this poster at city hall the other day. How did the Irish of blackrock think they were going to "take over Canada" and hold it ransom?

They were desrcibed as an irregular army of Irish American invaders

If wish I was there to see it. If there are not reactments of this, we should start one.

Permalink: The_Magic_of_St_Patrick.html
Words: 69
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/17/11 12:21

Category: topics

03/16/11 10:09 - ID#53852

What does happiness mean to me

As suggested by (e:heidi) - What does happiness mean to me?

This one is so complicated but I think at its most basic level it is being healthy. I can deal with just about anything when my body feels good. That being said, staying healthy seems inseparably intertwined with eating well. That seems to involves money - which means maybe happiness is having money. I always feel happier the more money I have. Man, that seems so shallow but I think it might be true.

On the flip side, I could see being happy on a farm in warm place near the ocean where my life consisted of gathering food and eating it. It might not require as much money that way.

So seeing as I am talking about food, my bowl of yuminess tonight involved a new dessert I make. Its sliced organic bananas covered in organic peanut butter and organic coconut oil.

paul writes at 04:19:07 03/19/11 - Comment #61313: NEW FAVORITE: Put 1 cup cooked half brown/half white rice still warm in a bowl. Mash in a ripe banana, 1/2-1 tbsp coconut oil, 1tbsp peanut butter. Stir it up and enjoy.

theecarey writes at 12:00:26 03/19/11 - Comment #61308: I love peanut butter and bananas together. I eat a lot of toasted bread with natural PB and sliced bananas. Eating it without bread and with the addition of coconut oil sounds yummy. I'd slice it up and dip into the PB/Oil combo. That would be a nice snack.

Hmm, now I am thinking. I'm curious how good a baked sliced plantain "chip" (when it is at the banana-ish stage of taste) with a peanut butter "dip" would be.

tinypliny writes at 04:51:50 03/18/11 - Comment #61293: Yes, I agree. It's a significantly bigger problem with meat because of its assimilatory position in the food chain. I think the dirty-15 list is pretty accurate. I avoid buying non-organic stuff from that list. But there is a limit to organic produce obsession. For example, why would anyone buy organic onions 3x costlier than regular onions if they are almost at the bottom of the dirty-15 list? Hardier and seasonal veggies are usually organic because they just survive more efficiently without a pesticide boost.

The wax bothers me too, but there are FDA guidelines in place about what wax can be used: :::link:::
Vegetable-based and beeswax are really pretty harmless. They are very similar to hydrogenated fats. It is a problem when things are coated with petroleum based wax though..

On the whole, I don't know if I disagree with you at all... I often wish I could buy the picture perfect awesome produce prices 10x higher but the impracticality of it (budget-wise and really, taste-wise) prevents me from spending too much money on any single grocery item. That being said, I spend as much 3/4 of my rent money on groceries every month. I don't clip too many coupons. I do shop at pricerite but steer away from the dirty-15. It limits my choices, but its just as important to me to be financially sound as it is for me to eat as healthfully as possible. I try and avoid wasting any food and even that small step saves me unneccessary grocery trips and costs.

paul writes at 12:51:44 03/18/11 - Comment #61288: Tiny, I agree with you possibly in the case of a totally vegetarian diet. Like how bad is non organic rice? But lots of other things like strawberries, celery, blueberries and all drenched in nasty chemicals. It is america after all. A lot of cheap non organic produce has this waxy unwashable film on it. It was not always that way but it is now. It is some chemical that keeps them fresher longer. I know it exists because the organic stuff does not have it. Its even on string beans a lot. Those ones will last forever, which creeps me out. It can't be that nutritious after such a long time.

The other thing is travel time. I am totally guilt of buying exotic stuff but all summer long I try and eat local. There is a huge difference in the quality of local conventional food and the food flown in from Chili and China. Frankly, I don't trust anything from china.

With meat I definitely feel that there is a difference. The meat itself is often such a different consistency and flavor. During my vegan years I read enough propaganda against the meat industry to make me vegan for 5 years. I am over that now but I still am kind of grossed out by factory farming. Free-range (better for the animal), organic meat (better for you) is definitely better but it is far more expensive than the vegetable normal to organic cost spread. At the same time I think that cost difference encourages reasonable portions.

Having nothing to do with being organic, more expensive produce generally does taste and appear better. Its just a matter of supply and demand. As an example, my pear tree makes about 500 pears. Of those, only like 30 are perfectly ripe, tasty, unblemished. Those ones would be the expensive ones if I was to sell them. Now you could totally survive on the ones that are all half eaten by bees and squirrels or have fungus on the skin... but they wouldn't be as awesome.

tinypliny writes at 11:30:47 03/17/11 - Comment #61282: I would VERY strongly disagree with you, (e:metalpeter). The best healthiest food always tastes awesome. Sometimes, people just are awful cooks and have no clue how to retain the crunch in veggies or make them sharp and wonderful - while retaining all their inherent flavours and unifying them with spices instead of overpowering them. I could go on and on. Sometimes I feel the primary problem with bad eating habits everywhere is a lack of a knack and feel for cooking.

metalpeter writes at 06:49:05 03/17/11 - Comment #61273: Healthy Food is fresh food in some forms and that is more costly then frozen and processed but it also goes bad quicker so in that sense if it isn't used it costs more.... But there is a hidden savings that by eating better it keeps you healthy so that keeps the cost down... But the issue that No One is mentioning is taste.... I say this cause a lot of things that are healthy don't taste good... So to make them healthy we do things like add butter and salt or fry them or use heavy oil on them.... The other thing a lot of people do is they cook things.... Yes Beef and chicken and things like that are good to cook but with many vegetables they get cooked and lose a lot of what is good in them... Remember though this is a taste thing. Some people love to do all kinds of crazy things to veggies just saw green giant makes some with cheese those look great but guessing the cheese is both good and bad for you at the same time..... Somethings have to be raw for me Like Carrots they are supposed to crunch..... Also Bad food can be costly to I love my fast food well some of it.....

tinypliny writes at 05:40:21 03/17/11 - Comment #61268: And I haven't made the fluoride post yet. So many things to do. I need to go home now. Have salsa class today after 2 weeks.

tinypliny writes at 05:39:28 03/17/11 - Comment #61267: Hmmm.. I want to disagree with you and say that eating healthfully does not necessarily mean eating expensively. I need to make a detailed post someday about how I don't believe in the organic-is-healthier concept for the most part...

However, eating to be happier does get a bit expensive at times.

Permalink: What_does_happiness_mean_to_me.html
Words: 161
Location: Buffalo, NY
Last Modified: 03/16/11 10:15