JMC

Hmmm, makes me wish I was in England ;-)

Okay, it is definitely time to take a step back and look at the big picture. 1). You expressed confusion as to why we guy heelers are reluctant to socialize. 2). I offered a couple of possible answers. 3). You "jumped in my chili" over one of my possible explanations, all but accusing me and other non-socializers of being slackers. 4). I made an observation that your perspective was perhaps a bit limited. That is what the "cozy little world" comment meant. 5). You responded with what can only be described as a rant. I must say your response comes across as over the top, at least as I see it. You are obviously dealing with some serious issues. We all have lives and with lives come issues. Some of us may seem to have more challenges than others, life is unfair that way. But it is pointless to measure your own level of challenge against anybody else's -- we all have to play the hand we are dealt and we all have our own ways of coping. (Also, be careful what you wish for -- you just might get it.) I did not intend to express overt disrespect to you, my comment was intended as a "tweak" at most. (In closing I must point out that this is the behavior pattern that got you into trouble on the big site.) Now let us get back to heels and how we integrate them into our lifestyles.

done.

All I can say is it must be cozy in your little world, Freddy. Or maybe heels are a bigger priority to you than they are to most of us.

After watching the organization phase of a couple of heel-meets on the big site I have to conclude that organizing such a meet is a gargantuan task. Like trying to keep 30 or so corks under water in a fast-flowing stream! First, you have time issues. Most of us do not have the freedom to take off and go wherever we want at any time, time off must be arranged in advance. Planning the heel-meet well in advance is the only way to address this but that brings other issues. Second, also related to time, most of us have a limited amount of time off and other responsibilities. Ask a guy to make a choice between the family vacation and going to have a few beers with a bunch of guys in heels and guess which way the decision will come down. Third, there are travel difficulties. Travel is expensive and the price of a plane ticket will buy a bunch of really nice heels. Especially on this side of the big puddle, distances can become very great indeed -- that 3500 miles won't even get you all the way across the country. Here in the U.S. I don't see heel-meets being anything but regional affairs.

Judging from activity on the big site, that's to be expected. A lot of people register, post a handful of times, and then lose interest. Some of them check in from time to time and just read but don't post.

<mod mode> Gotta interject a bit of moderation here. Would you allow me to re-name this thread. I'm not real comfortable with the word "P-O-R-N" hanging out there, even if it is obfuscated. We go to great lengths to keep this and the big site clean and while that word certainly does catch the eye, it also carries an image. It's an image we do not want associated with our efforts. Search engines index this site too and guys looking for "high heels" will most certainly hit HHplace -- then link to here. So how about something like: "Sizzling Hottt Heels" </mod mode> We now return to your regularly scheduled programming . . .

No problem, H4MROK. Actually I cannot take much credit for the cleanup, other members of the staff put the majority of the effort into it. I extend your comments to them. I think you are right, a lot of HHplacer's (especially the guys) would find reasons to participate here. The ladies have their own forum and we can consider this to be the guys lounge or club or whatever.

I must point out that HHplace did not "clean itself up". It was cleaned up as a direct result of effort on the part of its staff. We came to a realization that the site had strayed from its original purpose and branched out into areas where much of the membership was not comfortable. Primarily it was intended to be a fashion site and it is closer to that now. The process is probably not done yet either. As far as inviting HHplace members here, we have included a link to Heels4Men as a sub-forum, right under the "For the Guys" header.

. . . and then it's bonus time!!!

Now that's a creative way to make progress on technical issues! Wait until the problem doesn't matter anymore and then declare victory!

The button is called "New Topic" here, it appears at the top and bottom of each forum listing. If you are not seeing it, check to make sure you are logged in.

Can't help but wonder if Priceless and Payless are related in some way. The Priceless web-site has some similarities with the way the Payless site looked a couple of updates back. Of course, most online shoe-shops have a similar look-and-feel but the text styles and the presentation of the site look so familiar. I think the cheap/inexpensive shoe shops are especially good for beginning heelers. Most of them are self-service so the shopper can browse and pick out a style without having to deal with a salesperson -- having been there I know it's a daunting concept for somebody who has not yet built his confidence. The cheap shops also let the newbie experiment a little with different styles and determine what he likes most, without putting a huge dent in his finances. Although I've had some of the cheap shoes that felt good, I find that the lack of support and the generally inferior construction often make them less comfortable than the better lines. I won't shell out the simoleons for the designer lines but I do find myself more interested in something a little better than the cheap offerings. But they do definitely have their place.

Google's spiders are picking up on this thread. I don't think hit rate has anything to do with it although word count might -- as certain keywords are mentioned more often on a site, Google will increase the score for ads pertaining to those keywords.

You definitely need to keep your mind on what you are doing when you ride a motorcycle. Practice braking, shifting, clutching, etc. until it becomes second nature so you can concentrate on the road, the other people (who unfortunately may not be thinking about the task at hand) and the miscellaneous hazards like gravel, potholes, grooves or cracks in the pavement, oil slicks and the such. But still there's nothing like the freedom of a bike.