FastFreddy2

Having not been out in heels for a couple of weeks, I had expected to go out tomorrow (Sunday), "somewhere". Not only is it blistering cold outside despite the sunny sky, but we are due snow later today and possibly early tomorrow. People in the South of the UK probably won't see it, but us folk North of London might see snow laid on the ground tomorrow. Another day of hibernation then? If it doesn't snow, heavy rain is due later on Sunday .... Only another 12 days until the solstice ... P.S. So dark here despite the clear sky, lights on at 3.30pm. Well, if you want to see what you're doing anyway...

Last Sunday, I stayed home which practically infers a personal emergency... Nope.... Cold and overcast sky - with the promise of rain constant throughout the day - with the added cooling effect from a fairly strong wind, it was weather only suitable for reindeer and bison. Of course I could have gone to a mall, but with Christmas only 3 weeks away, even walking around inside - with throngs of busy shoppers to contend with - it was not an enticement with any leverage. Instead I stayed home and did some DIY..... I really know how to live it up! This week promises to be worse. A North Atlantic storm is due Wednesday night through Thursday, with 80mph winds and snow expected in Scotland and Northern England. It won't be so bad in the South East of course, but it will be far from pleasant weather either. Come the weekend, the transatlantic jet-stream is bringing us Arctic temperatures, direct from the Arctic. Another weekend at home then? A few days before Christmas, is my favourite day of the year; Winter Solstice on December 21st. It marks (for me) the start of a new year as daytime begins to increase having spent 6 months reducing. Of course Winter is far from over, and January is usually a worse/colder month than December. But the daylight we see each day is increasing, Christmas is over (bah-humbug), and the "sales" are in full swing. I've recently acquired some court shoes at almost "throw-away" prices, and I'm hoping that when the warmer weather arrives next year, I'll have the opportunity to wear some of them out - somewhere. I have no plan, nor even the remotest notion of where/when, but if there's no desire (motivation) there's no reason to develop a plan. The thought of warmer weather, and me walking in a court shoe somewhere attractive, will hopefully help me get past cold winter weekends where my tendency is to hibernate. Roll on 2018.

Nice boots. I would be tempted to put some liquid polish across the crack to hide it. (A bit, anyway.) They are perfect for wearing out, as they look to have a rubber heel that is almost certainly silent. Not overly pointed either. Good find. Why remark on the glitter? You do know its Christmas ..... "Good will to all men" innit.

Well, the G5 is sold... Got good money for it too. The 'upgrade' has worked out a lot less expensive than I expected. The G80 hasn't left it's box yet .... It was bought as a kit, and came with a 12-60mm lens that's not appalling by any means, but I've decided that lens is going. I've managed so far with just a 20mm f1.7 lens, and I think I'm going to buy a 60mm f2.8 (prime) specifically for portraits. I've never owned a zoom lens, haven't needed one so far. Maybe I won't need to with this camera either.... Maybe with next years camera?

That's practically my local shopping centre. Shame I wasn't there to video heads turning as you passed them. I get looks from people there, just for wearing a boot with a pointed toe. And I don't have two heads or green skin! Yesterday I met up with another male heel wearer. I wore the same boots I had on during my West End jaunt when I walked past the queue at the mens loo. Apparently my heels are well hidden, even when slightly bent over (as to wash my hands). That said, when striding along at a reasonable pace, when seen from the side my heels would have been visible with every forward stride. Not that I managed that while walking into the mens, as a child (walking backwards) blocked my route anyway. But the men looked at my feet after I passed them, and I saw them looking, though they didn't see me looking at them in the mirror above the wash basin. I've worn a stiletto heel (boot) at Westfield, and for some walking around the West End after darkness. The last time I wore some at Westfield - around 2 months ago, my walking companion complained about the noise they were making as we walked, and how indiscreet they were. She was walking next to me so the noise from the heels was as noticeable as they were ever likely to be, but as folk into a heel will doubtless confirm, the sound of a stiletto heel hitting flooring is rather like a wolf calling to the rest of the pack at the dead of night under a full moon? I'm happy you feel your heel wearing is completely anonymous to others. But I just can't see it being so. Not that it matters, and while I'm not being as (optimistically) supportive as some might be tempted to be, I prefer to be cautious rather than cavalier about these things. If you feel you are getting away with it, then good for you! Keep up the good work.

At Brent Cross today .... A warmer place than the West End ... The mall was bursting with shoppers. Very busy, great for hiding a man wearing a heel. Not 100% successful, but better than other days. So much noise, so many (busy) people. Christmas must be on the way. Probably exacerbated by B/F weekend. So far, I have resisted spending on anything ... Not even shoes!

I will almost guarantee that is the case. Walking with a woman is always good camouflage, and rubberised heels (like your wedges) help a great deal too. I've some 'high tops' with a similarly rubberised wedge heel and my walk in them is next to silent. They have a 4 inch heel, so the change in my gait is almost imperceptible. In the department store the other day that had a queue of 8 or 9 men waiting, only two took the trouble to notice and look. But they had turned around to see if a women had taken the wrong turn at the entrance, neither one saw my actually walking in a heel until I walked away, but they heard me coming in those boots. I've owned them 4 years and worn them out perhaps 4 times because of the noisy stacked heel. The new tips have made a difference, but they still aren't silent. In some stores (I have one in particular in mind) suspended floors make heels sound 4 times louder than on a hard floor. If ever we meet up, I will record the response to your shoe wearing in public. I've had conversations with people oblivious to me wearing a heel. I've walked up to someone and startled them, while wearing a heel. Not everyone is switched on to a heel. But I've also walked up to or toward people, and they've known. Walking past anyone sitting, will get me spotted, by 50% of the people who are looking in my direction. I try really hard to avoid walking past people sitting for that reason.

I get all the looks I "want" already thanks. Whoever decided on that colour group for a shoe, really had no idea about colour - at all.

I wouldn't have described that as stretching, but as I already mentioned, leaning over the sink raised the rear hem of my jeans revealing a half inch or so of the heel. Otherwise the hem touches the floor, which is completely intentional. I can give you a list of probably six reasons without too much thought .... (boom boom).

Nothing short of a loaded gun held to my temple, would get me wearing anything that gaudy. I was nearly blinded by the colour mix as I walked past the shop. It was causing a small rupture in the 'time and space continuum' towards the front of the shop. I was certain I saw people disappear as they passed it. Fortunately I have a special tin-foil hat that protects me from such ruptures.

Seen in charity shop ... Think they might be from Dorthy Perkins.... Seen in an online newspaper, referring to 'designs' that didn't really work.... I think the pink shoes above, might be a style someone might wear to the Oscars, as there is undoubtedly a nod to the statue in there.

I don't know why I'd be stretching, but walking and sitting, yes. But then I don't sit (or walk usually) in front of a queue of men with nothing to do except stare .... It would be the sort of reason I'd cross the road, to avoid providing too much entertainment to others. While I sat eating my scone, I may well have had a heel on show. But I don't move my feet about much (with or without a heel), as to avoid drawing attention. Usually these places are so busy, noise and folk looking for seats, takes priority (by some margin) over heel spotting. The trip to the loo I sometimes make in the same venue often has me 'spotted', because the sound of my shoe (a heel) on the raised floor. For the most part, others - which will usually include women going to or leaving the Ladies - get several milliseconds to glance at my feet and will likely get confounded by the length of my jeans. In this instance, I was static for 20-30 seconds, and men were standing still waiting in a queue, in a good position to look at my feet without seeming to be indulging in 'inappropriate behaviour' (in a mens toilet area). Had I not needed to put a jacket on, the sticky fingers problem could have waited. I didn't see anyone I recognised, nor would it have been a place a camera could have been used to capture the 'moment'. In fact the only reason to mention it, was the self-inflicted trap I put myself in. Thankfully, I only needed to wash my hands. I don't know I mind being "spotted" wearing a heel. It will never become socially acceptable, unless it becomes less unusual. A man or woman seeing a man in a heel once, makes that unique experience, something unusual and likely to be reported to their social circle. The same people seeing a man wearing a heel 10 or 20 times, might still not see it as the "norm" but is less likely to be reported in social circumstances. Of course it would be preferable if that sighting wasn't me, repeated 10-20 times, though I did get close to it with a store assistant in HoF. For some reason he saw me every time I went into the store. Not seen him for a while, so he must of moved on. It's not unusual for shop or store assistants to spot my shoes, and for the most part the response is positive. Yet to have a full-on sneer, and certainly not had a negative remark .... To date anyway.

In case anyone has failed to notice, "sock boots" are big this year.

The heel is a measured 12cm high. The heel is shaped, yes, but my heel actually sits above where the top of the heel finished. Around 4-5 mm above. Of course the total rise is less than 12cm (by a mm or two) as the shoes have soles, which would need to be discounted from the overall height, but that would be true of any shoe of course. I worn the same boots last Sunday when I went into the West End. Mrs Freddy had a cake and coffee voucher, and although it costs some £10/£12 in fuel to use it in town (other stores are closer), I'm loathe to see these vouchers wasted, as two had been earlier in the year. The journey into London was fairly uneventful despite Christmas being so close, and a little patience got us parked (for free) quite close to Oxford Street, so the journey in was quite short - given how busy the place was. We into the store for 'cream scone and coffee' lunch. Before leaving to visit another store or two, I used the mens loo to wash my (now) sticky fingers. You almost never see a queue at the "mens" but on Sunday, there was a queue out to the entrance. The store uses suspended floors, and no matter how quiet I expected my heels would be with their new tips, the bouncing thud of a stacked heel is practically unmissable when walking on a trampolining floor. I scooted past the queue, itself probably raising eyebrows, and used the sink. As I leaned over I was aware I might be showing the bottom half inch of my heels, as my jeans rose over my slightly more prominent backside. Looking in the mirror immediately in front of me, I could see two (men) in the queue independently looking down toward my feet. Even if they saw something unusual, they would not have seen anything like the whole height of the heel, and might even have assumed I was wearing a Cuban heel or something similar. As I straightened up and turned, all eyes were staring toward the cubicles, as 'toilet etiquette' demands. I left knowing I'd been spotted, but not overly bothered. We stayed in the store for a further hour, and visited a second. It was 5pm when we left that one, with it completely dark outside and moisture in the air. With little interest in getting wet, we decided to head off, thinking we would miss the main burst of heavy traffic as the shops closed at 6. We were not aware at the time that Hamleys had a Christmas parade earlier in the day. While the walk back to the car was short, the car journey home was unusually long, taking almost twice the time it usually takes. Still, we sat in comfort on the journey home, listening to music we like, rather than children screaming at each other and others sniffling while they sat as would be the case on a train. Plus, the journey was some £36 cheaper on the day. I'm back there again next week .... If any of you are ....

I still have two Nikon FE2's. I used them to do all my college work. My G5 and newer G80 have dioptre adjusters on their viewfinders that allow me to see the (internal) screen clearly, and acts just like a pentaprism except my view of the image doesn't disappear when I press the shutter. I like this about "mirrorless" cameras. While both these Lumix cameras have fully articulated screens on the back of them, I don't use these unless I'm doing 'selfies', and then only to make sure I'm in the frame. Otherwise, the screen is folded up out of sight. My pocket camera, the Olympus Tough has a rear screen, and I nearly always use that just to check the settings. If I need a close up of something and it allows me to use the camera at arms length, then the screen can be useful, but otherwise, I'm not a fan either. As to "which is better" I (coincidentally) watched a number of comparison video's last night on "Full frame vs APS-C vs 4/3rds". Seems that sensors are pretty much, 'much of a muchness' in terms of general performance and that size allows for harsher cropping. **** Inch for inch they are generally the same. Canon has produced a 50mp image from a full-frame processor that sets it aside from the crowd, and Panasonic now produced a 20mp image form a 4/3rds sensor/processor combo, that also sets it aside. **** Internal processors can change that basic performance, and Canon/Nikon are maybe not as ahead of the game in that field, as Sony and Panasonic. Back in my day, Nikon led the film field in terms of camera performance and features. Pro's bought the Nikon F range. Canon had arguably better lenses, not least because back then, they had their own lens design computer. Times move on, and it would seem electronics for image processing are as important as the camera features and basic performance. My Olympus Tough is a great tool. I've used more than just about any other camera I've owned. Turns on almost instantly. Focuses almost instantly. (Until it was dropped - by me) it was dust and waterproof too. Image quality appears to be good too, given what I paid for it and what it gets used for. DSLR's seem completely unattractive to me due to their bulky size, and I can completely understand why Sony is growing the market it is, as is Panasonic with it's 4/3rds range. (Their GH5 is getting staggeringly good reviews, I expect the G9 to do the same.) Does anyone need an image size greater than 20mp in the great scheme of things, unless for a specialised task? Are accurate skin tones, and colour reproduction as important, or even more important? While some of this can be addressed in "post", time is money. Nice to not have to adjust if it can be avoided.... Especially if you don't own a £2-£300 software editing package. That said, if I were offered a half-priced D500 or a D850, would I buy? Yes of course!

Oops, forgot about this. Despite my usual tardiness with timekeeping, we arrived at 6.45pm, early enough to grab some of the (free) on-street parking in the town. From what I can work out, that amounts to about 20 spaces. A plan well executed then? The car had to be parked right next to a cobbled ditch, a feature of the road that might go back to the middle-ages. The pavements were, by and large, as hazardous as anticipated. I had taken my usual boots (avatar) and the stiletto courts shown in the post above. I was reluctant to wear the boots as I know they affect how I walk. The stiletto's would not make the 4-500 yard walk to the venue, and I had taken a second pair of boots I wore while driving. They are a favoured style, but until recently, too noisy to wear in public really. Although they didn't need replacing, new softer heel tips have made them more wearable because they are now significantly quieter. The heel allows for me to feel like I've got a heel on, without completely changing how I walk. Win/Win. I did think if the route to the venue allowed for the courts, I could return to the car and change them, but only a minute or two into the trek I realised I already had the more suitable footwear on. Although the rain held off, the air was cool which would discourage a second journey anyway. We ate at Carluccio's, which is right next to the venue. Service was slow, and they got our starter wrong... I think the chain is not as good as it was, though our replacement waitress was very 'on the ball' but by then I'd regretted being in the place. This was my second bad experience in a row at the franchise, and I'm not sure they will be getting a 3rd chance. Since my visit, the man himself has passed away, which while not being good news, someone his size/shape was 'lucky' to have had they years he did. (80) RIP Antonio. Getting into the venue was straightforward. While one or two might have noticed my heels in the restaurant (a particularly attractive woman had sat close to me on the same bench and probably watched me clip-clop off to the loo), our waitress watched and waved us out - possibly due to the generous tip. No such a problem in the venue at all. Slightly dark, bit crowded, I could have worn a dress and I doubt I'd have been noticed. Well okay, maybe not a dress ... A good time was had by Mrs Freddy, though being shorter she didn't get to see much of the band. The place was full of taller people (some very tall) and Mrs F was reluctant to have me push her towards the front. I saw everything, though some of the jostling had me biting my lip so to speak, as I was more than once tempted to push back hard. In fact, I did move one person thinking about it. Of course it was easy to unbalance me in 12cm heels, which may have helped my frustration. On the up side, one of the two singers wore a black PVC outfit for most of the gig. The other singer wore a PVC cape later on, and the whole troupe changed into black and white PVC outfits for their encore. I don't know why I didn't take a good camera (Olympus Tough) and relied instead on my phone. (Duh!) Like all cheaper phones (and cameras) low-light performance is poor. Ho-hum. The walk back to the car was a challenge, walking amongst a horde of others who gradually spaced themselves out as we moved away from the venue along the road to the car. Though we were both warmer on the way back, it was a relief to find the car, and start our journey home. Our original route back was partially closed due to night-time roadworks, and that added some time to our return car journey. On the up side, neither of us had fallen into the ditch alongside the parked car, and I didn't drive into it when I turned the car around, so we got back home unscathed.

I got 7 pictures in total published. I will send a link to those I know who post here. There were two other photo's in the article (crowd shots taken from a distance) and I can be spotted taking photo's during the event. The G80 has arrived, but I won't be opening it until the end of next week, to ensure there isn't further discount on Black Friday. None is expected, and some retailers have started to claim B/F discounts already with no intimation there might be further discounts. I've been into JL and had a play with their demo kit a few times though. I'm looking forward to using mine.

Ahhh. Think that's your foot telling you that you might be getting older. I've said many times, the reason why young women wear high heels, is because they can. Older women don't wear high heels, because they can't. The older women I know (well) who have damaged feet, would still wear a heel if they could. Once you've experienced pleasure wearing a heel, I doubt that association ever really wanes **. If I live long enough, I plan to be the oldest person in the care home in a heel. What will I care? Will I even know/remember they are supposed to be for women only? P.S. ** Just for the record, I don't necessarily mean pleasure through sex, as that certainly isn't the case for me. I think I can count the times I've 'done the deed' wearing a heel, on two fingers.

We saw these heels earlier ..... And the skirt worn was this ..... Very attractive! This dancer is quite petite, and would look good in anything, but the 5" Loubies were back again, seen here. With her tiny size 4 feet, they have probably the sharpest rise of any shoe seen on this programme.

Zoe in her Saint Laurent ankle boots....

Well, despite hearing about the 'all singing all dancing' Lumix G9 only a few days ago, I've actually placed an order for the G80 (with lens I may sell immediately). John Lewis were offering a trade-in discount, with Panasonic offering some cash-back too. These combined effectively knocked 25% off the cost of the kit. Although Black Friday is only 11 days away, it was still too good an offer to miss. If B/F produces a better discount - which I've been assured by several sellers is very unlikely - I can still return the kit I've ordered for a refund. My worry remains image size, 16mb vs 20/24mb, somewhat solved by the availability of the Lumic G9 with its 20mb base to 80mb image size for stills and landscape photographers. (Sensor shifting composite technology.) Since I don't have a need for larger files as yet, I plumbed for the lower budget option which for what I want, might be perfectly adequate. G80 body (before discounts) £629. G9 body..... £1499. This a serious contender for a pro rated camera, following on the success of the GH5. Only nerds need watch .... Does everything. Competitor to D500 perhaps? The gig yesterday went well. There were at least two others there photographing/videoing the event, each with significantly more expensive kit than myself. While that was a little daunting, me and my little camera were able to move about discreetly and get some pictures without upsetting anyone there by blocking their view or interrupting procedures with loud clicking. I was called this morning at 9.30 by the local paper, to ask if I had any more than those submitted yesterday, so it looks promising to see some images published. More news as it arrives.

Is there a reason you stopped?

That's a little unkind ....