FastFreddy2

Something a little more sophisticated then? (Read 'demure'.) From >> here << (Not worth looking to be honest, this is it.)

Epilogue .... After a bit of "mutual misunderstanding" that resulted in me being banned from bidding on more of the sellers items, (an action I can't quite fathom) clarity was restored and goodwill washed over both parties. All that remains is for me to make sure the seller knows I appreciate their gesture of goodwill. Begs the question, why don't you? There hasn't been a number created large enough, to count the number of homo sapien men who have "called her bluff" and lived to regret it. So the answer to the question is: "No." Were I to live alone, away from anyone who had known me as I am now, there is a chance that my (sometimes) lack of recognition in observing social barriers (benchmarks), might have me in heels any time I wasn't indulging in manual labour or doing something that had the potential to be injurious to my health. I do not mean as in to isolate myself from the world, but for me to be in a world where I was known, and had always been known as a 'man wearing high heels'. Since I don't live in that somewhat 'ideal' world, I have to respect the needs of those people around me, and allow the circumstances to exist that provide me the opportunity of enjoying their company too. Which means leading something of a double life, one I can't share with many others. I have access to perhaps 2 women and two men I can share it with socially, (and one of the men is Puffer). Anyone else who I might have contact with, knows nothing except I don't seem to be interested in football or computer games. Once the genie is out of the bottle/pandora is out of the box, there's no going back ... I don't know if having something other than a "double life" can actually work, as the idea of it not working is too much of a risk to tempt trying. Consequently I couldn't advocate pursuing a course I wouldn't/couldn't take myself. This has been mentioned before. Isn't there a chance you could slip a line into a general high heels conversation that ran something like; "Do you think it would ever be okay for men to wear a heel?" Assuming you haven't asked already..... It's perhaps a question that could lead somewhere useful on several levels, if ever it's going to.

If the records are checked, I'm sure any reviewer will conclude I've "applied" for more than my rightful share. I'd be happy if another member here, did the necessary.

I doubt I would have seen a Derber shoe shop where you saw one. I tended to shop East of Regent Street. There were a number of Sacha shops around there, and I had 'previous' at a man's shoe shop called "Topper" that may have been around Carnaby Street. Shelly's were also around there. We are talking a good number of years ago, and things that may now seem important were fairly trivial to me back then. I was always into girls who wore heels (I have a theory that heel height is directly related to libido - though not exclusively so) and shoe shops with stiletto heels weren't that unusual. There were very many more shoe shops back then: FHW, Dolcis, Saxone, Faith, Sacha, Ravel; some of which made it to >> this list << some didn't. Derber is not listed. I say "I was into girls who wore a heel", is half the story. I might be into them initially because they could and did wear a heel. I had many girlfriends who were eager to please, so chose clothing/footwear they knew would appeal to me. That situation still exists to a degree even now, but less so. Getting older, losing the shape that made any clothing look attractive, is another reason youth is often wasted on the young. It wasn't at all unusual back then for single shop, or a small group of shops to be run by a 'sole trader' entrepreneur, and London's West End provided enough business to keep even the wildest retailer in business - at that time. Rents and rates prevent this now, and may well be the reason why bigger groups seem to thrive - though you don't get much bigger than BHS. Had I the benefit then of second-sight, I would have made it my life's work to document what has always been a personal interest in social anthropology: The British shoe manufacturing and retail industry. All that diversity, an industry known world-wide, all just about gone thanks to cheap imported (and largely rubbish) footwear. I think if this line of thought/discussion is to continue, it ought to have it's own thread. Hopefully in a day or two (when yet another 'rush job' is put to bed), I'll be able to do a full write up of Sundays adventure.

Jourdan Dunn. More pictures >> here <<

Now you're asking ..... They were (I think) possibly a brand within a brand. There might have been a Derber shop, but I don't remember it being a stand alone retailer. I vaguely remember a shop in New Oxford Street but wouldn't be at all surprised to be told it was a Faith. Any style Faith sold back then, I would have been aware of. Placing shoes and girlfriends into a time frame, 'early eighties' would have it about there. I had two girlfriends who owned them, and I have a picture of one at a family wedding wearing a pair. (A hairdresser, you won't be surprised to learn.) A woman I haven't seen for a considerable time. The other girl is one I've mentioned several times, and one of two I know with crippled feet. At one stage she was barely able to walk and has had several operations on both feet. (I'm sure I have posted a picture here somewhere.) She still has a pair of Derbers. As I understand her intention, one shoe for her box, one shoe for mine. A hard goal since we haven't spoken for a year, and three before that. She couldn't find time for a cup of coffee together in 9 months, despite working less than a half mile from where I live. She must have very busy lunch-breaks every working day ... She has always had a very high opinion of herself, an opinion not always shared by others.... Maybe that's why several long term boyfriends dumped her, and why she largely remains single but for a distant relationship with someone she sees perhaps once a month. Amongst the three of us (as two distinct couples), "Derbers" were a known message, that sex was expected at the end of the evening. A lot like the Tina's you have mentioned, but with a slightly higher heel, I think. Certainly, there was nothing as high available anywhere I found, and I was looking. Back then 'girlfriends' didn't complain about any sort of footwear, they just wore a heel. If I can copy the lower half of the wedding photo I have, I will include it here. They are not as obviously high/high as a pair of Covergirl 6" heels might be, but I wouldn't relish a day (wedding day) wearing them from 2pm until nearly midnight. Though my girlfriend at the time would have weighed 7 stone, (me not much more) and a lot less weight on a high heel than would be the case for me now. The only "edits" would have been to grammar or for typo's. I'm fully aware men's shoes were/are available in suede. A style popular in my youth were called "desert boots" though not suitable for such an environment. They had a high cuff that partially enclosed the ankle (as might a modern shoe boot) with light coloured "crepe" soles, and invariably came in a sandy brown suede. Not unlike these: Ironically, these are a woman's shoe... (I found after I'd produced the image for consumption here.) Both men's and women's trainer styles come in suede, and I have a pair, but I doubt these would be included in comments over styles of shoe. "Beatniks" (as was) and maybe mens "goth" shoes with 2 or 3 inch soles might have suede uppers, but these again, are not 'usual' footwear. Today, Mrs Freddy started her day with coffee and old friends, I started mine with some commercial repair/decorating. A lovely day, and we were both keen to make the most of it. Fair/warm weather, a gentle breeze, and Mrs F has a rest day tomorrow.... So after arriving home for some lunch, I got cleaned up and we away to London, but this time avoided anything to do with retail. (More detail later in the week.) We were out from around 3.45pm until almost midnight. We went to a couple of touristy places, and must have seen perhaps a 1000 or so people. (More likely double that and more, but you get my point...) To my surprise, I saw a man wearing a suede shoe. Baby blue suede (nod to Carl Perkins, and Elvis) and a slightly casual look to them, but suede - and a shoe! I've seen one worn in the flesh. Almost certainly someone from offshore though.

Mrs Freddy has a significant shoe collection, a good 60% having heels, with the balance mostly completely flat. Amongst the flatties is a wide range of Sketchers, which she favours for walking, rather than socialising. The one she wore on Sunday last, are I think some KG's she can and has walked all day in, including foreign climes that took a ten hour flight to arrive at. While I could spend a long working day with her modelling her heels to photograph, it would only serve to make me reminisce of our past life even more than I do already. For that reason alone, there is little chance of the shoe wardrobe being shared. I do get Mrs F trying on heels from time to time, but there is seldom any intention to buy since she has 20+ pairs at home already, mostly unworn. Best we can hope for, is the occasional brownie point being cashed in. Debenhams bought the name, but not the buyers. You are right about Faith and their style.30 years ago my girlfriends would shop no-where else. (Maybe Derbers, but that is another story.) I can assure you, in the 3-5 years I've been looking, Debenhams version of Faith as a brand, has been cringingly disappointing. You don't have to agree, but it's true. Men don't usually wear suede shoes. Stand by a store entrance and let me know how many of he first 100 men walking through the door wear suede shoes. I doubt you'll need a single finger. I once owned a beige pair of perforated buckskin shoes, but that is as close as I have come to owning a suede shoe. Not only do I not remember the last time I saw a man wearing them, I don't recall a man ever wearing a pair. I know men do wear them, but I've not seen them.

Last Sunday the West End visit did happen. Rain had been promised, but it missed us until much later in the day. Mrs Freddy got dragged into several stores and practically forced to try on shoes she had no intention of buying, nor wearing if she had a say in the matter. Since I had just nursed her through a week of her being pretty ill (proper ill too), I had some brownie points to use. We also looked for the Carolina Herrera Good Girl perfume in the big stores, with none found. Arrival was late as usual, with me having done lots of useful things before deciding it was time to get ready. That was about the time we should have left. Hey-ho. On arrival, and despite only being a couple of days into the Summer sales, parking was plentiful. TFL had let things slide, possibly because Puffer hadn't been on their case for a couple of weeks. People being jittery about terrorist attacks might also have contributed, but we benefited if that was the case.... Straight into John Lewis to return the Steve Madden courts I'd bought in the wrong size (they didn't have my size in stock so I took a punt on the smaller size.) Then into the coffee shop for refreshment. I have to say, they do make a good cup of coffee, I'm never disappointed. Not true of their shoe sales though, as anything size 8 was awful, and no Steve Madden courts to be seen anywhere. No luck with the perfume either. Next stop House of Fraser and their perfume section. Again no joy. Same story with their Steve Madden and Office shoes, none in my size. Especially disappointing as it was HoF I'd tried on the S.M. courts last time. "We" did find some courts in the sale that were Mrs Freddy's size, but her feet are a tad too wide for their style of shoe usually. These were - as expected. I had more luck in Debenhams, a place I wouldn't normally look for shoes, as they mostly do their own brands .... I found the shoe I was looking for, but the place was pretty busy. Eventually I gave up waiting for a quiet moment, and gave up looking for a quiet spot and just tried them on. Shop assistants walked past a number of times and only one gave me a second glance. Two customers had a look, but nothing traumatic happened. They don't look like a 5 inch heel, but I've measured them: 5 inches exactly. At the time, I realised they were a good fit, and at £37 I would usually buy them. But with a £500 barristers bill to pay, I felt more than a little apprehensive, even though it's £37 and not £370..... By the time we left, there was either enough time to get to Primarni to look for some T-shirts for me, or time to visit Topshop and their shoe floor ..... I can buy T-shirts anytime so .... With only about 20 minutes left of shopping time, we made straight to the shoes. Mrs Freddy will buy a 'bargain' shoe she doesn't need, and there were plenty to choose from if she liked them. Not in the sale were the H.o.u.s.e. of C.B. courts I'd mentioned previously, still priced at £120. I didn't need or want to try the 41/8 again but I managed to get Mrs Freddy to put one on for me. A much better fit than the Office shoe, but too high and too expensive. There was also a Steve Madden in a 41/8 which I tried again. My thinking was the pressure of the store closing might push me into buying? Sadly, not. Hopefully I won't live to regret it, as the fit was/is really good. No marks on this pair, unlike those in Debenhams. Although it took me looking at the photographs to realise it, they just don't look that high. In fact I double checked against another pair of (measured) 5 inch heels, to make sure I wasn't mistaken. These are both 41/8 in size, and they are both 5 inch heels. I suspect the sharper rise of the HoCB shoe, together with the slimmer heel, "make" them look higher? Lastly, I tried on the Office Hampton once again. Lovely shoe, but even in the sale they are £48 and not overly keen on suede shoes. Once again I got spotted, not wearing the courts, but the Bertie shoes I'd chosen to wear for the afternoon because they are easy to get on and off. Two girls who might have been sisters were both shopping for stiletto's. One sat, one in shoes walking around the sale rack. The standing one noticed my shoes, and tried to (discreetly) get her friend/sister to look in my direction. She looked (I looked back) but she couldn't see what she was supposed to be looking at. I was sorely tempted to show her myself. It was almost comedic. I walked off from the Office shoes and tried on the Hampton in the Dune/Steve Madden area where I had access to a mirror and some seating. Not only does the heel look higher than the Steve Madden, they feel a little higher too (harder to walk in initially), but they are the same height: 5 inches. Had these been £40 or less, I'd have taken them despite my misgivings about suede. (Men don't wear suede shoes usually, so an instant second glance is always required.) I managed to get these pictures taken just before the store closed, so no chance of persuading myself it was necessary to own a pair. Since the Steve Madden's were so comfortable, I do expect to regret, not having made a purchase, some time in the future when I feel a bit more flush. However, I've three pairs of patent courts already, two of which are from Office. A third pair from a 'cheapo' mail order company, that cost me £30. I haven't worn any of them yet, but would welcome the chance to ... While I'm still able. Originally we had planned to eat out, but we had been shopping late the previous evening, and along with perhaps 10-15 (highly trained) bargain hunters, we had bought a fair amount of short dated products in need of immediate consumption. Rather than waste food, we returned home early, though 'early' still meant almost 8pm. Not a great time to start preparing food for a meal, but it didn't take long for us to eat. As we listened to rain falling outside. Is Summer over already?

Young(er) people have no idea what it's like to 'suffer' for fashion. In my younger days, I remember vividly, girls walking around with holes in their feet where shoes rubbed. (Had a little experience of this myself in more recent years, with scar to prove.) I don't remember girls taking shoes off their feet on a night out. Nor (again more recently) would those of us working in a bar, be happy to see anyone walking around barefoot with the potential of broken glass a constant danger. These days, many girls take some foldable 'pumps' (ballet shoes to us Brits), in a handbag, often for pre and post event wearing. We see at events like Ascot, Cheltenham, Aintree, women arriving wearing high heels, and only hours later their shoes are being carried around - no longer worn. I know (because I've done it a number of times), it's no great challenge to spend a day in a 4 inch heel. Even easier, if senses are somewhat muted by alcohol. Shoes are significantly more comfortable than they wear 30-40 years ago, so the 21st Century challenge isn't so great anyway. I'm sure there were times in the late 70's and 80's when girls very much regretted their shoe-of-choice for the evening, but as Mrs Freddy reminds me, once the heels were on, they stayed on. My personal experience mimics this too. In my 'fetish' days, and in more recent times, once the heels are on, they stay on.

Well, still no rain here, and little prospect of it. Hopefully it will arrive AFTER the weekend, if it's going to arrive at all. Will be at London't West End tomorrow, Sunday. The Summer sales are here in earnest, and Mrs Freddy would like to scour the shops for bargains. When last we were there, she bought some really nice sandals for £15 that had previously been available at £65 -ish. Not only a bargain, but wearable, and worn to a family gathering only days later. Two of the pairs of courts I tried on a couple of weeks ago, are 'on sale'. One pair from £75 to £37, the other £72 to £48. I maybe foolishly let a style I tried a year ago (and liked), pass me by. From £72 to £43. This style had the potential to have an ankle strap fitted, that would help keep them on my feet. £43 isn't as much of a bargain as they could be though, and for an extra £5 I could have bought the courts with the stupidly high heel. (Hampton.) The better reduction of the group is the Steve Madden shoes, but patent? I may be tempted tomorrow. Mrs Freddy has already asked if they are to be an early birthday present.... (Some months off yet.) Bless her.

This is ever-so-slightly off-topic, but not completely .... Too hot for long trousers? Full story >> here << And "Too hot for long trousers? II" Full story >> here <<

I was going to add something like: "Were I somewhere snakes/ticks/leeches or anything else looking to eat me was going to be found, I'd be wearing thigh length leather boots." And then I realised, unless I was to get into an aeroplane (unlikely) fly over jungle (even less likely) and survive an plane crash into that jungle (less likely still) I wouldn't be found anywhere I'd need those boots anyway..... There are many places in Scotland I'd like to visit, but even the midges (and probably ticks) there, are bad enough to keep me away. Another reason to prefer cooler climes. Bears and wolves are much more visible.

Might depend on the time of day too? Meaning, I might wear a sandal during a hot evening, but not during the day. I get noticed enough without actually inviting attention. I wouldn't wear any closed toe shoe in the weather we've just had at 30' Centigrade. I don't own a heeled sandal, so too much heat means no heels for me. I did try on some "gladiator" wedges some years ago when they were trendy, but didn't buy them despite the shoes being a surprisingly good fit. They would have been 'holiday' shoes, and since I don't have holidays any longer, they weren't added to the collection. Given the temperatures we've experienced over the past week, that omission may have been a mistake. So in answer to the question .... Probably anything past 26/27 degrees would be too warm. Nothing to do with a heel, but none of my shoes have an open toe. (I've a pair on sale on Ebay, but they are not 'wearing' shoes.)

I've a 'thing' for cork wedges. Mrs Freddy can't be doing with them (dunno why) but I like them. Possibly I have subliminal memories of a girlfriend wearing them in my otherwise forgotten past .... They have the feel of holidays about them, summer, pleasant times....

Still humid here, despite the 10 minute shower that the weathermen suggested would be a "thunderstorm", though temperature and humidity are nothing like as oppressive as it was yesterday. It's cooler, which might mean I can sleep in/on my bed tonight .... As for footwear, still in flat sandals, still repairing floorboards. I know how to live it up!

I would take two doses of the cold, over one of each any day. I have no doubts both would be extremely uncomfortable though. Well done you. Needless to say, "I hope they pay you what you're worth." It's not usually the case.

The only time I enjoy a bright blue sky, is during Winter, early Spring or late Autumn. Otherwise, likely too hot for me. I once experienced 35' in Ibiza. I barely left the pool. Could be that temperature up here in the Home Counties today. It's just ridiculously hot. While other countries might experience these or even greater temperatures (a Turkish friend once told me she expects 40' in Istanbul during the summer) it's something local people have acclimatised to, and is something that usually happens with the progression of the climate through the season, and would include historic experience. I'm pretty sure that doesn't apply here? We Brits can quite literally have overcoat weather one day, and record breaking temperatures (for the month) a week later. This is pretty much what has happened over the last two weeks. If I remember correctly, twice during the week beginning the 5th of June, my central heating started up. One day, continuously from 6-10pm, so the full evening period. A week later, it gets warm enough to walk around the house naked (I hear) and a couple of days later, too hot to walk around naked. We had some conversation previously about temperature rises of 10 degrees over a short period. We are now talking about a 20 degree rise, and from nowhere. If I lived in Spain, these temperature swings might be 'usual' over a single day, meaning night time temperatures might fall, though falling 20 degrees? Our temperatures surely 'swing' more than most, and is why (I'm led to believe) our weather is so hard to predict. I am thankful we don't have a summer that includes 3 months of 30' temperatures. Though if it was typical, I would have invested in some air-con by now. I'm very much looking forward to some cooler weather. P.S. School's out for the summer! Pupils sent home on the hottest June day since 1976 in 93F heatwave... and they've EVEN cancelled the donkey rides Mercury hit 93F (33.9C) at Heathrow, west London - making it the hottest June day for 40 years It is also the warmest Summer Solstice on record, beating the previous record of 89F (31.7C) Andover Church of England Primary School, Hampshire, closed its doors at 11.30am this morning Donkey rides at Coney Beach in Porthcawl, South Wales, suspended because it was too hot for the animals Ambulance service in London has seen 'unprecedented demand' during current heatwave Argos is struggling to cope with demand for electric fans, particularly in London Full article >> here << It's not just me .....

What about the moobs? The legs are in good shape though. Those shoes look very wearable in this weather. You seem to have less trouble being spotted than I do, so suitability might be higher for you than it would be for me. Put another way, I'm sure I'd be spotted by everyone who saw me. I'm wondering if I walk badly in a heel? Or am I a bit heavy footed? I'm currently rubbing down floorboards. Am very wet despite the shorts and sandals. I have at least 2 jobs waiting for me that involves working outside. Not in this weather. It's like an oven outside. "Sweltering" is right. On the couch again tonight. Hopefully some respite (mid twenties) tomorrow.

We Brits in the South are experiencing a mini (thank goodness) heatwave in June, not seen for 20 years. I live in house with a "South facing garden" with my bedroom at the back of the house. It's been unbearably warm the last couple of days, and I have slept on the couch the last two nights. We have at least another two days of this, and I'm struggling to function. Any plans I had for wandering in heels has had to be postponed, as I never feel comfortable while 'leaking'. When younger, I didn't sweat much, if at all. Now older, I only have to look at a hot drink, for me to start leaking through every pore. Yet another one of the 'trials and tribulations' of getting older. Such fun! Some time in Winter I will be looking forward to warmer days, drier days, but right now .... I'd welcome a couple of days of showery overcast weather. Obviously, "there's no pleasing some people" and I might be one of them .... 18-22 degrees C is the ideal temperature for me. Preferably with "Altostratus translucidus" (its says here) which is a high thin hazy cloud producing a very light shadow on the ground on an otherwise bright clear day, together with dry air and just a hint of a breeze. I get to see days like this, perhaps once every 3 years? Although they are probably more frequent in places away from an ocean. So Kensington next week then ....

Leaving late on Friday meant a visit to Kensington wasn't on the cards, so I'll have to make that trip another day. Instead, I went for a very late walk around the South Bank. Stopped for food on the way, just off of Tottenham Court Road. Arriving a little after 8.30 and leaving a tad after 10. Service was slow but the food was good. Friday nights in town, are always going to busy.... I'd thought the wind might pick up later, especially around the river, but it didn't. It was a warm night, despite walking by the river. There were fireworks at Somerset House, which looked good to me, but got some unpleasant headlines the next day. Apparently, one or two people confused the fireworks with bombs. I was there, and there was no need for any confusion. If you were close enough to hear the fireworks, you were close enough to see them. In fact we saw them BEFORE we heard them. Must have been some sort of black-tie gig, as we passed about 60 people walking toward Cannon Street station along the Embankment on our return journey. At least 50 of them were men? Mostly over 60 years old too. The walk was a challenge, especially in 5 inch heels. I was by no means a marathon, but with a belly full of food, the warm air (no refreshment) and the heels all made for an interesting walk. We returned to the car for just past 1am, not getting home until almost 2am. Even out in the sticks, the air was warm, and my feet were still cooking warm.

I had one. Both me and a younger brother got one each at Christmas, might have been around 1970 -ish. After a couple of years use, mine still looked pristine. My brothers, looked like it was 10 years old, and had needed a couple of repairs. I wasn't the tallest in my group, but on that, I was the fastest. Same on skates, my legs were quick and strong, even if they looked like matchsticks. "I could have been a contender". Thinking back, I had all the attributes for long distance racing. Slim, fit, lots of stamina. Need very little liquid ... Sadly, 50 years too late to recognise my potential. Back then, for the most part, the best that could be expected of me by my family was I got employment. Sounds a bit lame now, but as you suggest, we (now) live in a different world. We weren't taught to expand our horizons, and the government school programme was to provide material for our manufacturing base (as was). My family came from the slums of London, and my father knew what it was to be really poor (I now know) and when I say poor, I mean dirt poor. He had achieved something by having a home with furniture, some food, and no-one chasing him for unpaid bills. Wen I look back on how we lived and what we ate, I am shocked. "Meagre" comes close. There was never - ever, any danger of anyone in my family becoming overweight. It didn't help that neither of my parents had the first clue about food, how to cook it, and ways to put a meal together. My mother is still to this day, the only person I know who has managed to burn a casseroled joint of meat. And when I say 'burn', I mean charcoaled. How anyone manages that with liquid in the dish, I can't imagine, but she did. The top half (out of the liquid) looked like a piece of coal. The lower half, preserved by liquid, had shrunk so much and become so tough, it might have been used for a cricket ball. It got eaten though. No-one enjoyed eating it, but food didn't go in the bin. Perhaps i should commit these memories to paper (or electronic media) but it'll take a 100 years for my history to become pertinent to a social anthropologist, and then it's only a 'maybe'. I have tried to engage my grandson in this, and even though he is a sensitive and intelligent little man, his attention is drawn to mindless hours of Mindcraft videos. I have told him this stuff is known in the industry as 'time-killers', but he doesn't care. Console games = opium of the masses.

These were so unique, I had to drive 30 miles to one of the wealthiest, trendiest places in the UK to get them. "Common", they wasn't. I don't remember them being overly expensive, but I would have been one of a handful of people - a small handful - in my county wearing them. In fact, I never saw another person wearing a pair, ever. I can't remember what put me onto them, but it would have been a fashion magazine of some sort. I used to read Cosmopolitan, Vogue, Elle, I.D. and the weekly listings mag Time (London), so likely one of those. 40 years ago there was no global market. Amazon and Ebay weren't even a twinkle in the eye of the creators. Levi jeans too, were pretty special at a time when jeans were typically worn by workmen, not trendy teenagers. Back then, foreign imported goods were unusual. Today, everything is imported. This was a time when not everyone had a telephone in their home, and sometimes you had to wait outside a phone box in the street. Two car families was unheard of unless you had a title and an estate. So colourful, imported American footwear, very on point.

Got my repaired shoe-boot back today, and first impressions suggest 'all is good'. I won't know for sure, until I use them of course. My original plan for the test run was going to be Westfield Friday. However, what is turning out to be a tragedy of some magnitude, is close by. Prudence, respect and humility, all suggest the area is to be avoided, so a trip to Kensington High Street is on the table. I haven't been there for a long time, perhaps 20 years. It used to be a favoured haunt when Kensington Market existed, some 40 years ago. I recall the place being full of young designers and start up businesses from the fashion and art world. Of course that closed when an opportunity for the owner to make some real money came along. It was always on the cards, but that place had an international reputation so it was a shame to see it close. I remember getting a pair of Converse All-Star baseball boots from a shop in the high street. London was much different then. I would drive there and park my car in the street only a short distance from the shops, without having to pay for the privilege. And no, my mode of transport wasn't a Hansom Cab, nor horse and cart either.... 40 years .... That's quite a long time....

So Russ, no takers? I bought something not shoe related recently () off Ebay, with the proviso the seller (that looks to be a business but isn't declared as such) didn't leave feedback. I did ask to change the listing to "anonymous" but the experienced seller, wealthy enough to be using an iPhone, said they didn't know how to do it despite me sending a picture of which box to tick! We agreed, 'no feedback' and I bought the item I was after. 2 weeks later, they left me feedback! In response, the seller said "Apologies, I sell sooooooo much stuff .... " I don't expect my thoughts on this would stand being written here, suffice to say I wasn't happy. I've asked Ebay to have a look at it, as the buyer did say they wouldn't leave feedback as part of the deal. And I think I've got a bad memory .... P.S. Ebay did me a favour, feedback now removed.

My one experience suggests you are on the money. At the time, I was scarlet with embarrassment, having to take off a high heeled knee high boot (cowboy boot style) in front of security, and some 200 other waiting travellers. I didn't spot anyone who gave them or me a second look. Took me about 10 minutes to get my normal pasty skin colour back though.