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Poor Prince Charming! He thought he had it bad when he went traipsing around the kingdom asking random women to try on his glass slipper. I imagine him patiently maneuvering around over-protective chaperones(you're who? and you want to what?! with all the single ladies in the castle??) and delicately redirecting over-zealous wannabes (No, dear, you are not the one. Now would you please allow my footman [pun intended] to accompany you to the nearest hospital to have your toes re-attached?).
But did you ever think about them later on, after the reunion of the precious slipper with its mate and the patient prince with his Cinderella? Well, obviously a girl can't go around wearing glass slippers every day, even--or especially--magical ones. So let me take you to Once Upon a Time, say...17 years down the road....
The Prince and Mrs. Charming have taken up running (a natural extension of the midnight dash). Purchasing their first pairs of running shoes had been a fun little birthday shopping spree. In the year since, the Prince has replaced his with the exact same model such that the princess recently complained that there were 3 pairs of size 14as in various stages of wear taking up serious real estate on the kitchen floor.
The Princess, on the other hand, is ready to upgrade and needs to explore her options.
She scours product descriptions and reviews, in books and magazines, online, and in the stores. Finally, she is ready to start trying things on. She's already in love with something called Nimbus 12s which cost $125, are praised for their cushiony feel, and make her think she might fly if she wears them.
So, the Charmings take advantage of a kingdom holiday and retain a nanny for the royal children. First, they spend a couple hours at the village rec center and enjoy a relaxing pub lunch, and then it's on to the shoe shopping. They go to a very expensive sporting goods store where the sales woman checks over the wear on the princess' old shoes and basically confirms what the princess already knew about her feet and her running footwear needs. The prince raises eyebrows at the exhorbitant prices, asks occasional questions, but otherwise waits patiently. The princess assures the sales lady (and her prince) that she is sensible enought not to choose her shoes based on color... but that she does not want orange. "You can call it tangerine, or melon or whatever you want but it's really just orange and I don't like it." She has an affinity for purple and the saleswoman is delighted to produce a hideously expensive and funky-soled Mizuno Wave Creation 12 in shades of plum.
The princess likes. They feel bouncy and comfy and fun. And like they cost 140 bucks.
Next, they go to Dick's which has a bigger selection and better sales.
The princess finds the famous Nimbuses (Nimbi??) and discovers that they are not for her at all! Disappointed (and a little relieved), she tries on many more pairs of running shoes. She's starting to feel like another famous fairy-tale character in an eternal quest for "just right".... The prince is more actively involved here, finding things for her to try on and pointing out technical details like which ones have more arch support. The princess/brown-haired Goldilocks wants lots of cushioning, something that hugs her arches...and pretty color choices. The prince wishes not to break the royal bank.
Princess/Goldilocks still loves the cost-a-king's-ransom Mizunos, but she has found a less expensive alternative. They fit well, feel good, meet all her picky standards except one: they're white with orange accents (the company calls it "Sun" *scoff!*).
So they go to one more store where Princess/Goldy is lusting over goofy looking KSwiss shoes with tubing on the soles. The prince doesn't think they look very durable but Goldy thinks they are super comfy...and they're purple (shown below in a different color which makes them look so not exciting).
By now the prince is searching every shelf, every brand, every style for size 7s that might satisfy His Royal Darling, while fending off PTSD flashbacks to those evil step-sisters flocking and flirting and hacking off their heels.... Instead of one shoe and a thousand potential princess, it's one princess and a thousand potential shoes!
They finally return to the castle empty-handed (although not exactly barefoot), but armed with enough information to make an informed internet purchase. Now it's one PC and a hundred thousand potential shoes....! Mmmm....more shopping!
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A few days later (on pay day, to be precise), I made my final selection. The aforementioned "Sun" colored shoe was in fact, the Brooks Ghost 3, and does, in fact, come in several colors. You'll be surprised to learn that I chose the bugg-y looking color palette over the purple-y one. I'm liking these bright greens and blues...
I had a 15% discount code for RunningWarehouse.com so I ended up paying $108 for my hundred dollar shoes, plus a cheap pair of socks, plus a pair of not-so-cheap Thorlos, plus a pair of borderline-pricey Injinji toe socks for Alan to try. And I got a free shopping bag. You can't argue with that!
Just right!!
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