I recently saw an article about an airline banning bare feet on their airplanes. This made my day! I find it absolutely disgusting when people sit on the airplane and then take their shoes off and wiggle their toes around. It’s vile! Then they touch their feet, pick their toes, play with their nails – YUCK!
I don’t have a problem with summertime and people barefoot on the beach or by the pool or even in the back yard. And, I don’t have a problem with anyone with bare feet in their sandals. With one caveat of course. GET A PEDICURE! No one wants to see old gnarly hairy toes with yellow toenails, especially on men.
Why do people ignore their feet as though they aren’t part of their body? Personal hygiene starts with your hair and ends with the soles of your feet! Or vice versa. Point is, feet count!
How do I deal when I see people out at a fancy restaurant in bare feet and Birkenstocks? What has happened to self-respect?
Put your dogs away!
I should compile an all-star Pet Peeves column that are simpatico with my own. I also cannot stand bare feet unless they are obviously well-groomed, clean and attractive. Yes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but with feet, I think it’s pretty clear.
I used to live in a hot country. EVERYONE wore sandals. But foot cleanliness was also taken far more seriously. It was rare to see cracked heels and unkempt toenails. And I agree, bare feet on an airplane are vile.
In this country, depending on where you live, different restaurants call for different levels of attire. Outdoor patio in the summer? Shorts, tank top and flip fops. Auberge du Pommier? Most men are in jacket and tie. Birkenstocks would be frowned upon.
However, we cannot control how other people behave; we can only control how we react. Now that the weather is getting warmer, I strongly suggest you keep your eyes up, your mind open and your mouth shut.
My neighbour recently had a baby. We were never close friends, only a nod and a smile when we passed on the sidewalk. But I only ever hear the baby crying, for hours during the day and at night. When I see her out walking the baby, she looks frazzled and the baby is almost always crying.
I’ve had four kids of my own. I’m not a perfect mom by any means, but would it be rude to offer my knowledge? I can’t bear to hear the baby cry so much.
Mom-madness
Neither you nor I know what’s causing the baby to cry, so we can’t offer solutions. However, in the kindest, most friendly way, you could ask her how it’s going with the newborn the next time you see her. If she brushes you off with, “it’s fine,” you could nudge her a bit with a comment such as, “Oh, I remember those first few weeks/months. My second wouldn’t let me put her down or she’d howl. So, I had to carry her while tending to the toddler.”
My point is, try to get her to open up to you by sharing your own negative experiences. No one wants to hear how easy it was when they’re having difficulty. Show some empathy. You could ask her if she’d like to trouble shoot with you, maybe you could be helpful since you’ve had four. Or you could invite her over for a cup of tea and offer to hold the baby to give her arms a break.
She sounds as though she needs a hug, a nap, a bath and a cry.
FEEDBACK Regarding the passenger on the empty plane (April 7):
Reader – “You didn’t answer the question he posed: why would the elderly woman passenger want to sit right beside him on a near-empty plane? Obviously, the answer is she was scared or lonely. Would it have killed this guy to be friendly and comforting toward another human being during this short flight?”
Reader #2 – “Maybe she was afraid of flying in a near empty plane. Maybe they should have said hello and asked if everything was OK. Maybe when they reached out to the flight attendant, they should have asked them to check in with her.
“Whatever happened to human kindness?”
FEEDBACK Regarding forcing person into nursing home (April 8):
Reader – “We had an elderly friend who loved her home. Her children thought she would be safer in a nursing home and sent her there against her wishes. She hated it there, lost the will to live, and died shortly after.”