Dear Feet (more specifically, Little Toe),

I’m sorry that I have been cramming you into shoes that were too narrow for you for so many years. I know that you have been as understanding as possible and that you are as supportive as you can be of my “form over fashion” mentality, but considering my recent discovery, I feel terrible about all the pain I’ve cause you. I just didn’t realize that you were wide enough to merit purchasing wide shoes.

Thank goodness that salesperson at Nordstrom accidentally brought out a wide pair of shoes.

My life (and yours) will never be the same.

With my deepest apologies,

Chloe

Dear Nordstrom (especially the shoe department in P-town),

When I realized, after wearing my fabulous new Franco Sarto, pink, peep-toe heels, that those same heels were actually too big for me, I was devastated.

I had worn them. Outside. All day. In New York.

And worse, the realization came the day after I had put the box in the garbage.

On top of which, I had purchased two more pairs of Franco Sartos at the same time as the pink, peep-toes, and I had thrown those boxes away as well. (Yes, I do throw boxes away before I wear the shoes…I never have buyer’s remorse with shoes.)

I was thinking about my shoes all day at school and rushed home to see if the boxes were perhaps still in the garbage. Two of them were (and they were only covered by shredded mail); the one for the peep-toes and the one for the fabulous sandles. However, I was missing one.

I debated what to do. Knowing you, I figured you would exchange all three pairs for me, but with the economic situation, I kind of wondered. And really, it wasn’t your fault that I wore my shoes outside before realizing they were too big. However, I also knew that, if I didn’t exchange them, I might not wear them anymore. I packed all three pairs up (with boxes and without) and headed to the University Mall to make my exchanges.

I went to the counter to talk to the salesperson…prefacing my comments with, “I’m going to be kind of a pain in the butt,” to which he responded, “I’m sure that’s not true. What can I do for you?”

At that moment, I knew all would be well. I explained my situation and the current status of my shoes (one pair without a box, one that had been worn, and one that shouldn’t be a problem). He then graciously found all three pairs for me (one required him to ship it to me), and I made the exchange without a hiccup. Fabulous!!!

And then I found one more pair of shoes to purchase!

With all my love,

A girl who really doesn’t have the budget to be purchasing a pair of shoes (or four) from you, but loves your customer service so much (the selection doesn’t hurt, either) that she just doesn’t love purchasing shoes anywhere else

Dear Closet,

I’m sorry that I take up all of your floor space (and some of your shelf space) with my shoes…and that they only stay organized for a days at a time. It’s really not my fault. It’s a disease I’ve had for years. (I think I caught it from my mom, who also gave it to my sister.)

While I can’t promise to overcome the disease, I will make a little effort to improve the side-effects of it. I promise to get rid of at least three pairs by the end of this week. (Can I count the ones I already have in the DI pile?)

Love,

Chloe

P.S. I’m going to miss you a lot when I’m in New York, attempting to cram my summer wardrobe into a closet not even 1/10 the size of you. Yes. It’s true. Less than 1/10.

Dear Ruby & Bloom,

Thank you for making fabulous flats in Navy blue. And thank you for offering them in a wide size.

They are perfect for a few of my summer professional outfits and will make walking around NY so much easier! Yay for cute flats in great colors.

Sincerely,

The girl who is having a really hard time accepting the fact that even if she takes some of her fabulous heels to NY, it is unlikely that she will actually wear them…unless she has some kind of death wish…for her feet

Dear Chloe,

You really do need help for your shoe obsession. I know you love having the perfect shoes for every outfit, but at some point enough is enough. And I realize that you think you are making progress because you actually get rid of a couple of pairs of shoes every so often, but that’s not real progress. That’s just you easing your mind about how deep this problem really is.

I’m not saying you can’t buy any new shoes or that you need to buy cheaper ones or that you can’t continue to shop at Nordstrom…you just need to not buy new shoes so very often. And seriously, three pairs at a time is a bit much. Oh…and would you please not refer to your obsessive need to purchase shoes as a disease. It is not a disease. You can fix it.

You don’t have to do anything tonight (except that I wouldn’t recommend shopping online). Just think about it.

With all my love and concern,

The voice of reason that sometimes manages to scream over the voices of instant gratification and shoe envy