anxiety? fear of wearing shoes?

good luck if you can find work where barefooting isn't an issue. Unfortunately if you have commitments like a family to support or a mortgage to pay then you might have to resort to that horrible C word-compromise! Not only do shoes suck but getting up in the morning can also suck as can work itself, irrespective of whether or not feet are concealed. However what sucks the most is being unable to meet those financial committments, and the unpalatable fact is western societies, no matter how hard we try to escape them can be very unforgiving for those who can't. I can only speak for the UK where casual dress codes are becoming more and more accepted in many offices, but I guess it's the same in the US and other western countries where although going in barefoot may be a step too far for now,many wear flip-flops and kick them off the minute they're at their desk and no-one bats an eyelid. This would've been unthinkable not so long ago with many companies having a clearly defined dress code explicitly forbidding flip-flops never mind bare feet but policies are gradually becoming increasingly relaxed, and although our weather means flip-floppers are a rare sight in winter,they'll usually encounter nothing worse than a comment about their feet being cold and often they're complimented for their bravery.
Give it a few years and who knows, bare feet could be just as accepted, draconian health and safety laws and over-zealous personal injury lawyers notwithstanding!
Evolution not Revolution!

 

Hey I actually gave up a very high paying, respectable job in part so I could go barefoot more often and I lost my house and ended up living in cars and buses after that. It was totally humiliating and my girlfriend left me but at least I get to go barefoot all day.

 

good. how long until you wont afford internet access any longer ?

 

no, I didn't.

see? you agree

 

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I, too, quit a lucrative position for a similar reason back in the 80s, refusing to cut my hair. I eventually went on to gain experience in many more industries which laid the basis for the diversity of skills required to be a successful self-sufficient international entrepreneur.

I find the defeatist comments in this thread interesting. For hippies, many of the posters seem to be unusually fixated on the myth that traditional "jobs" and "work" are the only venue to financial well-being.

Today's tech industry was built (and continues to be built) by mavericks, intellectuals and adventurers who spurned traditional conservative social norms and business models and have ended up as some of the most influential, philanthropic and wealthiest people on the planet.

Take a look at this thread. This is not really all that unusual. How you carry yourself and your attitude in life plays a far more important role in your chances of success in the world than conformity to social norms.

Keep 'em bare, Boogabaah, and ignore the ludicrous defeatist rhetoric of those who would have us believe that the only way to survive is through forced mindless conformity as a cog in the machine of some major corporation or as the menial servant of a local shop.

Choose the high road to true financial independence and long-term success, rather than "just getting by" while slaving away to line the pockets of others.

 

Hey, jagerhans

I apologize if I misconstrued your post, but it did seem to imply that there were few, if any alternatives when it comes to making a living.

I do have to recognize, however that regional issues (and hence, opportunities) vary widely. Most of my comments here are predicated by the understanding that the OP lives in the US.

:jester:

 

See my profile for link to a career choice that fits well for bare footers. I work from home bare foot ) Many of us do.... www.barefootcareers.com

 

what?

 

I actually don't pay for internet access. I have a bidirectional amplifier and high gain antenna that allows me to connect to almost any wifi network within 10 miles, sometimes more. I can park my bus just about anywhere and connect.

But like I said in an earlier post, I have my own business now and make a lot more money than before, that is, when I feel like working. I choose to live more simply, however, since I value my free time more than money. If I wanted to be wealthy I could simply ramp up my business. The point is that I have a lot more control over my life now than ever before a and I would not trade that back for the overrated sense of security that comes from the kind of 9-5 office job I had before.

Seohsreven is right- you don't need to follow the traditional norms just to make it in this world, in fact the path to radical success takes a radical approach.

 

Just a couple of other thoughts; how about something that involves volunteering with a campaigning group, say an environmental organisation? OK, that part doesn't pay but you would be better placed to find work within such organisations and I can't see too much fuss being made there.


Also do you do any crafting? You could sell through ebay, or set yourself up as a street-seller in a more laid-back area (no idea where you live, sorry!).

 

yes, i have a few talents i can market that don't require me to wear shoes. hopefully after xmas i'll have some more tools for creating goods.. it's all happening... slowly!

 

I remember reading somewhere not long ago that Julia Roberts showed up barefoot for an interview for the movie Pretty Woman. Of course what happened next is history. I always hoped to take a page from her book and interview for at least one job unshod just to keep my future employer honest. Hopefully, You too will enjoy the same success.

 

All the the work I do and enjoy doing requires footwear.

 

You really hit one home for me with this post. I am going through the same thing right now. I do run my own business but with buying a house recently, it's tough making ends meet. I want to get a supplimental part time job but I have no idea on where I can be barefoot. I have been barefoot for so long that the thought of wearing shoes a few hours each day makes me cringe.

I even have a great excuse. I was involved in an auto accident recently and I got a doctor to give me a medical excuse for going barefoot. I whip it out whenever I am challenged in a store. I have thought of telling an employer that I have some medical requirement for going barefoot, but still... what place would really allow it? I mean, if I did the doctor's note thing, they may have to as far as the ADA act (prejudice). But if I show up to the interview barefoot, would most employers just not want to hire me? Most of the part-time jobs around here are at chain stores. There is a local hobby shop, but they never seem to be hiring. HELP.

 

now you see that barefooters are totally disintegrated from society...

I just have to tell this as much if I can,
to teachers and parents,
'If you want to make it in this world, dress like you are ruling this world!'

Wear shoes.
Love to wear them.
Coz this world,
is the world of the man with the black dress shoes...

 

ehi frightful, btw it's you in this pic you posted ? :lol:it explains so much.


Wear shoes.
Love to wear them.
Coz this world,
is the world of the man with the black dress shoes...

man you're riots of fun.

 

silly silly... i'll be nice and not say anything.


i love being barefoot. shoes are weird. no other animal wears them. we make manmade crappy surfaces to drive our cars on that suck on barefeet. my feet loved the redwood forest. they ain't diggin' this city stuff so much. shoes are still weird.

 

worst of it would be for me that the shoes are made of dead animal parts....

 

At least I understand in what world we are living

Or like The Sisters of Mercy once sang:
"It's a small world and it smells bad
I'd buy another if I had
back
what I paid
for another motherfucker in a motorcade
slamming through"

You can run away from them,
you can fight them and bring yourself to sacrifice
Or you can become one of them...

 

Ok, if somebody enjoys something that isn't nonconstructive, then why discourage them so much from it?

I'd love to be able to go to a job interview barefoot, but I never will. That doesn't mean that going barefoot isn't good for you, comfortable, or even therapeutic to some degree. Just because something isn't 100% socially accepted (AKA, OK'd by the sheeple) doesn't mean it's not right. Think about the things they've picked:

-Britney Spears
-NSYNC
-Uncontrolled inflation and a stalemate of a war (I won't put this blame solely on the American president)

It is difficult to free fools from the chains they revere.
-Voltaire

And to add some of my own lyrics to the equation...

Quick to judge,
Quick to anger,
Slow to understand
Ignorance and prejudice
And fear walk hand in hand...
-Rush

(Okay, that last one was a bit harsh :tongue: )

Don't let what the sheeple think is right be your chains.