Today’s blog post, unlike the recent few, is completely unphilosophical. It’s about shoe shines. I’m not a guy who often looks at shoes, but when you’re on a business trip and bored, you notice things. The first night of the meeting, I looked around the room I realized how well shined everybody else shoes where. I looked down at mine, and discreetly tucked them under the tablecloth. When I got back to my room I called down to the concierge looking for help. 15 minutes later they whisked away my shoes (and belts). When I returned from the gym, my leatherwear was waiting for me, looking better than they had in a long while.
I’m home now, and realize my “untraveled” shoes need attention just as badly. I may have gone to military school and know how to throw on a mean spit-shine, but I don’t want to spend the time. The best shines I’ve ever seen were done by a guy at the RDU airport. Unfortunately, he wasn’t there the day I passed through and he’s on the other side of security… making him an inconvenient option for regular shines. When he works a pair of shoes, the first thing he does is wash the leather with a special shampoo to remove the grime and old polish. Once cleaned, he works polish into the leather with a brush, then buffs a shine in with a soft brush and then with a buffing cloth. My shoes always come out looking terrific, and I always think to myself that I need to shine my shoes more often.
That being the case, I have a reminder in my calendar prompting me monthly to shine shoes, oil boots, check car fluid levels, and other such exciting things. I acknowledge the reminder each time, but never seem to act on it. This month, I’ll see what I can do about not ignoring that prompt and “get a good shine on”. There might be some shopping involved, and some rooting around in the back of my closet, but I think it can be done. We’ll see…
