The story of my boots.

Because high heels are painful, sandals cannot be worn year round due to the weather, and tennis shoes don't match with much else other than pants, the boot is my favorite shoe.

I cannot remember my first pair of boots. They might have been red cowboy boots, or maybe I just wished they had been red cowboy boots. In the past several years I have had several pairs of boots. When I was 17, I found a pair of brown suede boots in a thrift store in Minnesota. Usually I prefer not to invest in secondhand shoes, but these were too good to pass up. I wore these boots all the time. When I wore pants, I would tuck my corduroys into them and wear a matching belt. As pants faded out of my wardrobe I wore them with black leggings and baggy shirts. Last year, my suede boots traveled to Europe with me. We walked Paris, Salzburg, Greece, Munich, Dublin and I am sure many more together. The more miles I walked in the these boots, the more worn out they became. While in Athens, Greece I said adieu to my previously favorite pair of boots.

Also while in Athens, I welcomed a pair of short brown leather boots to my collection of shoes. There was something about these boots being laced up from the back that grabbed my attention. I walked in these boots through Greece, Italy, Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic and America. The last few months, this pair of boots and I took a break. I guess you could say it was like I was cheating on Europe by wearing them in the States, but that might be a bit of a stretch. Recently, I rediscovered my love for this pair of shoes and have been wearing them quite a bit. I had forgotten how comfortable they are.

Last year I searched Europe far and wide for the perfect pair of knee-high leather boots. If you know me at all, you'll discover that I am very picky about my fashion. Every piece that I invest in has to be perfect, down to the last button. I could not find my perfect pair of knee-highs. But alas, upon my return to Portland last summer, I stumbled upon the most immaculate pair. I thought it would be difficult to find a pair of knee-highs that actually reached my knees, considering my legs go on forever. And ever. This pair of brown leather knee-highs not only reaches my knees, they pass them. The buttons on these boots also allow for versatility. If I prefer to wear my boots not as knee-highs, I can roll them down. However, this has never happened.

The other pair of boots I have at the moment are my rain boots. It may have taken over a year of trekking through the Portland rain, but I finally bought a pair. Probably one of my best investments to date. Especially living in Portland and Minnesota, they are brilliant for both extreme rain and snow. I used to own a pair of knockoff Uggs, but those also got tossed out while abroad because of their over use. My rain boots are black and imported from Sweden. I am not sure how I stumbled upon them, but I fell in love at first sight. They are lined with faux fur and have yet to fail me. The only downside is they are a bit chunky. I guess I would rather have heavy feet than wet feet.

Besides my rain boots, most of my boots have been brown and leather. I am not sure why this is. There is just something aesthetically pleasing about brown leather boots. I have also owned my fair share of cowboy boots, though somehow they seem to disappear from my closet and never return.

Though I am thrilled about the onset of summer, it also breaks my heart. Summer means tucking your boots into the back of your closet until the start of fall. Let's face it, no one wants sweaty, hot feet when they could be prancing around in flip flops and showing off their freshly painted toes.