Where Did You Get Those Shoes?

Fan favorite patent leather pumps

Some of the items in my fetish wardrobe are more popular than others. The shoes pictured in this post are by far the most discussed accessory in my possession. I’d like to address their origin as well as their manufacturer so that I can reference my blog when the question arises in the future.

These patent leather pumps were a gift from a long-time fetishist I know. He decided that I simply MUST have a proper pair of pointy-toed high heels. He set out to acquire them for me, but it was no easy task to accomplish. He kept me abreast of the ordering process as time passed. The delays were one after another. At one point, a utility bill dispute threatened power to the factory where the shoes were being made. Imagine that! At this point in my career I’m not surprised as it doesn’t seem like ANYTHING you purchase in the fetish world arrives on time and without discord. Well, anything that’s unique and that you really desire, as opposed to banal good that are everywhere.

The shoes finally arrived and I was thrilled. I wear them in session on a regular basis, and they’ve done their time on the street as well. Unfortunately they are no longer available for purchase. The shop they came from was Leatherworks UK. Here is a link to their description on another site: http://www.shoebidoo.com/174-Leatherworks-UK-CLOSED-DOWN/View-details. I no longer take these shoes out on the street as I want to preserve them for as long as possible. Luckily I’ve found another manufacturer that constructs patent leather heels with a pointy toe, but that is a topic for another blog post.

Foot Model Wrangling: Makes Herding Cats Look Easy

I am the hostess of the San Francisco Footnight foot parties. This position puts me at the forefront of fielding complaints from foot lovers on a regular basis. I have to hear exactly why the parties aren’t this or that, and how I could do better. Everyone’s a critic within the foot fetish community. I’ve learned to take it in stride (no pun intended), and focus on what works when organizing events. This brings me to my latest gripe: Foot models and their bullshit excuses for last-minute cancellations.

I’ve reached the tipping point with this crap folks. Rather than waste my time individually admonishing you people (yes, I said you people), I’m taking my feelings public. It’s time that the guests and potential new foot models find out what the real story is behind organizing a foot party. I will do my best to keep things general, but I will most likely end up getting very specific. If you’re reading this and feel like I’m calling you–GOOD. Maybe you’ll understand the gravity of the situation your lack of reliability is causing. Maybe you’ll finally get it through that thick, albeit, pretty little skull of yours that your reputation is your word. Without that, you’re nothing in my book.

1. Let’s learn some reading comprehension ladies! When the subject line of the email you receive says, FOOT PARTY IN “insert city name here,” read the name of the location and THEN figure out if you can travel to it. Subject lines are there for a reason. Imagine that? They are present to communicate vital information that usually gets glossed over within the body of the email. If you are a big baby and can’t possible drive yourself beyond a very tiny radius (OMG I HAVE TO DRIVE 20 MILES I THINK I’M GOING TO DIE), then make sure to inquire at the time you agree to attend as to whether or not the city of the event is within your comfort zone. We are so spoiled in the Bay Area. It’s like we need wooden boats to cross the Bay or something. If you add fifteen miles to crossing the Bay Bridge, then it’s like asking someone to circumvent the globe. I get it. You ladies are delicate flowers that can’t spend a lot of time in cars. Thus, you need to double and triple check that the city of the event is somewhere you can manage in your carriage. Yeah yeah, you  might not possess a worthy carriage and so that precludes you from more suburban destinations. I expect this so I purposely leave your group out of certain invites.
2. Canceling on the same day of the event is bullshit. I guess no one fully understands how our model list works. It is based mainly on attempting to maintain a specific ratio of models to guests. Too many models, and we have disgruntled cats, I mean models, standing around looking sullen. Too few models and I get grumpy guests bitching to me about the lack of women there to worship. Mind you, I DO plan for these last minute cancellations since it seems that THEY ALWAYS HAPPEN LIKE CLOCKWORK. What really blows is when, despite having my back up models in place, I still end up short-handed. What gets me infuriated is when the excuses come in, and I know they are just complete baloney. If you “get sick” consistently before the parties, and you tell me this via email–I think you’re lying after the second time around. I have a news flash: if you are really ill, you’ll CALL ME and either speak to me in person or leave me a voice mail so I can at least hear it in your voice. Please put that type of effort into your lie, I mean excuse,  if you’re going to say you’re sick. Then are the all the boyfriend reasons. “My boyfriend said I can’t go.” “My boyfriend found out I’m a foot model.” The best one of this category is when “the boyfriend” emails me and tells me to take the model off the list because he doesn’t approve. IS THIS 1955???? What is WRONG with you ladies? We have all dated jerks, but if you keep doing it, then you need to examine your life. Why are you letting this man control your activities? If you’re not being honest with him, then don’t bring me into your bullshit relationship. When you use boyfriend excuses at 7:03 pm (party starts at 7 pm mind you), I see red. To sum things up, whatever excuse you tell me on the day of the party, I will think it isn’t real and that you’re unreliable. I will ban you from the next two parties, and most likely never request that you attend in the future. I don’t care how hot you are or how great your feet look. You’re not worth this organization’s time.
3. Not showing up on time is inexcusable. EVERYONE is usually late to the parties. This includes guests and models. For the guests, it’s their dime so they show up when they are able. The models are a different story. I give a certain amount of leeway for traffic, or when there is a specific reason for tardiness. I expect most of the models to have figured out the finer points of Bay Area road congestion by now. There is 511.org as well as various apps (waze is one), for finding out a pretty accurate time of arrival to your destination based on current conditions. Not sure why everyone doesn’t use them, but I guess the “internets” is still a very scary place for some…
4. No call, no show. Then there’s that…It means that I don’t receive any type of warning/excuse about not showing up. They are just magically absent. Unfortunately it’s usually the best-looking and most in-demand models who pull this crap. It happens after their second or third party. If you have ever wondered why we don’t have more blondes at the foot parties, this is why. EVERY SINGLE hot blonde foot model has ended up becoming unreliable after her third party. I currently only have one blonde model that I can count on–and she is amazing. I’m still stunned that she continues to show up, and even brings amazing friends with her.

This isn’t a complete list of what I have to deal with in the run up to a foot party, but it touches on the most irksome points. I’m hoping that my rant educates potential foot model applicants as to what NOT to do. Just because you’re pretty ladies, doesn’t mean you can get away with being unreliable!

Australia 2013 Redux

I’ve been back from my trip to Australia for a week and I still haven’t talked about it. There are many folks who are wondering about my experiences Down Under, so it’s high time I put something up for the world to see. Unfortunately I returned with more than some pretty pictures and souvenirs. I came down with a bad head cold earlier this week. Needless I have been less than motivated to write about the trip. No one wants to hear about that, so on with the show!

I would be remiss if I didn’t begin a discussion about my journey without first thanking my benefactor: Trampleguy. We have known each other since 1998. He has seen me for professional sessions, video and photo shoots, and been under my feet at local foot parties. Thanks to his planning and generosity, I was able to visit Australia for the first time. I have to say that he is one of the easiest people to travel with. Of course if you’re going to wine and dine me around Sydney and the Gold Coast for a week, what’s so difficult about that?

Our time at the Gold Coast was spent meeting up with a dear old virtual friend that I had never met in person. The infamous Stryder was the rug of interest for my first weekend Down Under. It was amazing to finally get my heels into him! My only regret is that we didn’t get to spend more time together. He was as great as I expected, and then some.

My time in Sydney was spent site-seeing and enjoying a true vacation. This means that I didn’t have to answer the phone, professional emails, or be The Vinyl Queen for a week. Don’t get me wrong, I love my work intensely, but all of my travel is usually for work purposes. I’m always doing sessions in whatever city I visit. If I’m lucky, I have some extra time to play tourist, but it’s VERY limited. It felt odd to not have to get up for any reason. I also enjoyed taking my time wherever I went, since there were no deadlines. I made it to the Maritime Museum, The Rocks, The Opera House, The Zoo, and The Westfield Tower. I didn’t pack my day so full of activities that it felt like work. It was liberating to just amble around Sydney without any destination goals.

All in all, the trip was a magnificent success. I was able to explore a part of the world that I didn’t think I’d visit until much later in life. I was able to meet the legendary Stryder, and he was everything I expected and more. To the fans waiting for more photos and video or our time together–this too shall come to pass. I need to feel 100% before I started editing video and still.

Next stop: Antwerp November 2013!