Ugg or Ugh?

I'm not much of one for exercise, but I do pride myself in that I walk a lot. I take the stairs instead of the elevator, I park my car a decent length away from the store (and save myself from fighting for parking spaces), and I take walks with my family. That said, I don't really have much of a choice on this campus. Most of my classes are 15-20 minutes away, and the bus system...well, let's just say that, if I needed to get to the hospital and the ambulance broke down, I'd sooner hitchhike. 

(It actually isn't that bad, but when they say it's 15 minutes between buses, they don't mean five. Or 10. They mean 15. And you know that as soon as you walk up, odds are the bus you need has just pulled away and you'll end up waiting the full 15.)

So, needless to say, I do a lot of walking. Hmm...now I'm curious...let's figure this out:

20 minutes to class (or back) x 6 times per day x 3 days per week=360/60= 6...
40 minutes to class (total; I summed up my Tuesdays and Thursdays in my head) x 2 days per week= 80/60=1.33... add those together...


So, I walk 7 1/3 hours to class alone each week. Not that I mind most days. I put on my iPod, hit shuffle, and people watch. But there's another factor: lately, it's been getting cold. And from what I've been told by locals, soon it will be very, very cold. Joy.


So, I must keep warm. And while I have a coat, gloves, scarves, hats, something else this season has been attracting me...something I previously scoffed at...something it would take 7 1/3+ hours of walking to make me seriously consider... (This sounds like the buildup to a horror movie...)

That's right, Uggs. Previously used by me as the butt of many jokes, such as: "It's no wonder where they got the name. What else would you say when you see someone wearing a shoe that ugly?" Last year, my friend Zoë and I used to spend our senior aide period counting the number of people in the high school hallways who wore them, which we would report to the teacher we were helping out. We called it the "Ugg Count," and laughed many a time about who would spend so much money on such an un-stylish shoe.


Until I tried one on, last March, on one of those icy days that makes you wonder why March isn't just listed as a continuation of February on the calendar. I tried on my friend Mia's Emus (a knockoff of Uggs) at a Starbucks outing, and hot damn, they were comfortable. They let my feet breathe while simultaneously caressing my peds with their soft, woolly goodness. I sighed with happiness...then took them off. But they never quite left my mind.


Now, on campus, people are breaking out the Shoes of Woolly Doom, and I've begun the Ugg Count again. Only now, instead of scoffing, I'm looking at them longingly. Those sure would be some awesome shoes to tramp around campus in, come January and February. And anyway, who says they have to be stylish? I've never been the Fashionista of the World, and no one seems to like me any less. (Side note: If you do, in fact, hate me because I'm not the Fashionista of the World, I'm sorry. Keep reading my blog anyway.)


Writing this, I'm curious how much Uggs are. I'm off to check the website. Be right back.


$140?! Are you kidding me?! This, to the girl who considers Gap splurging. (I'm not kidding--while I'm not Amish, I'm really not the Fashionista of the World. It wasn't modesty.) I'm not going to lie, that new knitted design with the side buttons is pretty darn cute. I'll take a pair in light blue, please. Or maybe I'll just check the Emu site, remembering Mia's tip.


Ok, so they don't sell them directly through their website, but Planet Shoes sells them for between $78 and $89. Not great, but better than Uggs. I'm the type that likes to go against the brand name, anyway, so this might work out.


We'll see about this Ugg/Emu thing. I'd be interested to see what others have to say about them... In any case, I find it interesting that both brands contain "Australia" in their official label. Why would you wear these in the Land Down Under? Does it ever get cold there?