Week 3, Walk 6: An Experimentation With(in) Daily Life (6.3.10)

Ever since being home, I have been wearing my favorite fuzzy red slippers all around the house. They are very old and worn with a large hole in the right sole, but I still love how they keep my toes warm and separate my feet from the cold hardwood floors.

I figured that since I had been wearing the slippers so often in the privacy of my home, why not wear them non-stop for a whole day? I would wear them in the house, of course, but also if i had to go out into public. Although it was a small modification to the fabric of everyday life, I was sure it would not go unnoticed by by anyone I might encounter that day

I stayed in my house most of the morning, but I decided to take my dog for a walk in the early afternoon. I changed out of my pajamas, put on jean capris and a v-neck shirt, and slid my feet back into my cozy slippers.

I felt slightly awkward wearing my slippers somewhere besides my house, but I have to admit that it was much more comfortable than wearing flip-flops. I passed a few other dog walkers, a runner or two, and a woman pushing a stroller. I noticed most of them stare down at my feet as they went by, but none of them said anything to me. This is the type of reaction I was expecting at the very least. Some cars drove by as well. I noticed some of the motorists look my way while others may not have noticed I was there at all.

Later in the day, I had to make a trip to Target. So in my slippers, I grabbed my keys and my purse, got in my car, drove to the store, and walked through the automatic sliding doors. Again, I felt very awkward; almost out of place. However, I went on shopping as I normally would as if I were just wearing my flip-flops.

I had many people looking at me and my feet. One man cheerfully said to me, "You look comfortable". And indeed I was. I even overheard a little girl say to her mother, "She gets to wear her slippers to the store!". I laughed to myself after this remark. I found it really funny that a little girl had the same idea as me. I finished my shopping without hearing any additional comments, but with plenty of stares.

I ran a few other errands that day and had lots of people look at me and mumble comments to one another, but no one else said anything directly to me. After a while, I almost forgot I was wearing anything out of the ordinary.

When I arrived home, my dad met me at the door. He took notice of my feet and said, "Did you really wear those out?". I told him yes and that I just felt like staying comfortable all day because that's what summer vacation is for.Although I felt awkward for majority of the day, it was an experiment I had never tried before so it was interesting to note people's reactions.

I tend to have a difficult time taking pictures in public, especially if there are lots of other people around. I usually focus on feeling shy rather than keeping my goal in mind. I think that if I occasionally do exercises such as this one, it will help me to become a better public/street photographer. I will probably learn to better deal with that uncomfortable feeling I get so often if I intentionally expose myself to it more often.