Teenage Mutant Ninja Mary Janes

Dear sweet, innocent readers, I've done something terrible. Something I thought I would never, ever do. I bought a pair of those friggin' FiveFingers shoes. But wait! Before you delete my blog from your bookmarks and remove me from the Christmas card list, let me attempt to explain:

My initial reaction to these creepy little things, as you may remember, was pure horror. I did a little research and as it turns out, FiveFingers were created for a very specific purpose (i.e. fitness). I enjoy fitness. But I was not about to let function get in the way of vanity. Not yet.

I then had FiveFingers battle it out with my other loathed style of footwear, Crocs, in which FiveFingers tentatively "won."

Almost a year went by, and I began reading all this stuff on the benefits of barefoot running, plus a whole bunch of positive reviews, including one from one of my fave outdoor gear bloggers. I got curious. Am I missing out? Are the 'Fingers secretly awesome?

I casually mentioned trying them to my Marine husband, who has met some exceptionally fit people during his stint in the military. "They're so creepy," he said, and paused thoughtfully for a second. "Gunny Hernandez wears them, though, and Gunny is badass."*

That finally did it. I chose the Sprint, a cute Mary Jane style in black so that it wouldn't call any extra attention to itself, or so I rationalized. (In hindsight, who am I kidding? I look like a platypus.) I wore them on my walk to and from work, three miles round trip, two days in a row. My mind was made up. They are secretly awesome. Just don't look down.

*For all you civilians out there, "Gunny" is a term of endearment for "Gunnery Sargeant," a badass-sounding rank if I've ever heard one. Also, "badass" is probably one of the highest compliments one could ever receive from my husband. I'll admit, I find it adorable.