[OH Osthaus]

OK, so we go to the near by Beans store. I figure I should try them on first. Of course the store doesn't carry anything remotely related to hunting. And that included the Maine Hunting Shoe. They did have the rubber bottom boots. So when the young lady come up to ask if she can help, I asked her what the difference is between a boot and a hunting shoe.

She doesn't know but points to the guy in the shoe department and says he will and she will get him to help me. She speaks to him and goes off to help others. The guy never does come anywhere near me, waiting on others as they arrive instead.

I was about to leave when some customer comes up to ask me about a product. I said you need to ask someone in a green shirt. He says - oh, I thought you worked here.

I say No, I have only been standing here long enough to work here. That at least got the attention of a green shirt walking by who went to get me some boots to try for fit.

Turns out a 12 is not a twelve unless you normally wear several (as in three or four) pairs of heavy socks. there was over an inch of toe room. It seems that with a single pair of heavy socks (i brought hunting socks with me to check the fit) I wear an 11 again (less than 1/2 inch toe room), first time since about 8th grade.

And a 12 inch tall boot is only considered 10 inches high if it is gore tex lined, however an unlined 10 inch boot is 10 inches high. I am getting dizzy.

By now the young lady notices I am still there and comes back to tell me the difference between a boot and shoe is the thickness of the sole and the shoe guy finally shows up and says the boot version came out in the 1970's because the shoes became fashionable and the sole wore on too quickly on pavement. He suggests the boot until I say want the shoe because much to their surprise, because I hunt and woodcock covers are wet.

It did get funny, because the guy who had come over to wait on me said he had property that had a lot of woodcock and they were always in the wet stuff. He likes to watch them flush, and we talked about the way they flew. Of course I asked if he allowed hunting and he said no. I said I had to ask and he laughed and said he understood.

so Maine Hunting shoes are ordered, we will have to see how they fit and how tall they really are once they get here.