THREE HUNDRED YEARS OF SILLY SHOES UNDER ONE ROOF

Each day brings the chance for you  to win the Silly Shoe Award for the day. And you will never know that you won!

Flats or heels, pumps or wedges, sneakers or boots from PayLess or Nordstrom; designed by Prada, Alexander McQueen, Jean Paul Gaultier, Miu Miu, Christian Louboutin, Ferragamo, or Manolo Blahnic. They're all in the running for the daily Silly Shoe Award. Do you ever watch the TV show Sherlock? Sherlock's Watson, played by Lucy Liu, often wears winners of this contest.

The Silly Shoe Award was first given to a woman in New York City sometime in the summer of 1986. What was she thinking when she bought those shoes? How on earth can she walk in them? How did she ever expect to be able to dodge traffic on 8th Avenue in those shoes? What is her message with this footwear? There was no other way to explain them: those shoes were just plain silly. On that day the first Silly Shoe Award was given! 

The award was spontaneous, unavoidable really. Those shoes were real prizes. Of course I did not stop her and let her know of her good luck in having worn those particular shoes at that spot and moment. I just smiled and continued on my way, completely forgetting within minutes the particulars of that footwear. But not forgetting the fact that, for that day, I'd seen the absolutely silliest shoes in all of New York City and had dully awarded them. No runners up. No regrets: they HAD to be the silliest shoes I'd seen. That day. But, each day  brings new possibilities.

As they say, the rest is history. The sort-of daily Silly Shoe Award has been given in many cities in many countries in the past thirty years. Just not every day. Living for a year in Putney Vermont revealed only Birkenstocks. No matter how culturally silly these shoes are, they'll never win a Silly Shoe Award. Similarly, living here in New Hampshire, not so far geographically from Putney, women hiking boots and winter paks in Shaw's parking lot for survival. That's not silly! No Silly Shoe Awards  here. Maybe on Elm St in Manchester I'll find the next awardee? I doubt it....

Imagine my delight when  I heard that an exhibit called THREE HUNDRED YEARS OF KILLER HEELS had been mounted in Manchester's Currier Museum of Art. OH! How high heels lend themselves to silliness! About 150 exhibits, 300 years of fabulous footwear, revealing high heels as both stunning architectural creations and works of art in their own right. This must be the Silly Shoe Hall of Fame. I can 't wait to go!

GHSS IS GOING TO THE Currier Museum in Manchester: Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe on March 30!

The GHSS bus (aka Betsy) will be going there on 30 March, leaving Shaw's parking lot at 1:00 pm. 

The cost of the ride in Betsy is $6.00. Call Marie at 464-4726 to reserve your seat.

Admission to the museum (seniors, 65+: $10.00) and the exhibit ($8.00) totals $18.00 (members free). 

It is worth noting that an individual membership to the Currier Museum of Art costs $50.00 -- $45.00 for seniors 65+ -- which is 100% tax deductible. There are also family memberships. Check out the Currier Museum of Art web site for details).