Written by Sunny days aren’t the only signal that summer is ahead. As soon as the weather gets a bit warmer, you can actually hear the changing season as people dawn that ever-popular footwear often called flip-flops. This name comes from the sometimes disturbingly loud sound produced when wearing them of bare flesh slapping against rubber. Between the squishy “flip-flop” sound of this casual footwear and the “clack-clack-squish” of sandals, warm weather seems to come with its own unlikely percussion section. These actually belong to Philippe, though I made them a couple of sizes smaller so they would fit properly in my sketchbook. He wears them only at home as he thinks wearing them on the street is gross, a concept which I find to be true only on a case-by-case basis. I feel, instead, that one should happily wear whatever makes them comfortable, but one should also keep close the number of a good pedicurist if naked feet are part of the equation. Either way, there’s no denying that a sunny day can often come with not only warmth, but a heck of a lot of rhythm.
Beyond the foot nudity that one sees in summer, Philippe was initially shocked by just how much other flesh is shown in the middle of the city. Being an American boy who simply grew up with all of this, I didn’t think anything of it. I mean, we are a country that only recently allowed naked butts on television. And then, only after a certain hour in the evening. We’re total prudes! How could anything that we do in that regard be shocking to someone across the pond. But upon looking it up, I saw an article that said if you’re in France, you could face a fine if you’re a shirtless man or woman in a bikini who wasn’t actually sitting on a beach. Simply strolling or running through town without regular clothing is frowned upon. This article was from 2010, and it apparently depends on the city, but it’s still rather intriguing. Our answer to this in America is to post signs that say, “No Shoes. No Shirt. No Service.” We won’t let you into a business, but you are free to flaunt your semi-nudity just outside the glass.
Personally, I prefer to keep my flesh covered as much as possible. I’m not horribly out of shape, but I’ve seen enough magazine covers to know that I shouldn’t be flaunting anything publicly. I’ve gone through phases of trying to make my body look firm and perfect in my life. There was a time when I was all about hot yoga, and my intense obsession with it only managed to make me look like I was badly in need of a sandwich. I never came close to resembling those hot models I saw on the magazine covers. Of course, it’s all a bit of lie as those images go through fierce digital manipulation to achieve that level of perfection. In reality, we’re all just real people with real bodies and if we want to show naked bits of these bodies, then we should just go for it. Who really cares? And if ones wants to join in the percussion of summer properly, then by all means, go ahead and dawn the appropriate attire to truly celebrate the season of flip-flops.
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My summer outside attire consists of a wooden barrel worn around my middle and waders on my feet. Inside I prefer whatever is clean, and whether or not dry is an unnecessary option.
hehe… I’m right there with you on the wooden barrel. That’s a perfectly acceptable attire that should have never gone out of fashion! lol 😃💕
We call them Jandals in NZ. When I was a kid it was thought only a certain type of person could wear them in town and that type wasn’t very nice. They were strictly for the beach. Gosh, we were a strange lot back then! How times have changed and now they are designer labelled. Heigh ho!
Dreadful, dreadful news from London. My old home.
Thanks, Chris! 😃💕 Jandals, eh… they were also called thongs here which is the same name as a string bikini. So odd! Yes, times have definitely changed in so many ways. And the news is London is a sign of the bad change. Truly dreadful. 😔 But the good people still outnumber the bad. We will prevail.
We used to call these thongs when I was growing up, but now, well…..that gets us into a whole different world, doesn’t it?
Haha! It does! 😃💕 And thongs to me always make me think of the mysteriously missing bikini and butt floss. Not that flip-flops is much better because then I can only think of the awful sound! lol
Hi, as usual I check in with delight and awe. I have nominated you for the Versatile Blogger award and I hope you won’t be annoyed that I have done so. If you wish to accept it you can find the details on : mudpilewood.wordpress.com
Aww thank you so much for that! 😃💕 I typically don’t do those kind of awards because I feature everyone I can and it’s impossible to choose “favorites”! 😊 But thank you so much for enjoying my blog!!