Out with the Old

I got new Wallabees for my birthday. Not the animal, that's a wallaby, but the iconic shoe made by Clark's for almost 50 years now and very popular in the Memphis area. Not a big deal to most people, but sort of a big deal for me given the wear and tear I had put my last pair through. I'm not sure how long I had my old pair. I think it was my second pair since I started wearing them in the late 90's, so probably somewhere around 7 or 8 years. You can see in the pictures below the results of such punishment over that time. They haven't even been in suitable condition for daily wear for some time now. The big stain on the front of the old right shoe is something, probably and hopefully blood, that stained it during my time on the delivery halls of The Med during medical school. They have lasted me from college, to studying throughout medical school, from the delivery halls of The Med as a third year student, and now back to the delivery halls of The Med as a a third year Peds resident as I awaited the arrival of new babies. Throughout much of medical school and now residency they have been my go to shoes for overnight calls. Their comfort over a long shift and the ease with which they can be slipped on and off are incomparable. I have often received questions as to why I would wear shoes with holes in them. However, another resident noted that she always liked it when she saw me wearing those shoes because she knew I was ready to work. So it's out with the old and in with the new here at the Yaun house, at least in regards to my shoes. I'm a couple of inches taller now thanks to the new soles and ready to face the world in 2012. More to come on my birthday and Christmas soon, and I promise there will be pictures of the kids instead of nasty old shoes. They're not gone though. I have kept them to wear in the yard and possibly still on overnight calls at some point.