Saturday 30 January 2010

Another shoe etiquette standoff. This time with fancy font

So this post at Gawker almost inspired me to email Brian Moylan to inform him that I wrote pretty much this exact post a year ago. "Ha! We have the same brain! You should hire me at Gawker and pay me lots of money!" But I did not.

I was, however, extremely tickled to read in a subsequent post that the offender he references (on second thought, I could never work at Gawker if I had to cover the comings and goings of this creature called the socialite, or worse, random successful-but-not-famous people whom I know because they are successful but who do not know me because I, presumably, am not. I do not understand it as an occupation. Why do the Brian Moylans of this world care if rich strangers make their guests remove their shoes? Keep it general, Brian. Or at least anonymous. It makes for funnier, far less creepy reading) is protesting his criticism on the grounds that she had put NO SHOES PLEASE on the invitations. And this is her defense! "I am not to blame, because, you see, I included a tacky little note advising guests that their shoes would not be welcome. And I also reminded them after they RSVP'd. So I am clearly beyond reproach."

I have to say that had I received an invitation that said "NO SHOES PLEASE", I would have wondered for a full 40 seconds whether I was meant to show up barefoot to the event (Is it a theme? How do I travel on the streets shoeless? Do I leave them in the car? Is this a hoax? ) before I threw the thing on the pile of papers I use to flick bugs outside.

That's all I have on that. As you were.

2 comments:

  1. Well, your post was more interesting and fun, and the Gawker site takes too long to load. But really, the lady did warn her guest and provide slippers. Don't like it, don't go. But I am totally on side with this shoes off business. In the Caribbean, it seems sometimes, in some houses, there is some unwritten rule, and the only people still wearing shoes are atheists or some other awful thing like smokers...
    So as much as I like to keep my shoes on, sometimes I go with the flow to avoid the label...

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  2. I always follow the rules once I'm there, of course. Who wants to be the boor who caused a scene to keep her shoes? But you know what would have gone over better on the invitation? Something like 'This is a casual, barefoot event. Dress comfy.' That would be fun and interesting. But surely one doesn't expect guests to wear their finest silks and millinery and then go barefoot. That seems silly.

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