Playing footsie

The Reader with a good memory and a keen interest in shoes may remember that I bought an eye-wateringly expensive – if extremely beautiful – pair of shoes for the wedding. 
 
Exhibit A:

 

It was a struggle wearing them in but I persevered, even risking the blood supply stopping to my feet by wearing them with socks to soften and stretch them in the evenings at home.  It’s a wonder P still married me, confronted with that pretty picture every night.
 
But those shoes still killed me.
 
And 10 days later I still have no sensation in my middle toe of my left foot (a very odd, dead flopping toe feeling) and if I try to put (other) heels on, I get shooting, stabbing pains down my toes.  Hopefully this will wear off but this is taking suffering for beauty just too far.
 
I did succumb and put my jokey cowboy boots on for the evening – I couldn’t even stand in the shoes by then, far less dance in them. 
 
P is convinced I will never wear Shoes of Beauty and Pain again but I will, I will.  I want to have them dyed ballet shoe nude and wear them on the honeymoon cruise.  He’s worried I won’t be able to hike Yosemite etc afterwards as my feet will no longer function pain-free but I figure I just need to put more effort in.  Maybe.
 
So, wedding presents.  It’s very odd (not a natural segue there but go with it).  The majority of our guests were really generous; not everyone gave us a present but we did word it on our giftlist cards that they didn’t have to.  I confess with a certain amount of shame that I was still mildly surprised by people who came to the full day, that we fed twice and provided a non-ending supply of very good cocktails, wine and beer for, and who didn’t even buy us a bottle of wine.  But hey.  On the flip side, we didn’t tell any of our evening guests about our wedding list and many of them bought us gifts anyway – both on and off our list.  I slightly have the knock with P’s sister, whose partner is always boasting about how much money they have, who put almost the lowest sum possible in – and she alone drank double that, let alone the rest of her family of four adults!  It’s just that she’s his SISTER for heaven’s sake – and if they struggled financially, I wouldn’t think twice but they don’t; she doesn’t even have to work (jealous?  Moi?!).  She also got so drunk she was embarrassing so I still feel a bit sore about that too.  The weirdest thing is people who instead of things on our list, bought us vouchers.  I really appreciate the gift but I’d have expected anyone who went off-list to do so because they had a clear idea of something they really wanted us to get.  John Lewis vouchers don’t really hit that.  Still, I am sure we will find something to spend them on!  P suggested canapés for Christmas – I seriously cannot resist all the Christmas canapés in M&S and Waitrose, mini burgers!  Mini pies!  (And I don’t actually like full size pies so why I like these is a mystery).  Mini coquille St Jacques!  Mini Yorkshire puddings with beef!  Okay, I’ll stop now as I suspect you get the picture.  None of these make for a mini me, sadly.