I do love the look of a good boot, and those monkey boots are sharp. I used to have a pair of Doc Martens. I loved them and wore them into the ground.

I will admit I occasionally wear laced leather boots when it snows and I need something with a bit more traction but the big snow boots aren’t quite necessary. Maybe I need to find some good faux laces.

I’m not big on shoes, but if I have to buy them, I figure they might as well look good and not need to be tied.

I struggle to find hats that fit well. My head is apparently deceptively larger than it appears.

Incidentally, without getting political, I checked a news channel recently (opinion channel would be a more apt term), and two ‘commentators’ were stating that trainers should ONLY be worn if you’re playing sports or in the gym.

Firstly, *I* decide what I wear, not some idiots on TV. Oh, I miss the days of news channels reporting the news rather than simply paying people to sit in a studio offering opinions.

Secondly, on that matter, not that it’s the business of news commentators, but if I’m walking to my mother’s house - 30 minutes away - on a Sunday for dinner, I am not wearing shoes. Trainers are more comfortable. And on the rare occasion I may venture into a pub, maybe on occasion, I might wear a polo shirt, black jeans and trainers. I’m not getting a top hat, waistcoat and Oxford shoes to sit in a pub garden on a hot summer day.

I remember now why I have the Reuters app on my phone - for proper news, proper journalism with journalists around the world. But, here we are in the UK, circa 2024, where a ‘news’ show thinks two fools lecturing viewers on how they should be wearing shoes all of the time is now a thing.

EDIT: I am not saying there shouldn’t be some norms/rules, e.g. wearing shoes to a funeral, but I could do without news ‘pundits’ wasting airtime on demanding people only wear trainers in gyms and during sports.