how (not) to stretch a buck

I have a bunion. Gross, right? Ok, it's not so bad, its quite mild actually.  I still wear comfortable flip flops and open toe low heels when it's appropriate.  I get pedicures and no one ever mentions it.  I have considered and even talked to my doctor about getting it fixed.  However, I'm worried that new pains and discomfort will come out of the surgery.  I also find that it serves as a reminder of a time in my youth.  I grew up relatively poor.  I mean, we could make a dollar stretch but living in a home with a single mother and two kids, there wasn't always a lot left over for extras.   It wasn't until middle school that I realized how important having brand name 'things' were.  

If you were anyone, you had to have a Jansport backpack.  I figured this out early on, and when I saw them at Costco, I made the case to my mother that I needed one anyway (I really did, 6th grade was brutal) and that I would make the $20 backpack last for both 7th and 8th grade, instead of just 7th.  My goal wasn't to be popular, it was just to fit in.  Most of us had forest green, dark red, black and I was a rare soul with my prized teal colored backpack.

URL:  https://img0.etsystatic.com/000/0/5875987/il_fullxfull.298042828.jpg

Around the age of 13, I had started babysitting and of course this meant that the money I made was now contributed towards things that used to get purchased for me.  Like shoes. It was a month or so into the 8th grade and I needed new shoes.  I hated to ask for my mom to buy me anything as we really didn't have the money and she almost always found a way to make me feel guilty about it.  Well, we all wore "running" shoes back then, everyday.  Kids our age didn't accessorize, we just wore the same shoes everyday with a t-shirt and jeans.  Well, where were we when we found my shoes?  Costco.  But of course!  (I just wish I had known their return policy back then)  We bought what was a new arrival at the time, their women's 'Court Classic' low top running shoe in white.  Yup, a Costco shoe.  What was I thinking?  It was a few days before anyone pointed out that they had never heard of "Court Classic" the brand embroidered on the back of my blinding white shoes.  I wanted to melt into the floor. Absolutely mortified.  From that day on, I worked to keep a light layer of dust on them and hide them whenever possible.  The other kids wore Vans skater shoes, Nike athletic shoes and Adidas shell toes.  I wasn't even in a affluent neighborhood, those kids must have had parents who had had my same awful experience and saved their child from the same.  My mom was oblivious and just wanted to save a buck (I think the shoes were under $20).  I finally wore them out enough that I was allowed to get rid of them (and I triumphantly flung them in a dumpster!).

So when ninth grade rolled around, I wasn't going to make the same mistake.  Nope, I figured I had a under $20 budget for shoes and I was determined to find something name brand.  Not only were we huge Costco shoppers, we were also big Mervyn's shoppers.  (open, open open!)

URL: http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/ebD2r-8vo8Y/hqdefault.jpg 

Success!  I found a pair of vans skate shoes (I had and still have a 47" longboard that I rode to school so yes, it was appropriate).  A quick internet search tells me they were called the "Ethel" but I wasn't able to find a photo.  Anyway, they were very cool and unique, not leather, but more of an almost reflective vinyl material.  I think mine were in a dark teal (same color as a bag in 7th grade, but no worries, I had a blue one for 9th grade).  They were great and I think they were around $13, I found them on the clearance rack.  My greatest find!  There was one small problem....  they were a half size too small.  I figured that wasn't a big deal, perhaps I could wear thinner socks or they would break in.  Nope, a few months later I had caused irreversible damage to my left foot.  I now carry with me as a badge to my success in shopping and failure in knowing that my shoe size was indeed a half size larger, a bunion.  My husband has encouraged me to get it fixed and I've thought about it.  About the procedure, about the recovery (painful) and about the way my foot would look after (pretty!).  But, I think for now I will keep my bunion.  I hate it but its mine.  It's part of my journey.


UPDATE: I found this blog/article and it reminded me of this one I just wrote!  http://www.scarymommy.com/wisdom-born-in-the-80s/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ScaryMommy+%28Scary+Mommy%29