For The Love of Pete!

I used to be a Realtor. With that came carrying a briefcase, wearing a suit and high heels. I used to love fashion. I used to love dressing up. I used to love shoes.

Quitting my real estate job, buying the Inn at Beulah Beach and becoming an Innkeeper was quite the transition. From serving clients’ home buying and selling needs to serving breakfasts, making beds and cleaning toilets. Not much need for dressing up, briefcases or high heeled shoes when you're up to your eyeballs in cleaning supplies and on your knees......scrubbing floors. For the love of pete.

On moving day, the large moving van arrived to load up my belongings and haul them up north to my new B&B. The three bears, I mean, the three big, burly moving guys did a walk through to plan their attack. That’s when they saw them. Box after box of shoes. My boxes of pink shoes, black shoes, black and white shoes. My boxes of brown shoes, red shoes and boots. Yes, boxes and boxes. I had them sorted and boxed by color. Sick and wrong you say. Well, fine. Okay. I resemble that remark. Onward….

Well those big, burly moving guys kinda looked at each other and snickered. You could just see the thoughts hovering over there heads in little “word balloons” like in comic strips….. “for the love of pete lady”.

So, $2000, 100 miles and 3 boxes of doughnuts later, the three big, burly mover guys were unloading my belongings into my lovely new B&B. Soon the over 6000 square foot Inn was filled to the gills with furniture, artwork, plants and boxes. Boxes of dishes, boxes of décor, boxes of shoes.

New neighbors and friends stopped to welcome us; excited to see the Inn re-opening after being closed for 2 ½ years. Argh. Shear chaos lied within. A veritable jungle of moving boxes piled high and every which way intermingled with artificial palms and trees. A cardboard mess. Undanted and smiling with anticipation, they filed in. So I gave them the tour, sharing my plans, thrilled by their excitement. They walked, they talked, they looked.

Then – they stopped. There, in front of them, were my boxes of shoes! Mouths dropped open, eyes bugged out, fingers pointed. “For the love of pete Bec, why do you have so many shoes?" I had a great answer already prepared….. “Because”, I said. (Because ..... what other answer is there?) "Uh, well you won't be needing those here", they said, almost in unison. "How can you walk in those? Those aren't practical. Oh, wait, these are nice, what size shoe do you wear?" Aha! Fine, okay, whatever, onward.

For two weeks after moving into the Inn, two dear friends came to stay and help me with rennovations. They hung new light fixtures, they built the stand for our sign, they helped me refinish the beautiful hardwood floors we found like treasure under the worn carpet.
Best of all - They built me a closet. Guess what’s in it. My shoes.

About a month ago, I went out to dinner with one of my dearest friends. She drove. The blustry, wintery evening continued to shower down sheets of white as we made our way down the dark, back roads of Benzie County to the restaurant. She wore black pants, her Ugg boots and her man's ski coat. I wore a dress with a denim jacket, a brown shawl (I call it my blanket on the go) and my spike heeled brown suede boots (I love them). She looked at me and said, "If we end up stuck in the snow or breaking down I guess I'LL be the one to go for help since I'm wearing the PRACTICAL shoes. I looked at her and said, "WHAT?" (As in I can walk in these. I've got skill. I've got game. Oh yeah sister.) For the love of pete.

It's been 11 months since my move to beautiful downtown Beulah. To beautiful Crystal Lake. To my beautiful Bed & Breakfast. Down in my beautiful new closet there's a wonderful collection of shoes. Slowly but surely, I've begun wearing them less & less. The last of the collection to be worn have been my boots. Oh the letting go. Shoes and boots alike are now collecting dust while I'm collecting..... flip flops. Yesiree....I wear them ALL the time. The only time I take them off is when I'm sleeping and when it's winter and I have to go outside. Then I put on my Merrells. That's it. I only get to wear my "real shoes" when I go back home to visit friends and family.....or going to dinner with my friend just to see what she'll say :)

I wear size 8 1/2 shoes. If you do too, come see me. I've got ya covered!

P.S. – Who is Pete and why do I love him?

Love,
The Lady of the Lake