SHOULD YOU WALK BAREFOOT IN PUBLIC?

Two people wondered why I missed having a posting yesterday.  Something went wrong with the dating, and there were two on Sunday.  So scroll down to the next article to read the Monday blog.

Until 40,000 years ago, all Homo sapiens went barefoot.  You would think that should have been "barefeet," but conventional usage for two feet in this application is foot. You would think that humans did not wear any footwear until more recent times.

Here (above left) is what cave people wore in Armenia more than 5000 years ago.  It is said that ancient Greeks way back from 800 BC to 500 BC were not shod, but occasionally wore sandals (right).

The conquering Romans from 27 BC to 480 AD, or perhaps 1453 AD, if you count the Eastern Roman empire, wore sandals at home and shoes covering the whole feet when they went out.

A headline--Oahu in 1937:  Hawaii's Barefoot Football Season  Opener Draws 15,000 (quote from the local paper):

As far as is known, Hawai‘i is the only place in the world where football is played in bare feet, under official American football rules. Several well-organized leagues are in existence on all the larger islands. These barefeeters play during the same season that their brothers with shoes play. Barefoot football apparel consists of denim or khaki trousers, uniform jersey, while an occasional helmet and shoulder pad is worn. The feet are absolutely bare except for a few patches of adhesive plaster.

It is in my recent memory that the University of Hawaii barely drew as many to our football games.

Sure, it was a long time ago, but I walked barefoot until I went to high school, where shoes became required.  I don't remember having any foot puncture problem, and this was Kakaako where there were broken glass and all kinds of pointy stuff on the ground.  Dogs do not wear shoes and you rarely see them afflicted.  But this is why I wear EEE shoes, for going barefoot flattens your feet.  Then again, maybe that helps for balance.

As time went on, footwear became common in Hawaii, and today, I would not dare go barefoot in public.  Not because of any social stigma, but I now have sensitive feet, can't stand the heat or even one tiny pebble, and fear those lurking sharp glass particles.  I've never bothered to count, but I'm sure I must today own at least fifty pairs of footwear, not quite up to the 749 of Imelda Marco being exhibited in the Marikina Shoe Museum, located just outside of Manila.

I don't remember flip-flops until after I graduated from college.  Turns out that Egyptians around 1500 BC began wearing them.  This type of footwear became popular in the USA when Americans returning from Japan after World War II came back with Japanese zoris.  The term flip-flops only came into prominence in the 1960's for beachwear.

The medical profession tells parents to have your child learn to walk barefoot.  Something to do with muscle and bone development in the feet.  There are 200,000 nerve endings in the sole, 26 bones, 33 joints and over 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments.  I doubt, though, if doctors would recommend being unshorn until high school.  In any case, again, maybe I lucked out by walking barefoot for much of my youth.

In reinforcement, the New York Times publication mentioned at the top, details advantages in going barefoot.  There was a recent study in Kenya showing that those who went barefoot into adulthood had better balance.  Hmm...falling is a real problem for super seniors.  Also too, shoes actually increase the pressure and wear on our leg joints.  All this from Dr. Daniel Lieberman of Harvard, who says, though, he wears shoes most of the time.

Then there is foot reflexology, linking specific parts of your foot to organs, posture, etc.  My initial reaction was some dubiousness, but even the Mayo Clinic indicates that there could be some utility regarding relaxation and stress relief.

My nomination for most successful barefoot human?  Tommy Holmes, who unfortunately passed away in 1993 at the age of 48.  I knew him well, and marveled when he ran, again and again, the Honolulu Marathon, barefoot.  He was also the co-founder of Polynesian Voyaging Society, helping build and sail Hokule'a.  If he had lived, there would be an active Maritime Center showcasing the Falls of Clyde.

About that ship?

The DOT Harbors Dept have now created a situation where they will need to spend up to $2.0m to prepare, reinforce and clean the ship in order to take her to sea and sink her, a ludicrous situation. The Scottish based campaign has now offered to work together with the department and is prepared to split the cost of the operation, saving Hawaiian taxpayers around $1.25m, harbors department meanwhile still refuse to engage with this group.

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