Two different shoes? It's high fashion

It is one thing for a man to dress and leave the house. For a woman, it is quite another.

Are We There Yet? • LORI CLINCH Men like to grab a shirt and britches, pull them on, and then pat themselves on the back for a job well done. There's no consideration for latest trends or outfit repeats. Much less fat days and wondering why the heck the dryer shrunk their jeans.

For a man, the theme is simple. He has his work attire, his "hanging out about the abode" garb, and although his dress clothes are something altogether different, the ensemble seems to come together on its own.

Meanwhile, a woman will stress for days in advance of an event where she'll need to look nice. Depending on the function and the guest list, she could put several hours into considering an outfit, color coordination, and don't get me started on the jewelry.

Big dress-up events don't happen every day in the Clinch household. Unless we're invited to a wedding, we rarely attend events that involve neckties or bling.

Still, I do strive to look nice, even on your average run-of-the-mill sort of day.

It is this need to look fashionable that drew me to my closet just last week. Since a black-tie affair wasn't on the agenda, I pulled on a pair of jeans and a trendy blouse and tossed on some jewels. I'd never make Mr. Blackwell's best-dressed list, yet I experienced a rare contentment in how it all came together.

Brown was the color of choice, and as any woman will tell you on any given Sunday, a look isn't complete without considering the shoes.

When I checked the shoe section in my closet, aka the pile on the floor, I pulled out two pairs. One was a ballerina type of shoe with a cute little strap across the top. Another was a more comfortable loafer that would allow me to run my errands at record speed with little or no discomfort.

Talk about tough choices!

I put one of each of the shoes on my feet and while looking in the mirror to determine whether or not the ballerina shoe would be cute enough to outweigh its discomfort over the loafer, the phone rang.

I raced to it to discover that it was my dear friend, Nancy. Nancy and I had lots of things to discuss. First and foremost, she needed to know if I had used my preferred customer coupons at the department store. We then discussed the weather, weekly agendas and whether or not the Dow would ever make a full recovery.

After hanging up, I looked at the clock and with a "goodness me, look at the time!" I grabbed my purse and headed out the door.

I swung into a gas station to fill the tank on my cherished Suburban. Then I made a quick stop to sign some papers, waved at a couple of friends at the post office and quickly strode through the lobby at the bank.

Then I sprinted into the Sports Shoppe to pick up wares for the boys, ran to the department store to search for a reason to use my coupon, and although my left foot was not as happy as the right, I really paid it no mind.

As I stood in line at the super-center with a cart full of milk, cereal and a boatload of flavored water, I chitchatted with a friend and his darling little boy.

As we chitchatted about this and that and I told him Nancy's forecast for the weather, I noticed his little boy staring curiously at my feet. "Why," he loudly asked his father, "is that funny lady wearing two different shoes?"

I quickly looked down and much to my chagrin, sure enough I was sporting none other than one cute ballerina type shoe and one comfy yet quite worn-out loafer.

"Yes, Lori," the father asked, "what's up with that?"

"It's a new fashion trend," I quickly responded. Then I rolled my eyes as if to imply that only a man would be in the dark about it before I added, "Everyone who is anyone is doing it."

Being a man, he took my word for it, paid for his purchases and left the store.

The checker, who had said nothing up until this point, rang up my cereal and said, "Men, what do they know about trends?"

Then she leaned over, winked and whispered, "I had a senior moment last week, too."

Lori Clinch is the mother of four sons and the author of the book "Are We There Yet?" You can reach her at www.loriclinch. com.