Ellen O'Keefe

These are the famous boogie shoes.  I bought them in late '72, early '73, during my freshman year of college. They catapulted me from 5'2" to a cool 5'8", and for the first time in my life, I could stare you directly in the eye.  I even slouched a little, the way tall girls do. 

I wore them everywhere: to class, grocery shopping, the emergency room, and on one memorable occasion, playing softball with my cousins.   Best of all was dancing with my friends, 3, 4, 5 times a week, always live music.  I remember dancing in a circle of women with our purses on the floor in the middle, perfectly symbiotic with the shoes.  Or holding on for dear life to the walls of a narrow bar room stall, teetering on my heels and waiting for the world to stop spinning long enough to manage my pantyhose. 

These shoes dragged me places, got me into trouble; I will not wear their like again.  And I miss the 6-inch platform perspective. I miss it viscerally, especially now that I'm back to 5'2, and shrinking.