I hated flip flops growing up and never wore them. It wasn't having something between my toes, it was that my normal gait took my feet right out of the things. I felt like I had to unnaturally clench my toes and feet somehow to keep the things on. One day in 2005 I got 3rd degree burns on my feet from the sun from being out on the Guadalupe too long.* I couldn't stand socks or my Nike's for a long while after that. Bought my first pair of flip flops and after I wore them for about a week, whatever different motion was required to wear them easily became second nature and I never had to think about it again. By the time the burn healed into a tan I had become enthralled with the sheer ease of putting on and taking off my shoes. No tying, no staps, no buckles....I was hooked. I wore flip flops anytime I could until I developed foot problems such that they're no longer an option.
*Yes, I had on sunscreen, but the river washed it off of my feet because they were in the water enough to wash off the stuff, but apparently out of it enough that I caught way more sun than I realized at the time. My skin passed red and had gone to a weird incandescent blue. My co-workers were horrified. It'd make you swear that if you put me in a dark closet, the tops of my feet would've provided a small amount of light, but they didn't really glow, they just looked like it. Until the doc told me, I had no idea 3rd degree burns were possible from sunlight. I thought the marks would never go away. I had that tan line well past the time I left Texas. It did eventually all vanish tho, about 8 years later. I'm surprised I didn't immediate cancer and have to amputate.
