The Pedestrian Shops are supporting Meals on Wheels of Boulder by raffling their Comfortable Shoe Tree, worth over $4000, as part of the Meals on Wheels Festival of Trees. They are also once again holding their annual Thanksgiving Shoe Drive to help neighbors in need.

This holiday season, the Pedestrian Shops shoe stores are once again helping neighbors in need. They are supporting Meals on Wheels of Boulder by participating in their Festival of Trees and holding their Thanksgiving shoe drive to collect footwear for the Deacon's Closet at First Presbyterian Church and other local assistance organizations.

The Pedestrian Shops will be raffling off their holiday Comfortable Shoe Tree, adorned with over $4,000 worth of footwear, socks, and accessories, as part of the Festival of Trees benefiting Meals on Wheels of Boulder. Raffle tickets can be purchased for $5 each on Meals on Wheels of Boulder's website, mowboulder.org, beginning November 19.

The tree's lucky winner will be able to choose any shoe style from Pedestrian's inventory, from each brand represented on the tree. Their winnings will include 35 pairs of shoes from Dansko, Keen, Merrell, Wolky, Ecco, Clarks, Acorn, Jambu, Kalso Earth, El Naturalista, Privo, Indigo, Earthies, Aravon, Blundstone, Tsubo, Pikolinos, New Balance, Crocs, Dr. Scholls, Birkenstock, UGG, Chaco, Teva, Sorel, Patagonia, and Vibram FiveFingers. The winner will also receive 18 pairs of socks from Smartwool and Goodhew, and handbags and accessories from Osgoode Marley, Haiku, Pepper's, and a BackJoy Back Orthotic.

This is the fifth year the Pedestrian Shops have participated in Meals on Wheels' Festival of Trees. However, this is the first year the event will be held in Downtown Boulder. “It’s really fun to have this beautiful tree full of comfortable shoes in the middle of our store,” said Richard Polk, owner of the Pedestrian Shops. Many Downtown merchants are participating and displaying their trees in their shops throughout the holiday season. Meals on Wheels will hold the drawing for each tree on December 16. The Pedestrian Shops' tree can be viewed at their Downtown location at 1425 Pearl St.

The Pedestrian Shops are also once again encouraging customers to bring a pair of new or slightly used shoes to either of their locations between November 18 and December 11 to donate to people in need. As always, a 10% discount will be provided to customers who donate shoes; however, a purchase is never required. Customers often use the discount to stock up on the Pedestrian’s most popular styles like the Dansko Professional clog.

For 23 years, Pedestrian has collected used shoes for distribution by local assistance organizations. This is the 46th shoe drive, as a second is held each April to celebrate Earth Day. The Pedestrian Shops have collected over 35,000 pairs of shoes for reuse by people in need. The Pedestrian Shops also support a wide variety of local schools and non-profits by donating over 60 gift cards per year to silent auctions and fundraisers.

The Pedestrian Shops began doing business shortly after the first Earth Day in 1970. Its first shop was located in a repurposed 1950s bookmobile. Its first bricks and mortar location was opened in 1971 in downtown Boulder, Colorado. Its humble roots are memorable for the story of its first store fixtures, carved from tree trunks; their first months of use required daily spraying for ants. Today, 41 years later, The Pedestrian has become widely regarded as one of the world's leading retailers of comfortable shoes, operating two Boulder, CO stores and a website, www.comfortableshoes.com.

Slippers make a great gift for the holidays, and with our in store slipper sale this December (wool clogs $10 off, slippers up to 25% off), no time is better to buy your loved one the gift of cozy comfort. Now with more styles and designs than ever, its easy to find a unique pair of slippers for all your friends and family.

For the indoor/outdoor slipper wearers – think people with dogs, long driveways, or a relaxed personal style – The men’s Haflinger wool clog or Haflinger clog for women is just the ticket. This super
comfortable slipper clog features an anatomically contoured cork and latex footbed for great support and cushion. The boiled wool upper of the slipper is naturally breathable; it won’t overheat inside but will keep warm in chilly weather.

For those that use their slippers exclusively indoors, try the warm and fuzzy acorn polar moc’s for men and women. The warm fleece upper and microfleece lining is sure to keep the wearer nice and cozy when relaxing inside. The outsole is non slip, meaning no slips or tumbles when transitioning from carpet to hardwood or tile.

If you’re looking for a slipper with more flair, perhaps for the crafty woman in your life, don’t forget about the crafty and cute Haflinger Charisma or the Acorn Cleo. Wool uppers of
both these slippers offer cozy comfort while the floral accents and yarn details add fun flair to the designs.

If you’re buying for someone who likes having the best of the best, look for sheepskin slippers. The UGG Rylan slipper for women is a classic from the iconic comfort brand. Or try the similar Acorn Sheepskin Bootie for men. The authentic sheepskin is soft and luxurious, and also breathes to prevent overheating when walking or wearing inside.

For the dog and cat lovers out there, look no further than the Haflinger Kitty or Doggy slippers, so you’re friend can bring their best friend everywhere. For men, Haflinger brings you the Oktoberfest or Golf slipper, sure to satisfy their cravings for recreation when the day’s agenda calls for otherwise.

Still searching? See our full list of men’s, women’s, and kid's comfortable slippers.

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Walkin' Boulder
By Sue Deans
The former editor of the Camera blogs about exploring Boulder on foot.

October 31, 2011

Put it on your calendar now: Next year on Halloween afternoon take a walk downtown to Munchkin Madness! Cutest goblins you ever saw! Much cuter than their late-night counterparts in the Mall Crawl.

Every year business owners downtown hold a three-hour trick or treat session for the little ones on Halloween afternoon. I helped out at the Pedestrian Shops this year as we gave out candy to hundreds of zombies, princesses and superheroes! I also walked up and down mall the a couple of times to snap some photos.

Here are a few:

And I can't leave out my grandson Daric, who at two weeks old wasn't quite ready for trick-or-treating, but is already planning on coming next year with his Mom and Dad. He was dressed up for Halloween, though!

See you next year at Munchkin Madness!

The snow has arrived in Boulder and unless you live in Southern California, it probably has where you live too! At Pedestrian Shops, we've got a great selection of waterproof/water-resistant boots for both men and women that will keep feet dry and toasty throughout even the biggest snow storms of the season.

Sorel is a brand that makes its shoes ready for an Artic snowstorm but fashioned with the urban in mind. For women the Joan of Arctic boot allows the inner fashionista to strut in the snow without worrying about cold toes. For men, the 1964 Premium T Canvas boot (pictured above) offers a tough outer layer for your feet.

Merrell also offers boots for both women and men this year. Women should check out the Angelic Peak boot (pictured above), lending a classic, sleek style to even the dampest of snows. This boot can transition from snowstorm to the office easily. For men, the Bergenz boot is a classically designed boot with a rugged outsole for grip and waterproof leather uppers.

Keen features some great waterproof Keen.Dry styles for women as well. The Brighton Low (pictured above) or Brighton High boot make a cozy winter boot that is comfortable too thanks to the metatomical footbed.

New to the boot scene this year is Teva. They’ve made their winter shoe debut one to note iwht the women’s Vero WP boot (pictured above), a snow boot with the style and comfort of a Teva sandal but the insulation and waterproof upper for winter.

Walkin' Boulder
By Sue Deans
The former editor of the Camera blogs about exploring Boulder on foot.

October 28, 2011

As I try to walk more and more, and in general get around town without getting in the car, I decided to try doing some errands on foot one lovely October day.

The biggest problem I have is that I don’t like to carry things – such as a largish purse – when I’m chugging along the sidewalk.

So this particular morning I dig out a very lightweight backpack that I had gotten at a race last year, and a French knitted bag that was bought in Paris many years ago. These, plus pockets, made it easy to bring along a bottle of water, my phone, reading glasses, ID and money without weighing myself down. And if I did make small purchases I would be able to carry them home easily.

As I set out I notice that my neighbor, who always noted that she lived in the “red house,” is now painting it dark gray. I like it.

First on my agenda was taking plastic bags to Ideal to drop in their recycling bin. Most of the ones I generate are from newspapers – I get two each day. When I worked at the Camera I know they contributed to the Center for Hard to Recycle Materials, or CHaRM, which took the bags. Newspaper customers – and there are still lots of us – still like to get their papers dry and not scraped or torn, so that’s why they are bagged.

I notice at Ideal there are some other recycling collections, for cork and #5 plastic ( such as cottage cheese and yogurt containers), that I wasn’t aware of:

Out front of Ideal is a huge and colorful pile of pumpkins but I think it’s still too early to buy one for Halloween.

I’m going to Pharmaca to visit the little post office window inside. I need stamps and need to mail some letters. Oops – the line is pretty long right at noon so I will probably come back later.

So as I head south on Broadway I notice some lovely banners that say “Stroll.” Exactly what I’m doing.

I pass Marisol imports, moved a couple of years ago from downtown to North Broadway, which has some colorful animal sculptures that would look great in my yard.

But I am really looking today for a costume – my Rotary club is having a Roaring ’20s party. Do I want to dress as a flapper? We’ll see. Candy’s, next to Marisol, signals its collection of costumes with Superman and Wonder Woman outfits hanging outside.

Inside, I find two flapper dresses, with fringe, of course, that are relatively inexpensive.

I head into the dressing room with them, try them on, and quickly decide I will probably not attend the party in costume. The dresses fit but don’t necessarily suit my 63-year-old self. I will think about it, though.

Next stop is the ATM at my Pearl Street bank. Unfortunately, it’s being cleaned. I walk around the other side and the nice young woman cleaning opens the door and beckons me in. It’s nice when someone cares about customers.

I decide to try the main post office for my stamps, and on 13th Street spot a sign for chicken matzo ball soup at Dubbins Grubbery, the tiny window-front restaurant south of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory between Pearl and Walnut. I haven’t eaten here yet but I will. Especially if they have good matzo ball soup.

The Oak Restaurant at 14th and Pearl is still under construction after a fire in March. I was walking downtown that day and used my new iPhone for the first time to take pictures of it.

The main post office has only one person in line ahead of me so I get my stamps relatively quickly.

Then I decide to try one more place for costumes, the Ritz in the 900 block of Walnut Street. They have a similar stock of flapper dresses for rent and for sale, plus vintage suits and hats for men and women. But after perusing them I still think I will go to the party as myself.

Walking home on Broadway I check out the scaffolding on the Broadway Building at Broadway and Pearl, which is getting a little facelift.

Home again, I realize didn’t need my bags, but I might have. And I walked 3.5 miles while getting my necessary errands done. That’s a good thing!

Walkin' Boulder
By Sue Deans
The former editor of the Camera blogs about exploring Boulder on foot.

October 26, 2011

Better late than never, here is a tour of the University of Colorado’s East Campus. I walked there on Friday, Oct. 14, from my house in North Boulder, because I wanted to get a close-up look at the new Biotechnology Building. I had seen it from a distance but not close-up.

Ground was broken for the Jennie Smoly Caruthers Biotechnology Building in 2009 and it is scheduled for completion in 2012. It is being built to LEED certification standards and will get at least a gold and possibly a platinum certification, rare among academic buildings and research labs in particular.

According to CU’s website, the building is named for the late wife of Marvin Caruthers, a CU professor and biotech inventor, one of the founders of Amgen Inc., a principal donor for the project. Jennie Smoly Caruthers taught in CU’s chemistry and biochemistry department.
The point of the building, the university says, is to create “productive collisions” – not literally, we hope – between scientists from different disciplines that will help address critical challenges in bioscience. These include computer scientists, chemists, physicists, and engineers whose work impacts that of the biomedical scientists. When finished, the building will house the Biofrontiers Institute, the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and the Division of Biochemistry, with more than 600 faculty, staff and students from nine departments and divisions in 330,000 square feet.

I notice that the rendering of the building that appears on a poster outside and on CU’s website does not include what look like chimneys on the top of it, making it appear from a distance rather like a steel mill or some other kind of manufacturing plant.

The building is massive, as can be guessed from the statistics above. Construction is ongoing although its opening is projected for early 2012.

Many years ago, when I was a graduate student at CU, my son and I lived in a family housing complex called Colorado Court that was on the East Campus. And I didn’t realize until I walked toward the Caruthers building that my little duplex was right next to the building, on what is now its parking lot. We looked out the window at the CU baseball field and often went to watch games there. Jeff, my son, was 4 at the time, but liked sports just the same. CU was still competing in intercollegiate baseball then but the program was dropped in the 1970s after Title IX required universities to fund equal numbers of men’s and women’s sports. I think I helped cover that story when I was a reporter at the Camera.

Family housing was available to students who were married or had children, and as a single mother it was invaluable to me. Jeff and I shared the duplex townhouse with a law student and his family. Later he was a judge in Boulder County. Another family housing complex, Smiley Court, is still at the corner of 30th and Colorado.

This photo of the Caruthers building was taken from about the spot where my townhouse stood, as nearly as I can tell.

The baseball field is still there, with nicer fencing and fixtures, as is the running track where a lone runner was doing laps that morning.

Most of the East Campus buildings are devoted to scientific pursuits. In fact its formal name is the East Campus and Research Park. A map can be found here.

A few buildings that stand out are:

-The Administrative and Research Center, housing a number of administrative departments including Human Resources.

-The Center for Astrophysics and Space Astronomy Research Lab, founded in 1985, which is a unit of the Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences Department and also connected with the Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics and the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Research. CASA’s work includes elements of NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the FUSE Spectrographic Explorer.

-Two buildings of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Research: The newer Space Science Building houses the LASP science division, communications & outreach, and some IT and administrative operations. The main building, the Space Technology building, built in 1991 and enlarged in 2006, houses mission operations & data systems, engineering, and administration. Another LASP facility is in the Duane Science Bulding on the main campus.

Also housed on the East Campus are Housing System Maintenance and Service, the Computing Center, Transportation Services and the Research Park Greenhouse.

Near Transportation Services, CU’s fleet of buses awaiting use and a tiny maintenance truck underscore the green reputation of the University.

And the view from out there is amazing!

Walkin' Boulder
By Sue Deans
The former editor of the Camera blogs about exploring Boulder on foot.

October 21, 2011

This has been a chaotic autumn for my family. Even though I’ve been “running around” a lot, I haven’t been able to do too many of my usual walks.

Next week I will share with you a two-part blog about the University of Colorado’s East Campus, part of a 7-mile walk I did last week.

Just a day after that, family events started happening quickly.

My first grandchild, Daric Jeffrey Foss, was born on Saturday, Oct. 15, a week early. Of course we are all gaga about him and I have been making frequent trips to see him, for the first few days at Lutheran Hospital in Wheat Ridge and now at his home in Arvada. His parents are my son, Jeff Foss, and his wife, Wendy, and his big sister is Lexus Limmer, Wendy’s daughter.

Of course we think Daric is the most beautiful baby ever.

On the other side of the circle of life, my dad has been ill for several months and this past week my brothers and I moved him from his independent living apartment in Thornton into nursing care at the same facility where he and my mother have been living for the last few years. My mother has Alzheimer’s disease and lives in a memory care nursing unit.

Young Daric will be visiting both his great-grandparents soon. Shortly after he was born, he met his maternal great-grandmother, Jean Cimino, who was hospitalized this past summer after a stroke but is making a great recovery.

Happy and sad, all at once!

Walkin' Boulder
By Sue Deans
The former editor of the Camera blogs about exploring Boulder on foot.

October 10, 2011

It’s always fun to have visitors in Boulder, especially when the weather is as perfect as it was a couple of weekends ago.

We had planned a pedestrian weekend for our guests, who were staying in a downtown hotel, so that they would not have to rent cars and could walk almost everywhere they needed or wanted to be.

Here’s a look at what we did.

Many of the guests arrived Friday morning at DIA and some got to Boulder in time for lunch at Reuben’s, a couple of blocks from the hotel at Broadway and Walnut. They loved the sandwiches on pretzel rolls and the sweet potato fries.

While some of the visitors rested or napped at their hotel, the serious shoppers got started on Pearl Street and the mall, including of course a stop at The Pedestrian Shops for comfortable shoes. In addition, The Fall Festival brought dozens of artists and artisans to display their work in booths downtown.

Others explored Alfalfa’s, Whole Foods and Liquor Mart, bringing back food for a buffet dinner at a downtown condo just two blocks from the hotel. The “meet, eat and greet” featured salmon, chicken, beef, salads, cheese, bread and beautiful pastries for dessert.

On Saturday morning we led everyone on a short walk to the City Club in the Highland Building, the renovated school at Ninth Street and Arapahoe, for breakfast and a meeting. Those not taking part toured the Farmers’ Market and the Fall Festival and bought even more shoes at The Pedestrian Shops.

Saturday afternoon’s field trip, in a hotel van, was to Red Oak Park, a new complex of affordable housing at 2637 Valmont Road, built on the site of a former mobile home park, Boulder Mobile Manor. The homes are fully equipped with solar to generate their power.

Even more shopping ensued when we got back downtown.

Dinner at Jill’s at the St. Julien Hotel was the final event, the piece de resistance as the restaurant’s general manager Philippe Antoine would say, an excellent meal for the grand finale of the weekend.

The guests departed Sunday, wishing they could have stayed longer to enjoy Boulder’s walkability. Not to mention the great weather.

Walkin' Boulder
By Sue Deans
The former editor of the Camera blogs about exploring Boulder on foot.

September 29, 2011

Last week I mentioned that on a future walk I planned to take the Wonderland Creek Greenway Trail east from Folsom Street, and from there to the Four Mile Creek Trail that makes a big circle around the Pleasantview soccer fields near 47th Street.

I tried to do that this morning but was not successful, even with the Map My Run app. I got to the stone marker for Wonderland Creek Greenway at Folsom and Norwood and headed along the creek toward 28th Street. I thought there would be a clear intersection with the other trail, or at least a directional sign, but I couldn’t find it.

Looking at the map online, I realize now that I needed to cross 28th Street at Palo Park to find the connection. I will try it again soon.
I ended up on a path behind the Sunrise Assisted Living Center that went past the Elks Club. A pack of bicyclists were either training or having some kind of race going in circles around a track.

So I walked back southward along 28th Street to Iris, then took Elmer’s Two Mile Creek trail back to Valmont and home. This is the park along Elmer’s near Iris. It also has some beautiful weeping willows on the creek banks, one of my favorite trees.

Even though I didn’t find what I was looking for, it was still a good walk, 5.3 miles on a beautiful morning, and I found some gorgeous fall flowers you can see below.

In the past, barefooters have sulked at the end of the warm season, burying their no-cushion-needed shoes deep in the back of their closet so as not to remind them of better barefooting conditions during the snow, ice, and bitter cold of the winter months. This season, minimalist shoes include warm, insulated uppers (no mesh!), making barefoot shoes wearable year round.

Vibram FiveFingers has showcased the men’s KSO Trek in previous years, but this year introduced two new shoes with leather uppers for casual or active use. The Trek LS is a lace-up leather shoe that features retro sneaker style with enough warmth to keep those toes happy. The Bormio offers a five-fingered leather boot, allowing you to barefoot even the coldest of days while making your way to the office, lunch meeting, or coffee shop. No leather Vibrams for women just yet, but your best cold-weather option might be the Komodo Sport with some cozy Injinji socks for added protection.

Merrell launched a line of barefoot shoes sans separated toes last season and is continuing their minimalist revolution with more insulated styles to keep you protected and on your bare feet this fall and winter. The Lithe Glove for women and Sonic Glove for men features a softshell upper for the active barefooter, warding off the chill yet allowing your feet to breathe simultaneously.

While none of these shoes may be ideal for the 5 inches of fresh powder that might accompany your day, during the dryer, colder months a barefoot shoe with more insulative materials other than mesh will do wonders. Autumn and winter barefooting at its best is brought to you by Vibram FiveFingers and Merrell Barefoot. Stay warm and stay barefoot!