I was sitting in PEC this morning when I noticed I was the only one in the meeting who had shines shoes. Granted, one person had shoes with a matte finish, so he had the shiniest shoes in the room.
But still, do men not shine their shoes anymore?
Does no one shine shoes anymore?
I have noticed the same thing. It seems particularly pronounced among men who are under the age of 40.
Of those in the room who did not have shined shoes, three were under 40.
Left over from my brief exposure to the military, but I shine my shoes – but I am also 40 :-)
I bring my shoe shine kit periodically to church (esp. when I was ymp) and would shine one shoe for a class member as I taught (really small class size). I always hoped shining one would prompt them to take steps to shine the other on their own. I also do this with the missionaries.
Almost universally though, very few people actually know how to shine a shoe. If they do it is usually because like me, they have had some experience either around or in the military.
There is a shoe shiner on the way to my work and i normally get him to do it. As not only do i get shiny shoes but i get to read the newspaper at the same time.
I have thought about doing that. There aren’t any show shiners here though.
How do I shine my shoes?
http://howtocleanlikeaman.wordpress.com/2009/08/15/how-to-shine-shoes-like-a-man/
I know how to do it, and my Dad would be shocked to hear me say this (he is big on shoe-shining) but- what is the point? Are there people around who feel like respect is lost if shoes are unshined? Honestly, shoe-shining is probably the least of all the worries on my mind, like making sure my kids can FIND their shoes for church!
If it really is a true sign of disrespect in this day and age to not have perfectly shined shoes, then I guess I should make more of an effort! :)
Frankly, unshined shoes are no different from black runners when it comes to dressing up. IMO, if you’re going to go through the effort to tie a tie, you should go through the effort to shine your shoes.
And for the record, I generally don’t shine my shoes every week, and when I do, it is usually on a Saturday or weekday evening. I never do it Sunday morning.
Speaking of children’s shoes, I need to shine my son’s shoes.
I only shine my shoes when I have to go to something special, like a wedding, birthday etc. On a normal business day it’s to much of a bother, and I’d probably be the only one with shiny shoes at work ;)
Interesting observation…My husband, who is well under 40 always shines his shoes. I had never thought much about it before I saw him shine his shoes, but I think that it is really cool. It makes him seem more respectful (If that makes sense).
Anyways – there are still a few shining shoes these days… :)
I personally think from a womens point of view, that a man at any age who shines there shoes looks a bit more professional. A 5min shoe shine wont hurt anyone.
If you shine your shoes properly with a decent wax polish, the shoes will last longer and will be more waterproof.