[BarefootAlien]

First off, I've been a regular barefooter for nearly two decades. Before that, I was a kid, and went barefoot just because that used to be what kids did when it was warm out. I have only once ever injured myself on broken glass, and it was a shard attached to the bottom of a beer bottle, so nasty, that shoes probably wouldn't have helped anyway. Normally glass lays down harmlessly, and you can walk right over it. Your foot just flexes around it.

Second... people think -kids- are the ones smashing broken glass everywhere? Try drunks. And no, they don't do it to prevent people from going barefoot. Trust me, in America at least, that's so extraordinarily rare, even among children, that nobody who isn't a barefooter or at least wishing to be one would even consider that. They do it because it makes a neat crashing sound. Don't believe me? Go find some drunks sometime who are outside throwing bottles... outside a bar, or on Fraternity Row near a college. You're not going to hear, "Yeah, take that, barefoot freaks!" You're going to hear, "Yaaaaaah!" and a lot of stupid giggling, with maybe some "That was awesomes". Please... kids... and to prevent barefooting. I mean, when was the last time you've even -seen- a child with a beverage in a glass bottle?

Anyway... Though I've been going barefoot wherever I thought I could get away with it for many many years, I have been thrown out of a few stores... Wal-Mart twice, and Giant Eagle once. Also, CVS isn't a great idea.

However... your story inspired me a bit, so I've been a lot less shy about it recently. Since I first read this dare about two months ago, I have gone barefoot everywhere but work. I'm on week seven. I've gone into many stores, restaurants, fast food places, even ones with signs stating it's not allowed, and so far I've had no trouble at all.

So seriously... other people should give this a try! It feels good, is fun, harmless, and is actually good for your feet, knees, and back. And trust me, there is not -nearly- as much broken glass and other bad stuff out there as you think. And when there is occasionally something, the solution is simple. Don't step on it! Besides, you'll find fairly quickly that grass is much more fun to walk on than pavement anyway, and no, the grass of our planet is not booby-trapped with AIDS-laced syringes. Sorry, that's just paranoid.