three strikes!

and now, an update on the various purchases outlined in previous posts.

1) the boots!
they arrived today. they were SOOOO PRETTY. they were SOOOO LIGHT. they were SO cushion-y and bouncy. and, sadly, they were SO NARROW. too narrow. despite so many of the online reviews citing ankle-area discomfort, my issue was tightness around the toe box – specifically: the baby toes on both feet. length-wise, the boots were fine, but the toe boxes were snug so that as soon as i walked around them for a bit, i could feel the sides of both baby toes literally being rubbed the wrong way. i know that if i were to wear these beauties on any kind of extended walk, or even once around the block, i'd come home with bloody blisters on both pinkie toes. and, given the boots' materials, there's no way they'd ever "stretch" to fit better. BOO. the "will they or won't they be magic?!" mystery has now been solved, and they will be going back.

2) the OTHER boots

on the same day i ordered the merrells, i noticed that there were some keen winter boots on clearance at another retailer. they were also comfy-looking, and they had my size... plus, they were $119. might as well order those, too, i figured. that way, i could compare both the keens and the merrells together, and keep whichever pair fit better and felt better. (given the long-term relationship i've had with my existing keen winter boots – probably about 15 years – i actually suspected i'd like the keens more.)

the keens arrived today, as well, about two hours after the merrells. they, too, were light. and cushion-y. not pretty at all, though, but that's okay. i'm all for function over form. plus, they reminded me of my current keens, and looked similar, style-wise.

BUT THEY WERE TOO SMALL.

*sigh*

despite consistently wearing a men's size 8 in keens, these 8s were more like 7.5s. yes, i could still order the next size up (they do have a pair of 8.5s left), but at this point – and after multiple failed attempts at buying shoes (which i haven't already tried on in person somewhere) online – i think i'll call it a day on the great winter-hiker hunt of 2020. at least as far as online shopping goes.

so, tomorrow i'll be trekking downtown to return the keens, and then returning the merrells to a different retailer closer to home. easy come, easy go!

3) the antiperspirant
after wearing it for 24 hours, i've decided the scent is too strong/not right for me. i thought maybe it would grow on me, but it still has something of an aftershave-y bouquet that i don't love. thankfully, i have two weeks to return the unused sticks for a refund... which i'll likely do on the weekend.