I made a trip to see my local cobbler this week. I know most people don't use the term cobbler anymore but it really takes me back to the days of yore so I like to use it whenever possible.
I have a lot of respect for a good cobbler. They're a dying breed and now I think I know why. So I found this really great pair of boots last weekend. Finding the perfect pair of boots is a lot like finding a soul mate in that it's difficult to articulate exactly what you're looking for but when it crosses your path you know your life will never be the same. Unfortunately, I don't really believe in soul mates but that doesn't stop me from believing that the perfect pair of boots is out there waiting for me to find them.
So these boots were perfect except for one minor thing - they were knee high boots, and I just wasn't really in the market for knee high boots. Fortunately, I could see past this and knew that these boots, like my future soul mate, would be perfect with just a little bit of tweaking.
I arrived at my cobbler's and explained to him how I wanted to modify the boots from knee high to ankle boots. He gave the boots a once over, took a moment to really absorb the gravity of the situation and after a long pause said in his Italian accent "So these boots are basically no good to you? They're no good to you like this." I wasn't exactly sure if he was asking me or telling me but I responded "Well, I wouldn't exactly say that they're..." He quickly interrupted, "I hope that they were giving these boots away." Unfortunately, I had actually paid a monetary sum for them so I felt like a real idiot at that point. I felt like saying, "Vincenzo, last I checked I was the customer here. The customer who's trying to give you a job to keep you in business which let me tell you is no easy task. Do you realize you're in an almost extinct profession? I singlehandedly keep the town candlestick maker and blacksmith in business so you are messing with the wrong person! The milkman gave me some attitude a while ago and I think we know how that worked out."
Obviously I didn't really tell Vincenzo what I thought. The thing about Vincenzo is that not only is he a master shoe surgeon, he's also an artist. I've come to realize that the more talented the artist the more temperamental they are so it really was a good sign.
I picked my boots up from Vincenzo today and let me tell you he did not disappoint. Judging by his work I'm guessing that all of the time and energy he saves with his lack of decorum is poured into his work. I guess that's the luxury of being talented. People tend to be more willing to overlook your shortcomings if you bring something else of value to the table. Boy can I hardly wait to become talented so I can start walking all over people. I've already got the perfect pair of boots for it.
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4 comments:
We REALLY need pictures. Before and after would be preferable, but I have a crazy hunch that it may be too late for the before. At least after?
I just think it's a matter of time before we outsource the things Italians still keep a stranglehold on (like making a mean slice of 'za) - I am sick, sick, SICK of paying upwards of $10 for a large cheese... and you know some Southeastern Asian countries could do it for much cheaper with imitation product, just like you could've bought those boots you originally coveted for as much as the repairs ended up costing you, H. Other than that, all I could think about after the first paragraph was peach cobbler.
Darryl, The before and after thing would have been a good idea and if I owned a camera that wasn't disposable I would have done that.
Darren, I hear what you're saying and you're probably right that I could've purchased imitation boots for the same price as the repairs but where would the fun be in that? More importantly, where would the blog entry be in that? You're right about the peach cobbler though I am getting a bit of a hankering for it now that you mention it. That reminds me, I had the most amazing peach cobbler the last time I was in Shanghai.
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