“So how tall are you in heels?”

Wearing flats, I stand at 6’2. 90% of the time, I’m wearing flats. Partially because I keep my day to day wardrobe fairly casual and it’s easiest to get around in flats. Partially because I don’t want to deal with what comes with wearing heels.

I don’t avoid wearing heels because of insecurities. I love my height. And I LOVE wearing heels, so when an outfit needs them, I will wear them. But committing to an outfit with heels is like committing to WAY more social interaction than I’m ever prepared for. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a people person. It’s the unsolicited interactions that I’m not a huge fan of.

In the last few weeks, I’ve been playing with my outfits more often, and in turn, wearing heels more often. The beauty of not having to wear boots and 500 layers to survive. I hadn’t worn any heels throughout the winter, and was reminded how great it feels to strut down the sidewalk with a bangin’ outfit complete with a great heel. You instantly feel more poised, more put together, almost more powerful. But the further I walked I became increasingly aware of the attention I was drawing. People always notice that I’m tall. But add 4 extra inches and suddenly people start to notice out loud. So if you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to be a tall lady in heels, here is an account of just SOME of the interactions with strangers that I’ve encountered:

• Man walks by me on tip toes
• ENDLESS comments from strangers “Wow, you’re tall!” Really? I hadn’t noticed.
• “You must be a basketball player.” No. No I mustn’t.
• “You should be a model!” Funny you should say that. Most agencies tell me I’m TOO tall. *GASP* No no,  it’s okay. I’ve gotten over it. *consoles stranger*
• On the subway the other day, a man relentlessly tried to look around, over and under other passengers to get a clear view of me feet. At the time, I was NOT in heels.
• People talking among themselves, “whoa that girl is so tall.” Hey. I can hear you.
• I heard someone one time passing by with his kid and comment “did you see that?!” That. THAT?! Like I’m an attraction to be gawked at.
• “Why are you wearing heels?!” Look at this outfit! That’s why!
• Awkward and extended eye contact with the other tall person in a bar or room. There’s no one else in our line of vision so this happens repeatedly. It’s especially awkward when it’s a guy and they start looking at you like “omg. It’s meant to be. A girl as tall as me!” After which I actively try avoiding eye contact which, you’d be surprised, is much more difficult than  you think when there’s no one else to look at at that eye level.
• “So like how tall are you?!” Tall.
• Open mouth stares. So many stares. All the stares. Take it in friends, I look pretty dang fabulous! (mixed with OMG is there something wrong with my hair? makeup? Did I spill on my outfit? Was this outfit too much?!)

You’d think I would have gotten used to these types of interactions by now. They don’t really surprise me anymore, I’m just rarely ready or mentally prepared to deal with them, and giving the same answers over and over is anything but fun. But I’ve really been enjoying heels lately and have been thinking I’ll be rocking a lot more of them this Spring/Summer so I guess I need to just brace myself for the season. Bring it on. But if I know you, please spare me and just compliment my outfit. The rest of the world has already reminded me I’m tall. Again.