Every year I look forward to the winter for the snow, the hot cocoa, and even the cold. For me, it's one of the best seasons, and that’s not even including the holidays. But every year, this one being the worst, I always seem to fall under the same fate. Every year my shoes are ruined by our response to nature’s beauty. Every year, my shoes are ruined by salt.

This year’s tragedy took ahold of my beloved boots, the very ones that my sister bought for me this Christmas. It is a terrible feeling when you look down at your feet and you realize that your brown footwear has been tainted by the crunch that is supposed to protect you from slipping and sliding all over the sidewalk. Isn’t it tragic that our self-esteem and sense of style must be lost for the sake of safety? I mean honestly who cares if you’re staring at the sky looking at the clouds before your first class of the day or the big meeting you’ve been preparing for all week. As long as you have your nice stylish shoes that are still in the same condition that you bought them in then it doesn’t matter.

The worst part about the salt that we walk on for our beloved “safety” is that it contributes not only the melting of beautiful snow and the fading of the color on our shoes, but it also happens to help our shoes deteriorate with the snow and ice. I cannot believe that today’s society is OK with us sacrificing our own money-well-spent just to prevent us from getting hurt. I mean is this a trade we are really willing to make? One where we end up having to take the time out of our day to scrub off the stain on our boots? It ridiculous that this is today’s standards. It should be in everyone’s fashionable sense that we find another way to safely be rid of the snow and ice that “endangers” us as we walk to our daily endeavors.