But his feet kept coming back to the Thorogoods. They felt like armor. They felt like a long-term investment in his own skeleton. "I'll take them," Elias said.
He returned with three boxes. No bright logos, just plain brown cardboard. where to buy good work boots
He didn't go to the big-box stores where the aisles smelled like cheap plastic and the boots felt like cardboard painted to look like tough hides. Elias wanted grease-stained floors and the scent of cedar. He drove past the mall, out to the industrial fringe of the city, to a place called Miller’s Supply. But his feet kept coming back to the Thorogoods
The bell above the door gave a tired, metallic chime. Behind the counter sat a man whose face looked like a topographic map of the state. "I'll take them," Elias said
The man stood up, his knees popping like dry kindling. He didn't point to a shelf. He walked Elias to a heavy oak bench and told him to sit. He measured Elias’s feet with a heavy sliding tool, then disappeared into the back.
Next came the Red Wings, heavy and smelling of deep oil. Then a pair of logging boots with heels that made Elias feel two inches taller and ready to kick a hole through a mountain.