DAMNING THE BALLYHOO ON .....UGG BOOTS

A few months ago, I was checking out the new Westfield Shopping Centre. I admit that I got lost on quite a few occasions, a combination of both my own incompetence and the brain dead customer services staff. Anyway, having finally figured out a way to navigate my way round the retail minefield, I found myself encountered with a pretty unusual sight. As I looked into the distance I could see a large and winding queue, reminiscent of the days when a new ride would open at Alton Towers.

Now, I am not a massive shopaholic, but I am aware that the time most places would have such a queue is before the doors have opened on say Boxing Day at 6am (or if there is a super sale at Richer Sounds). But I looked at my watch and it was roughly 3pm and it was around October time, so that explanation did not hold true. I know what it is I thought, "it must be some sort of book signing in Waterstones", perhaps it's Michael Palin or such like.

So, I have to say I was pretty shocked when I saw that people were actually queuing for UGG boots, the new apparently essential footwear for winter. Now, first things first, let's get to the queue situation. I had a look in the store (from the outside of course) and the first thing I noticed was that you could pretty much drive a jumbo jet around in there so I have no comprehensible explanation why they had organised a queue (apart from hype of course)

It's a bit like going to a club and seeing a massive queue and thinking "ohh, it must be well busy and good in there, lets queue". However, with UGG, they can't even use this as an excuse as the paying punter can clearly see that there actually is no reason to be lining up in the first place.



I was also further dismayed when I saw a number of men in the queue, and not necessarily with partners. Now, I know we are in the dawn of the "metrosexual male" ( I have often been handed that rather dubious label myself) but I would like to say that a line has to be drawn somewhere. All you guys out there, if you would rather spend £150 on some UGG boots rather than say an Ipod or even a night out a strip club then I think you are having serious issues.

UGG boots are very expensive (around £150 a pair) and to be honest I don't think they look that great on women (unless they have nothing else on) so all in all I am not sure why they have generated so much interest and hype in the public, particularly amongst celebrities


Having conducted some extensive research on the internet (ahem) I found that most people like the boots because they are really "warm". This seems a reasonable explanation I thought, but when I looked at the adverts for them, coupled with the people who actually wear these monstrosities, I have noticed that the women do not actually appear to be wearing that many other clothes in unison with the boots. So this pretty much throws the idea out the window that people are actually purhasing them to make sure they don't catch a cold. Also, as this picture shows, people tend also tend to wear them when it's not that cold at all.....

If you are going to wear boots like this in the middle of summer then who knows what kinds of germs you are breeding down there and to be honest your ridiculously overpriced boots will have a shelf life shorter than TATU (for those who can't remember that's those Russian lesbian popsters from a few years ago)

In my humble opinion this novelty footwear is UGG-ly as F-UGG and any idiot who decides to queue for an hour just to buy a pair can quite frankly F-UGG off....