People walk different paths in life and their footprints can be just as telling as their destination. It may sound crazy, but you can tell a lot about a person from the choice of shoe style they wear. Sneakers or boat shoes? Stilettos or flip-flops? Puma or Lakai? If you were to look at just one aspect of someone’s outward appearance, let the shoes do the talking.

It’s more than just what kind of shoe someone wears; it’s why. If a guy is wearing penny loafers, one may conclude that he is somewhat preppy and okay with being preppy. In fact, he’s probably proud of it, himself and where he comes from. This guy probably doesn’t have a collection of Nike Dunk Lo’s in his closet. Chances are, he doesn’t have too many friends that do either. Penny loafer boy spends his weekends on boats, while Nike guy (blue suede) listens to hip-hop.

The ladies who teeter on three-inch heels while trudging across gravel on campus are different than those who wear Birkenstocks. That is not to say that the well-dressed girl (or guy for that matter) has only one style of shoe, but the choice they made that day is apparent. You wouldn’t wear wedges with gym shorts and you probably wouldn’t rock flops with a suede skirt. Maybe this particular heel-wearing girl has a presentation that day or just got up late enough to hop on the bike in whatever and book it.

And of course, who could forget the UGG boot of two seasons ago. Worn on bare legs in winter and dyed pink says something very different than a beaten sandy pair worn on a February morning.

With the weather around here, one can pretty much get along wearing sandals for 12 months. But what type of sandals? Rainbows or Reefs? Woven leather or patent leather? No shoes at all? The surfer look is big on campus, but if you look closely you can almost see whether there is sand or cement under their foot. Close-toed sandals or slip-ons are worn by a totally different personality.

Maybe it’s a pair of ancient Vans or a slick European street shoe you’ll rock this semester. Either way, there’s a story in those shoes and in the path they’ve walked.