Rotating your shoes is just like changing your oil

When you go into a car dealership, you look for the one you like, test drive it, put your money down and off you go.

Now I am sure no one would actually do this (please don't...) but let's say that you drive that shiny new car off the lot and drive it for years, but don't put any time or effort at all into regular maintenance. No oil changes, no checking the brakes, no rotating the tires, and no changing any filters for as long as you own it. You don't even wash the car or clean it outduring that time frame. At the same time, you drive that car harder and more often than any other car you've ever owned, racking up a record number of miles in a short period of time.

I can guarantee with certainty that if you were to do that, you would run into some serious problems before too long. Brake problems, engine problems, worn tires, and scratched paint at the very minimum. In some cases, driving a car that hard would mean it's needing major repairs or it may even have failed completely under those circumstances.

Taking it back to the dealer will not help you much, even with the best warranty in the world. Warranties on cars are only in force if you maintain and take care of your vehicle. If you don't do your part, then they don't guarantee anything.

Your shoes (and also your clothing in general) should be built to last and be comfortable for the long term. However, if you don't do your part to maintain them, then it's usually not the shoes' fault if they fail. You have to do regular maintenance on your shoes in order to make them last as long as possible. Regular polishing, replacing laces, replacing insoles, rotation, and a few other things extend the life of your footwear substantially. Here is a list of things that you should use as a guide to taking care of your shoes:

• Regular polishing - Polish your shoes with a real wax polish at a minimum of every two weeks. Shine sponges are ok for daily maintenance, but don't offer the nourishment or rejuvenation of the leather like a wax polish does. Shoe polish isn't just for looks, but for making sure the leather doesn't dry out, fade and crack prematurely. If you're not polishing your shoes at least every two weeks (every week is even better), then you're not "changing your oil".

• Daily rotation - Take two or three pair of shoes and never wear the same pair two days in a row. There isn't a call in the church that doesn't ask for a minimum of 2 pair of shoes and many ask for 3 or 4 plus some ask for a waterproof boot! There's a reason for that. One pair of shoes will generally not last through the 2 years of heavy wear they will encounter out in the field. Think about your church shoes you've been wearing for 2 or 3 years: they look OK but are kinda beat by now, but they lasted longer than a mission right? Not necessarily. A pair of shoes you wear once a week for around 4 hours, equates to about 208 hours of wear a year. A pair of shoes you wear for your mission will be worn daily, all day long (except for when you're asleep of course). That equates to an average of 3744 hours of wear a year. That's 18 times more wear than a standard pair of church shoes. You may want to re-think taking your old church shoes, and instead getting 2 or 3 brand new ones built for the task.

• Changing laces and insoles - Take 3 extra pair of laces for each shoe, and one set of extra insoles for each as well. Your shoe laces will break. Your insoles will deteriorate over time, due to environmental conditions and also due to the fact that you're crushing them under your feet about a hundred thousand times each day with all the walking you will do. Plan for this. This is not a defect any more than needing to replace the brakes or tires on a car makes it defective, it's maintenance and it's normal. Don't wait for your laces to break to replace them, replace them about every 6 months, then they never have the chance to snap right when you're tying them while trying to get to an appointment. Insoles will bring new life to a worn shoe and your feet will be healthier and more comfortable if you replace them at the year mark.

Bottom line is that you need to take care of your shoes (as well as all of your clothing, but we'll cover that in another entry later) in order to make them last and for your feet to be healthy. Don't skimp on shoes, get good ones that fit well in both length and width. Anyone that tells you that widths don't matter and half-sizes don't make much of a difference is being dishonest and doesn't deserve your business. Be professionally measured and get the right shoe for your foot and you'll be much happier over the long term.

Are you saying I need 8 pair of pants??

Most mission calls being issued now ask for one or two suits (two-pant suits are a must) and then a couple of items down, you'll see that they ask for washable dress slacks. A common misconception, especially for first time missionary parents, is that the pants that come with the suits are enough. That since the suits come with two pants, and they ask for 3-5 dress slacks, then pants are done!

When that happens, we often hear from missionaries in the mission field (or their moms) and usually what they tell us is that after the first summer out in the field, for some reason the suit pants don't match the suit coat anymore. The sun, even in moderate climates, takes it's toll on those suit pants they have been wearing without the coat for the past 3 to 6 months. This issue can be avoided entirely by leaving the suit pants with the coat when you aren't required to wear a suit and get separate dress slacks for those months.

The concept is simple: you wear four pants (from your two 2-pant suits) in the winter, and then you have four dress slacks in the summer. Yes that's 8 pair of pants, and yes you will need all of them.

Wearing 8 pair of slacks for two years (730 days) means every pair of pants will be worn about 91 days before the end of your mission. That may not sound like a lot, but considering the heavy wear they will encounter every day they are worn, it adds up. Taking just the four pants (assuming you get two 2-pant missionary suits) means each pair gets 181 days of constant wear. Ouch. Let's not even talk about the bargain suits that only come with one pant... (how many pieces of clothing do you wear 365 times and are still in good shape?)

Save yourself time, and over the long term, money, by buying as many dress slacks as the call asks for right at the start. You'll be ready to go, you won't have to worry about getting new pants sent from home, and your suit pants won't be fading day by day during those white shirt and slacks only months.

Missionary Backpacks - Don't Skimp on Luggage

A question we hear nearly every day from our Missionaries is this: does my missionary backpack count as my carry-on?

Answer: No. Not in the way a full size carry-on does.
 

In reading most calls, the luggage specifications are pretty much the same. Two large bags that are no larger than 62 dimensional inches(height+depth+width) and no heavier than 50 pounds. In the second paragraph in the luggage section you'll notice that it also says you can take one bag that can be no larger that 45 dimensional inches.
 

Those can vary slightly, but for the large bulk of missions, those bags are all they'll allow you to take on the plane unless you want to pay hundreds of extra dollars per flight for overage fees. I don't know anyone who actually wants to pay those, but luckily you shouldn't have to.
 

Nearly every airline, international or domestic, will allow those two 62 (or smaller) cases and the 45 inch carry-on plus your backpack/shoulder bag/man purse. "Hey Pomeroy's, that's four pieces of luggage where they say only three..."
 

Yes but the airlines do not count your backpack as a carry-on piece as long as you can fit it under the seat. It's considered a personal bag instead of a carry-on. Which means you have a full size (45 inch) carry-on plus a backpack with you when you go onto the plane.
 

Why is this important? Do you really need that much luggage? Yes. Getting all two years worth of clothing across the globe is much easier this way. The airlines generally only weigh the two checked bags (the large ones) and since they have to be under 50 pounds... guess where you can put those heavy shoes, books, and overcoat? That's right. Into your 45 inch carry-on and your backpack. As long as you can lift it, you can carry it on.

Save yourself some money, don't pay overage fees to the airline.

Get yourself a 3-piece set and a backpack and make life easy on yourself.