For some mysterious and utterly bizarre reason, throwing one's worn out sneakers, baby shoes or Dr. Martens on a power line across a Bloomington street has become an Olympic sport. When the little student darlings are done pitching their piles of junk on the curbs, they finish their rite of passage with the semi-annual shoe toss. It takes a lot of strength and skill to hurl a pair of size 13, triple-digit-costing, "nothin' but net" Nikes that high above one's head. Even IU's greatest, tallest basketball center of all time would have a struggle.
No local seems to know why they do it, either. It's a Bloomingtonian mystery. One theory is that the shoes signal a neighborhood "drug store" and "pharmacist" is nearby. We can only hope we don't have THAT many on every street in the student ghetto. Or the shoe toss might be a form of sobriety test. "If the shoes don't hang, man, you need another beer." Their senses and reflexes aren't in the proper state of numbness.
I ask you, dear readers, help me out here. Anyone have any ideas what the shoes on the line are all about?
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