Re-Sole Your Shoes

I resole my family’s sports sandals for a fraction of the cost of replacement and get better traction to boot! A trip to an honest shoemaker provides me with one-size-fits-all rubber hiking soles and nonhardening glue. At home, I remove the worn-out sole by running a household iron back and forth over it; this releases the bonding agent. I glue the new sole on, weight it with bricks and let it sit overnight. The next morning I carefully trim off the excess sole with a utility knife and finish it smooth at the grinding wheel. Before the lunch bell rings, I’ve strapped my sandals on, enjoyed a brisk walk to the gate, made a compost run and climbed the steep hill to the water tank. Ain’t life grand?

 — Dan Knoblauch, Ash Fork, Arizona