Hello.  I'm

Brooke Gabriel

 

 

In fall 2011, I decided to buy a new pair of boots.  I had all but completely worn out the soles of the chocolate-brown pair I'd purchased back in 2008.  I wasn't in school at the time, having decided to take a break after my freshman year at DePaul University, and therefore had some freedom with my spending money.  Plus I was back living in Ann Arbor, Michigan with my family, and autumn is our most boot-friendly season.

 

While perusing Zappos.com, I came upon a beautiful, other-worldly pair of Ariat cowboy boots.  I'm generally not a believer in love at first sight, but when sandy brown footwear with hand-stitched detailing is involved it's a completely different story.  Not only were the boots gorgeous, they also stood for something; a woman in those boots was a woman of style, who carried herself with confidence, and an air of badassitude.  A woman in those Ariat cowboy boots was in charge, both of herself and the world around her.  

 

I wanted them.  I wanted that.

 

Sadly, badass footwear is seldom cheap, so I forced myself to turn away from the super sexy Ariat boots and peruse the 'Sale' section instead.  But as I sifted through the cheaper (though still lovely) shoes, I couldn't get the cowboy boots out of my head.  I knew that even if I bought a more affordable pair that day, I would always be thinking about them.

 

So instead of buying new boots, I patched up my old pair as best I could (many thanks to duct tape and Gorilla Glue) and started saving my money.  I set a little bit of each pay check aside in my 'boots fund', all the while watching the Zappos site like a hawk to make sure that my size was still available.  I did this for months, until one day in January (a not-so boot-friendly month) the moment arrived - I could finally afford the boots.  They had even gone on sale(!!).

 

One month after they arrived, looking even lovelier than they had in pictures and fitting like a dream, I recieved a call from the University of Michigan informing me that my application to transfer had been accepted, and that I would be starting classes in that fall.  I know that to the outside observer these two events don't seem connected, but they both mark moments in my life that highlight a deliberate decision to move forward, an effort to set goals and follow through with hard, un-glamorous work, and sticking to my guns.  That's really what I'm about.  That, and cool shoes.

 

F0r an even more complete picture of who I am and what I stand for, read some of my work.  It tends to speak better for me than I can for myself.