From @bigwallerballer : This is my Chocolate Lab, Kodiak Bear. He’s always been a great dog, but, like a lot of puppies, he really enjoys the taste of sneakers – not just any sneakers – but my favorite sneakers.
The first time I wore my Kobe 1 UNC’s, I remember being a bit self conscious – ‘they’re a bit showy’. I’m at the playground and I’m shooting hoops when I hear a few of the kids on the other hoop ‘oooo, he got the Ko Beeeees’ followed by some giggles. No doubt a dig at the fact that I appear to be just another white dude with some dope shoes (ie: the anti-thesis of an actual baller). Anyway, I get called into their game, run a few back and as everyones leaving, I over hear them talking to one another: ‘this dude shows up with Kobe’s on and he could actually BALL!’ (clearly one of my greatest basketball achievements).
This, in my mind, was my pass to wear these again. I didn’t just show up to the park with the dopest shoes…I wore the Kobe 1’s because, however unsuspecting, I was actually a baller (hence the name @bigballerwaller). I wore these approximately 5 times before Kodiak chewed them apart like they were tri-tips covered in BBQ sauce…he ate the full top half off one of the shoes…rendering them completely unwearable.
Another time, I came home from work and saw Kodiak in a super happy mood with a wagging tail…he led me down the hall into my bedroom where I found the illest Air Maxes I ever owned: The white/gold Air Max 1’s – in a pile of white and gold shoe pieces.
A few more pairs came and went…all torn to shreds by Kodiak. I estimate the haul to have been about $800 retail – probably closer to $1.3k resale at the moment. And as you can imagine I pretty much gave up on kicks after that…all in the belly of my sweet dog. My kick game would have been canine free if only I had @thesneakersavant cases…I need to find me another pair of those white and gold Air Maxes!
