Homeland memory

Bolshevik Luxury

I get up every morning at 6:30 to get Oscar O'Brien ready for school, and then I take him down to catch the yellow bus. Sometimes I put my jeans on right over my jammies. The one consistent element in my morning outfit is my footwear. Every morning I wear my traditional Russian wool boots, or "valenki." They have been made this way from 100% boiled wool for 300 years, except that now, in the modern era, they come with detachable galoshes for when it snows. Boy are they cozy. And you don't even really need socks. (Well, maybe if it goes below zero.) Yesterday it was nippy and I wore them out on the town with my jeans tucked in, and got compliments from my agent, my publisher, and my dentist. They're hipper than Uggs and can be had for only $80 from www.valenkisrus.com.