The Reason You Can't Go Barefoot in Kansas.

Since little Miss Yahoo is in preschool every morning now I've been enjoying running outside again rather than on a treadmill all the time. I really enjoy running in Kansas. There may not be hills or trees to enjoy but the sense of incredible spaciousness (and wind) can be exhilarating! 

I finished a morning run just the other day where I had ran through town, through a few ditches and dirt roads....overall a great run. But then I went to untie my shoes. 

This dear friends is the reason no one ever goes barefoot in SW Kansas. This is the reason why so many people out here wear boots. Burrs. Folks, these aren't anything like those sweet little burrs you'll find in Illinois or Indiana. Those little burrs that grab onto your clothes after walking in the Indiana woods, you know, the ones you easily brush off.  Nope, Kansas burrs are downright NASTY!! 

They are big and their spikes are HARD and painful.They sting even if you try to pull them off gently. So much so that I won't touch them with my bare fingers. I pulled these off my shoes with toilet paper. They stick to everything! 

I even found some securely stuck onto the sole hard soles of my running shoes. 

I've heard these called "goat burrs" and "sand burrs". I'm not sure if there's a difference between those two names or exactly which burrs were stuck all over my shoes. I have my own special name for these burrs "*#$&*@@# BURRS!!!!!" 

Burrs are also the reason you don't sit or lay down on the ground either. Yip learned that the hard way the first year we were here. We were out in the country at a friend's house and he lay down in their yard and came up with his back covered in these burrs!! He's never forgotten it either!