With all this social distancing time, I’m catching up with long overdue product reviews. I’ve been wearing the Columbia PFG Fish Flip “sandal” (slippers to us locals), and the Columbia Grixen Oxford shoe for more than a year after catching a good sale.

The Grixen Oxfords look good enough for work and going out, and are waterproof with a grippy sole. Just checked though, and looks like they are discontinued. Shucks, it’s hard to find durable, decent looking shoes that can be used for pretty much all occasions.

The PFG (Performance Fishing Gear) Fish Flip has an anatomically contoured midsole and a grippy rubber sole. The sandals keep their shape, hold your feet in place and are made to wear wet.

Why do I care about grippy footwear? Well a few days before going to the Fred Hall Show in Long Beach, I slipped on a wet vinyl sided cardboard sheet in the rain, wearing rubba slippas. My back foot slid back, like a reverse lunge, and I ripped my middle toe nail completely off! My other toes were sliced up too. My first thought was whether I could still walk around the Show for 5 hrs. Thank God the antibacterial gel prevented infection and the Grixen shoes had extra room up front for band-aids!

I haven’t worn the offending rubba slippas since, and the Fish Flips have keep me planted, even when I swept out our flooded garage. If you don’t mind embroidered fish on the band of your slippers, I highly recommend the Fish Flips. And if you can find a pair of the discontinued Grixen Oxfords, jump on them. Look for sales, the Columbia products are often deeply discounted.