2 pairs of Purple Nike Co.JP’s (here’s the second pair), from I think 2002. These were some of the hottest joints to drop that year - never mind co.jp’s - although looking at them now I’m not so sure they’d be able to go toe to toe with Hong Kongs or some of the city attacks. But there were some fine pairs of canvas vandals in those days: red and gold, black and gold, the berlin vandals (which TIGA reportedly owned), and later some Junya Watanabe canvas vandals (only avail. at his army store in Tokyo, for about a week at $500 or something stupid). It’s a gentleman’s call as to which is the best of the bunch.The red and golds were pretty ill at the time, and certainly get better with age. Although canvas Vandals, Berlins or otherwise, are ignorable shoes: they crease easy, white midsoles, you can never get the straps done up, they look like air forces but with a narrower toe. Vandals are a lot sleepier than the promotion behind them would garner. Not that they had any real promotion, besides that schizophrenic foray from england in 2004, t-shirts, sweatshirts, jackets, all done up with bold helvetica caps lock (or was it aardvark bold?).A worn vandal might as well be a terribly beaten up (shredded) air force.With these though, the purple might be the best purple on any Nike ever (in real life they look more like the first pair), and the silver swoosh calls up the stainless steel wash-basins in the Vatican. That said, it’s hard for a high-top, never mind a purple one, never mind a dogg with the biggest swoosh in the game* to be subtle or understated. But what are you going to do, cry about it? Yeah, it’s purple, yeah, it’s 2008, and everyone with a T1 line looks like an asshole from the ankles down. Yeah, God didn’t intend for good Nikes to be worn with Cheap Mondays. Yeah, if you were cool you’d stick to Jordans XV throug XVIII, go to the gym and not ask any questions. Yes, the wrong side is a skinhead band. Yes to all these things. But, really, when you buy a shoe of this caliber, you’re doing nothing if not trying.

*these vandals have bigger swooshes than anything besides those retro’d up Blazers** At least the only games i get are Nets and Knicks games. COOL. Real fucking cool. Hope this entry wasn’t too incoherent..