Heel Yeah!

“So, what do you think?” Craig said, setting down his acoustic guitar.

“I think we’ve got the makings of a hit on our hands,” Charlie said.

“Brilliant,” Craig said. “I’ll book some studio time.”

“Well, hold on, lad,” Charlie said. “I said we’ve got the makings of a hit. I don’t think it’s quite there yet.”

“How so?” Craig said. “Maybe punch up the second verse?”

“No, actually, I think the verses are lovely,” Charlie said. “But the chorus, it’s just… a bit of a mouthful.”

“Really?” Craig said.

“Go ahead and sing it again,” Charlie said.

Craig picked up his guitar and sang the chorus another time: “And I would walk ten miles each day for about one hundred days in a row, assuming good health, proper rest, and appropriate hydration, as well as moisture-wicking clothing, sunscreen during times of peak sunlight, and appropriate footwear, preferably augmented with ComfyWalk insoles, each with six distinct layers that improve posture and relieve heel pain, ankle pain, and discomfort caused by plantar fasciitis, among other things, just to be the man who–.”

“Yes, yes, and then you say it all again,” said Charlie, raising his hand to stop his brother’s playing. “You don’t think that’s a bit much?”

Craig shook his head. “Not really, no.”

“Well, I do,” Charlie said. “And what’s this about ComfyWalk insoles? I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

“I spoke to a professor of business at the University of Edinburgh,” Craig said. “His models that track product trends and naming conventions project such a brand to establish as early as 2010.”

“Craig, mate, it’s 1987!” Charlie said.

“I’m thinking long term here,” Craig said. “Could you imagine how embarrassing it would be to name some insole company around now, only to see them go belly up before the record is even mastered?”

“That’s just the thing, Craig,” Charlie said. “I don’t think we should mention an insole company at all. I think the chorus should be ‘And I would walk one-thousand miles,’ et cetera.”

“Absolutely not,” Craig said. “I cannot, in good conscience, imply that such a journey be taken without stopping. It’s downright irresponsible.”

“Even though, in the end, you say you fall down at the door?” Charlie said.

“Even so,” Craig said.

Charlie sighed. They were at an impasse: they needed a way to imply a long journey taken but promote the idea of a break along the way. But how? How would they express such a thing?