There are times in this life when gaudy is the way to go: expensive sports shoes named after famous sports celebrities or high-class stilettos from world-famous European fashion designers both have their place. But if you're walking down a romantic sunset laden beech, pumps may not be the best choice. And what if you just want to run out and pick up the mail on a summer afternoon. You don't want to deal with lacing up your regular shoes just to run in and out of the house, but its sure nice to have something between your feet and the hot pavement. And so the appeal of cheap flip flops. Purchased at discount and sometimes in bulk by even the wealthiest and pickiest of shoppers, there's never anything fussy about flip flops. They've gone by other names, from the proper "thong," - which can obviously create confusion with a very differently positioned article of minimal clothing - to "jandals," and the somewhat less well-known "pluggers", and of course "sandals". In any case, minimalist shoes by any other name still protect the bottom of your feet.

Today, flip-flops come in an enormous of styles aimed at both genders, from the most colorful and outlandish designs imaginable to styles so conservative they almost seem businesslike. There are even dressier flip flops for women that created a stir some years back when some of the Women's Lacrosse Team from Northwestern University wore them to the White House. Some found it an insult for the young women to wear such a casual footwear to the home of the U.S. President, but the women countered that they weren't wearing ordinary flip-flops but dressy sandals that happened to have a thong design. In any case, those wishing to stem the tide of informality that has swept the U.S. over the last several decades are invariably swimming upstream.

The thong-type shoes worn at that photo-op with the President weren't cheap flip-flops and there's no way around the fact that being inexpensive and almost disposable is a major part of the deal with this most laid back of all foot-coverings. The bulk of flip-flops are worn for months at a time, rarely for years -- though some folks have been known to keep them together with safety pins and Scotch tape, extending their cheapness well beyond the usual levels. Still, when you think of it, the appeal of flip-flops comes down to two wonderful feelings: comfort and the joy of a product that is nearly always sold at a giant discount.