Being "Nice Booted" at the Airport

I flew to Minneapolis today. As I was going through airport security at my home airport, of course I had to take the boots off -- my Nocona Rattlesnake Cowboy Boots. I put my jacket in the bin and then my boots on top. The boots fell off the jacket and out of the bin as it went through the X-ray. When I was gathering my stuff on the other side, the guy behind me picked up one of my boots and said, "this is a really cool boot, man!" The TSA woman joined in and said, "nice boots -- hey (colleague), look at these boots, aren't they nice?" Then there was a short but general consensus that everyone liked the boots.

I went to sit down to put my boots back on, and several passers-by also paid the same compliment -- "nice boots!". I also heard it several times while changing terminals in Chicago. It's nice to know that others notice. I just picked them because they are so comfortable and easy to take off and put back on again as one goes through airport security. I wasn't really thinking about attracting attention or having the boots noticed. But they are distinctive, especially when contrasted with blue jeans.