Welcome, friend
Leave your 'boots' at the door
We go barefoot here. Pull up a chair, let the kettle warm, and sit a while. This is a small, well-worn place for veterans who carry heavy things and spend their days close to home — stories from the ground up, told honest and unhurried.
Listen
Find the show
A new tale every other week. Subscribe wherever you listen — and catch clips on YouTube.
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Who I am
Shane Estes
Marine. Mechanic. Carpenter. Artist. Husband and father. A fine-art student at A-B Tech, back in school at 38. Living with epilepsy, unable to drive, building a life from home.
- U.S. Marine
- Mechanic & carpenter
- Artist
- Husband & father
- Student at 38
- Living with epilepsy
- Western North Carolina
The name came from a neighbor — a sixth-generation hillbilly from these mountains. "I'm gonna call you WormFoot. You never have shoes on." A worm doesn't look like much, but it turns the soil so things can grow. That's the whole show: low to the ground, steady feet, still moving.
Why the show exists
A record of rebuilding — bolt by bolt
Not a sob story. A record of how a man rebuilt himself, and a front door for veterans who are stuck at home and think they're the only one. You're not.
Four out of fifty
Four Marines in one Motor T platoon started seizing — Lejeune water, burn pits. That story needs a voice.
Homebound vets are invisible
No truck, no VFW, no gym. The show is a way out of the house without leaving it.
Breaking the cycle
Telling the truth so the next generation doesn't inherit the silence.
Overcome and adapt
Isolation feeds the trauma, and the trauma feeds the isolation. What helps: bare feet on the ground, walking, art, building, sobriety, therapy, and people who actually listen.
Season 1
Tales from the Shire
Season 1 walks from the beginning to the return. A new tale is released every other week.
Along the way
Field Report
How the body and mind are doing this week, straight.
Barefoot Minute
One grounding practice or moment from the morning walk.
Bolt by Bolt
One tool that actually helped.
Mail Call
A listener vet's question or story.