Saw this cute little critter soaking in the sunrays on one of my dirty smelly sneakers out of the front porch. It seemed fairly "tame" as it allowed me to get pretty close to take the picture. I believe it is a Northern Fence Lizard, which is fairly common around here. Usually it is difficult to get within five or ten feet of one of these. From the color, it appears to be a female, and her wide girth indicates that she will be laying some eggs fairly soon.

Definitely, it is a good idea to look inside one's shoes before putting them on, not only lizards, but spiders, and other critters may be hiding inside them.