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I reckon that the fascination of the female species with shoes should be a course of study by now. In the female kingdom so-to-speak, the magical ability of shoes to authorise and enchant cannot be measured. For women, just hearing the name ‘Jimmy' or ‘Louboutin' can cause a quickening of the heart and awaken the sort of devotion that most men experience only in the lines of soccer and scotch.

Today, the evolving relationship between men and their shoes is something of a threat to the once exclusive female shoe-affair. Men are paying more attention than ever before to what goes on their feet; possibly even thinking in the same light as women. Suddenly, it is fashion over function.

They are starting to realise that their shoes are certainly capable of leaving just as lasting an impression as women's. And designers are taking full advantage of this newly found, erm, wisdom...?

At the Milan Men's Fashion Week, Jimmy Choo is launching a line of men's shoes.

"You can get away with a pair of worn-out jeans or the most rough-and-tumble suit, and if the shoes are well fitting and well cared for, the whole outfit passes," explains Hilary Freeman, who runs British shoemaker Edward Green. "But even if you are wearing the best tailored suit and the shoes are not up to the mark, well ..." Her voice trails off.

The pinnacle of men's footwear, of course, is the handmade shoe. Having brogues and oxfords made to order is becoming quite the trend in Lagos. First, it started with the men in fashion and now all men are getting familiar with the art of fancy footwear.

Let me share a story. At the Arise Magazine Fashion Week, I was dressed to the nines, and everything I wore was tailored to fit. But in all my ‘dapperness' I failed to bother about the shoes. They didn't look ram-shackled or anything. They were just regular black shoes. Still I thought no one would pay any attention. Boy was I wrong! People I spoke to said "hey, you look nice, well except for the shoes."

And the ones that couldn't verbalise it, said it with their eyes. And who can blame them? That place was filled with amazing male shoes on and off the runway, and from backstage to red-carpet. So as you would suspect, I was uncomfortable for the rest of the show. The next morning, nobody had to tell me to get me some new shoes. People are no longer joking! Shoes are ‘it' this season onwards.

Terence Sambo of onenaijaboy.com, (whose love for shoes can only be compared to a person's need for oxygen) says his shoes are extensions of his personality. Terence's collection is absolutely different from the array of annoying urban footwear like plimsolls that have flooded the nation. He doesn't just wear any shoe that fits; he searches far and wide to find footwear ranging from the tassled look to espadrilles. Your shoes should have character and ought to mirror your personality.

Seun Anifowose, owner of Ani footwear (a thriving shoe brand) saw favourable patronage at the Arise Magazine Fashion Week when he collaborated with another shoemaker to form the brand "Haus of Hercules". Their shoes made an appearance in every male collection and people took notice; requesting peers, so much so that the next day the red carpet looked like a Haus of Hercules convention. Ani recently unveiled a new collection of toms, sandals and everything in between made from such luxury materials as velvet and ankara. And consumers and fashion critics are impressed with the variety in colour, range but mostly, comfort.

Shoes are making delightful waves in the world of men's fashion. So maybe finally, we understand the satisfaction experienced by women or maybe we never will. But one thing is for sure; our shoes do not command the same attention as a pair of killer-heels. They certainly are not a Louboutin. The effect is rather subtle but the message is quite clear, WE LOVE OUR SHOES TOO!

Wilma Goodtooth and Betty Beautiful — aka Rhonda Vlach and Sandy Brandt of Fremont — were a big hit with children and adults alike as they strolled the milelong parade route pushing a shopping cart loaded with candy. The dynamic duo were dressed in garish dresses, fur-trimmed floppy hats and oversize sunglasses for their 10th consecutive appearance in the parade.

“We have never registered for (the parade), so we're not official entries,” Vlach said. “We just jump in after the bigwigs go past.”

Brandt said the two had a secret weapon to battle the 90-plus degree heat: they taped bags of frozen vegetables to their upper bodies.

“We like to say that the (vegetables) are ready to eat by the time we reach the end of the (parade) route,” Brandt said.

The parade is the culmination of a three-day citywide celebration that includes a hot-air balloon glow, Chautauqua tent, rodeo, street dance, living history encampments, music and a race in high-heel shoes. This year, volunteers built and devoured a 1,652-pound Spam sandwich that may wind up certified by Guinness World Records.

As is the custom, the parade was led by residents portraying Maj. Gen. John C. Fremont and his wife, Jessie Benton Fremont. Barry Reker and Susan Allen filled the parts in historically accurate costumes while riding in a horse-drawn carriage.

Reker, in his second year as the general, said the all-wool Army uniform helped him shed some pounds last year.

“We were just saying that there probably weren't a lot of overweight people back in the day because of the (heavy) clothes they had to wear,” Reker said. “But it's a lot of fun. The kids all want to know if the sword is real — and it is.”

Allen, who has been the general's lady for 10 years, said the parade is her favorite part of the celebration.

“People stop me on the street all the time and they will say ‘Oh, you're Mrs. Fremont,' ” she said. “Like a lot of people here, I look forward to this weekend all year long.”

Hundreds of people lined the parade route, many crammed into whatever slivers of shade they could find.

Mike and Chris Ireland of Fremont watched from the doorway of a Main Street store as two preteen grandsons sporting Mohawk haircuts snagged handfuls of candy distributed by parade marchers.

“If we don't bring the kids every year, then we hear about it,” Mike Ireland said. “The whole (celebration) does a lot to bring the community together.”

Former Fremont residents Gov. Dave Heineman and first lady Sally Ganem said walking the parade route is on their must-do list every year.

Ganem said she marvels at how the event has grown. She remembers pitching in when Sue Reyzlik, Patti Emanuel-Vaughan and Cherrie Clarke began organizing events for the first John C. Fremont Days in 1987.

“It makes it particularly exciting for me because I know how it all got started,” Ganem said. “Now, to see the parade and all the events survive for so long … it's very special.”

Fair and responsible service is what Hank Sauer aims to give in his job as wine judging facilitator.

Sauer, his wife Nancy, and Wine Press Northwest editors Andy Perdue and Eric Degerman were brought in by World Publishing's Foothills magazine to provide objective judging for the first North Central Washington Wine Awards June 30. The Wine Press Northwest team officiates dozens of wine judgings throughout the Northwest. Results of the competition will be in the August issue of Foothills.

I volunteered to work in the backroom to prepare the wines for the judges and it was quite an education. The technique used in most wine competitions is called double blind judging, meaning the judges don't know what wineries are entered in the competition nor do they know what wines they're tasting, other than by category. That could be as vague as red or white wine, or it can be a specific variety like chardonnay or cabernet sauvignon. It all depends on the number and diversity of entries in the competition.

There was plenty to choose from at the Confluence Technology Center in Olds Station, where the judging was held last Thursday. Some 240 wines were entered by more than 40 NCW wineries.

My job was to help transport the submitted wine to the event Wednesday from a temperature-controlled cellar where they have been stored. Wineries had to submit three bottles of each wine entered for judging. One backup was required in case judges found flaws or corking in the first bottle. The third bottle was required for second round judging for best of show awards. That made more than 720 bottles of wine that had to be handled.

Thursday morning, the wines had to be sorted by variety to determine the various categories to be judged. Once the categories were determined, each bottle of wine was numbered and labeled. As an example, there were eight different Pinot Gris, labeled 01-01 through 01-08. There were 18 different Merlot. They were labeled 02-01 through 02-18. In all, there were 17 categories, including 11 varietals, red and white blends, other reds and whites, ros wines, fruit and dessert wines.

Judges were not allowed in the back room where the wines were being prepared at any time during the event.

Under Hank and Nancy Sauer's supervision, we backroom volunteers opened one bottle of each of the red wines for decanting uncorking the bottle, pouring the wine out briskly into a pitcher and then funneling it back into the bottle. White wines were put on ice 20 minutes before serving to reach optimum taste temperatures.

When judges were ready to go to work a few hours after backroom work beganwe poured flights of 1.5-ounce glasses of each wine for each judge. Each judge there were seven of them plus panel moderators Perdue and Degerman got flights of eight Pinot Gris. After they judged that, they got two rounds of nine tastes of Merlot. Next came Chardonnay, followed by Riesling and Sangiovese. On and on, we poured.

The backroom sorting, pouring, serving and glass-washing went on from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. We were exhausted, but exhilarated with another hour of clean-up ahead of us. It helped that we got to have a few sips of some terrific local wines.

Police who would like to speak to him in connection with a racist verbal attack on a shopkeeper in Medway.

Detectives are appealing for information after two men and a woman went into an off-license in Rochester High Street and verbally abused staff there.

The incident happened on Saturday, June 25, at about 3.15pm, but details have only just been released by police.

As the group went into the shop, a glass bottle was smashed. The owners asked the damaged item be paid for and although they were reimbursed, they were subjected to the abuse.

Officers are investigating the incident and are keen to speak to a man who may have information which would assist the police with their enquiries.

He is white, with short dark hair and was wearing three-quarter length trousers and a pink polo T-shirt.

DS Mark Silk said: "We believe that this man may be able to assist us with our enquiries and I urge him, or anyone who recognises him, to contact us as a priority.

Squeezed parents are still managing to set aside up to $1,500 a year to spend on their children's clothing, according to a new survey from Shelia' Wheels.

A poll commissioned by the ladies' insurance firm found the average child's wardrobe is worth $1,677.

Nearly two-thirds of children own at least one item of designer clothing, while 39% of kids are bought their first labelled apparel before their second birthday.

British parents are scraping together an average of $764 a year to spend on the latest attire for their children with 6% spending up to $1,500 annually, more than the average cost of households' spiralling energy costs.
The average child has more than 154 items of clothing in their wardrobe, a shoe collection valued at over $190 and a toy collection worth $1,676.

More than half of the parents questioned said they had bought clothes for their kids they had never worn, while two-thirds admitted to splashing out on items that had only been worn once.

Some 36% of parents said they worried their children would be bullied if their wardrobe were deemed to be not sufficiently up-to-date. A quarter admitted to feeling guilty if they did not buy their children the latest fashions, while nearly 40% declared it their “duty” to keep their offspring on-trend.

Jacky Brown, a spokesperson at Sheilas' Wheels, said: “It used to be kids who followed in their parents' footsteps but now it seems children are leading the way when it comes to keeping up with expensive fashion trends.

“Designer clothes and shoes for kids have become an increasingly popular purchase but parents must make sure they tot up the value of their child's wardrobe to ensure they have ample contents insurance, as it's crucial not to underestimate the cost to replace a little miss fashionista's designer wardrobe.”

Walk before you run. Or, if you're a presidential hopeful in New Hampshire, march while you run.

In a state where presidential politics is as much a part of the 4th of July as fireworks and barbecues, Republicans seeking their party's nomination were well represented across the state Monday.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman both marched in the Amherst parade Monday morning, along with supporters of Ron Paul, Tim Pawlenty and Rick Santorum.

Though Romney was wearing running shoes, Huntsman kept up a quicker pace, sprinting back and forth across the parade route to greet voters, often with his two young daughters scrambling to keep up.

"Get some stickers," he told his staff when he stopped to buy some lemonade from two young girls wearing Romney stickers.

"Aside from the politicking and the handshaking and the enthusiasm that our campaign is determined to generate in this state, we're going to reflect on what it means to be an American," Huntsman told reporters. "To share inalienable rights, to share our Constitutional privileges."

The two former governors crossed paths just briefly as the parade began, exchanging pleasantries before taking their assigned spots in the lineup. Romney's campaign was first, with the only float sponsored by a candidate — a large, three-dimensional model of the New Hampshire state seal featuring a warship built in Portsmouth in 1776.

As the parade wound through the village, Romney led his supporters in a song his father used when he ran for president in 1968, beginning, "Hooray for Romney! Hooray for Romney! Someone in the crowd shout Hooray for Romney!"

None of the onlookers took him up on it, but they at least knew who he was. Several parade watchers remarked "Jon who?" when hearing Huntsman's team shout "Jon 20-12! Jon 20-12!"

Bob Burke, 50, of Amherst, had heard of Huntsman and counts himself a fan.

"I like his energy," he said. "And the fact that he showed up makes a big difference."

Further along the route, fellow Amherst resident Robert Rendall, 57, shouted out to Romney as he passed, asking him to protect American jobs and stop outsourcing them overseas. A two-time Romney supporter, Rendall said he appreciated getting to see the candidates participate in the parade every four years.