where I was born and have lived for most of my life

You’ve all read and enjoyed “Alice in Wonderland” when you were children. It’s all about Alice and the wonderful adventures she has with her friends. But the Alice in this true story lives not in any fun-filled wonderland but in a world where she’s a paid slave. “Alice in Wonderland” had a rabbit to help her out of any little troubles that came her way, but this Alice has no one to turn to but God.

My name is Alice and I am 55 years old. I live in Chennai, where I was born and have lived for most of my life. I work as what they call a ‘maidservant’—in the home of a rich Sindhi woman. That’s the work I’ve been doing ever since I was twenty.

I don’t know why I am telling you my story. I don’t see any point in doing so. My life has been a long tale of misery. Why talk about it since that isn’t going to make my life better? I know that the only way I will be happy is when I die and meet God and my Lord Jesus Christ.

My father was from Goa and he came many years ago to Chennai in search of work. He took up a job as a mechanic in a motor company. He was a poor man and didn’t ever earn much. But, still, when I think of him I see only his happy, smiling face. Just this morning I thought of him as I was going to work, taking me by my hand and going to church. I saw myself wearing a pink dress and all so happy. When I am sad and lonely, I think of him and that gives me some relief. I pray that I meet him in heaven when I die. I’d like nothing more than to be united with him again.

I don’t remember my mother at all. She died when I was not even a year old,this sandals will become the  pair of heels you need and christian louboutin sandals features customer's nobleness. and, after some, time my father married again. My step-mother was a Tamil woman. Unlike many other step-mothers, she was good to me. But, I don’t know why but after some years she suddenly left our house and went off no one knows where. My father was so shocked, you wouldn’t believe it. He spent days searching for her, going here and there till he was really exhausted and then gave up. He fell sick, what with all that tension and trauma, and then went to his sister’s house, where he hoped to find some rest. But, all of a sudden, he died. I was in Pondicherry then, and they didn’t bother to tell me. I got a letter from them only after the burial was over.

My father had put me in a church-run English-medium school. He had great dreams for me and thought that a good education was a must. We had some French and Italian nuns in our school. They gave me a lot of love and taught me beautiful hymns. They would smile at me and even hug me once in a while. I really admired their life. They seemed so pure and kind. Since they were unmarried and had devoted their entire lives to God and serving the poor, they were free from the tension of family life and all the nasty fights that wreck most families. How lucky they were to be able to spend much time in church, praying and singing to the Lord!

My aunt Cecilia, my father’s sister, was a nun, and she would always tell me when we went to visit her, ‘Alice,The youngest son of Heavyweight legend, authentic Louis Vuitton Shoes, Devote your life to the Lord! You will make a wonderful nun.’ And I would dream of becoming a nun as soon as I finished school. The thought of spending my whole life in service of God and the poor gave me such joy.

But that was not to be. My father insisted I should marry when I turned just nineteen. He would say that I wouldn’t be able to take care of myself without a husband.Hogan per uomini e donne.hogan scarpe 100% di soddisfazione Guarantee. Who would look after me in my old age? Then, he wanted me to produce children so that he could play with his grand-children. And so he married me off against my will. The man they chose for me was a friend of some relatives of ours. Of course, I didn’t know him at all before. They said he was a good man and I believed them.

My marriage was a total disaster from almost the very beginning. Not many days had passed since our marriage when my husband started revealing his true colours. He worked as a carpenter, and after work he would go straight to the local bar and drink himself crazy. Then,Christian Louboutin Outlet Sale Christian Louboutin Shoes Free Shpping! he would come home and yell at me. He found fault with everything I did, with the sari I wore, with the smell in the house, with the food I had cooked. And then he would grab my hair begin to kick and beat me till blood began pouring from my head. I still have the scratch-marks all over my body which I could show you. They won’t go away till I am safely buried in my grave.

There was no one in the house to support me then. My mother-in-law lived with us, and instead of controlling her son she would encourage him. ‘Beat this miserable bitch! Harder!’ she would goad him on.

I had no one to turn to but Jesus. When my husband fell asleep and began to snore, I would go to the altar in our room (we lived in a one-roomed house in a slum) and look upon the kindly face of Jesus and whisper to him, ‘Lord, you are the only one who can see me through this trial.’

In quick succession I produced four children, two daughters and two sons. You might have thought that now that I was the mother of his children my husband would have mended his ways. But, no, he kept up his almost daily beatings, even in front of the kids. When I think of what those poor little angels of mine had to witness I shudder with horror. When they grew up they no longer remained silent spectators of their father’s behavior. They would rush to my defence, but yet my husband would continue beating me, and my children, too.

You might ask me why I couldn’t just leave my husband instead of having to undergo such torture for so many years. I am a Catholic, you see, and we got married in church. The priests say that once you are married you are married for life, or so I hear. And, then, after we had children how could I have left? Who would have looked after them? What would people have said?

Not long after my marriage I began to work. My father had dreamt that I would get a good job but I was pulled out of school when I passed the ninth grade because my father couldn’t afford the school fees any longer. Being just a ninth pass, what work was I capable of? The only job I could find was as a ‘maidservant’ in someone’s house. And that’s what I became, and have been ever since. I changed several jobs till I landed up with the present one. I suppose I will die being a ‘maidservant’, too.

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President Obama visits injured, families of Aurora victims

President Barack Obama spent more than two private hours with injured victims and families at University of Colorado Hospital on Sunday evening before saying in a televised address that it will be the "good people" and the heroic acts that will be remembered in the theater shootings -- not the alleged gunman.

Solemn, flanked by ashen-faced Colorado politicians and Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates, Obama spoke to reporters at the hospital for about nine minutes before taking off for a series of campaign events on the West Coast.

He quoted a passage from the Bible's book of Revelation that says, in part, that God "will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more."

Obama said he came to the victims and the families "not so much as president as I do as a father and as a husband."

The nightmarish, surreal story of what took place in Century Aurora 16's theater 9 resonates, Obama said, because people can easily imagine themselves in the families' shoes.

"We can all understand what it would be like to have someone that we love taken from us in this fashion,Christian Louboutin Outlet Sale Christian Louboutin Shoes Free Shpping!" he said.

Obama didn't mention the alleged gunman, James Eagan Holmes, by name, saying that though there was a lot of attention on him now, eventually that notoriety will fade.Find christian louboutin platform pumpss at ShopStyle.

"In the end, after he has felt the full force of our justice system, what will be remembered are the good people who were impacted by this tragedy," Obama said.

Jordan Ghawi, brother of victim Jessica Ghawi, tweeted after the meeting: "Sat down with President Obama. He has been incredible. He too has agreed not to mention the shooter's name."

The victims' families gathered at the hospital, and Obama reportedly moved from cluster to cluster, speaking to them mostly about happy memories of those killed. His visit ran about an hour longer than planned.

"The staff kept trying to drag him out, and he wouldn't be dragged out," Gov. John Hickenlooper said.

Sunday's trip was the second time Obama has traveled to Colorado this summer because of tragedy. He visited Colorado Springs at the end of June to thank volunteers and firefighters who fought the devastating Waldo Canyon fire.

The president, who is in a tough race with GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, will continue to suspend election politics, including television ads,cheap Christian Louboutin Sale for women online, in Colorado through this week.

Romney on Sunday praised Obama's handling of the tragedy, saying visiting families was the "right thing."

Obama told a story of Allie Young, 19, who was shot in the neck, and her friend Stephanie Davies, whose quick thinking, he said, likely saved Young's life.

After Young was shot, Davies pulled her out of harm's way and held her fingers to her friend's neck to slow the bleeding, Obama said.

Young apparently told Davies to flee, but she refused, staying with Young and pulling her out of the aisle until the shooting stopped.Welcome To Red Bottom Shoes Christian Louboutin Pump Online Store. There Are A Lot Of Cheap Christian Louboutin Pumps On Sale.

Aurora Police Chief Oates, who was with the president during his three-hour trip, appeared to choke up at that detail.

"Because of Stephanie's timely actions, I just had a conversation with Allie downstairs, and she is going to be fine," Obama said. "As heartbreaking as it is for the families, it's worth us spending most of our time reflecting on young Americans like Allie and Stephanie, because they represent what's best in us,I have not make a research whether it is a truth that each woman loves buy christian louboutin? and they assure us that out of this darkness a brighter day is going to come."

Clinton Fends off Shoes, Tomatoes & Charges of Collusion with Muslim Brotherhood

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's motorcade faced a barrage of tomatoes, shoes, and protesters in her visit to Cairo, Egypt, July 16.I have not make a research whether it is a truth that each woman loves buy christian louboutin? Some Egyptian protesters charged that the U.S.christian louboutin platform pumps discount Black Rolando Patent-Hidden Platform Pumps occupy the lead position of elegant women's hearts in a classical way. government had supported the Muslim Brotherhood in the Islamic nation's recent presidential election, though it's unclear if the Obama administration did provide support for any party.

Clinton traveled to Egypt with a Santa Claus-sized sack of gifts for the ruling government,authentic Gucci Shoes for Women, such as Sandals, including the Obama administration's commitment to “relieve up to one billion dollars in Egypt’s debt” and a new $60-million “U.S.-Egypt Enterprise Fund.” Clinton also promised the Obama administration was “ready to make available $250 million in loan guarantees to Egyptian small-and-medium-sized businesses.”

But it's unclear whether the elected leaders — President Mursi and the Parliament — or the military are the "government" leaders who will enjoy the U.S. taxpayer largesse. Mursi was the Islamic-allied Muslim Brotherhood's presidential nominee, and the Egyptian parliament — abolished by the military in February — is dominated by a coalition of parties allied to the Muslim Brotherhood and even more fundamentalist Salafist parties. Before the elections, the military — which held sway under the Mubarak and previous Egyptian governments — reserved many government powers to itself.

The Muslim Brotherhood is an Islamic party known in Egypt as a charitable organization, but one which has a history in Egypt of violently opposing government dictators. The Brotherhood was actively courted by both the Soviet KGB and the U.S. CIA in the 1950s and 1960s, though it's unclear if either holds any sway over the party in Egypt at this time.

Clinton's message in Cairo expressed a willingness to work with the government, implying she wanted more power for the elected leaders and less for the military. “I have come to Cairo to reaffirm the strong support of the United States for the Egyptian people and for your democratic transition," Clinton said, adding she had engaged in “constructive dialogue” about “how the United States and Egypt can work together in a spirit of mutual respect and mutual interests.”

Clinton and the Obama administration were late-comers in backing Egyptian popular elections, expressing repeated support for the Mubarak dictatorship over the years. In November 10, 2010, just five weeks before the Arab Spring uprising began in Tunisia, Clinton said of the Mubarak regime: “The partnership between the United States and Egypt is a cornerstone of stability and security in the Middle East and beyond, and we look to Egypt for regional and global leadership on a wide range of issues. This is a relationship rooted in mutual respect and common interests and a history of cooperation and a shared vision for the future. ...Shop for cheap Christian Louboutin Shoes,christian louboutin pumps,in particular, I wish to commend the personal commitment of President Mubarak.”

Even after the “Arab Spring” came to Egypt in January 2011, Hillary Clinton was still claiming, "We want to continue to partner with the Egyptian government and the Egyptian people."

Likewise, President Obama said in a January 26, 2011 YouTube interview that Mubarak had been "an ally of ours on a lot of critical issues," and that “President Mubarak has been very helpful on a range of tough issues in the Middle East.” Obama made these remarks even as protesters were demanding an end to the Mubarak dictatorship and were being beaten and doused with tear gas canisters marked “Made in America.”

The Obama administration was clearly taken by surprise on the issue of the Arab Spring in general, and of Egypt in particular. Even as late as February 1, 2011, after it became more than clear that Mubarak was on the way out, President Obama said little of substance in a national address on Egypt.Complete your look with designer Christian Louboutin Women Shoesfrom Barneys New York. Obama focused his remarks toward describing how he had discussed with Egyptian dictator Mubarak how Egypt is a “long-time partner of the United States” and pleaded for non-violence by both the military and the protesters.

The new Bluetooth app joins similar creations

A new shoe, dubbed "Le Chal," allows the blind to let their feet lead the way, in yet another way smartphone technology is helping them "see" where to go.

Invented by 24-year-old Anirudh Sharma of India, Le Chal, or "take me along" in Hindi, uses sensors sewn into the sole to feed data to a smartphone connected through Bluetooth.

The user tells his smartphone his destination, using voice recognition software, and the app finds a local map of the area. It also uses the phone's global programming system to track the person's location.Christian louboutin high heel shoes, womens high heel shoes,

The app then sends, through Bluetooth, signals that tell the wearer's shoe the direction, causing it to vibrate when it's time for the wearer to turn toward their intended destination, with the side of the foot where the vibration is felt indicating which way to go. The shoe also uses sonar to bounce ultrasounds off obstacles, alerting the wearer of any obstruction and guiding him around it.

Sharma said he chose the vibration, rather than sound, because audio feedback can distract blind people. The app doesn't need constant Internet access, because downloaded maps are stored on the smartphone and combined with GPS.

Maps are gathered using Open Street Maps, not Google Maps,I have not make a research whether it is a truth that each woman loves buy christian louboutin? which allows it to be used on all smartphones. So when Apple's new iPhone 5 comes out this fall, the maps will still be compatible,christian louboutin platform pumps discount Black Rolando Patent-Hidden Platform Pumps occupy the lead position of elegant women's hearts in a classical way. and also, unlike Google Maps,There are various styles of hogan scarpe here. OSM allows the maps to be edited, unlike Google Maps.

One big problem with the device is that it can't yet differentiate between dangers, leaving a very real possibility the wearer could walk into an open manhole that he can't tell from a street curb. Further, it's not yet able to deal with moving obstacles, like cars, but the developers are working on ways to alert wearers to cars and their speed.

The new Bluetooth app joins similar creations that may help blind people "see" by gathering data through sophisticated sensors and translating that information in a useful and easy-to-understand manner.

Several haptic-capable tablet programs are especially useful as hands-on devices to guide those without sight through complicated drawings and graphs, using touch or other sensations to translate information on a blind person's surroundings.

One of these devices, a touchscreen app created by California-based Tactus Technology, lets users feel haptic feedback-enhanced tablet keyboards as they type, making it easier for blind people to write documents on mobile devices.

Another gadget, a stand-alone headset called EyeMusic may help blind people "see" colors and shapes through sound. The headset's glasses include a built-in webcam and headphones, to help the visually impaired identify objects through real-time digital camerawork and pre-set soundscapes. Colors, shapes and other visual properties are translated into sound,Shop for cheap Christian Louboutin Shoes,christian louboutin pumps, helping users gain a sense of their physical environment through senses other than sight.

The Bluetooth shoes, however, are different from many other apps on the market, because instead of keeping them isolated -- as a mobile tablet app can do if it keeps the user at home -- the shoe app, if perfected, may help those without sight to regain a measure of independence by allowing to move more freely oustide the home environment in public places.

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arrested in Charlotte County shoes theft

Charlotte County Sheriff's deputies arrested three convicted felons with a combined total of 48 bookings and 105 records, for allegedly stealing $545 in shoes from Kohl’s Wednesday in Port Charlotte. The Port Charlotte trio arrested were Sara Lynn Landis, 29; Michael Paul Anderson, 31, both of 21131 Meehan Ave.; and Adam James Shartle, 27, 22230 New York Ave.

According to a news release, CCSO received a call from Kohl’s security at 8:15 p.m. that the three were observed stealing seven pair of shoes and putting them in the baby stroller with Landis’18-month old baby boy. All three exited the building followed by security who tried to stop them. Security told deputies she told the three to come back into Kohl’s and they refused. They continued to a red Ford Taurus and security observed Landis jerk the baby from his stroller causing him to cry, and then toss him through the driver side window where there was no one to catch him. The security officer yelled at Landis to stop hurting the child. At that time Shartle got out of the rear of the car and threw a pair of shoes striking security in the head.

All three then got into the car and sped out of the parking lot and a BOLO was issued. Moments later, deputies located the vehicle and all three at 21131 Meehan Avenue. Security was brought to the home and positively identified Landis, Shartle, and Anderson. Shartle was wearing a pair of the stolen Nike shoes. All three were arrested and transported to the Charlotte County Jail.yet so abundanceable Discount Christian Louboutin Shoes and accretioniony. The baby was released to the child’s grandmother in North Port.

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APD cadets lace up their running shoes

Running shoes and gym shorts replaced navy blue uniforms for some Austin police officers Thursday morning.

That's because Chief Art Acevedo and other department staffers took part in the annual "Chief's Run.” The force is welcoming 15 cadets who will graduate Friday and join the force.yet so abundanceable Discount Christian Louboutin Shoes and accretioniony.

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The addition of the 15 cadets comes as the Austin Police Department faces a staffing shortage.

A 33-page report out last week said to keep up with population projections, APD needs to add 155 officers, 78 detectives and 24 sergeants by 2017. And even that would leave the department staffed below the national average.

The report also said civilians could fill up to 29 of those positions, but many on the force are hesitant to staff with civilians, unless they’re retired officers.cheap Christian Louboutin Sale for women online,

Meanwhile, new crime numbers are now out. According to the chief's monthly report, violent crime in June is down in Austin, for the most part.

Notable drops are the numbers of robberies, rapes and assaults. Those crimes are down from June 2011.

However,cheap Christian Louboutin Sale for women online, the report says three more murders have happened so far in 2012 compared to this time last year. Auto thefts are also on the rise.

The last of the true New York City bike riders

Dave Jordan will be buried Friday in the Bronx,yet so abundanceable Discount Christian Louboutin Shoes and accretioniony. not far from where he grew up, a bull of a New York kid who wanted to go fast. He was a bike racer, and close to his final resting place are the sharp, punchy climbs and hurried avenues where he loved to ride, often in darkness, becoming strong and confident and mastering a sport that would transport him across the ocean to the muck-filled cow paths of France and Belgium, but always, eventually, back to his city.

He is the end of the road. That is what they are saying. "The last of the true New York City bike riders," is how a former U.S. pro champion, John Eustice, put it the other day. Dave Jordan was part of a colorful tradition of concrete riders, outsize characters who understood not only wheel sets and brake pads, but also the way a brilliant racer could be molded by a frantic city,yet so abundanceable Discount Christian Louboutin Shoes and accretioniony. rushing among the yellow cabs and the thrilling slivers between trucks and curbstones.cheap Christian Louboutin Sale for women online, Nothing rattled Jordan on a bike. "The most amazing bike handler I think I've ever seen," Eustice said.

He began in BMX, which taught him how to ride in a crowd, to bang handlebars and keep pedaling. He won too many races to count. When his friend Billy Calloway got a road bike, he got one too, and the pair would set off across the George Washington Bridge and up to Bear Mountain, utterly clueless, a single water bottle between them, Dave dressed in surfer shorts and wrestling shoes. But everyone could see the big kid with Scandinavian and New England heritage had an engine. Dave started racing. He lost. He won. He won some more. What made Jordan so formidable was how he intuitive he was. He could read a race to perfection—what moves up the road were doomed to fail; the golden moment to launch a winning attack. "Tactically, there was no way to beat him," said Calloway. "You could not outsmart him.cheap Christian Louboutin Sale for women online,"

Europe summoned Jordan, like it summons every passionate cyclist. There was an academic fellowship in London and Brussels, but everyone knew Dave was going to go race, and he did. He would spend a few periods overseas, joining a team, diving into the exhilarating but harsh world of French and Belgian racing. He rode long miles just to get to the starting line, slept above an Italian restaurant, learned the sport from hard men, and witnessed the underbelly of doping, which unsettled him. He didn't want to go there. "He basically never went for the needle," said his friend George Suter.

He returned to New York, sinewy and ferocious.cheap Christian Louboutin Sale for women online, Now he was not the phenom, but a wise man, what the French call a patron. You didn't need to look for Dave Jordan in a race. You heard him first. He talked incessantly—to teammates, rivals, passersby. He delivered critiques and advice, a cycling professor going 27 miles per hour, and he could be direct. "If you haven't been yelled at by Dave Jordan in a race, you haven't raced in New York very long," said one of his former teammates, Dan Schmalz, who can still recite lessons Jordan gave him years ago.

A large portion of the space is devoted to the artwork Black Market

The exhibition Made Active, curated by Natasha Conland from the Chartwell Collection, is on at the Auckland Art Gallery until July 15. It features more conceptual artworks.

I relished one of my regular visits to the Auckland Art Gallery, still so new that the rooms are a surprise. The top floor, level two, has several wings devoted to the Chartwell Collection on long-term loan.

The Chartwell Collection is an interesting thing in its own right, founded in the early 1970s in Hamilton, and has more than 1000 artworks. The Chartwell wing frequently changes its works, arranged in curated exhibition themes.

Made Active is a perfect tableau for a curator, particularly one who likes writing, to pick through.

It explores ideas about movement, something possibly that seems at odds with art being something that most would think of as static. But ideas involving activity can be found in all manner of things. There are the obvious video works and things with engines that twirl and spin.

There is the very neat addition of some paintings by the late Allen Maddox, New Zealand's best example of an action painter.

His wild gestural crosses are always great works to study.

A large portion of the space is devoted to the artwork Black Market Next to My Name, 2007, by Daniel Malone, which consists of the contents of the artist's flat with a year's accumulation of general dross and litter. Arranged in five themed rooms, it has a special boardwalk, so you can make your way through.

Large partitions are arranged at weird angles, so outside this enclosure there are odd, thin tunnels that you are not sure you are meant to use for passage through. I guess this is about disarming the viewer.

This is played with in many artworks – one where a bucket moves around on a tabletop (are we to wonder what is underneath?); high-heeled shoes on a skateboard (a double sense of balance required here); an open carton of eggs balanced above an aluminium door frame (is the artist daring me to walk through?).

There are a lot of works where, if you hung them upside down or back to front, few of us would have noticed, but you can suddenly get stuck on something you do find profound, such as Equilibre IV, 1992. It's a simple assembly. A boom stands straight up on the gallery floor, on which is balanced a pulled-out coat-hanger with a candle on one end and a bell on the other. It is a quiet, elegant-looking structure (when many of these in the gallery are plain ugly) but more so the concept.

If you lit the candle, it would burn and become lighter, causing the rod to move and trigger the bell to ring. The work "allows us to hear the sound of light". Really, it's combustion, rather than light, but let us not be particular.

Christian Louboutin has a lot to answer

It's nigh-on impossible to avoid descriptions of Kate Middleton's latest wardrobe foibles.

Not that the Duchess ever gets it wrong, or at least not yet. She plays it safe, chooses classic pieces that can be re-matched and given a new lease of life and mixes high design with High Street with an alacrity that comes from some good advice (don't tell us there is absolutely no stylist involved) and an acute diplomacy that supports all tiers of British commerce.

But, those heels.

Yes, we understand their universal appeal - nude is the new black and all that - and we get the austerity argument, too, but, my, are they bland, especially after, oh, about 134 outings.

The LK Bennett Sledge courts have been part of the Middleton show pretty solidly for more than a year, a fixture at least from June 2011 to the Jubilee weekend, again rearing their predictable heads over the weekend at a Somerset wedding. As long ago as last August, the Herald had a whinge about the royals' and their nude heels (this being a House of Windsor firm footwear favourite), but still, the rash persists.

We're all for some judicious wardrobe stretching - ￡185 ($360) should indeed be made to go far - and we applaud not kowtowing to the folly of believing that those in the spotlight should always wear something new. There comes a time, however, when a look morphs into a uniform... and the Sledge has become fatigue-like standard issue for royal engagements. The desert boot of urban walkabouts.

Quite apart from the drear-factor is the blanket coverage of the nude heel that now means every wedding, cocktail party and opening of an envelope is accompanied by platoons of marching, shiny, putty-coloured pumps. In no small part thanks to the Duchess, we should note.

They're all over the place - and that includes the realm of the sartorially challenged. The truth is, like many sweeping fashion trends, they dance a fine line between spot-on and bad taste. A nude heel does not an elegant lady make.

To wit, the pins on display at last week's Hollywood premiere of Ted. Granted, the red carpet is a long way from the palaces of west London, but that showbiz splurge offered a prime example of nude overkill. There, every tanned, tattooed and waxed ankle flowed into a pale, sky-high pump.

Christian Louboutin has a lot to answer for. The hue that began life as a clever alternative to black was largely popularised by the red-soled designs and has since swept the field, imitated by (very) many but bettered by few.

Apart from the one-shoe-fits-all-outfits (or at least 13, in the case of Catherine) bonus, the look is said to lengthen the leg, providing a skin-toned streamline swathe from thigh to toe. In theory. The reality, of course, depends upon the type of shoe, the outfit and the wearer tottering above.

But, bored as we may be with it, nude isn't going anywhere for now - sky-high T-bar styles were spotted on Bee Shaffer in the front row of Versace's haute couture show on Sunday, her choice echoing the vertiginous gladiator heels striding the runway in, you guessed it, nude. And as hum-drum as their tone may be, they, at least are daring designs. 

Evidence of 'God particle' reportedly found

Physicists say they have all but proven that the "God particle" exists. They have a footprint and a shadow, and the only thing left is to see for themselves the elusive subatomic particle believed to give all matter in the universe size and shape.

Scientists at the world's biggest atom smasher plan to announce Wednesday that they have nearly confirmed the primary plank of a theory that could restructure the understanding of why matter has mass, which combines with gravity to give an object weight.

The idea is much like gravity and Isaac Newton's discovery: It was there all the time before Newton explained it. But now scientists know what it is and can put that knowledge to further use.

The focus of the excitement is the Higgs boson, a subatomic particle long sought by physicists.

Researchers at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, or CERN, say that they have compiled vast amounts of data that show the footprint and shadow of the particle, even though it has never actually been glimpsed.

But two independent teams of physicists are cautious after decades of work and billions of dollars spent. They don't plan to use the word "discovery." They say they will come as close as possible to a "eureka" announcement without overstating their findings.

"I agree that any reasonable outside observer would say, 'It looks like a discovery,'" said British theoretical physicist John Ellis, a professor at King's College London who has worked at CERN since the 1970s. "We've discovered something which is consistent with being a Higgs."

CERN's atom smasher, the $10 billion Large Hadron Collider on the Swiss-French border, has been creating high-energy collisions of protons to investigate dark matter, antimatter and the creation of the universe, which many theorize occurred in a massive explosion known as the Big Bang.

The phrase "God particle," coined by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Leon Lederman, is used by laymen, not physicists, more as an explanation for how the subatomic universe works than how it all started.

Shoes get royal treatment

Dusty Cairo streets require special adjustments to personal grooming, especially for footwear. Enter an age-old, traditional profession: the shoe shiner. Just as other professions evolve, the shoe shining business has changed from the times it involved sitting on the sidewalk, as a polish and brush cleaned up your pedestrian act.

In one of Cairo’s top-of-the-line hotel malls you can now sit on a veritable throne while your shoes receive the royal treatment. Mr. George, the owner, holds a degree in physical education and speaks English well. He started his career as a waiter in a large hotel in Cairo. His manager at the time invented the concept of offering traditional shoe shining to their guests, but in a new and glamorous way.

That was seven years ago and since then Mr. George has become a master in the art of shoe polishing.

The impressive seating Mr. George offers his clients is nicknamed the Chair of Haroon Al-Rasheed – in reference to the extravagant Arabian ruler. The chair towers above the ground, and invites clients to place their feet on shoe-shaped, iron footrests. Mr. George sits on a much simpler chair when he brings the shine back to shoes, reinforcing the royal sensation of having-risen-above his clients get to experience.

And all this for a minimum charge of EGP 20.

Mr. George deals with over 200 clients per week, or 400 shoes. Some of his rich and foreign clients appreciate his services so much, that they happily pay well over the set price for a polish.

Before the January uprising Mr. George charged EGP 10 per shine, but the mall’s management asked him to hike up his rates 100%, citing the worsened economic climate in the country. This advice had no financial motivation however, since the mall does not share in the profits.

They know very well that the unique polish and shine service Mr. George offers to the mall’s clients is priceless.

Shirttails, shoes and ferries home

Twenty-five years ago Wednesday my wife and I stood near a big cottonwood tree on a hot Wyoming afternoon and said our wedding vows to one another. Today we are in San Francisco in the mist and the breeze to celebrate the quarter-century occasion with a few nights at a nice hotel (the shower has neither curtain nor door -- now that's fancy).

Thursday afternoon I sat sipping something warm in the handsome old Ferry Building along the revitalized stretch of bayfront property called the Embarcadero. The gigantic Bay Bridge, for my money the equal of the more-famous Golden Gate, and far more important terms of transportation (it is at the Bay Bridge where Interstate 80 begins) loomed overhead.

Suddenly, in a near stampede, a rush of San Franciscans poured through the Ferry Building, weaving their way among the shoppers, sightseers and tea-sippers. They were, I realized, hurrying to get on one of the several huge ferry boats docked on the bay side of the building. These were not tourists. These were commuters.

A certain urban uniform was apparent. There were some suit wearers from the nearby financial district, but most of the men getting off work and hustling toward the ferries had the same wardrobe style: long-sleeved dress shirts, usually with sleeves rolled to the elbows, long shirttails untucked. Blue jeans. And hard-soled leather shoes, black or brown, with prominent square toes noticeably upturned.

The shoes look a couple of sizes too big for these men, the better to accommodate the square-toed prows.

They reminded me of the old-style pro football kickers of my childhood who put on a special shoe when it was time to kick a field goal. Off would come the regulation football cleats shoes they wore when running, and on would go the one with the hard, blocky toe section well-suited to foot-punching the oval ball through the goal posts.

Today's kickers are all soccer-style, approaching the ball at an angle and kicking more with the side of the foot than the toe, but if there's ever a renaissance of the old straight-ahead kicking style, I know where the teams could find the appropriate shoes. They are here in San Francisco, on the feet of the 30-something commuters, hustling to catch the ferry home, their shoe fronts protruding forward like alligator snouts as they board the boats that will take them home.