Richy

Just as a footnote (excuse the pun). I took a trip up to Birmingham today by train, and have been in the Brantano Boots all day with no problems whatsoever. They are extremely comfortable for long term wear, even when wondering around town centres for a couple of hours. I also didn't get any negative reaction off anybody, even though the heels were in full view most of the time. The only reaction I got was a huge smile of young woman on the train coming home.

For the stiletto fans, BTW, Jeff Bains are now selling a couple of Pierre Silbers range under the brand name of the highest heel. They have courts with a solid brass 5" stiletto heel and also ankle boots with high black heels which are listed on the Pierre Silber site as Aftan Boots.

http://us.st8.yimg.com/store4.yimg.com/I/pierresilber_1678_4961978

http://us.st8.yimg.com/store4.yimg.com/I/pierresilber_1675_2505768

I suppose it works on the principal that some shapes are very hard to bend or break. In this case, it is difficult for a tube to be bent without the sides collapsing, which they can't because the ankle is inside it. The cuff fits over the top of the foot between the ankle and the instep. The strap with the heel cup pulls the heel in, then the top strap wraps around the back of the ankle just over the heel and the bottom strap goes under the instep just in front of the heel. The result is the same as if you strapped a metal plate to the front of your foot extending from the instep to the ankle. There is no way that the angle of the ankle can be closed from a straight line, so if you have to stand, it has to be on the only thing that can bend out of the straight line, which is the toes. I'm not sure on a price, but I would imagine about $70.

I came across these last night. The makers claim that when wearing them, the wearing has to keep the foot in the high heel position. There is no way that the ankle can be bent to place the foot flat on the floor.

The Smiths had no children and decided to use a proxy father to start their family. On the day the proxy father was to arrive, Mr. Smith kissed his wife and said, "I'm off. The man should be here soon". Half an hour later, just by chance, a door-to-door baby photographer rang the doorbell, hoping to make a sale. "Good morning madam. You don't know me, but I've come to...." "Oh, no need to explain. I've been expecting you," Mrs. Smith cut in. "Really?" the photographer asked. "Well, good! I've made a specialty of babies." "That's what my husband and I had hoped. Please come in and have a seat. Just where do we start?" asked Mrs. Smith, blushing. "Leave everything to me. I usually try two in the bathtub, one on the couch and perhaps a couple on the bed. Sometimes the living room floor is fun too; you can really spread out." "Bathtub, living room floor? No wonder it didn't work for Harry and me." "Well, madam, none of us can guarantee a good one every time. But if we try several different positions and I shoot from six or seven angles, I'm sure you'll be pleased with the results." "I hope we can get this over with quickly," gasped Mrs. Smith. "Madam, in my line of work, a man must take his time. I'd love to be in and out in five minutes, but you'd be disappointed with that, I'm sure." "Don't I know!!" Mrs. Smith exclaimed. The photographer opened his briefcase and pulled out a portfolio of his baby pictures. "This was done on the top of a bus in downtown London." "Oh my God!!" Mrs. Smith exclaimed, tugging at her handkerchief. "And these twins turned out exceptionally well when you consider their mother was so difficult to work with." The photographer handed Mrs. Smith the picture. "She was difficult?" asked Mrs. Smith. "Yes, I'm afraid so I finally had to take her to Hyde Park to get the job done right. People were crowding around four and five deep, pushing to get a good look." "Four and five deep?" asked Mrs. Smith, eyes widened in amazement. "Yes," the photographer said. "And for more than three hours too. The mother was constantly squealing and yelling. I could hardly concentrate. Then darkness approached and I began to rush my shots. Finally, when the squirrels began nibbling on my equipment I just packed it all in." Mrs. Smith leaned forward. "You mean they actually chewed on your, er..,um.., ah.... equipment?" "That's right. Well madam, if you're ready, I'll set up my tripod so that we can get to work." "Tripod??" Mrs. Smith looked extremely worried now. "Oh yes, I have to use a tripod to rest my Canon on. It's much too big for me to hold while I'm getting ready for action. Madam? Madam? Good Lord, she's fainted!!"

In order to meet the conditions for joining the Single European currency, all citizens of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland must be aware that the phrase "Spending a penny" is not to be used after 31st December 2001. From this date, the correct terminology will be "Euronating".

A woman takes a lover during the day, while her husband is at work. Unknown to her, her 9 year old son was hiding in the closet. Her husband comes home unexpectedly, so she puts the lover in the closet with the little boy. The little boy says, "Dark in here." The man says, "Yes it is." Boy: "I have a baseball." "That's nice." Boy: "Want to buy it?" Man: "No, thanks." Boy: "My dad's outside." Man: "OK, how much?" Boy: "$250." In the next few weeks, it happens again that the boy and the mom's lover are in the closet together. Boy: "Dark in here." Man: "Yes, it is." Boy: "I have a baseball glove." The lover, remembering the last time, asks the boy, "How much?" Boy: "$750." Man: "Fine." A few days later, the father says to the boy, "Grab your glove. Let's go outside and toss the baseball back and forth." The boy says, "I can't. I sold them." The father asks, "How much did you sell them for?" The son says "$1,000." The father says, "That's terrible to overcharge your friends like that. That is way more than those two things cost. I'm going to take you to church and make you confess." They go to church and the father makes the little boy sit in the confession booth and he closes the door. The boy says, "Dark in here." The priest says, "Don't start that again"

Taken from yesterdays papers. "Police in South Wales are looking for an audacious thief who stole a bus, drove it around a local bus route for about two hours, picking up unsuspecting fare paying passengers, then disappeared with about £150 in collected fares."

You'll be surprised to know that the Brits, Germans and Dutch play ice hockey very well. I've watched the amateur Team Canada side beaten twice by a British club side. Even the Aussies have their own national team.

These are a couple of my favourite boots, mainly because of the comfort factor. The first pair I only bought about five days ago from Brantano, and after work they have rarely been off my feet (which includes doing all the shopping). The leather is so thin it's like wearing a pair of gloves on my feet. They're a size nine, about a c or d width and only £45. The best pair of boots I've ever bought.

The other pair I have seen surprisingly few comments about (in fact none at all), since they were from the Faith range last winter. They were unusual because of the double zip. A friend of mine had a similar pair which she swore by as being so easy to get on and off. She was right. They are also very stylish for a man's style with the square toe. The only problem can be the width which is a "a" width (fairly narrow) which meant going to a size 10. Hopefully they will do them again next season.

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Richy on 2002-03-05 23:01 ]</font>