Ness Newman : Shoeart

Ness Newman paints in a variety of media, generally on canvas but also on wood and other materials. Many of her paintings are large scale, often 1 metre square or more.

These are a few of her shoe paintings that I think are neat. Please check out her gallery. She also makes one of a kind handbags as well.


handstitched


killerheel


blue


supergirl


spiderwoman
(this and bloody shoe in a prior post are my favorites)






What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Thank You

Thank you to all the fallen soldiers who have given their lives for freedom.



"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance."
-- Thomas Jefferson










What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Bloody Shoes




I met a pair of bloodied shoes today and by the end of the day I needed a gun. A gun to put a bullet between my eyes to get me out of my misery! I work a little part time work at times and they just hired some new staff for the summer. I worked with one of the new girls today. As soon as we were introduced she began to vomit all over my shoes. Vomit her entire life history. I was a total stranger to her.

And it was not any old vomit, it was domestic violence vomit. In a nut shell she has been married 3 times and is in the process of getting a divorce from the third husband. She is a battered woman who stays long in the relationships that the husbands/fathers are hurting not just her but the kids. Obviously she has battered wives sydrome as she is repeatedly seeking out abusers in her relationships. The first husband kidnapped her and tried to kill her and the kids before she finally left. The 2nd husband took a baseball bat and bashed in the entire right side of her face and took if off with the beating he put on her skull with the baseball bat. She finally left after that and the threat to kill the kids. (She has kids from all the husbands. )

Bloody shoes has been living in fear of the2nd husband. He keeps hunting them down to kill them and she has to keep moving. She has moved about 15 times to get away. She says he does not know where she is now. (For NOW) She has just moved to the city she is in now. She has just moved from another state. The third husband, in a restaurant not too long ago, took a fork and opened up the left side of one of her kids. Just jabbed the fork in and began to rip open the childs side. For the other child he took a tray of hot food that was just delivered and poured that on the other child face and head. Bloody shoes has just moved away from that.

Now being a person who has a healthcare/social worker background, I am very used to dealing with domestic violence. However, having to hear stories from a total stranger for EIGHT solid hours was just too much. I could not get away from her. Our computers were right next to each other. I was trapped!

No amount of changing the subject worked. No amount of pretending not to hear her and to be engaged in thought at my computer would deter her. She would ask, if I just heard what she said. No amount of smiling and nodding worked either. Now people can spill their life secrets in a blog but that is a little different. You can choose to leave and not read. All I did was say hello and the spewing began!

The job was not the place for all that. It is very clear to me after listening she still has some serious issues. She say she is happy being alone and trying to provide some stability for her kids but unless she is getting some therapy the cycle is going to repeat again. And her therapy cannot be spilling her guts over and over again to evey coworker she comes into contact with. Plus the scariest thing Bloody shoes has said is that her 2nd husband has been hunting them for years and he keeps finding them. Can we say film at 11? Man with gun kills wife and innocent employees in rage of domestic violence.

These controlling men do not play around. I have had my share of them when I was a case worker dealing with women and kids who were living with domestic violence. They are crazy. Insane even. I even felt I was a risk doing a few home visits with some past clients of mine.

I am only hoping that she only tells her story once. I now know her whole life history and hopefully I will not have to hear that again. As far as her being on the job, I do not see her lasting too long. She has too may issues... Child care at night for her as she works full time at this place where I work part time and full time people have to work nights also. She was telling me about her sitter...who has a restraining order against her x husband. Bloody shoes is concerned about her kids being safe with the sitter because of the sitters x husband.

She is also concerned about the 3rd husband coming to get her also. She just has too much going on. I do not see how she will be able to focus on the job with all that personal drama happening. We can all have personal drama in our lives but you have to know when and how to keep that separate from work. Work is work and home is home. The only good thing out of meeting her today is that I have forwarning of a crazy man who might just show up with a gun at work looking for her.



What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Reality TV Withdrawals

It is over! Survivor is over! The Amazing Race is Over! The Apprentice is over! Those are the only reality shoes I watch and they are all over till the fall. I do not watch any other reality shoes! I know Big Brother is coming as it only runs in the summer. I watch that off and on. What am I going to do now when it comes to tv?

I did begin to watch Lost about 1/2 way thru the season.. I got hooked. I would have thought the season finale would have answered some questions. It did very little of that. We finally got to see the monster....some black cloud like "thing" we only saw for about 3 seconds. I am crystal clear as to what THAT was???!!!

Here are some surivor things to rememeber , while you are suffering from reality tv withdrawals!

1. If you are choking on an ice cube, don't panic. Simply pour a cup of boiling water down your throat and presto. The blockage will be almost instantly removed.

2. Clumsy? Avoid cutting yourself while slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold them while you chop away.

3. Avoid arguments with the little woman about lifting the toilet seat by simply using the sink.

4. For high blood pressure sufferers: simply cut yourself and bleed for a few minutes, thus reducing the pressure in your veins. Remember to use a timer.

5. A mouse trap, placed on top of your alarm clock, will prevent you from rolling over and going back to sleep after you hit the snooze button.

6. If you have a bad cough, take a large dose of laxatives, then you will be afraid to cough.

7. Have a bad toothache? Smash your thumb with a hammer and you will forget about the toothache.

Sometimes, we just need to remember what the rules of life really are: You only need two tools - WD-40 and Duct Tape. If it doesn't move and should, use the WD-40. If it shouldn't move and does, use the duct tape.





What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Four Inches

Celebrities Pose Nude in Jimmy Choo Shoes!
***Update: 02/18/06***
Jimmy Choo Four Inches

Get your copy of the book for Christmas. The price is now coming down!





Christina Aguilera naked in Jummy Choo Shoes





Nicky Hilton nude in Jimmy Choo Shoes


Ellie McPherson nude in Jimmy Choo shoes

***Update: 09/20/05***
More pictures to come


Serena Williams nude in Jimmy Choo shoes


Paris Hilton nude in Jimmy Choo shoes
(poor dog! I think tinkerbell is traumatized!)




Heidi Klum nude in Jimmy Choo shoes


Iman nude in Jimmy choo shoes


Pamela Anderson nude in Jimmie Choo shoes




Anne Heche naked in Jimmy Choo shoes



Jenna Janeson naked in Jimmy Choo shoes



Kimora Lee Simmons naked in Jimmy Choo shoes



Tatiana Patiz naked in Jimmy Choo shoes




Victoria Beckham naked in Jimmy Choo Shoes








Kate Moss, Rachel Hunter & Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York have all posed in nothing but Jimmy Choo shoes and Cartier jewelry.

Although it may have been a lot of fun, it's not just a fun night out. The girls all stripped down to the luxurious accessories for a good cause.

The models were photographed for a book called "Four Inches" - titled after the height of the stiletto Jimmy Choos that the models are wearing in the images.

London fashion photographer Pamela Hanson shot the photos, and the book will raise funds for Elton John's Aids Foundation.


Well today was the Four Inches was to be released. Now I read it will be just a little later ..with in the next few weeks. I went down to my local Barnes and Noble to see if they had it in, but it has not. When I get my copy, I may post a few pictures if they are really tasteful. But for now, we can all preorder it to be sure we get a copy!






What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Just Cattin' Around

Carnival of Cats!

Big cats do qualify for the carnival of cats. This has to be the worst news story about cats ever. Can we just say stupid all around?! The guy who set this up was stupid, but the midgets were even worst to put their lives in danger!

Spectators cheered as entire Cambodian Midget Fighting League squared off against African Lion

Tickets had been sold-out three weeks before the much anticipated fight, which took place in the city of Kampong Chhnang.

The fight was slated when an angry fan contested Yang Sihamoni, President of the CMFL, claiming that one lion could defeat his entire league of 42 fighters.

Sihamoni takes great pride in the league he helped create, as was conveyed in his recent advertising campaign for the CMFL that stated his midgets will "... take on anything; man, beast, or machine."

This campaign is believed to be what sparked the undisclosed fan to challenge the entire league to fight a lion; a challenge that Sihamoni readily accepted.

An African Lion (Panthera Leo) was shipped to centrally located Kampong Chhnang especially for the event, which took place last Saturday, April 30, 2005 in the city’s coliseum.

The Cambodian Government allowed the fight to take place, under the condition that they receive a 50% commission on each ticket sold, and that no cameras would be allowed in the arena.

The fight was called in only 12 minutes, after which 28 fighters were declared dead, while the other 14 suffered severe injuries including broken bones and lost limbs, rendering them unable to fight back.

Sihamoni was quoted before the fight stating that he felt since his fighters out-numbered the lion 42 to 1, that they “… could out-wit and out-muscle it.”

Unfortunately, he was wrong.







When I was in middle school in english class we were studying Carl Sandburg. We had to read the poem called Fog. I loved it then and I still love it now.

The fog comes
on little cat feet.

It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.




Old Wives "Tails"
Have you ever heard that old wives tale that cats can get jealous of babies and have killed children by suffocating them? I had heard this old wives tale when I was a child. I did not believe it. When I had dirty Fila, I our course had a cat. Not the one I have now. That was a big concern of my aunt. She was always telling me to never let the cat in the babies room because of that and she really believed it. (It was crazy) She was alwasy after me about that.

Then some time ago I was watching the si-fi channel or some late night show about this very thing. It might have been OUT OF THIS WORLD. I can't remember. It explained how the myth came about. Well as it turns out there are little trolls that we cannot see that kill the babies. The cats are actually the protectors of the babies and they ate hunted and ate the trolls. The trolls would kill the babies and the cats would actually get up on the babies and breathe life BACK into the babies.

Now when they were in the process of doing this, the mom or dad would come in, mid process and shoe the cat away before the process was complete and the baby would not recover. Humans then began to think that cats were taking the lives of babies when in fact the babies were already dead. The cats were just trying to help bring the babies back to life.

Did you see that show? It was amazing. After that I began to check the closet and under the bed for little trolls!

The worst cat internet hoax ever!
We cat loves most likely all know of it: The Bonsai kitten site. I remember I first got this email about 4 or more years ago or so. I did not know at the time if it was a hoax or not. I had not heard about it and was totally appalled! Seeing those kittens in those jars and supposedly bent and shaped to the jars forever. After looking at the entire site, I decided that this must be a very bad joke in poor taste. After seaching on line I realized it was a hoax. The designers of that site did a very good job in making it look real!


Interesting cat facts

Johannes Brahms - (1833 - 1897) One of Brahm's favourite forms of relaxatin was to sit at an open window and attempt to kill neighbourhood cats with a bow and arrow

Napoleon Bonaparte - Napoleon was once found sweating with fear and lunging wildly with his sword at the tapestry-covered walls. The source of his fear was a small kitten

Dwight D. Eisenhower - (1890 - 1969) Eisenhower's loathing for cats was so great, he gave his staff orders to shoot any seen on the grounds of his home

In some parts of the old world, the cat was placed in the empty and waiting cradle of a newlywed couple in the belief she would quickly grant their wish for children. The Pennsylvania Dutch continue that time-honoured custom today.

In the eerie mountains of Transylvania and other Eastern European countries, it was common wisdom that if a cat jumped over a dead body, the unfortunate corpse was doomed to be a vampire forever.

Imagine the stress this dilemma caused the early American colonists: They believed that a broth made from boiled black cat had the power to cure tuberculosis. However, what horrible evil might happen to the person who killed the cat and made the soup?

101 Reason Why a Cat is Better than a Man

During my single years when I was without a boyfriend or had just broken up with a boyfriend, I often consoled myself with cats. If I broke up with someone what would I do? Adopt a cat. If a boyfriend broke up with me, it was time for what? Time to go to the shelter and get another cat. That was how I got all my cats. Have a breakup-get a cat! Cats would give me unconditional love--Unlike cheating boyfriends or people who just were not going to work out as far as the relationship was going. Cats would love me no matter what was going on.

And of course, it was love me, love my cats after that for whatever new love came along. No love for the cat? Get to stepping and fast! After the 2nd breakup I decided that 3 cats would be too much so I resorted to books on cats. The only one I still have today is called 1001 Reasons Why a Cat is Better Than a Man! This book used to be my bible and consolation. Here are some of my most favorite reasons. These are in no certain order :
  1. A beautiful woman needs lots of shoes. A cat thinks you should have lots of shoes!
  2. Cats don't leave the toilet seat up.
  3. A cat would never use YOUR razor for his face.
  4. Cats are loyal. They don't just give their affection to just anyone who strokes them.
  5. A cat would never wear a pinky ring.
  6. Cats love to cuddle.
  7. Cats adapt well to mood swings
  8. A cat doesn't need to go out in the woods with other cats, beat drums, light fires, and dance to get in touch with his cathood.
  9. Cleavage doesn't interest a cat uhnless it's big enough to sleep in.
  10. Cats don't exaggerate the truth.
  11. You never have to entertain your cat's boss.
  12. Cats know good grooming take time.
  13. You will never hear a cat burp at the table.
  14. Cat's don't pick their teeth with matchbook covers.
  15. Cats don't keep secret bank accounts
  16. A cat would never ask you to have "his" litter.
  17. Cats know when they have had enough to drink.




Cat Eyes:

Just pictures of cat eyes! Here are some of my favorites:







What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Rain Shoes



The weather is dreary and only fit for ducks today!




What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Mike the Headless Chicken

Well, it is that weekend: Happy Birthday to Mike the Headless Chicken! I first heard about Mike about 4 years ago. This was the only year I remembered his weekend before it had passed by.



Mike's Story

September 10th, 1945 finds a strapping (but tender) five and a half month old Wyandotte rooster pecking through the dust of Fruita, Colorado. The unsuspecting bird had never looked so delicious as he did that, now famous, day. Clara Olsen was planning on featuring the plump chicken in the evening meal. Husband Lloyd Olsen was sent out, on a very routine mission, to prepare the designated fryer for the pan. Nothing about this task turned out to be routine. Lloyd knew his Mother in Law would be dining with them and would savor the neck. He positioned his ax precisely, estimating just the right tolerances, to leave a generous neck bone. "It was as important to Suck-Up to your Mother in Law in the 40's as it is today." A skillful blow was executed and the chicken staggered around like most freshly terminated poultry.

Then the determined bird shook off the traumatic event and never looked back. Mike (it is unclear when the famous rooster took on the name) returned to his job of being a chicken. He pecked for food and preened his feathers just like the rest of his barnyard buddies.

When Olsen found Mike the next morning, sleeping with his "head" under his wing, he decided that if Mike had that much will to live, he would figure out a way to feed and water him. With an eyedropper Mike was given grain and water. It was becoming obvious that Mike was special. A week into Mike's new life Olsen packed him up and took him 250 miles to the University of Utah in Salt Lake City . The skeptical scientists were eager to answer all the questions regarding Mike's amazing ability to survive with no head. It was determined that ax blade had missed the jugular vein and a clot had prevented Mike from bleeding to death. Although most of his head was in a jar, most of his brain stem and one ear was left on his body. Since most of a chicken's reflex actions are controlled by the brain stem Mike was able to remain quite healthy.

In the 18 MONTHS that Mike lived as "The Headless Wonder Chicken" he grew from a mere 2 1/2 lbs. to nearly 8 lbs. In a Gayle Meyer interview Olsen said Mike was a "robust chicken - a fine specimen of a chicken except for not having a head." Some longtime Fruita residents, gathered at the Monument Cafe for coffee, also remember Mike - "he was a big fat chicken who didn't know he didn't have a head" - "he seemed as happy as any other chicken." Mike's excellent state of health made it difficult for animal-rights activists to garner much of a following. Even now the town of Fruita celebrates Mike's impressive will to live, not the nature of his handicap. Miracle Mike took on a manager, and with the Olsens in tow, set out on a national tour. Curious sideshow patrons in New York , Atlantic City , Los Angeles , and San Diego lined up to pay 25 cents to see Mike. The "Wonder Chicken" was valued at $10,000.00 and insured for the same. His fame and fortune would earn him recognition in Life and Time Magazines. It goes without saying there was a Guinness World Record in all this. While returning from one of these road trips the Olsens stopped at a motel in the Arizona desert. In the middle of the night Mike began to choke. Unable to find the eyedropper used to clear Mike's open esophagus Miracle Mike passed on.

Now, Mike's spirit is celebrated the third weekend in May.

Mike the Headless Chicken site





What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

You, The Owners Manual

I was at home at lunch one day last week and Oprah was on. I just caught a little blubr before I had to go back to work about the this book, You, The Owner's Manual. Well Of course I had to run out to Barnes and Noble to get it when I was told they completely sold out with an hour of the show. I went after work to get a copy. I was told that anythign she mentions on that show is like gold. All I could to was put my name down with about 40 other to have a copy ordered for me.

I did and I was just able to pick it up on yesterday. So far so good. I am only on page 8 but it is about our bodies, how we can actually eat to prolong out lives. It really gives specific things to do, eat, stay away from and has a diet for life in the back. I like it because I am one always looking for that one thing that will be like the fountain of youth. It basically says that most of our aging ( 80%) is due to how we eat. It is not heredity and we are really in control of it. I mean look at Oprah. She looks the best she has ever looked and she is 50. So, of course I will be reading this book from cover to cover! Click on the amazon link below to get your copy.

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What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

A Little Bit of This Shoe and That One Too

It has been a very busy weekend to say the least. It was was all about dirty fila DRAMA! Need I say more. And I understand it gets worse as puberty really sets in. Where do I begin? Well last week I got a call on monday from her social studies teacher that she had sent home a progress report that needed to be signed by me. Instead it was signed my mother. Or so the teacher thought or NOT! dirty Fila had not turned in 2 homework assignments and an outline that was due. The teacher sends home a special progress report to let parents know if assignments are missed. She told me she had also sent home a missed homework slip also for me to sign also. Of course I never saw that either and it too was signed by my mother. NOT!

I decided to go in for a conference. As it turned out dirty Fila was afraid to bring me the missed homework slip and the progress report and she decided to sign her grandmothers name. Yes, she forged my mother signature. Now, she was not really trying to get away with a true forgery. She has the handwriting of an 11 year old and there was not way anyone on earth would ever believe an adult had signed the papers. Can we say busted???!

At the same time of the conference with the social studies teacher, the math teacher decided to come in as well. Well, there were missed assignments there as well-about 8. Both teathers assured me that this kind of thing happens to some kids after spring break. They go on spring break and STAY on spring break. Well that was not flying with me. I got all the missed homework details and told the teachers that school would be in session over the weekend. Now even with the missed assignments the social studies grade is a 96 dropped from a 99. The math grade is a 89 dropped from a 93. dirty Fila has always been on the honor roll since kindergarden and has never left it.

I was like a mother possessed. What was she thinking? So close to the end of the year is not the time to mess up. You do not have time to make the grades up. Luckily the teachers were agreeable to letting me get those missed things in to salvage what grades we could.

Well it was a tag team weekend. Between my mother and I, dirty Fila, I do not think she will EVER do that again. Especially the signing of someone elses name. On saturday school began and 8am and ended 9 hours later. We had 9 hours of math on saturday and 5 hours of social studies on sunday. We got all the missed assigments done and turned in on monday.

As for her no tv, no computer, no radio, no mp3, no cd player, nothing till the end of the school year. Now the only music she can listen to is Vivaldi: The four seasons. I play it everyday and in the car and in my room and I will continue to play it for dirty Fila. Now I love Vivaldi, so I will never get tired of it. dirty Fila asked me why was I making her listen to Vivaldi all the time. Was that a part of her punishment? I told her yes. Classical music stimulates the brain to think and that if she did not get it together or if she said one more thing about Vivaldi, I would put in the opera, so she had better just pipe down! (Let's get 50 cent and Usher out of her head and Vivaldi in!) So she is in music hell. It is Vivaldi and opera for the rest of the year for her. It does not seem like is should be such a din to her ears. She plays the violin and one of the 4 seasons they learned this year and had to play for the spring concert.

Lord, help me make thru middle school with her!

No work shoes
Spring has sprung and I think the coworkers all have spring fever. Or maybe spring insanity is more like it. In the past few weeks I have noticed that people come to work in shoes but soon abandon then for strange sock variations. I have seen people walking around in just socks. But not just any socks, socks that do not match. Like one solid and a striped, or two different striped colors, or no socks at all. Just plain old barefoot. Why? They say their feet are cold. Then wear cocks and closed in shoes instead of high heeled sandals that expose your entire foot. My thoughts on this next picture: Don't be ashamed now just because I have my camera. This is not how you need to be looking at the office. Footies don't cut it!



Wannabe shoes is beginning to look hoochie. Low cut polyester sleeveless, hankerchief hem dresses are not for work. Maybe a summer party or going out to the club, but not for work. Finishing shoes is finishing my sentences less these days. I wonder if that is the case or have I just gotten used to it? Classic Court has not been feeling too well recently. Wingtips has his wigtips all in a bunch over a disagreement contributed to him with another party. I say, it is over so just let it go and move on. We must learn to pick our battles in the work place. Work itself has been very hectic. We have all been given loads of computer continuing ed courses to do. Hours and hours of them. I keep wishing I would win the lotto and would never had to work again. But I guess I would actually have to buy a lotto ticket for me to be in the running!

Have you seen hampsters running on their wheels in cages? Well that is me. Running, running , running. So much to do and so little time.

What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Bengal Seafood Salad

Carnival of the Recipes

I love this recipe. It is one of my favorite summer recipes. It is low fat and low calorie, as well as good! I hope you like it! This recipe serves 4 and is very easy to make.


Bengal Seafood Salad
  • 12 ounces crab meat
  • 4 ounces cooked shrimp, cut into 1 inch pieces
  • 1/4 cup minced onion
  • 1 cup finely sliced celery
  • 3 ounces sliced water chestnuts
  • 1 cup canned crushed pineapple--unsweetened
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 2 tablesppons sunflower seeds
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon reduced calorie mayonnaise
  • 1 cup plain lowfat yogurt
  • 1 teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1 tablespoon curry powder
Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mix well. Chill!




What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Versace for Summer

I love all of these! I want them...yes I do!


Python Leather
$870.00


Black Leather
$490.00


Leather with Swarowsky Crystals
$950.00


Fabric Shoe
$430.00




<>Versace, Gianni, 1946–97, Italian fashion designer, b. Reggio Calabria. A dressmaker's son, Versace worked for several Italian designers before opening (1978) his own Milan studio in partnership with his brother Santo and sister Donatella. He became famous for designing flashy, sexy, beautifully cut outfits in strikingly extreme colors, patterns, fabrics, and leathers. His fashion empire eventually encompassed men's, women's and children's clothing, accessories, jewelry,
perfume,and housewares, included
some 130 boutiques worldwide, and had annual sales that exceeded $800 million. Versace merged the worlds of fashion and entertainment; his lavish shows were pop-culture events, and he drew inspiration from contemporary street life, art, and films as well as art and design history. Emminently theatrical, he also designed for the stage, opera, and ballet. He was murdered on the steps of his Miami Beach, Fla., mansion by a fugitive serial killer. His sister succeeded him as his company's chief designer.



What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Dog Deserves Golden Shoes




I was getting ready for work today and heard a little blurb about this on the morning news. Very sad but at least it had a good ending for the baby.

Stray dog in Kenya Saves Baby
Nairobi

A newborn baby abandoned in a Kenyan forest was saved by a stray dog who apparently carried her across a busy road and through a barbed wire fence to a shed where the infant was discovered nestled with a litter of puppies, witnesses said Monday.

The baby girl, named "Angel" by hospital workers, was clad in a tattered shirt and wrapped in a plastic bag when the dog found her Friday, according to Aggrey Mwalimu, owner of the shed where the baby was discovered in a poor neighborhood near the Ngong Forest in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

"When the dog picked up the baby in a dirty bag, it came and dropped her behind the wooden building where the dog has its puppies," Mwalimu told The Associated Press Monday.

The 7-pound, 4-ounce infant was taken to a hospital and "is doing well, responding to treatment. She is stable ... she is on antibiotics," said Hannah Gakuo, spokeswoman of the Kenyatta National Hospital.

The baby was found after two children reported hearing an infant's cries near their wood and corrugated metal shack.

"I followed them outside and we started looking around the compound and a nearby plot," said Mary Adhiambo, the children's mother.

They eventually found the tan mixed-breed dog lying protectively with a puppy beside the mud-splattered baby wrapped in a torn black shirt, Adhiambo said. The short-haired dog with light brown eyes has no name, residents said.

Adhiambo told the Daily Nation newspaper that she used warm water to wash the baby, cleaning the umbilical cord with rubbing alcohol, then dressed her in fresh clothes and fed her as neighbors gathered at the shack on hearing news of the discovery.

Residents took the infant to a nearby police station before taking her to the Kenyatta National Hospital, officers at the station told the AP.

Doctors believe the baby had been abandoned about two days before the dog discovered her, said Gakuo, the hospital spokeswoman.

"She cried a lot during admission, because her umbilical cord was infected," Gakuo said. "She is now very quiet. She just feeds and sleeps. I was there this morning and she looked at me and yawned, looked at me again and yawned."

Dozens of Kenyans have visited the baby, who has curly black hair, in the hospital after learning of her rescue, Gakuo said.

"She is now fine. She is warm. She is in a separate room ... with a lady who is also nursing a baby admitted in hospital for treatment," Gakuo said. "The lady is looking after her as if she is her own child."

Infant abandonment is problem in Kenya, where poverty and the inability to care for the child are blamed. Most people who abandon babies are never caught.

Officials were not able to immediately provide figures on abandoned babies, but Gakuo said that each month, about two infants are brought to the main public hospital in the capital alone.

"Abandoned babies are normally taken to the Kenyatta National Hospital because it is a public hospital," Gakuo said. "People are now donating diapers and baby clothes for this one."




What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Happy Mother's Day!



I thought today would be a nice quiet day, a day just for me. Boy was I wrong! dirty Fila informed me that she had 2 projectes due on tomorrow. One in math and the other in science. Well there went the day. One third of the day was spent helping her with math and the other with science. Both projects are done! Finally. Then I had to go to my parents house to wish my mom a happy mother's day. We just got back about 30 minutes ago. dirty Fila is in the tub and I will finally have just a little time for me. It is 11:17pm. I have about about 45 minutes to relax. I guess that is the mother's plight. Our day never ends and our time is never ours.

Well I will spend it eating Dubliner Irish cheese on club crackers. And let's not forget the sutter home. I am listening to my new cd by David Sanborn: Closer. It is fantastic. If you like jazz, it is great! Check it out here and get a copy for yourself. You won't be disappointed.

The only other thing I will do is read the Mother's Prayer that a friend emailed to me at work. Then I will call it a day!

A Single Mother's Prayer

Lord grant me Time Enough to do all the chores
Join in the games, help with the lessons, say the night prayers
And still have a few moments left for me
Energy Enough to be bread-baker and bread winner
Knee patcher and peacemaker. Ball player and bill juggler
Hands Enough to wipe away tears, to hug, hold, tickle and touch
Heart Enough to share and to care, to listen and to understand
And time to make a loving home for my family.


What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Photoblogging

Well, I have finally done it. I have just begun a photoblog. We will see how long I am able to keep that up. I have checked out a lot of photoblogs in the last few weeks as well as photoblogging programs. I started on blogger but they did not have many templates to choose from. Then I began to branch out and see what other hosting programs were out there. There are quite a few and quite a few that are having system problems. I finally decided to use blogger and expressions.

While blogger is free, epressions is not but the look of the site is work the cost. The cost is very minimal. So far so good. It is a work in progress. My blogger page thumbnails (and you will see what I mean) will lead you to my expressions site.

Check out my photolog here: Liquid Matrixity: Liquid Matrixity
The links under the teaser thumbnails will take you to the actually pictures I have taken that are on my other site: Liquid Matrixity

Please leave me a comment or two and let me know what you think. Who was my inspiration? Joann was. She has a neat photoblog centered around her job as a taxi driver. Taxi Vignettes.

What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~

Happy Cinco De Mayo!


Original Flamenco Dance Shoes
$51.00

Flamenco is a Spanish art form with roots deep in Andalusia — Spain’s southern region. Although there are clues as to how this dance and folk music evolved, the details are lost in history.

Even the origin of its name is elusive. Some attribute it to the early 1500s and the Flemish courtiers during the reign of Spain’s Charles V. Their bright clothing inspired the names given things garish or conspicuous, such as flamingoes and flamenco.

Others say flamenco — still referring to the Flemish — was the nationality erroneously given by the common people to Gypsies. Still others claim the name comes from the Arabic fellah mangu — the laborer who sings.

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The holiday of Cinco De Mayo, The 5th Of May, commemorates the victory of the Mexicans over the French army at The Battle Of Puebla in 1862. It is primarily a regional holiday celebrated in the Mexican state capital city of Puebla and throughout the state of Puebla, with some recognition in other parts of the Mexico, and especially in U.S. cities with a significant Mexican population. It is not, as many people think, Mexico's Independence Day, which is actually September 16.

The History
The battle at Puebla in 1862 happened at a violent and chaotic time in Mexico's history. Mexico had finally gained independence from Spain in 1821 after a difficult and bloody struggle, and a number of internal political takeovers and wars, including the Mexican-American War (1846-1848) and the Mexican Civil War of 1858, had mostly wiped out the national economy.

During this period of struggle Mexico had accumulated heavy debts to several nations, including Spain, England and France, who were demanding payment. Similar debt to the U.S. was previously settled after the Mexican-American War. France was eager to add to its empire at that time, and used the debt issue to move forward with goals of establishing its own leadership in Mexico. Realizing France's intent of empire expansion, Spain and England withdrew their support. When Mexico finally stopped making any loan payments, France took action on it's own to install Napoleon's relative, Archduke Maximilian of Austria, as ruler of Mexico.

France invaded at the gulf coast of Mexico along the state of Veracruz (see map) and began to march toward Mexico City, a distance today of less than 600 miles. Although American President Abraham Lincoln was sympathetic to Mexico's cause, and for which he is honored in Mexico, the U.S. was involved in its own Civil War at the time and was unable to provide any direct assistance.

Marching on toward Mexico City, the French army encountered strong resistance at the Mexican forts of Loreto and Guadalupe. Lead by Mexican General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguin, a small, poorly armed militia estimated at 4,500 men were able to stop and defeat a well outfitted French army of 6,500 soldiers, which stopped the invasion of the country. The victory was a glorious moment for Mexican patriots, which at the time helped to develop a needed sense of national unity, and is the cause for the historical date's celebration.

Unfortunately, the victory was short lived. Upon hearing the bad news, Napoleon had found an excuse to send more troops overseas to try and invade Mexico again, even against the wishes of the French populace. 30,000 more troops and a full year later, the French were eventually able to depose the Mexican army, take over Mexico City and install Maximilian as the ruler of Mexico.

Maximilian's rule of Mexico was also short lived, from 1864 to 1867. With the American Civil War now over, the U.S. began to provide more political and military assistance to Mexico to expel the French, after which Maximilian was executed by the Mexicans - today his bullet riddled shirt is on display in the museum at Chapultepec Castle in Mexico City. So despite the eventual French invasion of Mexico City, Cinco de Mayo honors the bravery and victory of General Zaragoza's small, outnumbered militia at the Battle of Puebla in 1862.



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President Bush Hosts Cinco de Mayo Party
CNN
President George W. Bush joked about hosting the White House Cinco de Mayo party on Wednesday, May 4, saying, "Next year I'm going to have to work on my math."

"The way I see it is mi casa es su casa (my house is your house)," Bush told guests, many of Mexican-American or Hispanic heritage, seated in the Rose Garden at tables decorated in bright pink, blue and green.

"I always look forward to Cinco de Mayo especially because it gives me a chance to practice my Spanish," he said. "My only problem this year is I scheduled the dinner on cuatro de Mayo. Next year, I'm going to have to work on my math."

Cinco de Mayo, the fifth of May, commemorates the 1862 Battle of Puebla in which Mexican troops defeated invading French forces. It is marked by celebrations in Mexico and the Mexican-American community.

"The United States and Mexico are united by ties of family, faith in God and a deep love for freedom," Bush said.

But there have been tensions between the two countries over Mexico's opposition to the Iraq war and stalled efforts to ease U.S. immigration rules to benefit Mexican workers.

"Mexican-Americans are also strengthening our country with their patriotism and service. Thousands of Mexican-Americans have sacrificed in the armed services for our freedom," Bush said, adding 8,700 men and women born in Mexico were now in the U.S. military.



What I do is kick them in the pants with a diamond buckled shoe!
~~Aileen Mehle~~