From a new pair of shoes to a new friend and hopefully, a new love in life too!

FORBES: Step 1

As the sort of people who are on a first-name basis with librarians, historians and English professors, historians are thrilled to hold a new book, to crack the binding and break it in like a new pair of shoes.

FORBES: OMG: Old Media Guilt

They know that 70% off does not even approach the cost a retailer likely paid for a pair of shoes or a new laptop.

FORBES: Are You Addicted to High Fund Fees?

What we do not see is that the shopkeeper, had he not been forced to replace his window, would have instead bought himself a new pair of shoes.

FORBES: The Obama Administration's Sidewalk To Nowhere

If you're looking for a new pair of shoes that won't squeeze your wide feet, a search engine can help, but a post on your Facebook wall will result in faster responses from your most trusted critics--your friends.

FORBES: Time

While common sense says that those who spend work hours popping out to the store for a new pair of shoes or surfing the Web for personal use probably cost employers something in lost productivity, there's no definitive proof that employee "downtime" is any more prevalent than it was a generation ago, when telephone and watercooler banter was in.

FORBES: The Most Expensive Addictions

Since its founding in 2006 by Blake Mycoskie, TOMS has matched every pair of TOMS shoes purchased with a new pair given to a child in need.

FORBES: Corporate Social Purpose: It's in What You Don't Sell

She could neither read nor write, had never been to school, never been to a hospital or a clinic or a dentist, had never had a new dress or owned a pair of shoes, had gone to bed hungry on more nights than she could remember, and, like millions of other black South Africans, she had learned to settle for what was there and to expect nothing more.

NPR: One Boy's Heroism in the Face of AIDS

" Instead, she suggests buying disparate items like "a cool new belt, pair of shoes, pocket square, tie and cuff links that are not matchy-matchy.

WSJ: Less Predictable Presents For Husbands, Wives

Is it so strange, though, that a man who has worn the same outfit for years black turtleneck, blue jeans, gray New Balance running shoes would own the automotive equivalent of a pair of sneakers?

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