Socks

How can five grown men (photographers) make such fools of themselves? I am referring to the picture printed on Nov. 18, showing those men surrounding Socks. How could they sink that low just to take a picture of the Clinton cat? Is there no limit of what the press will do? FRANCES ZASLAV Anaheim

My son, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Donald J. Hogan, was killed in Helmand province in August 2009. In the days and weeks that followed, my wife, Carla, and I spent a lot of time with the 100 or so Marines who served with him. We asked them what they needed most, and the answer was unexpected. Infantry members spend all their time on their feet. They have no laundry facilities, so they wash their socks in irrigation canals and air-dry them. But the sand and grit make them unusable again within a couple of days.

I recently had a chance to chat with Rob Kardashian about his new Arthur George by Robert Kardashian sock label for a story that appears in this Sunday's Image section. Below are some of the highlights and insights from our 45-minute conversation that covered everything from design inspirations (Hermès scarves among them) to thoughts about getting a pair of his socks on sister Kim's boyfriend (and soon-to-be father of her baby), Kanye West. Lucky socks "I used to have a lucky pair of socks -- but I'm mad because I think I recently left them in Toronto or someplace like that.

Mosquitoes infected with the malaria parasite are significantly more attracted to human odors -- in this case smelly socks -- than are uninfected mosquitoes, researchers reported Wednesday. Scientists collected human odor on nylon socks -- by having someone wear them for 20 hours -- and put them, along with clean socks, into an enclosure with mosquitoes. The bugs infected with P. falciparum showed more landings and more probing of the smelly socks. None of the mosquitoes -- infected or not -- were especially drawn to the socks with no human odor.

Mosquitoes infected with the malaria parasite are significantly more attracted to human odors -- in this case smelly socks -- than are uninfected mosquitoes, researchers reported Wednesday. Scientists collected human odor on nylon socks -- by having someone wear them for 20 hours -- and put them, along with clean socks, into an enclosure with mosquitoes. The bugs infected with P. falciparum showed more landings and more probing of the smelly socks. None of the mosquitoes -- infected or not -- were especially drawn to the socks with no human odor.

Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III didn't throw at the scouting combine -- he will do that at his campus pro day -- but he wowed NFL teams with his blistering-fast 4.41-second 40-yard dash. Maybe his socks had something to do with it. Griffin, you see, is an avid collector of all kinds of socks. You might remember the Superman ones he wore at the Heisman Trophy ceremony, complete with dangling capes. On his first full day at the combine, he wore a pair depicting the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

The oblong balloon rose into the ink-colored sky Saturday just south of one of the world's most fortified borders, its cargo bound for North Korea. Yet unlike countless balloon launches that shower North Korea with pamphlets and political screeds criticizing Kim Jong Il's secretive regime, this one carried a different kind of payload: socks. In all, hundreds of pairs were lifted heavenward by 10 helium-filled balloons: little pink baby booties and large black-and-blue ones for growing children and adults, all headed for impoverished North Koreans facing the oncoming winter.

How big is Robert Griffin III? He even makes it to the Oscars. Well, sort of. Sean Fine, who Sunday won the Academy Award for best documentary for his film "Inocente", is a huge Washington Redskins fan. His grandfather, the late Nate Fine, was the team's official photographer for several years.  Sean Fine is such a huge Redskins fan that he wore a pair of red-and-gold socks with Griffin's catchphrase "No Pressure, No Diamonds" written on...

A man dressed only in socks was killed Wednesday morning when he was hit by a car on the Glenn Anderson Freeway, authorities said. The man was running in westbound freeway lanes when he was hit about 3:40 a.m., said California Highway Patrol Officer Shirley Gaines. The accident happened just west of Long Beach Boulevard, Gaines said. Scott Carrier of the coroner's office identified the man as Wash Sanford, 47, of Carson. It was not known why the man was on the freeway.

What should you do with those odd socks that drive you mad? You know, the leftover halves of pairs that have vanished inexplicably in the laundry. "You should dispose of them and buy a new pair," says 32-year-old, sock magnate Sophie Mirman. "They are absolutely not a trend that will catch on." The Anglo-French Mirman has more than a passing interest in the matter. She is chairman and co-founder of Sock Shop International PLC, a chain of specialty stores that sell socks of almost every sort.

Better make time for a pedicure on Tuesday - Wednesday is National No Socks Day. That's right. A day to free your feet from their confines. And I think wearing sandals is a better alternative than going barefoot -- dangerous -- or wearing regular shoes without hosiery -- sticky and uncomfortable. National No Socks Day was created by Tom and Ruth Roy, who've come up with numerous holidays over the years that are legit enough to be included some years in Chase's Calendar of Events, which writer Richard E. Meyer called “the nation's annual bible of extraordinary occasions” in a Los Angeles Times story about the Roys in 1996.

Spring typically means the return of sunshine, tornadoes and biblical thunderstorms across the Midwest, but a weekend blizzard in the lower Plains had winter stamping on all signs of life in Kansas and Missouri. A daffodil exposition in Springfield, Mo., had to be put on hold. The phone for the I-70 Drive-In's box office in Kansas City, Mo., rang without answer: There would be no outdoor movie with 8 inches of snow on Sunday. Guerrilla Streetfood, a food truck in St. Louis, tweeted that it would take a day off on Monday, preferring not to slog through the city's biggest snowstorm in 30 years -- joining many others in taking a late snow day in this part of the country.

How big is Robert Griffin III? He even makes it to the Oscars. Well, sort of. Sean Fine, who Sunday won the Academy Award for best documentary for his film "Inocente", is a huge Washington Redskins fan. His grandfather, the late Nate Fine, was the team's official photographer for several years.  Sean Fine is such a huge Redskins fan that he wore a pair of red-and-gold socks with Griffin's catchphrase "No Pressure, No Diamonds" written on...

Bidding is underway for a bloody sock that Curt Schilling wore while pitching the Boston Red Sox to a victory against the  St. Louis Cardinals during Game 2 of the 2004 World Series. Schilling decided to sell the sock, which was bloodied as he was played on an injured ankle, after his video game company went bankrupt. Bidding opened at $25,000 and was up to $32,500 by Monday, according to Chris Ivy, director of sports for Texas-based Heritage Auctions. Live bidding will happen in New York on Saturday.

You might have loved watching Jack, Janet, Chrissy and Furley on "Three's Company" when you were a kid. And once it went off the air you were glued to its reruns. Today those reruns have gotten a little, well a lot, stranger thanks to Sock Puppet Sitcom Theater, which is committed to reviving classic sitcoms through the use of sock puppets. This week at the Echo, the sitcom being revived features your favorite threesome. The Echo, 1822 W. Sunset Blvd., L.A. 7 p.m. Sat. $10. (213) 413-8200, http://www.theecho.com .

Anyone want to buy a bloody sock? A lot of people in Boston probably do. Former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling is selling the blood-stained sock he wore during the 2004 World Series. Chris Ivy, director of sports for Texas-based Heritage Auctions, says online bidding begins Feb. 4. Live bidding will take place Feb. 23. He said the sock could get at least $100,000. “I do expect the bidding to be very spirited,” Ivy told the Associated Press. The sock had been on loan to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.

Socks, the White House cat during the Clinton administration, has died at the age of 18. Socks had lived with President Clinton's secretary, Betty Currie, in Hollywood, Md., since the Clintons left the White House in early 2001. Currie said she was "heartbroken." The Clinton Foundation released a statement from the Clintons: "Socks brought much happiness to Chelsea and us over the years, and enjoyment to kids and cat lovers everywhere. We're grateful for those memories, and we especially want to thank our good friend Betty Currie for taking such loving care of Socks for so many years."

William E. Nixon thinks the Washington Police Department may be getting carried away with its "zero tolerance" policy toward crime. Nixon, a Washington cabdriver for 12 years, was parked outside the Washington Court Hotel on New Jersey Avenue NW one recent Sunday, reading a newspaper. It was a warm day, and he was dressed casually: slacks, shirt, sandals. As Nixon sat reading, Officer Wanda Harris approached his cab and stuck her head through an open window. "Hi," Nixon recalled her saying.

Rob Kardashian has taken his first toe-dip into the fashion arena, following in the footsteps of celebrity siblings Kim, Khloé and Kourtney, who've used their reality TV fame - and family name - as a launch pad into myriad endorsement deals, clothing collections and fragrance formulations. But instead of going big, the lowest-profile member of the family (whose biggest gig to date outside of "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" was a memorable stint on Season 13 of "Dancing With the Stars")

I recently had a chance to chat with Rob Kardashian about his new Arthur George by Robert Kardashian sock label for a story that appears in this Sunday's Image section. Below are some of the highlights and insights from our 45-minute conversation that covered everything from design inspirations (Hermès scarves among them) to thoughts about getting a pair of his socks on sister Kim's boyfriend (and soon-to-be father of her baby), Kanye West. Lucky socks "I used to have a lucky pair of socks -- but I'm mad because I think I recently left them in Toronto or someplace like that.