Entertainment
Enjoyed the day yesterday in Charlotte at a performance of Cirque du Soleil . Worth the price of admission - colorful, creative costuming and fantastic performances by some incredibly gifted athletes. Great choreography. These folks perform without a net either and some of these stunts could lead to serious injuries. Did see one person get a bit injured coming off some huge mid air triple twisting routine that landed on a slanted board - he disappeared discretely offstage and most folks wouldn't have noticed. Heck, they'd be still scraping me off the floor! This particular performance told the following story (they have different performances in different cities) (TV Schedule - If you'd like to catch this on TV, you can see it on the Bravo channel - TV Schedule

VAREKAI

Deep within a forest, at the summit of a volcano, exists an extraordinary world—a world where something else is possible. A world called Varekai.

From the sky falls a solitary young man, and the story of Varekai begins. Parachuted into the shadows of a magical forest, a kaleidoscopic world populated by fantastical creatures, this young man sets off on an adventure both absurd and extraordinary. On this day at the edge of time, in this place of all possibilities, begins an inspired incantation to life rediscovered.

The word varekai means "wherever" in the Romany language of the gypsies the universal wanderers. This production pays tribute to the nomadic soul, to the spirit and art of the circus tradition, and to the infinite passion of those whose quest takes them along the path that leads to Varekai.
Varekai

Bargains
Speaking of Charlotte, if you are looking for a nice place to stay, use Priceline and put in $25 - you can net yourself a nice room for a total of $35 (taxes and fees included). We stayed in a very nice Suites Plus, which had a full kitchen, sofa, bed, writing desk, etc. Hard to beat that price - conveniently located, as well. Charlotte obviously has a surfeit of hotel rooms and they'd rather have that $25 than nothing.

If your're looking for a good place to eat, try out Kaffé Frappe - excellent place to grab breakfast - far beyond your normal Cracker Barrel, IHOP, Waffle House routine.

Word of the Day
hagiography (ha(g'e--o(g'r?-fe-, ha-'je--) - 1. Biography of saints. 2. A worshipful or idealizing biography. "My money's on Pincus, who was appropriately skeptical about the administration's WMD claims while Woodward was writing hagiography about the brave president and his fearless aides.""