It's Quiet. Too Quiet.

I went to vote in the primary today and it was way too quiet. This is the first time I've voted that nobody tried to influence me. I saw a couple of commercials on television and that was it. I didn't get anything in the mail; no flyers, no sample ballots, nothing. I didn't get any telephone calls or recorded messages. Nobody canvassed the neighborhood, knocking on doors. There wasn't even anyone set up outside of the voting site to try to hand me information. Very strange. But I voted. Got my sticker and everything. Just like the one in the picture.


Now we wait...

Travel Insurance Comparison Sites

From PostPoints Travel Tips:

Buying travel insurance in case of bad weather, like a hurricane in the Caribbean?

Policies that stipulate you’re covered if airports are closed should help if bad weather strikes before departure, but won’t cover you if you’re already at your destination and wish to flee. Look for terms that cover you if your lodging becomes uninhabitable. That way, if an evacuation is ordered before a storm, you’re covered, and can go home on the insurance company’s dime. Three sites that let you compare insurance policies and costs: www.quotewright.com, www.squaremouth.com and www.insuremytrip.com.

Music & Passion: An Evening with Barry Manilow

Okay, you can make fun of me. Yes. I went to see Barry Manilow. And what's more, I enjoyed it. It was kitchy and sweet and fun all at the same time.

Travelzoo had a rare announcement about a Barry Manilow concert at the Verizon Center in DC where tickets in the nosebleed sections were going for $9.99! Now you can't see a local, no-name band for that price much less someone who is world famous. I thought, "Why not?"

So I bought nosebleed seat tickets--section 404 which is in the highest tier--and looked forward to an evening of live music for very little money, even if we couldn't see a thing.

When we got to the Verizon Center, they handed us Manilow glowsticks so we could swing them back and forth with the music (!) and the entire crowd sure did. See the green dots in the picture above? Glowsticks.

They scanned our tickets, and said "Congratulations! You've been upgraded!" Because of the set up for the evening, we would have been in obstructed view, so they automatically gave us better seats: we were moved from the 400s to the 200s which is the first tier beyond the floor.

We got ourselves some drinks at the Bacardi bar and headed in and were delighted with our seats which gave us a great side view and wonderful sound. Plus, we had a pretty good view of one of the jumbotrons.

The opening act was a light jazz band that was good.

The man/the myth/the legend himself was everything you'd imagine him to be... shmaltzy and heartfelt and grateful to be in front of a crowd.

Check out the picture above. Is it my imagination, or does he look more and more like Clay Aiken?

Hearing all those old songs really took me back to my teen years.

Come on, admit it, you know most of these, too, don't you? You'd be surprised how quickly the lyrics come back to you when you hear them.

New York City Rhythm
This One's For You
Can't Smile Without You
Ready to Take a Chance Again (yes, the theme from "Foul Play")
Mandy
Bandstand Boogie (yes, the American Bandstand song)
Weekend in New England
Looks Like We Made It
I Write the Songs
Copacabana
All the Time
Daybreak
I Made it Through the Rain
It's a Miracle
The Old Songs

and so much more. Lots of fun. :) Even without performing the jingles, it was an amazing repertoire. This tour is the precursor to his new gig at the Vegas Hilton and his band/orchestra is pretty dang impressive, too.

It's true, I went in with low expectations but I was really pleased to see that Barry is still in good form, musically and otherwise, and puts on a good show. Good for him! And good for us. :)

YTIC (Free Movie Passes)

Check out the YTIC (that's "city" backwards) site at:

http://www.ytic.com/contests/default.asp

to win free passes to latest movie screenings in the DC metro area!

See these movies before everyone else does and do it for free... Yowza!

A True Sign of A Troubled Economy

From MarketWatch:

Starbucks collides with a sluggish economy

Commentary: Plenty of investors saw it coming

Last update: 12:40 p.m. EST Jan. 31, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Starbucks shares got clobbered at the open Thursday, falling as much as 6% after serving up disappointing fourth-quarter earnings late Wednesday and announcing they are scaling back expansion plans that, frankly, many investors doubted were sustainable.

No cause for panic, but it is time to wake up and smell the economic realities of 2008.

SBUX 18.84, -0.07, -0.4%) built its fortunes as a purveyor of luxury and convenience to a nation floating on consumer confidence. No one needs to plunk down $1.55 for a cup of coffee. Even the most hardened caffeine addicts know they can brew their own for a lot less.

With the economy sliding ever closer to recession and the latest jobless numbers out of Washington showing more folks out of work, the spasm of belt-tightening by consumers is bound to put Starbucks near the top of the casualty list. Their fourth-quarter results merely confirmed this.

Starbucks' initial plans for 2007 called for 1,600 new stores in the United States alone, or more than four openings a day. That number has since been whittled back to a mere 1,175 new stores, adding to their already vast 11,160-outlet domestic empire.