A weekend at the Big Dance and the Big Top

Friday Night:

My brother Michael and I, who were raised in the strict religion of Tar Heel, enjoyed the first round of NCAA Championship competition at Time Warner Cable Arena. We decided to go all out for great seats (with a nice partial sponsorship from our mom) and ended up being very, very close to the action.

How deep does our religion go? This was a post-game conversation we had.

Michael: "Someone said if Duke goes further, at least someone from the ACC will go forward. Forget that. I would root for the Taliban first."

Me: "Well, I hear they're putting together a really great team."

Our enemy Friday night was Long Island University, more specifically the Blackbirds. There were not a ton of Blackbird fans in the house, but the ones that were there were loud and proud. The Tar Heels played a good game, not a great one. I am a little worried about our future in the tournament based on some of the things I saw. The Daily Tar Heel sums it up here.

Regardless, it was great to see the boys in blue in Charlotte. Our seats were fantastic (as pictured above) and we could see some of our favorite boys up close and personal. Getting to hear the Carolina fight song live from the band and shout TAR HEELS along with thousands of others was a great experience. I had a great time with Mike, my brother by DNA and the Church of Tarheel.*

*This will also forever be known as the night my car broke down eight times on the way home from the game. We should find out Monday what the damage will be.

Final Score: 102-87

Roy is angry and so is Ramses:

National Anthem

Zeller goes for a free throw

See all photos from the game here.

Saturday Night

I went to my first ever Cirque du Soleil show-TOTEM! The show was held at the big top, set up in Concord near Lowe's Motor Speedway. It was amazing. I really don't know how to describe this show.

The Totem website describes it as

"Tracing the fascinating journey of the human species from it's original amphibian state to it's ultimate desire to fly. The characters evolve on a stage evoking a giant turtle, the symbol of origin for many ancient organizations. Inspired by many founding myths, TOTEM illustrates, through a visual and acrobatic language, the evolutionary progress of the species."

I describe the show as, well, awesome. I know I should be able to use more words, since this is my writing project. These people are so athletic and talented. They can twirl, juggle, flip and spin. These things are almost always done while swinging and flipping in the air. Seriously, it is SO hard to describe.

Here's a little video I found on YouTube that might help

There were ring tossers, trapeze artists, unicyclists, jugglers, roller skaters and more. The show used all of these incredible talents to tell a story that was funny and through provoking. The best advice I have is go see it if you have a chance. If you're in Charlotte, you still do. They are here until March 27.

It was a fantastic event and is a perfect example of why I needed to do this as a resolution. I think the old Randi would never have made it to this event. And it was wonderful.

Note: All photos that don't include me are courtesy of the Totem website.

For all my Cirque pictures, click here

It's March. I am well into my resolution. Later next week, I'll share how things are going so far. Do you have any suggestions for events I should attend? How has my resolution changed my life so far?

Give me a comment, ya'll! I need your feedback.