Friday Five

1. Billy Joel in the Soviet Union: In the summer of 1987 Billy and his family and band all went to play multiple concerts in the Soviet Union. At the time he was the first American to do so in the communist country.  I'm not sure if it was older or just made this year, but I caught a documentary on the tour this week on Shotime.  It was fabulous.  In my mind, Billy Joel can already do no wrong.  But to see footage and hear his thoughts on the whole experience was pretty amazing.  Seeing the country full of optimism, brings hope for the country now, which seems to be back to where they started these days all those years ago. 

2. The Olympics: Every two years, without fail, I get caught up in the hype.  It's quite hard not to.  The stories behind these amazing athletes are just so inspiring.  This year, admittedly, it's hard to have that same sense of wonder and optimism, when you hear about the (let's call them) "issues" they're having in Russia.  Let's hope that the world coming together in solidarity will open the eyes of the Russian government a bit to easing up on the crackdown on people who are different and unique.

3. Sherlock Q&A at the Apple Store in Covent Garden, London: Apparently, in London, one of the many awesome things they do is have Q&As with HUGE movie stars at Apple Stores on a random Tuesday night.  Seriously?!  I'm definitely living in the wrong place. You can catch the whole Q&A on iTunes for free if you have a free 45 minutes.  It's well worth it and completely charming - as usual...

4. I love that major corporations (Google, The Guardian, BBC) are standing up to the Russian government and telling them they won't stand for hate and bullying. Way to go Google!

"The practice of sport is a human right. Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play." (Olympic Charter)

5. This one might be just a bit shallow but I'm a pretty happy camper that George Clooney is in a new movie.  That means he's all over the talk shows promoting.  He's always charming, always smart and always hilarious.  Not to mention, he's pretty darn cute as well : )