Friday Snippets and Soundbites

• The Opening Ceremony for the 2008 Summer Olympics will take place today in Beijing, China. Actually, the ceremony has probably already happened, but you won't see it until tonight, because of the time difference between China and the U.S. The ceremony started at 8 p.m. in China, which was around 7 a.m. here in Nashville.

• In other Olympic news, Joey Cheek, an Olympic gold medalist in speed skating, made the news this week when China revoked his visa to visit China. Cheek was coming to support a group of 70 athletes who make up Team Darfur, a group he founded around the idea of raising awareness of human rights violations in the Darfur region of the Sudan. China has military, economic, and diplomatic ties to the Sudan. Read more here.

• Sometimes it's OK to be alone. Sometimes you need to be alone. But not when you're three and in a busy airport. Last week, an Israeli couple rushing to get to a chartered flight to Paris managed to get all of their shopping, their 18 suitcases, and four of their five children on the plane. Their 3-year-old daughter somehow got lost in the shuffle and confusion. The parents boarded the plane without here and only found out when the cabin staff alerted the—after they'd been in the air for 40 minutes! An airline staffer flew with the child to Paris to reunite the family. Police plan to question the parents when they return from vacation.

• Want to know which TV actors are making the most per episode? Here you go. Now the ec staff is wondering what life would be like if we were paid $800K per issue.

• You've probably heard about the latest in spa treatments, the fish pedicure, right? But have you seen it? If not, check out this video.


Read more about it all here.