we get sacks and sacks of questions

These are from Brian:

1. What one card or board game would you suggest for a group "game night" outside of the typical selections one could find at the generic MegaloMart?
There are so many, of course. If you aren't talking party games, maybe Ticket To Ride Europe. It's a good gateway game for people used to the Hasbro/Mattel fare, and the Europe version corrects some potential problems in the US version.

2. Of the places you've lived, what town/locale had the strongest feeling of a "neighborhood"?
Probably Camden, the neighborhood in north Minneapolis I lived in from third grade until leaving for college. I think when you're not old enough to drive yet, the friends you make and businesses you can get to within walking distance feel most neighborhoody.

3. In your opinion, has the advancement of technology over the last 10-15 years made it easier for lesser-known but high-quality musicians to find a wider audience or has it made it easier for "corporate rock/pop" to dominate more musical outlets, forcing lesser-known acts to more obscure outlets?
I think what it is is while the corporate outlets still control megastardom, they've become less and less relevant. It's become much easier for musicians to get an audience. The most shining examples right now are Dangermouse, who wouldn't have become half of Gnarls Barkley without the buzz of his underground Beatles/Jay-Z mashup; and Lily Allen, who chafed at her label delaying her album -- both here and in the UK -- and became a Myspace star.

4. Of the state fairs you've visited, what was the strangest experience you've ever had, whether visual, event-related, gustatory, or other?
It was probably the llama costume contest: handlers and their respective animals dressed as: Union/Confederate soldiers, prince/princess, and priest/nun.

5. What would be the one "highlight reel" moment of your curling career to date?
I've started to skip more, so lately I'm more proud of some of the calls I've made than the shots. One shot that does stick out was a tricky double I made the other week to score five en route to a shutout win to advance to a tournament final.