On Saturday, I made my first visit to Charlotte in nearly nine months. My sister wanted to go shopping, so I took her to the biggest shopping centers that I could think of: Carolina Place Mall (in nearby Pineville), South Park (not to be confused with the cartoon of the same name), and Concord Mills (in nearby Concord; the most popular attraction in North Carolina.)

Tomorrow is Convocation at Hoke County Schools. I was told that we (teachers) get a motivational speech among other things. And this whole time I thought it was a ceremony for our seniors (kind of like the procession one goes through after finishing a university degree). Students get the day off.