Well, we didn't leave the hotel to eat. There are two restuarants in the building, a contemporary place and a more traditional fine-dining option. We chose the latter because Joe was meeting some old friends who drove up from the Albany area, and on expense accounts, money isn't a factor (though it rarely is anyway with these Xavier people).

So there were six of us: me, Byron, Russ, Joe and Joe's friend Rita, and Tom Dee, who played basketball with Joe at Xavier in the late '70s. The Dees are in their 50s and are in the process of adopting a 10-year-old boy and 14-year-old girl (brother and sister) from an orphanage in Siberia. The story was really interesting, because in the end, it will cost them more than $50K, including $10,000 in U.S. cash to bribe Russian officials (this is in the brochure!) when they go over to Siberia to get the kids. So the conversation was great, but the food was just O.K. Byron, Russ, and I each ordered the Porterhouse Special. Afterward, Rita told us that when we're in New England, we should always order seafood specials.

We spent some time at the bar in the other restuarant and got some good tips from an XU assistant on UMass tendencies for tomorrow. We'll see how good the scouting report is.

Might go see a late movie. National Treasure is playing nearby.