Lanshi Xia of Naperville prepares for her performance of the Kunqu opera piece "Peony Pavilion," a masterpiece of Chinese literature that was written in 1598, during the Skyland Beijing Opera Amateurs Festival held at North Central College's Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville.

Cynthia Frank is one of a growing number of pet owners using social networking sites to show off their animals and connect with other pet lovers. Since she and her husband separated, Frank can't be with her dog, Scout, every day, but she can share news about her and get updates on Dogbook, a third-party application of Facebook. The middle school faculty members of Indian Prairie School District 204 decided last weekend there was something better to do than crash at home or hit the local restaurants. As it turned out, throwing balls at one another was a whole lot more fun.

Today's Birthday: An extremely active social life could be in store for you in the year ahead. However, you must take care not to let it get out of hand and take precedence over your serious affairs. Give priority to those endeavors that pay the bills.

Since Jan. 12, when the devastating earthquake struck Haiti, I've been riveted by the news reports.