Jeff, I found a special Italian super glue specifically for plastic. It seems to have done the trick. Unfortunately, here in Venice there are no real photography dealers, just a lot of stores selling point-and-shoots to the tourists. Whenever I've seen tripods, I've looked inside, but they're all these Vivitar things -- haven't seen a Bogen/Manfrotoyet. Hopefully, the tripod will hold together another couple of weeks 'til I get back.

Greg, I'd love to discuss our respective projects with you. I'll drop you a line when I get back.