Some Soaring Questions!

I'm an ASEL pilot and I'm really interested in gliding.

1.) Looks like theres a lot of way to enjoy gliding, such as cross-country, racing, giving instructing/rides, aerobatics, carving around in the mountains (ridge/wave), and your common playing-around-in-the-house-thermals. As far as cool things to go do in a glider, am I missing anything? Anything cool I could be looking up on YouTube while I wait for winter to run it's course?

2.) Once you've got a glider rating, what additional requirements and training are required to be able to go out and safely perform simple aerobatics? I'm not talking about heading out for some inverted flat spins as soon I'm rated, but I really would like to have the ability to go out and perform some basic maneuvers. Do clubs typically allow aerobatics?

3.) Please correct me if I'm wrong: Glide ratio is the primary concern in racing and cross-country flying, where minimum sink is the larger concern if you're just hanging around locally and trying to stay aloft. In the latter case, in flatland, will there be a lot of days where you just can't find enough lift to maintain altitude? When that happens, are the more skilled guys able to stay up a lot longer? I guess what I'm wondering is if a pilot can expect to have soarable days more often as he gains experience in the sport.

4.) Seems like FLARM is a pretty big deal in Europe, but it doesn't appear to get much use in the US. Do U.S. gliders just skip having traffic information in the cockpit, or do they use something like PCAS? Transponders aren't all that common in gliders, correct?

5.) Will employers typically give you credit for your time in gliders when it comes to meeting airplane hiring minimums or, if not included, is glider time at least looked upon favorably by employers? It won't affect whether or not I pursue gliding, I'm just curious.

I think that's about it for now. Sorry for the long post!