Brown Eyed Girl

On the 244th Day of 1976, 1 month and 27 days after the USA turned 200, Sarah Jayne Sherr was born.  So, on the 244th day of 2016, 8/31/16, Sarah turned 40.  Even better, on 8/31/94, Sarah moved in to Penn, and was in 3401 Walnut getting her first PennCard.  I was on the other side of the suite wall, in the Dining Office, selling mealplans to students.  This marks the first day we were in the same place at the same time, even if neither of us were aware.  How fitting that today was the Intro Meeting of the Penn Band.  It was joining the Penn Band that brought Sarah and me together, and the rest was love and history.  Great ending to the hottest month in August's history and on to the Fall and the new school years and more of our wonderful lives together.  So happy to be with my "brown eyed girl"  And, here's Van Morrison to sing about it! <3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqXSBe-qMGo

Glory Days

We continued celebrating Sarah's impending 40th birthday on Day #243 of 2016.  8/30/16 was the last game of the season for which we have 4 seats, so we can go as a family.  Still have a few games for a parent and a kid to attend :-).  We had a really nice evening, even if the Phils lost (sigh).  We did get to see the bell ring on a homerun from Ryan Howard.  Always good to see him do well.  Last member of the 2008 Championship Team who remains.  It reminded me of the Glory Days of the Phillies' seasons and that reminded me of this classic from Bruce!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vQpW9XRiyM

The Red and Blue

Ahhh, New Student Orientation was in full force on the 242nd day of 2016.  Yes, 8/29/16 was School Based NSO, Registrar Office was buzzing with requests, AND the evening ended with Convocation on College Green, an amazing way to start the Fall semester.  So, I am exhausted tonight and the first day of classes is tomorrow, so I leave you with the obvious choice for the Song of the Day!  The Penn Band, playing the Red and Blue!  HOORAH!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKRzk6pHeOA

Be Still My Soul (In You I Rest)

So, 8/28/2016 started, as most Sundays do, in Church.  And, on the 241st day of 2016, one of the hymns was to the tune of Finlandia.  Which is funny because, just yesterday, Sarah and I were discussing my favorite classical music, and Finlandia tops the list.  So, at the end of a restful (but also busy) weekend, and at the start of an intense and exciting and busy week, I love it that the Hymn of the Week (and, thus, Song of the Day) is titled: Be Still My Soul.  With all that is going on, at work, at Home, in my Family, and in the World, it is a good reminder that our souls need care.  And we should try, at least for a little time each day, to still our soul and meditate.  Hopefully, you can also find time for your souls to be still as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mq59iE3MhXM

In Your Room

On the 240th day of 2016 we celebrated (early) Sarah's 40th and had a great night out with friends.  I wish I could say that, on 8/27/16, we Escaped the Room, but we did not....but we enjoyed it immensely and, for tonight's song, I was looking for a room-themed song, and I love the 80s...and the Bangles....so enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtEXOUCCTpM

Who Let the Dogs Out?

The 239th day of 2016 was not just the first day of NSO 2016 on Penn's campus, but 8/26/16 is also National Dog Day!  We love our dog Skylar, so this song of the day goes out to her!  WOOF!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qkuu0Lwb5EM

One Call Away

The 238th day of 2016 was a red letter day for me.  I sat, on 8/25/2016, on my first panel at the Parents NSO Event.  On the stage on Irvine Auditorium, talking to parents, right before the start of my 31st Fall semester at Penn! I was nervous, I admit, but I had a great time.  And I realized that all of the themes were similar, resources are available for students, for parents, for alumni, and all you have to do is reach out and use them.  SO, basically, we are only One Call Away.  And I have been trying to find an excuse to use this Charlie Puth song all year!  I love it!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxuY9FET9Y4

I Like To Move It

8/24/16 was the first official Move-In Day for the Class of 2020.  And, yes, on the 237th day of 2016, I WAS struck by the realization that Alexa is in the H.S. Class of 2020 and, soon after the students who were moving in today get to Commencement (it happens faster than you'd think), Alexa and her class will graduate from High School <GULP>.  Another consideration for a song of the day that celebrates that passage of time, but feeling that this would be too melancholy of a theme, I will stick to this song and video from Madagascar, instead.  If I hold on to animation movies, maybe the kids will stay younger longer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdcTmpvDO0I

Ride Like the Wind

Well, on the 236th day of 2016, I learned something new again.  8/23/16 is National Ride the Wind Day.  Celebrating a feat of flight (coincidentally right after the Rio Olympics where Brazil kept celebrating flight as well!).  But, tonight, after a day at work preparing for the NSO Move in the next two days, I am focusing on the Best New Artist of 1979, Christopher Cross - gotta like this song, a precursor to the amazing 80s decade of music!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1RB79PmgzI

Time After Time

The start of the week was the 235th day of 2016 and 8/22/16 was a day filled with many meetings and many emails.  But, as you can see on my FB page, I was struck this morning by my FB Memory notification.  A 10-year old picture of Anna and Alexa really got me thinking about how much has changed in the past 10 years.  Time...what a construct...it seems to move so fast at times, and so slow at others.  Driving in to work, there were a bunch of songs on the Bridge (alternative to 80s this AM) dealing with time.  So, I wanted a time related song for today.  I used Time Passages for my dad's bday, so here is a Cindi Lauper classic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdQY7BusJNU

Wide, Wide as the Ocean

Marine Science was, once again, on our minds on the 234th day of 2016.  Because, on 8/21/2016 we got to go on the Whale/Dolphin Watch we missed due to traffic last month.  It was an amazing display of nature, just as the events of the Road Scholar Camp were.  No matter if you believe in God or Mother Nature or just happenstance, you cannot deny the beauty and amazing features of nature. We saw hundreds of dolphins today (sadly, no whales) and we had a great family experience!  It is Sunday, so I looked for a Hymn that related to the ocean, and this is what I found.  I like it, no matter where you are, God's love it with you, even in the middle of the ocean!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI_yWaHqVLo

Saturday In the Park

Day #233 was pretty uneventful for a Summer Saturday.  Another relaxing day, on 8/20/16, at least for me (Sarah and the girls had a lot of events to attend and errands to run).  I got to stay home and catch up on work (have the email under 450!) and watch the Gold Medal Women's Basketball (USA Gold!) and most of the Men's Football Final (Brazil did it!).  Then, we all went to the Phillies game. It was a really nice family evening in Citizen's Bank Park.  Saturday, in the Park, if you will.  And, as I said in my picture caption, it was not the Fourth of July, but the Chicago song is still appropriate as the song of the day!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLiMy4NaSKc

Photograph

8/19/2016 is the 232rd day of 2016.  It is National Photography Day.  As a palindromic day, it went pretty well.  But it was a long day and I have been catching up on work all night.  So, I took few pictures today, and I will leave you all with this classic, from Def Leppard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZ5bS3_BCDs

Together Wherever We Go

I left work late on the 231st day of 2016.  As the Fall Semester approaches, the work is piling up. But, once I got home on 8/18/2016, we got to spend the evening together as a family. Grabbing a quick dinner, attending a fundraiser at a FroYo place, and hanging out watching the Phillies (WIN!) and the Olympics.  I love being together, as a family, wherever we go.  Hence, another showtune tonight!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvZc_XHezL8

In the Heat of the Night

Day #230 was another hot one.....yes, 8/17/16 was not as hot as previous days, but still hot.  Good day of meeting, ending with one of my favorite activities, talking about MBTI to a group of undergraduate student leaders!  Now, tonight, as I turn in (again before Midnight - YES!), reflecting on the heat of the week and the heat of tonight, let's enjoy some Ray Charles (how can one NOT enjoy Ray!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRGY_LuqqB0

Steam Heat

Another hot one on the 229th day of 2016.  8/16/16 was not only hot, but HUMID too.  UGH, it felt like a SAUNA out there.  Only song appropriate for a day like today is this one....felt like standing on a steam grate....and not in a good way.  Yick!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1YHL2E2sR4

A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight

Whelp, I returned to work on the 228th day of 2016 and it was a long day of meetings and catching up on 8/15/16.  Now it's the evening, and it still feels like a swamp outside - so hot - cannot wait for this heatwave to break.  So, tonight - here is a ragtime number, because it IS a hot time, in the old town tonight!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EanT30-NBc0

Comfort, Comfort Ye My People

The 227th Day (AMEN!) of 2016 was still, as Ella sang yesterday, Too Darn Hot!  But, as 8/14/16 is a Sunday, and I missed last week for a hymn because I was on vacation, I was researching hymns about Summer or Hot Days.  I found this hymn, not traditionally thought of as a summer hymn, usually sung during Advent, actually, BUT was originally written for a summer day (6/24).  AND, since comfort is something we are all looking for on a day as hot as today, I think it appropriate for today's Hymn of the Week/Song of the Day.  Also, made me think about people unluckier than we, who live on the street or in locations without the AC relief that we have.  I say extra prayers for them tonight, as I turn in, and hope they find solace and comfort.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtRETJ5j5N8

Too Darn Hot

I am not sure how I feel about the "Real Feel" forecasts that dominate the weather forecasts these days.  But on the 226th of 2016, I believed them.  It was again in the High 90s on 8/13/16,  But the "Feels Like" temps were in the 110-112 range!  It WAS too darn hot outside, so we spent most of the day inside in AC (thank you, Farraday), and the only song appropriate for the song of the day is this Ella Fitzgerald standard!  Stay cool everyone!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlMWW4R1ZBM

Take Me Home, Country Roads

Well, 8/12/16 was the 225th day of 2016 (15 squared!) and the last day of our Marine Science Adventure vacation.  Just a quick closing ceremony this morning, a trip to the gift shop, and then it was on the road to come back to Oaklyn, NJ.  And, to make me happy, we took Route 13.  For some reason, I really like Route 13.  A Country Road, if you will, up the Delmarva Peninsula.  So, for the song of the night, as I prepare to collapse in my own bed (YES!), here is the John Denver classic we all know and love!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vrEljMfXYo

Under the Sea

The 224th day of 2016 had many highlights.  Vacation days are supposed to be that way!  8/11/16, our last full day of our Marine Science Adventure Camp, included a trip to the dunes, a crab feast, and the end of camp talent show where the counselors and the kids made us smile and impressed us with their talents!  I have to say, however, I really also enjoyed the mico- and macro-organism labs, where we looked at the specimens we had collected from the boat trip and the inter-tidal zone.  It was cool trying to catalog all of the critters we had collected.  And, of course, it gives me a chance to use my favorite Disney song of all time as the song of the day.  Another of my favorites from the Penn Band, even though it is no longer in the rep.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GC_mV1IpjWA

Come Sail Away

Now, the 223rd day of 2016 provided me with MANY options for the song of the day!  Because, on 8/10/2016, our Marine Science Adventure put us out to "sea" on a research boat.  If you have seen FB pics from me or my father, you have seen the adventures we had.  It was my favorite activity on the trip so far!  And so, for the song of the day, I am going with the FIRST song that came into my head. A Penn Band favorite and a classic from Styx.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sm-Vh3j8sys

Sitting on the Dock of the Bay

8/9/16 was Day #222 of 2016.  Palindromic in nature, the day was destined for greatness, but, wait, the Marine Science Adventure had a trip to a muck pit.  AND I slightly twisted my ankle in the AM intratidal zone in the morning.  So I was nervous, this afternoon, that the muck pit might have ruined the day.  But, guess what, the ankle turned out to be a blessing.  I could not maneuver on the mud path, so I got to go back and sit on the dock and wait for the mudders who, from the looks of Sarah's pictures, had fun.  Meanwhile, I was with Otis Redding, and the day was saved.  On to tomorrow's boat adventure!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyPKRcBTsFQ

Wild Horses

So 8/8/2016 was the first full day of our Marine Science Adventure Family Camp.  And, on Day #221 of 2016, the Sherr/van Roode families saw a lot of sights down here on the Eastern Coast of Virginia, And finished the evening with an old fashioned campfire with skits and songs.  But, we also saw the famous Wild Ponies.  And, as we were doing our tour, I could not help but think that this Rolling Stones Classic HAD to be the song of the day!  Day 2 tomorrow - and I think we're getting wet and muddy <EEP>.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFLJFl7ws_0

On the Road Again

Here we are on Day #220 of 2016 in Wallops Island, Virginia.  8/7/16 was the start of our Marine Wildlife Excursion...but the day started with packing up and cruising on the road to get here.  And the idea of being on the open road, travelling to new places made me think of this Willie Nelson song. Tomorrow the adventure begins!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBN86y30Ufc

Rootbeer

I have a friend on FB who posts, every day, about what National Day it may be.  Well, today, 8/6/16, is National Root Beer Float Day.  And, on the 219th day of 2016, we had a relaxing day at home with the extended family.  And, tonight, as I need a Song of the Day, my thoughts went back to root beer. And, thusly, you get this song, about which I only know about from tonight on!  Enjoy! <HIC>

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcoU1pk5SJM

Vacation

8/5/16 - Day #218 of 2016 and I spent the day wrapping things up.  Because, now, I am officially on VACATION.  Yes, I will catch up on some tasks and emails tomorrow before we leave Sunday - but it'll be a week before I am back on campus.  Here we GO!  And the Go-Go's will send us off in style!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fQESUBMwGg

The Name of the Game

On the 217th day of 2016 my family was visiting.  Always love when the cousins get together and 8/4/2016 was no difference.  And the day ended with our usual game of Munchkin'  Ahhh, family game night - made this song, from Abba, an easy choice for song of the day!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJ90ZqH0PWI

Bohemian Rhapsody

8/3/2016 was Day #216 of 2016.  And it was a long day, but a good day, but I have a headache tonight and I am tired.  SO, I am going to take the easy way out and, since Monday and Tuesday have featured Queen, so will Wednesday.  One of my favorite Queen songs, which has no ties to today at all - but here it is.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJ9rUzIMcZQ

Bicycle Race

The 215th day of 2016 was another long day of meetings, they were good, but exhausting.  SO, of course, when I got home on 8/2/16, we had to run out again, because Anna's bike tires were flat and damaged.  But, a quick drive to an old fashioned neighborhood bike shop (Erlton Bicycles) where the owners man the cash register (and allow someone to pay just $20 on a $20.32 bill (not me, the guy in front of me)).  And, of course, they inflated Anna's tires, fixed the tire nozzle, and did not charge us at all.  When I tried to pay (and even said add the $0.32 from the guy in front of me), she said, "No charge, because you are coming back with your 14 year old to buy her a bike."  And, you know what, I am.  Because it may be cheaper at Wal-Mart, Target, or Toys-R-Us, but the service and care you get from a neighborhood shop needs to be rewarded and needs to continue.  And, to celebrate my feelings tonight, here is another song from Queen!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GugsCdLHm-Q

You're My Best Friend

It was 8/1/2016, the 214th day of 2016 and the start of the month of August.  August 1st brings two things.  1) the beginning of the end of Summer at Penn, the students will be on campus REAL soon. And 2) Koob's birthday!  Ryan Christian Crocetto, my friend since 1995.  21 years of friendship, through thick and thin.  Fitting that he is hoisting a Guinness in Ireland on our friendship's 21st birthday.  Koob is one of the nicest people you will ever find.  Almost all of the major moments in my life have included Koob,  Most notably, he carried Alexa out of HUP and into our car.  Happy Birthday, Koob, hope you are having a great time in Ireland - we missed seeing you today!  Enjoy some Queen as the Song of the Day, my friend!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaZpZQG2z10