Hello Canadensis!

So, the clock on my computer reads 6:10 pm.  The last time I looked at my clock it was 12:15 pm.  Since then, I’ve been on the phone non-stop.  I think my eardrum is sweating!  Ha Ha!  I really didn’t even get a chance to eat lunch.  But, I wanted to make sure that I got to my blog before the day ended and wish everyone a great weekend!

On my end, I will be heading to Long Island to meet a family interested in coming to camp next summer.  After that, there is a rumor going around (actually I’ve confirmed it) that the 2010 CIT Girls will be getting together in Long Island.  So, I am going to stop by and say hello.  It will be nice to see everyone and talk about their upcoming CIT year, which is always a great summer at camp!

In the Krug Family, tomorrow is always a big, big day.  My father went to The Ohio State University and since I can remember the Ohio State-Michigan football rivalry was always a Saturday that could not be missed.  For those that don’t know, this is one of the biggest rivalries in college sports, if not the biggest.  It’s been going on for over 100 years, with the first meeting occuring in 1897.  Michigan leads the all time series, but Ohio State has won the past five years.  Because I’ll be on Long Island, I will be DVRing the game and watch it when I get home.  I can’t wait as I have never missed watching the game since I could remember.

Speaking of college sports, my very own Syracuse Orangemen (or the “Orange” as they are called these days) have a big match-up tonight in the Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic at Madison Square Garden versus North Carolina.  Syracuse beat California last night in a rout to advance to the finals of the tournament.  I am so happy that college basketball season is here!  In my opinion, it is one of the more exciting sports these days with so many games coming down to the final two minutes every night.  When I was growing up, I remember even sneakily staying up late to watch the late night games on ESPN.  Hopefully, the Orange can pull another upset again tonight.

Speaking of sports, the Giants are home again this weekend.  Once again, if you are going to be at the game, be sure to stop by our tailgate lot of 5F.  The tailgate this week will include Bacon, Egg and Cheese sandwiches, hash browns, bagels, lox, cream cheese, burgers, dogs and much, much more!  Hopefully, the Giants can pull out a win!  We need to after four losses in a row.

In addition to the e-mail we sent out a few weeks ago, many of you should have received the 2009 Reunion postcard for our get-together on January 10 from 1-3 at the Brunswick Zone.  It’s going to be a great afternoon!  Today, we sent out another e-mail to our families on how to RSVP.  This year, in an effort to try to get as “green” as possible, many of our forms will be online.  They can be accessed through the “My Account” section of the website, located in the upper right hand corner.  After entering your login and password, you will see a “Forms and Documents” section.  RSVPing is quite easy from there.  We are happy that our system will now be able to take online forms, making life a bit easier for everyone.

Well, that’s all for me.  Time to close up shop for the weekend.  I’ll be back next week.

Until then…Have a great weekend…Brian

Hello Canadensis!

Yes.  Yes.  I know.  I have been neglecting my blogging duties.  That is why I am bringing you…SUPER BLOG THURSDAY!  I don’t know what that really means, but it  sounds good.  Right?

The week has flown by so quickly that there is so much to talk about!  First, I need to tell you about last Friday.  It was great!  I was “secretly” invited to 2010 Lower Inter Oliver Shaw’s Birthday Party Sleepover for his bunk.  I say “secretly” because only Oliver and his parents knew about it.  When I got there, the bunk was in the basement.  Oliver’s parents, Alexis and Jonathan, set it up that I would go downstairs to surprise the bunk with Oliver’s birthday cake.  When I made my way down the stairs, cake with lit candles in hand, I started to sing “Happy Birthday.”  Most of the boys looked for a second at who was singing.  When they saw it was me, they were shocked.  It was a great surprise!  At the party was Oliver Shaw, Oliver Harris, Adam Aronson, Jonathan Altman, Alex Frieder and Daniel Goldstein.  According to mom, the boys stayed up late to celebrate by watching movies as well as a sneak peak of the Video Yearbook (my birthday gift to Oliver and the boys).  Here is a picture…

Me at Oliver Shaw's Birthday Sleepover with several of the Boys from Bunk 4 of last summer. What is Oliver Harris doing with that doll?

On Saturday, it was more camp festivities as I made my way down to Pennsylvania to celebrate the Bat Mitzvah of 2010 Lower Senior Melanie Sukonik.  In the morning, Melanie did such an amazing job leading the service at temple and made parents Neil and Sue and sister CJ extremely proud.  In the evening, it was time to party and it was amazing to see how many Camp Canadensis campers were able to attend the service and affair.  Almost everyone from Mel’s entire bunk was there and a number of campers from other bunks, too.  Also in attendance were Aunt Terri, Uncle Don, Eric Forti, Robin Hasson and Yale Saltzman.  In fact, all of the Canadensis people were called up to light a candle on Mel’s cake.  What a surprise!  After that, we danced the night away!  Halfway through the night, Mel’s montage showed off a number of pictures from camp, all which got the biggest applause.  Even later, Mel’s camp friends made a great presentation to her.  It was certainly a night to remember!  Pictures of the event can be seen on Eric’s blog.

That night, I stayed in a hotel in the Penn Valley area.  On Sunday, I made my way down to one of my favorite areas of Philly…South Street.  It was such a nice day to do some window shopping.  Of course, I had to indulge in a Philly Cheesesteak wit (as they say in Philly) onions and whiz.  Delicious!  Some cool shops on South Street, including a great store called Beyond the Wall, which had some completely ridiculous books, posters and knick-knacks.

So many people have been in touch with us this week at work.  I feel like I have spoken to so many people, including Roy Faden, Will Armon, Brian Stern, the “one and only” Levi Smathers (I told him I would write his name that way) and Groundhog to name a few.  Everyone is doing really well and can’t wait for camp next summer.  In fact, Levi made a joke to me of how we all say that we live 10 months for the 2 that we have at camp.  Because Levi worked both pre and post camp last summer, he says that he lives 7 months for the 5 months he stays up at camp.  Don’t we all wish we could be at camp for 5 months!?!?

Last  night, I made my way down to Voorhees, NJ.  First, I stopped by the Batt Family.  Mom Jennifer is a Canadensis Alumni who is thinking about sending her son Jacob to camp.  I showed them a video of camp and talked all about what they could expect from the “Best Summer Ever!”  Jennifer remembers how beautiful camp was and how much she enjoyed her days as a camper.

A few minutes away, I made my way to the Bresaliers to see 2010 Upper Inter Rachel who will also be joined next summer at camp by her sister Jenna, who will be in the Junior Girls Division.  Rachel told me that she has been keeping in touch with all of her camp friends and has even had several get-togethers and sleepovers.  Rachel has been busy with her dance classes (jazz and ballet) and is set to start basketball season in a few weeks.  Sister Jenna is also involved with jazz and ballet dance while also playing travel soccer.  Jenna told me that she watched all of the Canadensis Today shows last summer while at home and is now excited that she is going to be part of all the fun!  Here is a pic…

Me with Jenna (left) and Rachel Bresalier.

I’m hoping to see more and more campers as we get into the winter months.  I hope to be able to meet all of our new campers by March.  At the same time, we have gotten several questions about when our new camper get-togethers are going to be.  We will announce those dates soon, but more than likely, they will be either the weekend of April 10-11 or  17-18, so you can pencil in those dates.  We will have a better idea by next week.

I promise I will be back tomorrow for a Super Friday Blog!

Until then…Have a Great Day…Brian

Hello Canadensis! 

I hope all is well on this Fall Friday.  Definitely starting to get a bit nippy out there (as my 9th Grade Algebra Teacher Mr. Tell used to say).  As the weather starts to get colder, it’s a good thing that I’ve been able to get out and see some of our new Canadensis campers over the past few days as well as talk a lot of camp with fellow directors in the camp industry. 

On Wednesday, as I mentioned in an earlier blog, Eric and I met up in New York City to attend the Morry Stein Management Conference, an American Camping Association event, which was held at B.B. King’s of all places.  Normally, B.B. King’s is a concert venue that hosts a lot of jazz and blues acts, but on this day, it was for talking camp.  There were three speakers, two of which were really good.  The final speaker talked about digital and social media and the use of sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.  I thought it was extremely interesting.  In between speakers and during lunch, Eric and I got to talk with other camp people.  I always find it great to hear how other programs operate. 

After the conference, I made my way uptown in New York City to visit new camper Andy Grossman who will be in the Lower Inters in Summer 2010.  Andy, who is currently in 4th Grade, is just finishing up his Soccer season but will soon move into Basketball season in the winter.  In the spring, Andy plays a lot of baseball and is a huge fan of the sport.  In the summer, he is excited that he will be playing in the CBL (Canadensis Baseball League).  In addition to all of the sports he likes, he is also really looking forward to Glass Fusion, the activities down at the lake and said he might even participate in one of camp’s theater productions.  While at Andy’s home, I also got a chance to meet his younger brother Jonah.  Here is a picture of the three of us…

Me with Andy and Jonah.

On Thursday night, it was off to Tenafly, NJ to meet new Junior Boy Dylan Carruba.  Currently in 3rd Grade, Dylan is weeks away from starting both his Wrestling and Basketball seasons, two activities he is excited for at camp as well.  While at his house, Dylan showed me his basketball cards collection, which totaled more than 3000 cards!  I had a lot of fun looking through the cards of the New Jersey Nets, my favorite NBA team.  Dylan is a big fan of the Lakers!  This summer, he is also looking forward to Basetball, Arts & Crafts, the Climbing Wall and Hondas!  Here is a shot of me and Dylan… 

Me and Dylan.

I got a great e-mail from Parent Debbie Weltmann earlier this week, letting me know that her daugther and 2010 Upper Senior Rachel had her Bat Mitzvah last weekend and there were many Canadensis campers in attendance.  In fact, there was an entire table of Canadensis!  In this picture, you can see the centerpiece, which was a big Canadensis bunk, tennis racquets, camp fire and real letters Rachel had sent this summer to her parents.  Awesome! 

Bat Mitzvah Girl Rachel and Hannah at the celebration last weekend! Notice the camp centerpiece!

I am really looking forward to this weekend as I will get the chance to see a number of Canadensis campers at two different events!  However, I am not going to reveal either event until next week because one is actually a real surprise that is going to take place tonight.  I will give full descriptions on Monday!  But, it’s going to be a lot of fun!   

Hello Canadensis! 

AHHHH!  Apparently, I have a computer virus!  It really stinks.  So, my regular computer is down for the time being, but that won’t stop me from blogging to Canadensis Cyberspace!  I am using my handy dandy trusty laptop for this blog.  First, what is it about the world that we have people who enjoy creating these computer viruses.  I mean, do they have anything better to do?!?!  Maybe I can get Groundhog to get them back.  Only kidding!  It is frustrating, though.

Speaking of Groundhog, I spoke to him last night and you will all be happy to hear that he is putting the final touches on this year’s Video Yearbook.  The DVD will feature the Video Yearbook and Slideshow as always along with some extra very special features such as the entire Color War sing, two CIT Videos, a Canadensis Today Show Look Back at Summer ’09 and Picture Day.  The DVD, when put into your computer, will also reveal a 100-page Yearbook.  Pretty cool stuff! 

Speaking of CITs, I got greeted at my seats at Sunday’s Giants games by two of them from Summer ’09.  Amidst all of the action, I hear two people scream, “Krug!”  I turn around and see Josh Schultz and Ethan Wolfe.  During a stoppage in the game, we talked for a few minutes.  When the game came back on, we were met with a bunch of “sit down” cheers from the fans, so our gathering was broken up a little too quickly.  Anyway, it was great to see both of them and they are doing really well.  Thanks Josh and Ethan for stopping by!  As for the game, itself, not good once again for my Giants, losing in the game’s final seconds 21-20.  That is four losses in a row.  Not good. 

As for more CIT stuff, 2010 CIT Morgan Hirschorn e-mailed me some great pictures from Sydney Gocials Sweet 16 in which many of next summer’s CITs were in attendance.  Morgan said it was a great time seeing everyone and catching up on everything since the summer ended.  Here are the pics…

2010 CITS at Sydney's Sweet 16!

Jamie, Ally, Birthday Girl Sydney, Emma and Morgan.

Tomorrow, Eric and I will be venturing into New York City for an EPIC Conference.  EPIC stands for Emerging Professionals in Camping.  These events are always good to meet other camps and hear how other camps are doing certain things.  At tomorrow’s conference, there are also a few good guest speakers, including the CEO of Six Flags.  It should be interesting. 

Now, onto some more of my favorite pics from last summer…

Girls Bunk 20 in 2009 Sweatshirts!

E-Beth Caught in the Ladder!

Ashley's Got a Blue Tongue!

Counselor Pete with Brett, Jake and Mosk.

I see Mike. And why so serious Tyler?

Well, that is all for today.  No blog tomorrow as I will be out of the office all day, but I will be back on Thursday.  Hopefully, I will have my computer back to me, too. 

Until then…Have a great day…Brian

Hello Canadensis…

A busy day on the road yesterday kept me away from the computer, so I figured I jump on a Saturday for some weekend words.

First and foremost, CONGRATULATIONS to ERIC and ROBIN on their ENGAGEMENT!  How exciting!  Maybe the wedding should be an Evening Activity at camp this summer?  How ’bout it, Forti and Robin?  Ha Ha!  Only joking of course, even though I’m sure the CIT girls would have a blast decorating!  Seriously though, all the best to Eric and Robin and a life together filled with love and laughter.  Go to Eric’s blog for pictures!

In other camp news, as I mentioned, yesterday had me visiting several Canadensis families.  In the morning, I visited Canadensis Alumni Jonathan Kleinstein, who is considering sending his two daughters, Molly and Ella, to camp next summer.  Jonathan, who couldn’t stop beaming about his summers at camp, was excited to hear about our Alumni Reunion on June 19, 2010.  As a camper, Jonathan remembers playing a lot of hockey in the Spectrum, the skidoodle on the lake and turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes as his favorite meal.

In the afternoon, I drove into New York City to meet with some of our new campers for next summer and future summers!  First, I stopped by to meet Jones Pearlman, who will be in the Junior Boys division in Summer 2010 and his brother Ozzie, who will be a camper in 2011.  Jones, who is in 3rd Grade, likes to play GaGa, Basketball, Baseball and Soccer.  He is looking forward to trying the Ropes Course when at camp.  At home, he is also an avid skateboarder.  Ozzie, currently in 1st Grade, likes many of the same activities as Jones such as Basketball, Baseball and Gaga.  While visiting, Jones and I worked on building a website he is putting together.  It was a lot of fun!

Me with Jones (right) and Ozzie (left).

After that, I walked a few blocks to see Gaby Hirsch, who will be coming to Canadensis for her first summer in 2010 as part of our Junior Girl Division.  In the 3rd Grade this year, Gaby is really looking forward to the Horseback Riding program at camp.  Since she is currently rehearsing her role as Molly for the show “Annie,” a production that will be put on in the spring as part of an after school theater company, there is a good chance we will also see Gaby on the Canadensis stage in 2010 as well.  At home in the winter, she also plays piano and loves playing with her dog Dexter.

Hanging out with Gaby.

After a day like this, it is definitely safe to say that I have one of the best jobs on the planet!  Talking camp all day with alumni, future campers and their parents is just the best!  As is the case each off season, I hope to see as many Canadensis people as possible!

Since it’s been a few days since my last post, I will say CONGRATULATIONS to all those Yankees fans out there for their win in the World Series over the Phillies.  27 Championships!  Wow!  More than any other franchise in any professional sport.  Wow, again!  Did any of you skip school or work to attend the parade?  If so, I hope you had a great day, seeing the spectacle of a ticker tape parade.  And if any of you did go, send me a picture and I’ll post it here on the blog.

Hopefully, the good vibes from the Yankees victory will rub off on the Giants this weekend as we have suffered three losses in a row!  Not good.  This weekend is a must win!  Once again, we will be in the parking lot because it is a home game.  Our arrival time will be at 11 am.  If you are planning to be at the game, stop on by and say hello.  We are in Lot 5F and will be cooking those famous steak tips that Greg Ricken and the rest of the 2009 CIT Boys love so much!  Of course, there will also be our traditional grilled pineapple, too.  Always plenty of food for everyone.

Finally, in response to my last post which made a reference to my curiosity in the term “fancy” ketchup, Jason “J-Cal” Calabretta, who as we all know hates (and is actually somewhat fearful of) ketchup, had a comment.  His direct quote is:    “Saw the little ketchup thing and I wanted to speak up for those of us that don’t like ketchup. There are lots of us out there …nothing makes ketchup fancy! It’s disgusting :).”  Thanks, J-Cal.  Also, thanks to Counselor Shawn Bolton for actually providing us with an actual answer in that it is simply a marketing ploy by the Heinz Company.

More blogging next week.

Until then…Have a Great Weekend…Brian

Hello Canadensis…

So, today was one of those days that you just don’t know where it went.  I’m calling today a Weird Wednesday.  First off, I was supposed to go to camp today.  Unfortunately, those plans got canceled.  A shame because I really wanted to see all of the work that has been going on up at camp.  More of camps roads on girls side and senior boys side have been recently paved, so I wanted to see that.  Plus, any day you can be up at camp is a great day!  Right?  So, I sat down at my desk today with a few things that needed to get done.  Before I could even open the documents on my computer, the phone just kept ringing all day.  As soon as I finished one call, another call came in.  It was crazy!  When I looked at the clock, it was already 4 pm and the document that I opened at 9 am was still only halfway completed.  Oh well.  I’d prefer talking to our camp families and all the other companies we do business with instead.  But, it was just so strange for a day when I wasn’t even supposed to be in my office to begin with!

I got some more Halloween pictures sent to me.  Some more awesome costumers!  Here they are:

Ben, Matthew and Jacob went to Philly and participated in the Race For Hope.

Megan as a Bag of Jelly Beans. She won best costume at her school. Congrats, Megan!

David as Harry Potter. Do you know any spells to double your amount of candy?

So, big game tonight in the World Series.  If the Phillies win, it’s on to an exciting Game 7 tomorrow night.  If the Yankees win, this thing is over and New York will win their 27th World Series Championship.  To that I say three words…Let’s Go Phils!  Should be a good game.  Anyone going?  If so, take a picture and I’ll post it here.

As for pictures, here are some of my favorite from the past summer…

Mikayla and Maddie at the Lake

Here's Looking At You, Ethan and Jake!

Carly and Rachel.

Alex Flexes His Guns!

Finally, in something that is totally unrelated, I have an off the cuff question for all of you.  So, I am sitting and having my lunch today (cheese steak with onions) and in the bag are ketchup packets.  On them, they read “Fancy Ketchup.”  So, I ask.  What makes this ketchup fancy?  Hmmmm….

Well, that’s all for today. Keep reading.

Until then…Have a great day…Brian

Hello Canadensis…

Didn’t get a chance to blog yesterday due to the fact that I went down to the office in Plymouth Meeting.  On those days, I am in the car for at least 3 hours, which leaves very little time to get other things accomplished.  Yesterday was the first day for our new Assistant Director Pam Levi.  For those that didn’t read the last newsletter (which is still available to read on the website), Pam is joining our year round team after working in the camping industry for a number of years.  She is going to be an amazing addition as she brings in a ton of experience, creativity, organization and camp spirit!  Welcome, Pam!

We actually even sat down for a number of hours yesterday to begin really putting together the summer calendar.  As Eric mentioned in the November 1 Canadensis Today Show (available in the Media Room), we have used the information that we received on your surveys to help with our planning.  Thanks to everyone that filled it out.  Your suggestions have really been helpful, although I’m sorry to disappoint those that were hoping for Miley Cyrus to come to camp next year.  Oh yeah, one more thing, sushi is a bit too difficult to serve for 600+ people so don’t expect that to be on the menu next year.  The meeting, which went for 2.5 hours, really got me excited for the summer.  We even spoke of a possible scenario for Color War break!  Of course, there is no chance of me ever revealing that one.

Later on, Eric and I had dinner with Programming Director Roy Faden.  First off, it was Roy’s 50th Birthday on Friday.  Happy Birthday Roy!  During dinner, Roy also provided great insight for ways of making Summer 2010 even better than last summer.  We are so grateful for having Roy as part of our team.  Producing schedules for all of our campers and staff is one daunting task.  Roy, along with Programming Coordinators Brian Stern and Will Armon, made it possible for the summer to run so smoothly.  The dinner with Roy made the summer feel not so far away either.  In fact, my ride home to New Jersey felt a lot quicker with such a good talk about camp!

Programming Director Roy Faden and his new friend!

I got two great e-mails today that I wanted to share with everyone.  The first was from Jared “Groundhog” Katzman, who let me know that the Video Yearbook is almost ready for duplication.  He is almost ready to submit it to us so we can get it copied for everyone.  It should arrive in the first few weeks of December so be on the lookout!  I thought the DVD, produced by Lauren “L-Mac” McGuire, was so amazing!  The idea of having the campers as reporters was great.  I can’t wait to watch it again.  The other e-mail was from 2010 CIT Samantha Goldberg.  Every once in a while, I will get an e-mail from her that simply screams with her excitement for camp.  This e-mail was no different as Samantha reminded me that we only have 235 days until camp.  She also mentioned how excited she was for the Reunion in January as well as the CIT Weekend in the spring. Apparently, some of the CITs for Summer 2010 will be getting together in an upcoming weekend, too.  At the end of today, I also got a chance to talk with Counselor Martha Archer.  Martha is back at Ohio University in her Junior year.  She said that everything is going well and was so thrilled to receive several invites to campers bar and bat mitzvahs!

So, I have started to receive a number of your Halloween pictures.  Thanks for sharing to everyone who sent one in.  If you haven’t sent one in and would still like to, I will continue to post them.  First off, I hope everyone had a good time trick-or-treating or going to Halloween parties.  The concert I went to was a lot of fun.  And, a lot of good costumes, too.  The best was a group costume of people that went as all the Kellogg’s characters (Cap’n Crunch, Toucan Sam, Snap, Crackle and Pop, Dig’Em, Lucky the Leprechaun).  So now, without further ado, here are your costumes…

Andrew as a Vampire!

Allison (left) as a Cat. Meow!

Alexa (right) and Carly (left) All Punked Out!

Andy as a Monster. According to his dad, Andy apparently scared off a number of the neighborhood kids. Ha Ha!

Dylan as a Lego.

Scott as Hannah Montana. So, I stand corrected; Miley Cyrus can be at camp next summer.

Good stuff everyone!  Again, thanks for sharing.  I think Halloween at camp is going to a blast!

Finally, congratulations to Paula and Josh Halpern for guessing the answer to the last trivia question.  The Monster Mash went to #1 on the Billboard Charts in 1962.  Your Color War bands are on their way!  On one last Halloween and Monster Mash note, if you haven’t seen the Jib Jab video on Eric’s blog, go there now.  It is hysterical!

More blogging tomorrow!

Until then…Have a great day…Brian

Hello Canadensis…

…and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I hope everyone is getting ready for the festivities this weekend and will be dressing up as well.  I would love to see all of your Halloween costumes this year.  If you send them to my e-mail at brian@canadensis.com or at info@canadensis.com, I will be sure to post them on this blog for everyone to see!  From what I know so far, some of you have some creative ideas for costumes.  I remember a few years ago, Danielle Faden and Becky J dressed up as Color War for Halloween.  Very cool.

I also sent out an e-mail today to all 2010 Campers and Parents that we will definitely be doing Halloween at camp next summer, so save all of your costumes and make sure you pack them in your trunks.  I know many of you also attend Halloween parties at your school or local community center, so if there are any games / activities that you do there and think would be good for our Halloween Day at camp, let us know.  We’d love to get some good ideas!

As for me, I will be going up to Albany, NY for a concert.  I know, surprise.  Ha Ha!  It is actually a pretty cool concept for a concert, too.  The band that is playing is called moe.  If you’ve never heard of them, you can check them out at www.moe.org.  Anyway, they are an improvisational band and for this Halloween, they decided that they would let their fans choose their set list of songs.  For a month, fans could vote on a website from a list of around 100 songs (originals and covers) of what they would like to hear.  The songs were tallied and now I will find out tomorrow what they will play.  I thought this was a really great idea.

Of course, Sunday will bring one of my favorite football match-ups of the year with the Giants playing my most despised rival the Philadelphia Eagles.  In fact, many of you from the Philly area remember me on the Comcast Pre-Game last year speaking of my dislike for the Eagles.  That was funny!  For this game, since it is in Philly, one of the guys we tailgate with is having a party at the restaurant he owns called Griffins in Cresskill, NJ.  If you know of it and will be around, be sure to stop on by.  I think it is $15 per person.  Should be a good time!  Especially if we destroy those Eagles!

I spoke to counselor Jamie Jacobson today.  She is doing well at Syracuse University, now in her sophomore year.  She says that she see’s fellow Canadensis Counselor Rachel Dender on campus a lot since both are in the School of Education there.  Jamie J says hello to everyone at Canadensis!

Jamie J with Brianna.

I also spoke with counselor Tony Davis yesterday.  He’s doing well at Central Michigan University, where he is finishing up his English degree on his way to eventually teaching High School English.  Turns out, Tony D is living with fellow Canadensis counselor Chris Poag.  He said the two of them having been doing really well in Mt. Pleasant, MI, where he also says he runs into counselors Andi Riemersma, Brandon Clothier and Sarah Smalley.  Tony is very excited that he will be back for his second summer at camp in 2010.

Tony at Color War Bucket Brigade grabbing a pitcher from Ian. Don't spill it!

As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, the new feature here will be showing some of my favorite pictures from Summer 2009.  Continuing in chronological order, here are some more from Week 1…

Some of the Boys from Bunk 11

CIT Meg with Sydney and Rachel.

Boo Needs a Hug!

Things really do get crazy on Crazy Night! Right, Girls Bunk 9?!

Well, I hope everyone has a fantastic Halloween Weekend.  My weekend starts out really nice as I am having dinner with my family, including my brother Michael who I very rarely get to see because he works for a touring theater company.  Currently, he is working on the national tour of South Pacific which is off for one week before he goes back on the road in South Carolina.

And that also ends our blogging in the month of Rocktober.  As you can see, my subject for today is Halloween related.  The Monster Mash was a hit song written by Boris Pickett.  It’s a cooky song that I’ve always enjoyed, especially for Halloween.  So, for my last trivia question of Rocktober (first one to respond wins color war bands), in what year did The Monster Mash reach #1 on the Billboard chart?

Will blog more next week.  HAPPY HALLOWEEN!  Don’t forget to set your clocks back on Saturday night.  We get an extra hour of sleep!

Until then…Have a great day…Brian

Hello Canadensis!

I was at the Plymouth Meeting office yesterday and Eric asked me why I haven’t blogged in a while.  Obviously, he is a big fan of “Bloggin’ With Brian” and could not go another day without reading.  I apologize for neglecting my online fans.  Ha Ha!  Anyway, it will not happen again!  I am back on the blogging train.

The past week since my last blog has been good.  First off, I think it is so cool that the Phillies and Yankees are in the World Series.  I am sure there are a number of bunk mates who are in a friendly rivalry over the next week and half.  I can even picture bunk mates video chatting with one another as they watch the game.  In our office, things are definitely in favor of rooting for the Phillies as me, Cara and Aunt Terri are all pulling for Philadelphia.  Matt is backing the Yankees and is even going to Games 1 and 2.  Eric is remaining neutral.  Boo, Forti!  Pick a side!  Ha Ha!  I think the series has the potential of going six or even seven games.  Good luck to all those Phillies and Yankees fans out there.

Speaking of getting back on the train, my home visits for the off season have officially begun.  As many of you know, my favorite part of the fall, winter and spring months is visiting as many campers as possible.  Last night, I got a chance to go visit new camper Eric Miller, his sister Ilana and parents Robin and Larry.  Eric will be a Lower Inter in Summer 2010 and is super excited to be coming to Canadensis!  When I got to their house in Rydal, PA, the family was decked out in Philadelphia Phillies World Series attire.  While there, Eric told me that he is having a lot of fun playing on his travel ice hockey team which keeps him busy most days after school and on weekends.  This season, Eric has been playing mostly right and left wing.  I’m sure at camp next summer he will enjoy playing in the CHL.  His sister Ilana loves the art classes she has been taking and even showed me a dry erase board she made at her birthday party.  She is very talented.

Me with Eric and Ilana Miller. As you can see, they were ready for last night's Phillies World Series game!

After my home visit, I got to have dinner at Bertucci’s in Plymouth Meeting with Hondas Director Howard Waxman.  Howard sends his best to everyone at Canadensis.  Howard and I talked for hours about how great Summer ’09 went.  I must say how impressive it was to see so many of campers riding this summer.  It is Howard’s goal for next summer to see many of our Senior campers to switch to clutch bikes.

Howard Waxman this past summer. I think that bike is a bit too small for you, Howard! Ha Ha!

So, while I’m writing this, the phone rings.  Who is it but Erica Carey, calling me from Istanbul, Turkey!  Erica sends her love to everyone at camp, especially the girls of Bunk 21 from Summer ’09.  In our reminiscing of the summer, Erica, who works in the COALS program (for those not in the know, COALS stands for Canadensis Outdoor Adventure Living Skills) mentioned how wonderful the overnights went this summer and how so many groups enjoyed them.  In fact, she said the Freshman Optional Overnight was one of the best nights of camp she has had in her ten summers at Canadensis!  Pretty cool stuff.  She also mentioned that many Seniors came to her this summer, wanting their own optional overnight.  Erica can’t wait to get back to camp next summer!

The other day, I needed to go through the Summer 2009 photos that Groundhog takes each day at camp.  Tons and tons of photos to look at!  So, I got this idea to post some of my favorite pictures each day from the past summer on this blog.  I will try to go in chronological order with each blog.  Here are some from camp’s first few days…

Matthew and Jason.

Peace to you, too, Amanda and Rachael!

Erica, Sophia, Amanda and Alix Enjoying a Paddle Boat Ride.

Jesse is the first pick of the Knicks and Coach Greg Richner in the NBA Draft.

Congratulations to Carly Fleischer, who sent in her guess from a past blog that “Every Picture Tells A Story” is a song sung by Rod Stewart.  Great song, too!  Carly…your color war bands are on their way.  Can you guess who sings the subject of today’s blog?  First one to reply wins color bands!  And, no googling!

I will be back tomorrow for a Halloween Blog…Until then…Have a great day…Brian.

Hello Canadensis!

Been away for a few days, so I feel like there is “So Much To Say” on this Tuesday.  And, in the spirit of Rocktober, “So Much To Say” is a song by whom?  First to answer gets Color War Bands!  You shouldn’t need Google for this one as it is a song from one of today’s most popular bands.  With so much to say, here it goes (in no particular order)…

So much going on.  Yesterday, I attended a wonderful American Camping Association event in New York City.  There were 75-80 different camps in attendance and we sat through numerous sessions on how to “spread the word” about camp.  I had a really great time.  It is always nice to meet other camp directors and workers to see what they are up to as well.

After the event was over, I headed to Long Island to have dinner at the Barefoot Peddler with Senior Boys Head Counselor Ken Ricken.  We talked about the summer among other things.  As many of you know, Ken is also a huge Mets fan.  While we were eating, the Yankees game was on and he was so rooting against them.  It was really funny to see how happy he was when the Angels won!  Ken says hello to everyone in the online Canadensis Community.

I also had a great talk with Mike Lindquist on Friday.  Mike, who is definitely planning on coming back to camp, is doing well at the University of Oregon, where he is finishing up his degree this year.  I always enjoy talking to Mike because Mike loves to talk camp!  He always refers to it as one of the best places in the world!  I couldn’t agree more!  He says that he has kept in touch with a lot of people, too.  In fact, Kenzie Gauthier, who also goes to Oregon, lives right across the street from Mike.  Cool!  Of course, Mike and I always talk about sports, too.  As we are both kind of sci-fi geeks, we also talked about our new favorite show on TV…Flash Forward.  I’ve been hooked on this show which is about the whole world blacking out for a few minutes and getting a glimpse of their future six months from now.

I have started to schedule some of my home visits for the winter.  This is definitely one of my favorite parts of my job.  Getting to see all of our campers and talking about Canadensis is what makes me excited for next summer to come even quicker!  For any new family that would like a visit in the next few weeks / months, give me a call at 973.842.0650.  Of course, I hope to see a number of returning campers, too!

I sent out an e-mail last week, letting our Summer ’09 Campers and their Parents know that our Annual Summer Reunion will be held on Sunday, January 10 from 1-3 pm.  It will once again be at the Carolier Brunswick Zone in New Jersey.  This is always a good place as it is centrally located for all of our families.  This event is only intended for those campers and staff that attended camp last summer.  For all new campers, we will have events scheduled in the spring for everyone to meet.

I got an e-mail from Nurse Betty Ashe, letting me know that her New Orleans Saints absolutely crushed my New York Giants this weekend.  Good thing I didn’t make a bet with her.  Anyway, congrats to your Saints!  They looked really good on Sunday.  At least there was some salvation for Giants fans this weekend after the Raiders beat the Eagles!  Sorry Philly fans; I just had to do it!  Ha Ha!  As for sports rivalries, is anyone rooting for the Phillies to play the Yankees in the World Series?  I’m sure there would be a lot of friendly rivalries going one between camp friends with that match-up.  Looks like we are close to that happening!

Hats off to Dylan Carruba (a new camper for Summer 2010) and Danielle Faden (who apparently must read my blog a lot, thanks D-Fade) for participating in the Sing Down of my last blog.  Of course, Danielle was quick to mention that both alma maters from Summer ’09 used the word “dream” in it. Dylan (and his mom Kristy) came up with a number of songs with the work “dream” in it.  Off the top of my head, I would have thought of River Of Dreams (Billy Joel), The Dream Police (Cheap Trick) and Boulevard of Broken Dreams (Green Day).  By the way, who doesn’t love a good Sing Down!

Spoke to Eric for a long time today.  He just got back from his cruise.  I’m sure he will tell you all about it in his blog.  He said it was a great time!  Eric definitely needed to get away before our plans for Summer 2010 really begin to take off.  I’m glad he had fun!

On a completely random note:  Has anyone else noticed that when you take-out food from restaurants these days that they either skimp or don’t give you napkins.  What’s up with that?  Maybe it’s just me, but I think someone should always get napkins with their meal.  Am I the only that has noticed this?  Am I the only one that cares?  Ha Ha!

Well, time to go.  More blogging later this week.

Until then…Have a Great Day…Brian