heaven on earth

the first dayof camp has come and gone. despite the extreme heat and a few parent concerns, it was a good day. our group is called the Aquanauts, and is made up of 23 first-grade boys (thankfully, the directors blessed us with six staff members & two CITs for the next 8 weeks), and our changing room has been named the Yellow Submarine. we have several first-time campers as well as some returners, so it should be a nice mixture.


i thought it would be neat to give you a brief overview of how the Aquanauts will spend their mornings & afternoons at Camp Maplewood. 


9am Round UP (it probably doesn't sound as CrAzY as it actually is--add Casey Casum's top 40 hits along with some interesting dance moves, sweat-producing push-ups, and dis-jointed congo lines and that's what you've got just about every morning!)


9:30 Skill-based game(s) (only if we all had skills like Jake K. or Sam E.)

10:15 Snack (a must for every first-grader & his teenage/adult counselor : )


10:30 Instructional Swim (nobody told our kids that they had to walk, stay inside the ropes of their respective swimming level, and that they couldn't splash others in the pool?!?) 

11am Change (this is certainly not as simple as it sounds, especially since it usually involves locating "lost" towels & socks, re-applying sunscreen to every inch of exposed skin, and escorting kids one-by-one to the bathroom ("i didn't have to go the bathroom THEN")



noon  Lunchtime (no explanation needed)



1-2pm  Specialty (i.e. art, drama, music, karate, boating a.k.a. a small break for staff)


2:30-3:30 FREE Swim (unfortunately, no Wendy Peppercorn at Camp Maplewood!?!)


3:30-4pm POW-WOW! (the good, the bad & the ugly takes place during the last 30 min.)


here's to a summer of hot days & cool treats,

Tom -- Sr. Counselor (Aquanauts)

to tape or not to tape?

#28  Overhearing the score/result/ending of the game or show that you taped and were planning on watching later 


stranger (standing behind me in grocery check-out line):  
"Did you see Oritz's walk-off homerun in the bottom of the 11th inning?" 

me (wearing my Ortiz t-shirt & sox cap):
"No, I did not. I taped the game!"

Let me first be clear about one thing: this is NOBODY ELSE'S fault! This is one of those instances, like Christmas, where you definitely got what you definitely didn't asked for, so feel free to pout.

Whatever it is (i.e. graduation ceremony, dinner with your family/spouse or significant other) that is replacing the one to three hours, when you would normally be situated in front of your television set, it is probably more important than an episode of your favorite weekly sitcom or one of the many sports contests. In the event, however, that you decide to go ahead and tape the show/game, know full well that you are taking a risk by going out into public. The individuals who you would normally consider strangers instantly become informants and bad-news bears. Plus, you have to shield your senses from the various media sources that are everywhere.

 "Jets 14, Patriots 7" cackingly blares across the department store's PA system.

For momemnts like these when you are simply beside yourself, you may find yourself wondering why do these awful things happen to good people?

(btw, i hope you didn't record over your sister's 1994 dance recital!?!)

uncreasingly tragic

#29 Realizing that you left a utensil that contains ink in your pant pocket, during the last laundry cycle

your new shirt or pair of pants...RUINED. 

not only did you forget that you put your favorite pen in your pocket, but you also forgot to check ALL your pant pockets before you tossed them into the washing machine.

folks, this is not just a rookie mistake. in fact, most of the laundry rooks check compulsively for these potential tragedies. it's the tenured veterans that i've found swearing like sailors.

surprisingly, there is a simple solution to this awful development--check your pockets! you would be surprised at how often i see others standing around with their arms crossed or messing around with their hair. this is valuable time that could be spent doing a 4-pocket check (depending on the pant type/style). may this entry serve as a forewarning for the pen or marker that is already sitting in your laundry basket.


happy hunting!

dad

i don't know about you, but i am fascinated by fatherhood. i am often reminded that i would not be here today, if it were not, in part, for my own father. over the past twenty-five years of my life, he has held, clothed, fed, taught, cheered, played with and watched me grow into the man who i am today. there is no question that my dad is my best man, and i will forever be grateful for his sacrifice and love.

it is my hope and pray that fathers--like mine--can continue to exemplify Christ's wisdom and love to their sons & daughters.

this is the day that the Father has made for my (and your) father, let us rejoice and be glad...

a start to some not-so awesome things

inspired by the latest blog that i had been introduced to and have recently started following again, i have decided to compose my own un-exhaustive list of some of the most disturbing, frustrating & awful things that i have experienced (and maybe you have to) in this lifetime. feel free to add your two cents...

#30 Forgetting your supposed "unforgettable" password 
 
hypothetical situation: a good friend calls and asks if you ever received his email. you tell him that you did not and inquire as to when he sent it and what it pertained to? he informs you that it was the directions to his bachelor party and he sent it a week ago. after straining your brain, you finally realize that your friend sent his email to your spam-ridden, inactive email account. while he is able to provide you with the information that was contained in the original email, you are interested to know what other "important" emails have been sitting in your inbox all these weeks & months.


you visit the email server that you haven't visited in over 3 months. after typing in your everyday user name, you  realize with each successive flashing cursor that you have NO IDEA what your password is/was, when you first created it years ago.


you then click on the forgot password? link below. now, you have to wait--only God knows how long--for the email that provides you with a basically indecipherable pass code (i.e. e7UVO0Il) that you must then copy & paste (if you're smart) into the original password box. at which point, you must create another original password that is at least eight characters (haven't psychologists proven that the human brain can only remember--AT MOST--data in sequences of seven digits?) and one that, ironically, you will probably forget again. 

it is intriguing to note that just about everything in our modern world seems to be password-protected. whether it is our bank account(s), car/garage door(s), or our federal loan summaries, there are good reasons why this is the case. it just stinks when you (i) cannot recall those 6-8 digits which no one gave us, but that i personally came up with because it was memorable.

note to self: what is your mother's maiden name?

back from "bah haba"

last evening, my parents, my sister (kaitlyn) and i returned from our four-day, three-night vacation in bar harbor, maine. not only did we have pleasant weather, but we also shared some fantastic memories (see incomplete slide show)

i oftentimes have difficulty sharing what it is that i observe or experience in a particular moment, weekend, or occasion, which is why i usually resort to the stream of consciousness approach. this occasion is no different:

dick fox & his 3 hr. fully-narrated tour...cadillac mountain (esp. the sun setting on the continental US)...yankee lines tour bus crew...the mountain that--for us--was anything but thunderous..."in the cool of the pool" and the 110+ degree jacuzzi water...popovers at jordan pond & "flying" CC potato chips...LOBSTAH ice cream...window shopping & stealing fun bumper sticker & t-shirt slogans...18 challenging holes of mini-golf at pirate's cove...sharpening of map reading skills...free adventures in acadia inn's dining room...tossing the frisbee whenever & wherever...planning for our 2014 reunion with the Wry family...acting like four children after hours and so much more...

one global GOOAAAALLL

i don't care if you're white, black or brown. whether you love or hate the US or any of the other participating countries. whether you've played or never played soccer or futebol before. no matter what your story is the fifa world cup, which happens only once every four years, will at the very least bring you g o o s e bumps...

may the 32 participating countries (players & fans especially) take advantage of these potentially unifying matches and use this universal platform as a diplomatic throw-in.

here's to what will be an incredible month of international soccer/futebol,

tk

(i am secretly routing for team ghana & south korea)

avatar

i couldn't wait until tomorrow to complete this blog entry, as i just finished watching the semi-animated film Avatar with my sister, Kaitlyn. if you haven't seen it yet/or you are looking for a good flick to kick off your summer, Avator is a great choice (especially given the fact that--like us--you can pick it up at your local redbox dispenser for $1 or so). as several critics have similarly described, this film's graphics are literally "out of this world" and absolutely incredible. not only was i amazed by director james cameron's attention to details, but also his ability to weave themes like human interconnectedness, environmental justice and foreign diplomacy (just to mention a few) into this spectacular motion picture. i am very particular about what type of science fiction/futuristic films i can handle, but this one has golden globe written all over it!

so kick up your heels, grab a bag of your favorite kernels and prepare your eyes as they begin to dance...

an eventful weekend & i'm BACK!

i think i may have just severely pulled my back muscle(s), as i quickly got up from my chair after chatting with a good friend of mine, and now i am having difficulty sitting up and walking around the house! it figures. why didn't anyone tell me that year 25 would be filled with so many aches and pains?!? after lifting boxes & stuffing envelopes for the diocese of fall river all day today (as well as jumping frantically on the Clifford moonwalk with my relatives and some other kids at my cousins' graduation party yesterday), i guess i should have seen this coming. why didn't anyone tell me that year 25 would be filled with so many aches and pains?!? luckily, my mother--whose expertise and services i rarely ever take advantage of--is a physical therapist and reiki trainee. i'm usually not someone who gives it to taking over-the-counter painkillers like Ibuprofen, but this pain is just too much and i really want to return to work tomorrow! my typing speed and accuracy are limited this evening and it is getting late for a potential work night, so i will

i wish you a pain-free week,
tk

friday's WONDERWORD mystery word = EXHAUSTION
(there may have been some extra un-circled letters, but just disregard them ;)

WONDERWORD

whenever i am visiting my family in taunton, massachusetts, this relatively quick & easy word puzzle (see left margin) has become a staple of my morning routine. for those of you who are unfamiliar with this particular puzzle, please let me explain how to play. each puzzle has a theme (i.e. heat wave), several words related to that theme that are embedded in the puzzle, and a final mystery word that can only be deciphered once all the words in the checklist have been found. as soon as you discover a word in the puzzle, you can either create small circles engulfing each letter of the word or you can circle the entire word with one single stroke. once all the checklist words have been found, there should be a few letters that remained uncircled. these un-jumbled letters together spell the mystery word, which is also usually related to the puzzle's theme for that day.

not only does this word game prime my mind for whatever the day has in store for me, but it also gives me a booster shoot of confidence bright and early. i know each one of you has your own morning rituals, which i hope you will continue to capitalize on. the important part of these rituals though is that they provide us with meaning and prepare us for the adventures that await us as we finish off our last spoonful of cereal or final sip of our favorite cold/hot beverage.

unfortunately, WONDERWORD does not appear in the weekend newspapers, so i will have to wait until monday to get another chance at circling.

in the meantime let's compare possible mystery words from sample puzzle in margin,
tk

a day in the life of ray

i'm excited to be positing this blog on the morning of game one of the 2010 NBA finals, which will tip off tonight at 9pm EST at the staples center in los angeles, california.

many of my closest colleagues and friends (especially Cavs' fans) have reminded me time and time again, since the Celtics knocked off the Cavaliers in what seems like months ago, how much they despise every member of this year's Celtics squad! to which i usually reply, "even Ray Allen?" well, i must say that they are certainly entitled to their opinions regardless of whatever off-court evidence i have at my disposal; nevertheless, i will present my case for the athlete and father who i have come to idolize.

it is news to no one that professional athletes are the first to be criticized for their obscene salaries and on- and off-the field antics; however, a lot less energy and attention is paid to the ways in which some of these male & female athletes assume exemplary roles in their families and communities. take for example, the late roberto clemente who played right field for the pittsburgh pirates from 1955-72 and who tragically lost his life in an airplane crash en route to deliver some emergency relief to victims of an earthquake in Nicaragua. moreover, olympic long-jumper and heptathlete, jackie joyner-kersee--recognizing the need to help youth, parents and families improve their quality of life--established a foundation with her husband and co-founded "athletes for hope" to encourage other professional athletes to get involved in their local communities. there are many other athletes (including former NFL quarterbacks, doug flutie and boomer esiason) whose biggest opponents are not the three-hundred pound linemen that they face every Sunday, but rather the incurable diseases that plague their children and families. all parties considered, i would undoubtedly include celtics shooting guard, ray allen, in this discussion and company. 

it was just hours before game 5 of the 2008 NBA finals, ray and his wife, shannon, received news from their 2-yr old son's pediatrician that walker had been diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. since my mother suffers from diabetes, i certainly can imagine the feelings of helplessness and uncertainty that surfaced probably immediately for ray and shannon. i guess it is particularly easy for me to empathize with their family.  



may walker allen, mary kerrigan and all those men, women and children who struggle daily with the discomfort and pain of diabetes have the support to help improve their quality of life.

Christ's comfort and hope,
tk

scenes from a local laundromat

this past weekend, our family's washing machine had a major temper tantrum and flooded all surrounding neighborhoods. since the kerrigans run about 6.5 loads of laundry per day, we weren't going to be able to survive without a washing machine over the course of this memorial day weekend. therefore, i felt "called" (as the oldest child) to pay my first ever visit to the local laundromat.

please watch this clip before reading on...

unlike jerry & george, my trip to the mansfield laundromat was fairly uneventful; however, i almost choked, when i realized how many quarters (22 = $5.50) it was going to cost in order to run a triple load! since i'm not a regular at laundromats, i have no idea if this service is overpriced or normal? to throw some bleach into the mix (luckily, i didn't make that mistake again!), i had been asked to complete some errands while the 28 minute cycle completed its work. thankfully, my laundry was still there, when i returned fifteen minutes late from my trip to Target. as i walked victoriously through our door with three sopping wet trash bags of laundry, i felt a tear stream down my face, as i wondered whether this would be my last visit to the local laundromat...

[breaking news] 

according to the repairman, who arrived this  morning, we have been running too many large loads; consequently, the drain hose pulled off the drain port and caused the second Great Flood in our basement! nevertheless, the washing machine is NOT broken (yet) and normal cycles will resume this afternoon/evening. 

don't forget your laundry detergent at home & remember that you can never over dry!
 
until the next load,
tk