2021, A New Hope

  Many traditions were honored on the 243rd day of 2021.  Not only did we celebrate Sarah's Birthday with the traditional funfetti cake (and we all had dinner together on Penn's Campus so Alexa could join us), but 8/31/2021 was also the day of the President's Welcome Back Picnic for Sophomores and Juniors.  And, at that picnic, the Class of 2024 got to sign their Penn Traditions Banner.  AND, at that picnic I saw, in person, my good friend and beloved colleague Elise Betz for the first time in person in what seems like FOREVER!  Elise is the founder of the Penn Traditions Program which links current Penn Students with the time tested traditions that all Penn Alumni hold dear (and, yes, that includes Alumni giving!)  So, tonight I have Tradition Hopes.  I hope that the traditions we all hold dear can continue to occur in the 21-22 Academic Year/  We've had a great start, but we need good practices to continue and risk mitigation strategies to reap ...

8/30/2021 is the eve of the first day of classes for Penn's Fall 2021 Semester.  SO, that means on the palindromic 242nd day of 2021, Penn held Convocation.  I love Convocation!  It is my second favorite ceremony of the Academic Year (sorry, nothing beats Commencement!)  According to Merriam Webster the definition of convocation is an assembly of persons called together to a meeting.  And, tonight, we assembled 2,700+ people who all have Convocation Hopes.  We're all hoping that we can continue to assemble in the classrooms, the labs, the playing fields, the dining halls, the libraries, the college houses, etc, etc, etc.  We're all hoping that vaccination compliance and testing protocols keep the incidents of Covid to a minimum on campus.  We're all hoping great things for the 21-22 academic year and it was great to start it off tonight with Convocation!

Before the 241st day of 2021, this picture of the Class of 2023 was the last one to be taken of the whole class, on Franklin Field, during NSO.  But, this was remedied on 8/29/2021.  This year Penn is having its typical NSO (with Covid modifications and precautions) and also a Second Year Orientation for the Class of 2024, some of whom are arriving on campus for the very first time, but most of whom need this transitional programming.  So I eagerly anticipate seeing the aerial shot of the Class of 2025 and especially Alexa's Class of 2024.  I have picture hopes.  The return of these pictures, to me, signals a movement towards things being OK on Campus again.  There is a long way to go, but I hope we get there soon!

  It is evident from all of the posts on my FB Feed today that the Big Event on the 240th day of 2021 was moving Alexa into her sophomore year living space in anticipation of next week's start of classes.  And, as I sat at her desk, on 8/28/2021, hot and sweaty and tired and sore, I looked out her window and had A Hopeful View!  Out this window, you can see a lot relating to the legacy of our family at Penn.  There is Hill House, my first year dorm (moved in 35 years ago!), there is Bennett Hall, the former home of the College for Women, from which my mom graduated in 1965.  To the left of Bennett, there is the Engineering Quad, which includes the Moore Building where my mom and my dad did their graduate studies.  And in the far distance rises the new pavilion of HUP, where Sarah worked after graduation and where both Alexa and Anna were born (that building is visible from the room, but not in this picture).  I hope Alexa has a wonderful year this year...

Everything came down to the wire on the 239th day of 2021.  Because, on 8/27/2021, we packed and prepared for Alexa's move back on campus this Fall.  While the idea of her being back on campus is exciting, I think things were left to the last minute sort of as a denial mechanism that our Summer together is now coming to an end.  So I have Last Minute Hopes.  Hoping all of the things she needs are packed, hoping we can wake up and get there on time tomorrow, and hoping to enjoy these last minutes together until she comes home again.

It was REALLY hot on the 238th day of 2021.  Appropriate because we are in August, the Dog Days of Summer.  And 8/26/2021 is National Dog Day.  So, I have dog hopes.  I actually have been missing Skylar (pictured here in all of her resplendent cuteness) because I am now in the office, 5-days a week, and, although happy to be back in the saddle and on campus, a little sad that my work companion for the past 16 months is no longer by my side.  I hope she has been OK being home without us, and I hope that she continues to bring us joy and companionship for many years to come!

I was really busy on the 237th day of 2021 (so busy that I am posting this a day late and back-dating it).  But, the busy-ness did not stress me out on 8/25/2021.  No, there is a lot going on, but it's a lot of what makes me happy.  Students returning to campus and in person advising sessions to schedule.  Band back in session and making time for tasks surrounding its return.  Ramped up tasks at work as we head (hurdle) to and past our milestones.  Preparations at home for Alexa's move back to campus this weekend.  PTA tasks as the School Year is about to commence.  Yes, I have Busy Hopes tonight.  Hoping that all goes well and that the busy times do not weigh me down and continue to be the fun and inspiring times they are today.

  8/24/2021 was another GLORIOUS day on Penn's Campus.  The Class of 2025 has arrived and the hustle and bustle of Move-In was evident.  The 236th day of 2021 gave me Move-In hopes.  I hope that the Class of 2025 settles in and that we have an on-campus experience for the whole year.  I hope that Alexa had fun with the Penn Band and got to experience some of the Move-In Mojo that she did not have last year, but from the upperclass perspective as opposed to the First Year.  I hope Alexa's Move-In goes smoothly on Saturday.  And I hope that all of the happy faces I see in Move-In pictures (from Penn and from a lot of other schools) continue to be happy in the months to come.  HAPPY ACADEMIC NEW YEAR, Y'ALL!

  I can't help myself, I got excited on the 225th day of 2021.  8/23/2021 was the first day of Move-In on Penn's Campus.  Early Move-In for Transfer Students, International Students, and other specialized populations!  Yes, traffic was heavier, yes the parking garage was more filled (and will be even MORE so in the next two days), but did you hear what I said?  People were MOVING IN!  This day also started my second week of five days on campus.  AND, after work, Sarah attended the CHS Return to School Parent Meeting and Anna scheduled a time for SENIOR PORTRAITS!  While I am nervous about how things will play out this Fall, and I am wondering if remote learning may have to come back in the short term (oh, please, if it does let it be short term), I am cautiously optimistic and cannot help myself from having excited hopes.  Yes, there still is a lot that could go wrong, but I am going to remain hopeful, remain excited, and anticipate the great...

  The 234th day of 2021 is National Eat a Peach Day.  I love a lot of kinds of fruit, but peaches are my FAVORITE!  So on 8/22/2021 I have peachy hopes.  Hopes that, in the next few weeks, we can enjoy the end of the Jersey Peach season (yum!)  But also, this day made me remember a colleague that always responded when you asked him how his day was going by stating, "Just Peachy!"  I liked that, and started using it and, as a joke, paying $0.05 in royalties each time, for using his phrase.  SO, at the risk of having to pay him again, I also hope you ALL are just peachy and that things are going well.

The 233rd day of 2021 was a day of delays.  I slept in a bit on 8/21/2021 (a delayed rising, if you will) and called to make a appointment for a haircut.  So off I drove to the Penn Campus (yes, I still go to the same barber for the past 20+ years) for the 6th day in a row.  I thought that Move-In did not start until Monday, but apparently the parking restrictions for the streets around campus started today!  So I had to drive over to my regular garage, and park and walk.  So, I was late (delayed) for my appt.  Thankfully, Chuck understood.  Then it was errand time and, frankly, it was one of those days where every road I turned on to had traffic.  I was delayed in getting to each and every location of my errands.  Deep Breaths.  So, I was late to the gym for my pool lane, and ended up having a shortened swim time (due to me being, well, delayed, but also because of another swimmer who was causing issues in the pool).  Later on, we ...

  As the week ended on the 232nd day of 2021, Sarah and I were sitting in the living room, watching the Phillies (late games in California this weekend!)  And I found myself getting sleepy.  I wondered why I was so tired and, well, I realized the week ending on 8/20/2021 was the first week that Sarah and I both went to campus for ALL FIVE days of the week.  It has been great to be back on campus, but the commuting and earlier wake time and a humid walk between the garage and the office will take some time to get used to.  BUT, I do have exhausted hopes.  I hope I can still be going to campus all the days of the week for the next two weeks.  The students start to move in on Monday, and I hope that nothing gives us reason that we have to stay home.  Being exhausted because I have been back on campus, is OK with me!

  I uttered words that surprised me on the 231st day of 2021.  In discussing a process for our project, I said "well, we cannot let perfection be the enemy of the good."  This phrase, as hackneyed as it is, not only surprised me, but it made me realize I hope I can let it go.  This is not just a work thing.  My girls are getting older, I hope I can let go of my inclination to be overprotective and to worry.  My family (CA and NJ) are discussing things we have to cull from our lives (material possessions) to declutter our physical spaces.  Yes, there are things I hope I can let go.  And watching the news (and the weather and sports) on 8/19/2021 there are a lot of things about which we can stress.  But I hope I can let them go.  I am not saying I should be protective of my family, I am not saying I should lower my standards at work, I will never want to purge all of my sentimental possessions, and I am not saying we should ignore the issu...

  Plans for Fall 2021 continued on the 230th day of 2021.  We finalized details for the Band's NSO Schedule.  We discussed the Student Service Center.  And things continued to open up amidst a surge in Covid cases, we dined outside, we planned a trip.  I have Safe Hopes on 8/18/2021 for all of these and more.  I see more and more people traveling.  I see more and more people out and about.  Pandemic fatigue is real.  But we must stay vigilant.  We must mask.  Get the vaccines when they are indicated by the scientists.  STAY SAFE!  We need to turn back this surge and the way to do this is by being safe and smart!  Hoping.....

  On the 229th day of 2021, I spent a lot of times on PTA errands.  I finished the details on the CHS PTA Mum Sale (and I think we made some arrangements to make it easier!  Now we just need to sell 800 mums!)  And then, Sarah and I worked on the composition of the OPS PTA Calendar.  Yes, it has been more than 3 years since we've had a kid enrolled in the Oaklyn Public School, but we continue to attend PTA meetings (especially when online) and we work on the calendar and I still help with Field Day.  Part of it is that I have a hard time saying no, and letting go.  BUT, a lot of it is that I am inspired by PTA Hopes.  Our community schools are at the core of so many essential factors in our area and I like working to make sure the experiences of the students and teachers and families are as good as possible.  I hope that all of the events on the PTA Calendar actually happen in '21-'22 AND most of them can be in person!

  I spent a lot of the 228th day of 2021 thinking about Back to School.  Yes, 8/16/2021 was filled with Back to School Hopes.  We started the day opening up our new SRFS Student Services Center (SSC).  While nobody came in while I was there at the opening (I had to leave for a meeting, but they texted me when the first customer (a parent!) came in), it was still exciting to feel the energy and optimism of our new service model.  And, in the evening, we met as a Penn Band Board to discuss the return to campus and to on-campus Band activities.  And, as we watched some more family TV, I realized that Alexa returns to campus in less than two weeks, and Anna will start School after Labor Day, and, next year at this time will be starting college.  As Sarah said today (and we've said it before.), "the days are long but the years fly by!"  I hope that return to school goes smoothly for everyone, for the Penn students, for the Penn Band, for Alexa, for Ann...

  I had a fun afternoon on the 227th day of 2021.  The afternoon of 8/15/2021 was the Summer Student Leadership Retreat for the Penn Band and their Ivy Band colleagues.  I was honored to be asked to present content along with other Band Alums.  And it reminded me how much I enjoy student leadership.  We have not been on our Leadership Retreat (for Penn's OSA) in a while and I have leadership hopes.  I hope that this academic year can see the return of our OSA LW Retreats, I hope that the content provided today helps the student leaders resume their activities in a semester that is on campus, but still not "normal."  And I hope to be asked again to present, facilitate, or talk about student leadership.  I may be a tech guy now, but I am a Student Affairs Leadership Educator at heart.

  So a large portion of my thoughts on the 226th day of 2021 revolved around my project's first (of many) conversion weekends.  Today, my job was to validate the conversion of all of the Person records for the potential instructor and advisor records moving into Banner (the core of our new Pennant Ecosystem).  We had 15 records that needed review and remediation.  Now, Adam, why are you posting about records that need remediation under an image of Success?  Well, because that was 15 records out of 38,297!  So we had a success rate of 99.96%!  And as I sit here on 8/14/2021, I know that all of our conversions won't go THIS well but, for tonight, I have hopes for success.  I hope that we can continue to prepare and test and monitor and plan and that our future conversion weekends go just as well as this one seems to have gone!  I also hope for success for all of the students preparing to go to their college campuses in the next few weeks. ...

I have never found Friday the 13th to be an unlucky day.  And, on 8/13/2021, that did not change.  This is why the 225th day of 2021 was filled with lucky hopes.  AS Paul said this morning on Breakfast with the Beatles, "with a little luck, we can work it out!"  So I hope for luck this weekend as I have tasks for work and errands to complete.  And I wish you ALL good luck in all that you do.  We all could use a little luck, so we can work things out!

  I'm not going to lie, one of the best parts of working from home during the pandemic is that I do not spend 60-90 minutes a day commuting back and forth to and from work.  However, on the morning of the 224th day of 2021, I found myself enjoying the commute home.  While there is a lot of time saved from working from home, I realized I was spending most of that..... working from home.  As I drove home on 8/12/2021, singing to the 80s on 8, I realized how commuting does allow me to have a transition from home-Adam to work-Adam and then back to home-Adam.  As I prepare for the next few weeks and the transition back to 5-days a week on campus, I have commuting hopes.  I hope that, even though I will have "less time," that I still find the time to get to the gym to swim (I did on my two on-campus days this week, Tues and today).  I hope that the traffic and construction does not cause me extreme wait times (today a lot of the construction on 76 seemed to ...

  It was another Breakfast with the Beatles morning for me on the 223rd day of 2021.  And Chris Carter let me know that 8/11/2021 is Annual Medical Check Up Day!  And, while I have been getting regular check ups (more than once a year) with my Physician Assistant, it reminds me I still have to schedule some other check ups (like my colonoscopy) and so I have medical check up hopes.  I hope I can get it scheduled soon (even though I do not want to do the prep) and I hope that the results are benign.  I also hope that all of my friends (on FB and otherwise) and family are also getting regular check ups with good results.  Let's stay healthy, friends!

  We had an SRFS All-Hands meeting on the 222nd day of 2021.  And, as I alluded to last night, on 8/10/2021, I got to hand off the Collaboration Cup to a valued colleague in the Student Services Center (the new SSC).  Hearing her co-workers (crossover with yesterday's hopes) clap and cheer for her when I popped into the SSC (IN PERSON!) to surprise her and to hand her the cup, personally, gave me collaborative hopes.  We have four MAJOR goals in SRFS for this year.  NGSS is one and the opening and support of the SSC is another.  And, for ALL of our goals (major and minor) collaboration is KEY.  I hope that I can continue to provide collaborative assistance to my project and SRFS co-workers and they can do the same for me!

  8/9/2021 is Global Co-Worker Day and, as I returned to work on the 221st day of 2021, I was reminded how lucky I am to work with a great team.  I had good meetings, good conversations, problem solved, and, of course, I read a TON of emails from co-workers.  Today I have co-worker hopes.  We have a big weekend on our project coming up and then, quickly, more milestones.  I hope I and my co-workers can keep working well together and the project goes as well as it can!  I hope that, tomorrow, in our All-Hands, I hand off the Collaboration Cup to a well-deserving colleague.  I hope that I stay in touch with all of the co-workers in my past workplaces with whom I formed bonds of friendships (and some are like family).  And I hope I always realize and remember how lucky I am to have the co-workers that I do (and have had!)

  A return from vacation means a return to the routine of your day-to-day, week-to-week lives.  The 220th day of 2021 was just that from waking up early (well, we went to bed on WC time and woke up on EC time) to attend online church, mowing the lawn, food shopping, return to work for Alexa and Anna.... you know, usual Sunday stuff.  And as 8/8/2021 comes to a close, we are preparing for the Monday routine tomorrow which will be followed by Tuesday, Wednesday, etc.  Vacation was great, but now I have routine hopes.  Hoping that a return to routine is smooth, and hoping that more things can return to routine as soon as possible (get the vax, wear a mask, friends)!  I hope you are all finding your routines easy to return to as well.

We did not ride the train on the 219th day of 2021, but we did do planes and automobiles.  8/7/2021 was our return travel day from Seattle back to the East Coast.  After some very strong hugs at the airport, we headed off on our journey and, thankfully, our plane hopes were answered.  Both flights were uneventful and the delays were less than 15 minutes.  So we're home, safe and sound, still on West Coast Time and we have one day (Sunday) to get back on schedule before the work week starts all over on Monday.  Thankful for the week away, thankful that our travel hopes were answered today, hopeful that we can do it again next year, and maybe my parents can come visit in the Fall.  Missing them already, but happy to be home (and, BOY, Skylar was happy to see us too!)

So the 218th day of 2021 was our last full day in Seattle.  I mean tomorrow we will just be traveling so it was really our last DAY in Seattle (other than the airport).  So on 8/6/2021 we tried to do all the things on our list that we had not yet done.  Vitality Bowls (since Aunt Abigail and the girls had to try one together), The Museum of Pop Culture, and a GREAT view of the City from Kerry Park.  This family photo is now the background on my work laptop because it will remind me of my Seattle Hopes.  We, of course, did not get to everything on "The List."  There were 2 weeks worth of activities for a 1 week vacation.  So I hope we can come back sometime.  To see a Mariners game.  To take the underground tour.  To visit the chocolate factory (although what we bought from the store was DELISHOUS.  And I, of course, hope that, next summer, we can all gather again for another vacation.  Family time is coming to a close, so we wi...

  On the 217th day of 2021, our family vacation took us to the Seattle Aquarium.  Whenever we are in a city for vacation, we try to do something at a zoo and/or aquarium (I did not go to the Zoo, but Sarah and the girls went to both).  What I love about these places is that they almost always have otters.  And, on 8/5/2021, I stood and watched the otters but, better yet, I got to watch my family enjoy the otters.  I have otter hopes tonight, because I want the happiness that I saw as my family watched the otters be happiness that occurs all the time.

Our week in Seattle still has two more days (and a travel day on Saturday (and maybe Sunday if we get cancelled again!) but I can deem it, on the 216th day of 2021, a complete success.  8/4/2021 was another day filled with family hikes, family excursions, family meals, family games, and just plain ol' family.  So happy that we do this every summer (except for 2020, of course) and I have Family Vacation Hopes that they will continue.  We have a lot of fun in store for the next two days, and then we can start planning for Summer 2022!  

  So I sat there, on the 215th day of 2021, mouth agape, as I watched the staff of Ballard Locks operate the engineering wonder that carry more boat traffic than any other set of locks in the US.  We were tourists on 8/3/2021 and we were also amazed by the fish ladder and watching the (HUGE) salmon swim.  It was inspiring and it gave me engineering hopes.  There are many issues facing our world these days.  If we follow the scientists and the engineers, we have a lot better chance of getting through these.  Thinking of all of my engineering friends today and thanking them and, yes, hoping their solutions save the world soon!

  The sound of laughter was prevalent in our Seattle on the 214th day of 2021.  It was another Family Game Night on 8/2/2021, a common feature when our family gets together.  And it did not really have to make sense, but there were outbursts of laughing which, of course, is contagious so it grew.  I have laughter hopes for the rets of this week, and beyond.  Maybe the laughter from this house will catch on with others and we can all laugh a little more and make the world a happier place!

I never realized how long the Space Needle had been on Sarah's bucket list but, on the 213th day of 2021, I am so glad we got to check it off.  We did a whole lot more walking on 8/1/2021, but we started off August on vacation, doing something Sarah has wanted to do since she was TEN!  I have bucket list hopes that we can continue to cross off things on Sarah's list.  This week in Seattle and in the future as well.  So happy to be here with my family, on vacation.  Such a good time.