Two for '22

On the 298th day of 2022, my two for is easy: Abigail and Erik.  Because 10/25/2022 is their 24 wedding anniversary.  From the Haddon Fortnightly to the DC area to Moraga to (somewhere in CA I do not remember) to Mountainview.  I never get to see them as much as I want to, but I am happy for the times we get to spend and celebrate together and I look forward to the next one and hope it happens soon!  Here's to many, many more years of happiness, health, humor, and ham! 

There have only been 9 Presidents (plus Interims and Actings) in Penn's History.  I have worked under four of them (Hackney, Rodin, Gutmann, and Magill) as well as Fagin (Interim) and Pritchett (Acting).  And the 294th day of 2022 was a historic day on the Penn Campus as we celebrated Dr. Liz Magill's Inauguration on 10/21/2022.  As an Open Expression Observer and frequent event volunteer, I have been lucky to be in a lot of events this weekend.  And, although the dinner was celebratory and the ceremony was filled with Pomp & Circumstance, laughter, humility, and wise words from Dr. Magill, my favorite event of the weekend so far is also my Two for 2022 for today, Liz Magill and Elena Kagan.  Although the two speakers were a University President and a Justice of the US Supreme Court, it felt like a conversation between two friends.  And they made law seem empathetic, meaningful, and important.  Different from the image of law from the "lawyer jokes...

 

 

  Day #291 is another baseball related two for 2022: Schwarber and Harper.  Not gonna apologize for being so focused on the Phillies these days, it's been a long while since baseball has been this fun in this town!  The Phillies beat the Padres 2-0 (another 2!) on 10/18/2022.  Kyle Schwarber hit the longest home run ever in Petco Park.  And Harper started it off with a blast of his own!  One game down, seven more to go! GO PHILLIES!

  On Day #290 of 2022, I am remembering two years ago.  Because 10/17/2022 is the 2nd Anniversary of the wedding of my niece Lauren and her husband Jay.  So my Two for 2022 is two years for Lauren and Jay.  It was the heart of the pandemic, but this wedding took our minds off the issues of the day (remember it was Election 2020 season as well) and brought us into a safe space, filled with love, God, and family happiness.  So happy to have been able to witness this commitment of love and to have been able to watch these two grow together in life and love.  HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, Lauren and Jay, here's to MANY MANY more.  We love you!

 

  It's been a long time, over a decade, since I attended a playoff game at Citizen's Bank Park.  And, on the 288th day of 2022 Sarah and I were able to get there early, have Bull's BBQ, get seats at a table in Ashburn Alley, try the new S'mores milkshake, and then we found our seats!  And, if that was not good enough, on 10/15/2022, we got to watch the series clinching victory, an inside the park home run (I think the first I've seen in person) from our CATCHER.  And an amazing celebration.  It was electric!  And my 2 for 2022 is this 2nd Round Win!  So happy that playoff baseball has returned to Philadelphia for the first time in 11 years.  Also happy for San Diego (I think a 16 year wait) and Seattle (21 years!)  October Baseball - Happy RedOctober!

 

 

 

 

 

  Day #283 of 2022 was a glorious day!  10/9/2022 saw the return of Oaklyn's Town Picnic, the first one after THREE YEARS!  This influenced my 2 for 2022 for today: burgers and dogs.  We made 300 burgers and 200 hot dogs for the people of Oaklyn today and it was so much fun!  Can't wait until next year!

10/8/2022 is day #282 of 2022.  The palindromic karma may have assisted in my Two for 2022 - Phillies Win #2!  I am again not saying I was watching in a relaxed and calm manner but, hey, they did it!  Swept out the Cardinals and on to the Braves.  The Braves are a sold team from top to bottom but, in the Playoffs, all things are possible?  Right?  We shall see!  For tonight, let's just enjoy the win(s) and GO PHILS!!!

Eleven years ago the best era in Phillies' history came to an end.  When Doc left it all on the field (and was never the same again) and when Ryan Howard tore his Achilles tendon (and was  also never the same again), we didn't know it, but we feared it, that the best "dynasty" in Phillies History was over.  But, on the 281st day of 2022, 11 years to the day, my Two for 2022 were clear!  The Phillies and 11 Years.  I am not going to say I was relaxed the whole game on 10/7/2022 but I am going to say that I got goosebumps in the top of the 9th.  I do not know if they will win tomorrow, or even win another game in 2022.... but, for tonight, I am happy with a Phillies Playoff win!  And that is something I have not felt in a long, long time.  Hope it is not another 11 years.

 

 

 

 

  Sunday, 10/2/2022, is World Communion Sunday.  So my two for 2022 for the 275th day of 2022 is the bread and the cup.  It was a really nice worship this morning, in the round in our newly renovated Sanctuary, and, as we were taking communion today, I really was thinking about how, across the world, so many other Christians were doing the same.  With all that happens daily, it is easy to get wrapped up in our own lives and our trials and tribulations.  But, with a larger world-view, it is easier to see how blessed we really are and how we fit in, perhaps, in this very large world, of which we are a small part.  Amen.

What a day the 274th day of 2022 has been.  Started off, where Anna was LAST year at the PTA Mum Sale for Collingswood High School.  A cold and wet sale that, although it did not sell as many we had hope we would, but the teamwork, camaraderie, and good humor amongst the myriad of volunteers made the time go fast (except for 7-9AM :-) ).  THEN, it was on to where Anna is now, and the Two for 2022 for 10/1/2022: UD and Family Weekend!  The Delaware Football Team won and is 5-0.  We got to see Kassidy and the Presses, I finally got to see Anna's dorm room (it looks really nice!), meet Anna's roommates, and check out the campus when students are actually present.  And we capped off the evening with some shopping, and dinner, at the Christiana Mall.  Anna seems to be really enjoying her time at UD and I am proud of her for her hard work and pursual of a career in K-6 education.  It was also really neat to see Family Weekend from another side, at a dif...