Both New York and Vermont have had more rain in June than sunshine but you can get very good at dodging those raindrops for some biking or kayaking. It has been a good couple of weeks following Reunion 2009 - it was so good to re-connect with so many former students over that weekend and since. Many have contacted me after being here at their "home" - at least the place which they describe as their "home" and have commented on how great it was to be "back home." It is always difficult to decide which class to spend time with but in the end I went with the Class of '84 as they were really the first class that I got to know after I started here in 1982. Good people.......
Yesterday was one of those amazing Vermont days. I got up early and headed to the Burlington Bike Path and went for an 11.5 mile bike ride along Lake Champlain. There wasn't a lot of traffic on the BBP and the view of the Lake always reminds me of how lucky I am to live here. When I returned home I decided thatt it was just too nice outside to be INSIDE so I loaded my kayak on the top of my car and headed out to Indianbrook Reservoir (about 5 miles from campus and a great place to kayak, hike or showshoe) for a leisurely kayak around the Reservoir. With lots of sunblock and my camera I spent about an hour going around the periphery of the Reservoir. There were some families enjoying the water, a group of kids from the Burlington Boys & Girls Club also kayaking and some folks fishing. Much like the BBP, I find thatt people are just plain friendly. Two young girls swimming shouted out thatt they liked my kayak and a mother with her two kids in a canoe talked with me about the turtles in the Reservoir. On the bike path, people in Burlington always speak and acknowledge each other - there is just something friendly about this area that allows folks to simply be nice to each other and to strangers.
I was on campus this week revising syllabi for two of my courses for the fall semester. We want to make sure that our students have information about our classes and the texts we will be requiring in a timely manner so that, if they want, they can get their textbooks prior to the start of school. While neither the students nor the faculty are READY to start over again with another semester just yet, it was nice to think about the fall semester. I can honestly say that I did not have one bad class all last year - not one and that is a testament to our students. I will be back on campus this afternoon to play some racquetball with one of my students who is working on campus this summer. This weekend is the 25th annual Chew Chew Festival on the Waterfront and that is always a great event which brings lots of folks together to "sample" some of the food from popular local restaurants in a beautiful setting since it is right on the waterfront.
Facebook continues to intrigue me and it has been great to hear from people like Chris Gross (congratulations on your engagement and hi to your Mom, Dad and brothers Pete and Dan), Chris Callahan (Scooter), Mile Melville and several others who have "found" me on Facebook. I have even heard from two of my former students from Pontiac, Michigan whom I have not heard from in over 40 years - this social networking phenomenon IS a reality and allows me to stay in touch with so many people who I would otherwise NOT be connected to except for that once a year Xmas card.......
So, life continues to be good in Vermont - I hope that YOUR summer is going well and that, as always, you take care, be well and keep our service men/women and our veterans in your thoughts and prayers. I head out to Lake Tahoe on July 8th so perhaps my next blog will come from there. It is also nice to hear from folks who DO actually read the blogs - I am amazed when someone tells me that they have been or are reading this - please keep it up!
Dave
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