Hello Canadensis…

Didn’t get a chance to hit the blog yesterday, but I couldn’t go another day without connecting to everyone in the world wide web of Camp Canadensis!

Did everyone enjoy the snow on Saturday?  I guess that is the first sign the winter is upon us.  I actually gave myself a self-proclaimed snow day in the afternoon, meaning I didn’t do anything except for light a fire, get into some comfy clothes and watch TV all day, flipping between movies like Reality Bites, Liar Liar and Legally Blonde and all of the college football games.  Did anyone see the end to that Cincinnati-Pittsburgh game?  Wow!  The final score was 45-44.

Of course, I also watched the 2009 Canadensis Video Yearbook.  I hope it has made its way to everyone by now and that you have begun to enjoy reliving all of the wonderful memories we shared together last year.  For all new Canadensis campers, the video will give you a good idea of all the fun you can expect next summer!

I got to meet some new Canadensis campers from the Cherry Hill, NJ area last night.  First, I went to see Amanda Seligman, who is in the fourth grade and will be a Lower Inter Girl next summer.  Amanda is currently very involved with Dance (Jazz and Ballet), Soccer and Basketball.  She is really looking forward to getting her new dog Chloe in a few days, too.  This summer, she can’t wait to try Waterskiing and the Ropes Course / Climbing Wall as well as making a whole bunch of new friends!  She is so excited for camp!  In fact, she told me that she checks the Canadensis website almost everyday and reads our blogs all of the time!  Here is a a picture of me and Amanda…

Right around the corner, I then went to see Maddie Phillips, who will be an Upper Inter Girl next summer.  Currently in the fifth grade, Maddie is involved with a number of activities, including Jazz dance and Swim team (her events are the backstroke and freestyle).  She is also a member of her school’s Student Council and they just recently completed their Red Ribbon Week, which makes students aware of making positive choices.  She also just got a new puppy Chase.  This summer, she can’t wait to get involved in the activities at the Art Center as well as making new friends.  Here is a photo of me, Maddie and her sister and future Canadensis camper Molly, who is in the 2nd grade and enjoys dance, swimming, soccer and basketball.

Finally, I cruised a few blocks over to the Herskowitz Family.  For starters, father Jeff is a second generation alumni of Camp Canadensis.  Everytime I see him, he always recollects his wonderful memories of camp.  He hopes to make our 70th Anniversary Alumni Reunion on June 19 and says that he has been able to keep in touch with so many camp friends through Facebook.  His daughter Alexa, who will be returning to camp for her fourth summer as a Freshman Girl, is so happy that her brother Jake will be at camp this summer.  Jake, who is in the 2nd grade and will be a Junior Boy in 2010 is very active, playing football, soccer, basketball and hockey.  He is really looking forward to playing all of those sports at camp and says he will be playing in the CHL.  He is also excited to try the Climbing Wall and Zipline.

Alexa, who always has camp on her mind, has been keeping in touch with all of her camp friends online and sees other Cherry Hill Canadensis campers all of the time.  She has been involved with soccer, field hockey and tennis as well.  As a Freshman next summer, she is so psyched for her trip to Hershey Park, partly because many of her friends call her Hershy!  Ha Ha!  Alexa also has the honor of being my second guest blogger.  Blog away, Alexa!

Things are boring at home….. school, school, and more school. Thankfully I have seen a few camp friends, which is always good! We are all so excited for this summer! We can’t wait to be back at home!  Jake (my brother) is going to be in Bunk 2 which is really exciting! At home, things are going well.  I go to school with Amanda Soll and Danielle Rosenthal.  Scott Brown goes to the other school in my town so we see each other a lot! Camp seems so far away but I am sure time will go by quick.  Cant wait till sumer 2010!  -Alexa Herskowitz

Here is a picture with me, Alexa, Jake and younger brother Justin.

So, you can see it was a busy Monday for me.  It was also a very happy Monday, considering my Giants beat those hated Cowboys (at least one thing Giants and Eagles fans can both agree on).  Next week, it will be those Eagles who I can’t stand either.  I have already begun to receive those e-mails from all you Eagles fans out there so keep’em coming.  However, I am not going to talk any trash this time after last year’s Comcast incident.  Ha Ha!  A very funny story for those that remember.

More blogging in the next few days.  I am off to meet with a Canadensis Staff member to tape a very special Canadensis Today Show segment.  Has anyone figured out yet what the special announcment is?  I thought my last clue was pretty good.

Until then…Have a great day…Brian

Well, I’m sure everyone can relate when I say yesterday was “one of those days”. It started out well enough, the holiday shopper traffic wasn’t as bad as usual and there was lots to do in the office. The line at Starbucks in the morning was outrageous, but when I ran out to get my salad from Saladworks, I stopped by and finally got my daily latte. I FINALLY made some progress in getting my desk organized (let’s see how long that lasts) and I was just on a roll in general. Good day? Absolutely!

So around lunch time I was telling Pam that there was a funny yellow light illuminated on the dashboard of my car.

*Disclaimer: I know nothing about cars… NOTHING… so little that my dad often wonders how he, someone who rebuilds vintage cars and bikes as a hobby, ever had a daughter who is so completely clueless! But, this supports my theory that we all have our own unique talents that make us special, and mine just happen to be more artistic than mechanical.

So I tell Pam that I think I must have low tire pressure. You know how a balloon shrinks when it’s cold outside, and then expands when you get indoors – same idea! It was a cold morning, so I didn’t think much of it. By the time I got in the car to go home, the little light was STILL on, so I called my dad and told him to be ready to do a full inspection!

Well, turns out I drove over some unidentified metal blades, and by the time my dad got outside to look at it, the tire was flat- I felt so silly for not realizing what had happened! My Dad put the car up on a jack stand and said he’d take my tire over to his mechanic in the morning.

Luckily, my mom was able to lend me her car for the morning so I could come in to the office and get some work done, and bring home my files so I can work from our home office. Turns out I have to buy a whole new tire, definitely not what I wanted to hear, but the good news is that we can get a tire tomorrow and I’ll be back in business!

So, I guess the moral of the story is that you should all learn more about cars than I do and always be thankful for the people in your life who can help you out in sticky situations.

My dad’s birthday is on Thursday… I guess I should make sure his gift is EXTRA special this year!

Camper visits are awesome! I love being able to see all of you during the “off-season” and so Thursday night, Pam and I headed up to L.I. to visit the Glassman, Ambos, and Yedid families. We had such a good time in the car on the way up talking about camp, filling Pam in on all of the inside jokes of camp, etc.

Our first stop was Amanda Glassman. Amanda is doing so well in school and is having a great winter. She told me she keeps in touch with several of the girls and may be having a sleepover before the reunion with some as well! Of course when I asked about what activities she misses most, cooking came up as number 1 (a common theme always!). Amanda also has a great glass fusion project in her basement, but its not mounted yet on a block of wood. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture (sorry Amanda), but at the reunion we will be sure to get good photos!

Next, we went to see Lauren Ambos and her sister was home as well. Lauren has been very busy between art class (with Amanda), hebrew school twice a week, and basketball to name a few! She says hello to everyone and even took me to her room to see the reunion poster hung up from last year! During the photo below, Lauren and her sister were very good sports as her parents tried to use my phone to take the picture! In their defense, taking a picture with the Blackberry Storm isn’t easy.

Finally, a quick stop at the Yedid’s! Jake was running out to tennis practice and was running late, so we had a chance to take this quick photo before he left.  A side note about Jake- he works at a very well known candy store near his house in Port Washington and apparently alot of camp kids see him at birthday parties, etc. I am told he is ALWAYS friendly and so excited to see campers- good job Jake and thanks for continuing the Canadensis Spirit all-year round! Can’t wait to see your spirit this summer as a CIT.

I also spent some time with David Yedid. Believe it or not, I was his counselor in Summer 2000 in Boys Bunk 2. I know people always say, “I feel old”, but I truly do! David is a Senior in High School and applying to colleges. I can’t believe that at all! Pam and I had so much fun with David reminiscing about Canadensis, talking about Key Club (which I was president of back in the day, and now David is!), and the whole college process. I know David would like to come back to camp as a counselor (after taking a year off) and is thinking about it, depending on his H.S. graduation and college start date. Good Luck David with college apps and keep in touch!

I hope everyone has a great weekend! Robin will be flying in tonight and we will be going to hear a band play down in Maryland! Very exciting stuff…

Hello Canadensis!

You know, sometimes in life it is all about the little things that make us happy.  As a self-proclaimed foodie (a term that has become popular over the past few years), today was one of those days when it was the little thing that made me happy when I had a delicious falafel for lunch.  For those that don’t know what a falafel is, it’s a fried ball or patty made from chick peas.  You eat it in a pita with tomatoes, lettuce, pickles and tahini dressing.  About a mile from me in Montclair, NJ is the Falafel Hut, which makes the best falafels!  If you haven’t tried one before, definitely do so.  You might be pleasantly surprised how good they are.  Here is a picture of what a falafel looks like…

So, has anyone seen the teaser Canadensis Today trailer?  Does anyone know what the announcement is about?  Any guesses?  If you are still in the dark, but here is a sentence that might help you figure it all out:  “I don’t mean to sound so stern, but this will be great.”

What a great week it was in the camp office.  Earlier in the week, I got a chance to catch up with Group Leader Marshall Weinstein, who is all set to return to camp in Summer 2010 for his 5-Year jacket!  Marshall is just finishing up his student teaching in Washington near where he attends college in Bellingham at Western Washington University.  Marshall said his student teaching experience was a most amazing opportunity and he can’t wait to attain a full time teaching gig once he gets his degree in less than a week!  Marshall is looking to work in the elementary school system, so if anyone knows of  any leads, let him know.  His schedule has been quite busy, but that doesn’t keep Marshall from keeping in touch with so many campers and staff throughout the year.  Marshall wanted to give a big shout out to everyone that reads the blogs.

On Tuesday, I got the chance to meet up with some of our campers in the Bala Cynwyd, PA area.  First, I stopped by to see Noah and Ben Rubin.  Noah will be a Freshman in 2010 while Ben is a Lower Inter.  Both are back at camp next summer for their 3rd year.  The family had just returned from their annual Thanksgiving trip to Scottsdale, AZ as they have family out that way.  Both Noah and Ben said the trip was awesome.  It was great catching up with the boys, who have been keeping in touch with their bunk mates.  Turns out that Noah Zaslow paid a visit to Noah Rubin a few weeks ago and Ben will be getting together with Max Rapoport very soon.  Great stuff!  Both are enjoying the school semester so far, but can’t wait to get back to camp in June.  Of course, they plan on attending the reunion in a few weeks.  Here is a pic from my visit…

After that, I made my way over to see Julia Rosenau and her sister Emma, who will be at camp for the first time in Summer ’10.  Emma is in the 3rd Grade and will be in the Junior Girls division next summer.  She enjoys playing soccer, softball, basketball and gymnastics.  She also plays the piano.  This summer, she is looking forward to activities like waterskiing, the art center and gymnastics.  As for big sister Julia, who will be back for her 4th summer at camp, she has been busy with gymnastics and soccer as well and will be playing basketball and softball in the upcoming seasons.  She has been in touch with so many camp friends and is really looking forward to the Hershey Park trip that the Freshman Girls go on.  Here is a picture…

The visits were great.  In the next few weeks, I have a lot of visits scheduled with camp families.  It is going to be a really exciting month of December.  Even in the cold winter, thoughts of summer keep me warm!

On Thursday, Eric and Pam came up to New Jersey as we had a meeting with the company that does all the camper prescriptions.  It was the first time that anyone from camp had seen the New Jersey Satellite Office (aka my house).  Ha Ha!  The three of us also had time to sit down and talk about staffing items.  The three of us are so excited that we have so many returning staff so far, but we have already begun hiring some new talented and amazing staff!  Eric and Pam then went on to see some of our campers in Port Washington, NY.

This week, I also got to see one of my favorite bands Phish play at Madison Square Garden.  Actually, I got to see them play a few times (three to be specific).  The third show is tonight.  I know what you are saying.  Three times?  Well, the nice thing about Phish is they never repeat a set list…ever!  In fact, for all three shows, not a single song will be repeated.  Pretty cool stuff.  Anyway, I will be in really good shape from dancing all three nights.  Last night, I even broke out a few of the Rak Dan moves we learned this summer.  Ha Ha!  I also ran into Adam “Baby Shark” Scharfberg before the show, who ended up being in the front row!  Good to see you, Adam.  I also attended the show with some of my camp friends that I grew up with which was just awesome.  See, your camp friends are truly your best friends forever!

So, anyone have any good weekend plans?  I will be taking it easy tomorrow and catching up on some house cleaning.  Really exciting, right?  On Sunday, we will once again be at Giants Stadium as the Giants face their divisional rivals the Cowboys!  As the open invitation always stands, if you are there, be sure to stop by our tailgate in Lot 5F.  On the menu this week is steak tips, chicken, corn chowder, grilled pineapple, hot apple cider and much, much more!

That’s all for now.  Again, if you would like to Guest Blog, let me know.  Everyone have a great weekend!

Until then…Brian

Hello Canadensis…

I hope everyone had a super Thanksgiving holiday last week.  Is anyone sick of turkey leftovers just yet?  For me, Thanksgiving is by far the best of all the holidays!  What is better than stuffing your face all day and watching football?!  Actually, after eating so much food all afternoon, it was difficult to watch the Giants game at night, considering they played so poorly, that my stomach was churning!  Ha Ha!

Actually, Thanksgiving is the one holiday that my mother makes for our family.  I look forward to this meal every year.  From appetizers to dessert, everything is homemade and absolutely delicious.  I have made the bold statement before that I would put my mother’s Thanksgiving meal up against anyone else’s in the state of New Jersey and I think my mother’s dinner would win.  Very bold, I know.  But, I have to give my mom the kudos for the amazing cook she is.  In fact, every year after the appetizers, the consensus is the same from everyone.  We all say, “Do we still have an entire dinner to eat?”  Ha Ha!  It’s a great tradition at the Krug household.

Speaking of great traditions, a few nights before, I had dinner with Jared “Groundhog” Katzman at a restaurant callled Kirsten’s in Lebanon, NJ.  This is the third year in a row that Groundhog and I have met at this place that we discovered a few years ago.  Basically, it is halfway between where I live and where Groundhog’s parents live in Allentown, PA.  In addition to great food, G-Hog and I talked about camp for several hours.  Of course, he is slated to return for his 21st summer at Canadensis and is excited to be at the reunion in a few weeks.  He has also put together the ’09 Photo poster that we will be the give-away at the reunion.  Let me tell you…it came out great and looks even better than the last two year’s posters.   Here is a picture of me and Groundhog at Kirsten’s…

Apparently, the Thanksgiving break is a great time for camp friends to see one another and have some sleep overs.  I got some great pictures sent to me this weekend.  Some of the girls from last summer’s Bunk 4 got together in Long Island.  Here are some pictures…

Also, some of the guys in last summer’s Boys Bunk 11 got together in Wayne, NJ over the Thanksgiving break.  Here’s a shot of them…

Last night, I got out to Livingston, NJ to meet some of our new campers.  In this case, three campers in one household!  We are so happy to welcome the Minion Family and boys Zach, Dan and Josh to the Canadensis Family.  Zach is in the fourth grade and will be a Lower Inter in Summer 2010.  In the winter, he plays football, basketball and baseball and also enjoys biking, running and reading.  This summer, he is looking forward to Archery, Hondas, Sailing and Glass Fusion.  Dan is in the second grade, making him a Junior for 2010, and plays soccer and basketball.  He also enjoys reading, sledding when the snow falls and cartoons.  He is excited for a number of different activities this summer including tennis, fishing, radio and ceramics.  His twin brother Josh plays soccer, goes running and really enjoys Lego building.  This summer, he can’t wait for glass fusion, woodworking and photography.  Here is a picture from my visit…

I got a lot of responses from the question I posed in my last blog about when a camper can officially consider themselves in the next division.  Some campers believe you are in the next division as soon as the buses leave the summer or the very next day.  Other campers think you can consider yourself in the next division on January 1.  Finally, there are campers who think you are in the next division when the next summer begins.  So, I don’t think there really is a correct answer.

Finally, please make sure you make your way over to Eric’s blog for a special teaser of a very special Canadensis Today show which will be airing in the next week or so.  We have some very big news to announce.  From the trailer, can you guess what it is? If not, you will find out soon enough!

By the way, I am so blown away by how many of you read this blog.  It is great to hear from so many of you through e-mails and comments.  Keep staying in touch!  Of course, if you would like to guest blog, shoot me an e-mail at brian@canadensis.com .  Hope to hear from you!

Until then…Have a Great Day…Brian

Well, I hope everyone enjoyed a relaxing Thanksgiving break!

My week went by so quickly and so much has happened since my last post. Our Concert Choir Party went so well and it was great to see some of my close friends from High School. We took so many pictures, and videotaped the choir sing-along, so once I’ve gotten all the photos off all our cameras, I’ll put together a little blog montage.

The holiday weekend wouldn’t have been complete without a family dinner with the Waxman-Corradetti-Cook clan. It was so exciting to have Rachel Waxman and Danielle Cook home from college and joining us for a King of Prussia evening. The funniest part of the evening was definitely when we decided to play FAST COOKIE during dinner. Who knows what’ll happen when we’re together.

As promised, here’s a video montage of our trip to NYC:

*Edit: There was a sound problem, but I fixed it!

Once again, a very Happy Thanksgiving to all of you and your families. I had such a busy weekend, with no time to update the blog, but I hope to make up for it with today’s post!

Robin, the girls Head Counselor or my fiancee (whichever you prefer), flew in Thursday morning to spend some time with my family for the holiday. We went to my cousins house in NJ for the day and had a blast! My cousin is a pilot for Jet Blue, so I love talking about airplanes with him, while his wife did an amazing job cooking and preparing a feast for 25. For a change this year, the meal started out with lasagna, and it was the best I have ever tasted- good job Kelly! Traditional Thanksgiving Dinner followed with turkey, stuffing, potatoes, etc. but the best part was the dessert (DUH!). My cousins and my mom both had cakes that said Congratulations to me and Robin, which was really nice. But the highlight were the CRUMBS cupcakes that my cousin Lindsay brought in from Hoboken! The favorites were the Dutch Apple Pie, Reese’s, Red Velvet, and Carrot Cake. We cut them all into quarters and I must have had 8 quarters (so that means 2 huge cupcakes- AAHHH!). The whole family had an awesome time and there were some little kids around which kept us all occupied and playing games- invisible ink, my little pony, spongebob stuff, etc.

Friday morning was “Meet the Parents” Forti style at the Forti household! My mom invited Robin’s immediate and extended family over to meet my family. Our parents had already met at camp (many of you will recall that), but now the extended family’s had the opportunity to meet. My mom cooked tons of things- my favorite spinach quiche, french toast, blintze souffle, etc. It was all delicious and yes again there was dessert with yummy things. The highlight today was “David’s Cookies”. If you recall, these are the cookies we have at camp sometimes (Chocolate Chunk) when the baker is on a day off (Open House comes to mind). Anyway, it was all delicious.

Friday afternoon/evening was devoted to SHOPPING with the moms. Robin, myself, and the moms spent over 4 hours at Bed, Bath, and Beyond scanning things, deleting things, adding them back on to the registry, etc. All I can say is GRRRR. Shopping with ladies is hard enough, but on Black Friday…not an easy task. In the end, I was told that I am a good fiance and did a good job keeping cool (for the most part) and allowing Robin to choose what she wanted. Yes, there were a few items I put my foot down on (like the 48 everyday drinking glasses she wanted to order), but in the end we agreed on everything!

Saturday morning was spent at temple in honor of Lauren Gadol’s Bat Mitzvah. Mazel Tov Lauren! You did a wonderful job reading from the Torah and your always present huge smile was great up on the Bimah! The luncheon Kiddush following the services was wonderful (and yes there were desserts there too- see the theme of the weekend?)

Saturday afternoon Robin and I went to Macy’s to continue on our Registry Shopping saga. We picked out a few “must-haves” including a waffle maker, George Foreman Grill, and “pretty” (or not so pretty to a guy) vases.

Saturday night was our second Bat Mitzvah of the weekend- Alix Steerman. Alix looked so beautiful and we had such a fun time. The food was amazing (the Kung Pao chicken bites during the cocktail hour, Pad Thai, etc.) and the band was so lively and entertaining. It was so awesome to see so many of the girls and a few boys from camp. Everyone looked like they were having a blast and I even used the excuse of “checking on the campers” to eat some of the food from the kids station! Here are a few pics from the Bat Mitzvah.

Sunday was a final registry stop at Crate & Barrel and then a quick drive to Atlantic City Airport to drop Robin off for her flight home to Ft. Lauderdale.

Sunday night, I spoke to Alex Dean on skype. The good news- Alex will be returning for his 3rd summer working in our Hondas department! He is up in Canada working on landscaping and he decided that how could he miss camp this summer (especially compared to landscaping!). Alex, we are really excited that you will be back.

As you can see, a very busy weekend for us but it was a blast and thanks again to all of the Canadensis campers we saw at the Bat Mitzvahs- we had such a fun time!