Head and Shoulders Baby 1,2,3!

At our assembly, over 600 k-6 students in Lititz, PA dance up a storm (used by permission).

Tropical Dance Vacation in St. Croix

For our 30th anniversary and to celebrate Peter's 60th, we went to St. Croix to Sugar Beech for a week, first time ever to the Virgin Islands. It was a perfect vacation to the land of sun, breezes, cloud formations and moonlit nights, geckos and crabs galore. We took a ride on a shipping vessel called the Roseway, took hikes to Annaly Bay to swim in the tide pools, lunch at a place called Cheeseburgers and Paradise, Jack and Isaacs for amazing snorkling, the glass beach where the waters were deep blue green, and some great hikes. Yoga for a hour every morning and dancing each night. Our friend Keith Murphy and Becky Tracy, our godson Aidan Murphy and friend Corey Di Mario took us around on adventures each breathtaking day. We celebrated Peter's 60th birthday there and musician Jon Jensen wrote a song for the occasion which we sang the last dance party:

O a year has flown swiftly, four seasons in turn,
It brings us again to the day,
When your parents smiled down on a traveler so small
Who bravely set out on his way.

CHORUS:
Here’s a toast to your birthday, my friend.
Many thoughts and good wishes I send.
Fill your glass, light the candles and be of good cheer,
And God grant you another good year.

O the lives that you’ve touched and the friends that you’ve made
Are a legacy time can’t erase,
And how festive and grand would this gathering be
If they all could be here in this place. CHORUS

Though each year of your life brings its measure of joy,
There are trials to face on the way.
And the storms you have weathered have helped you become
The man that we honor today. (The person we honor today) CHORUS

Let us cherish the gift of each day that we live,
Whether many or few be the sum.
And we’ll drink to our friendship and to your good health
And the pleasures of days yet to come. CHORUS

BMC chorus concert

Peter and I got to sing the Gretchaninoff All Night Vigil last weekend with the Brattleboro Music Center Concert Choir, a real treat.

BUHS band in the parade!!

from the Brattleboro Reformer, January 21, 2009
"When the story is written of the election of America's first black president, the BUHS marching band will forever have its place in that tale, appearing just after 6 p.m. on Jan. 20, in the inauguration parade of President Barack Obama."

"It was an amazing moment," Rice said in a telephone interview later that night. "We were listening to Obama take the oath and everyone cheered when he finished. Then, when he was giving the speech, no one on the bus said a word, and we were looking at all those people on the mall and we went right by the Lincoln Memorial. I can't overstate the effect it had on everybody."

a new beginning

"And as we leave this mountain top, help us to hold on to the spirit of fellowship and the oneness of our family. Let us take that power back to our homes, our workplaces, our churches, our temples, our mosques, or wherever we seek your will.

Bless President Barack, First Lady Michelle. Look over our little angelic Sasha and Malia.

We go now to walk together as children, pledging that we won't get weary in the difficult days ahead. We know you will not leave us alone.

With your hands of power and your heart of love, help us then, now, Lord, to work for that day when nations shall not lift up sword against nation, when tanks will be beaten into tractors, when every man and every woman shall sit under his or her own vine and fig tree and none shall be afraid, when justice will roll down like waters and righteousness as a mighty stream.

Lord, in the memory of all the saints who from their labors rest, and in the joy of a new beginning, we ask you to help us work for that day when black will not be asked to get in back, when brown can stick around.. when yellow will be mellow...when the red man can get ahead, man; and when white will embrace what is right. That all those who do justice and love mercy say Amen."

from Reverend Lowery's inaugural benediction

Sam in Italy amongst his publicity

check out Sam's myspace for his tour schedule. Its awesome.

family times: olders and youngers

Tara, Susan, Jenny
Stefan and Aidan
Ned and me

going down to Tampa settle down

What a life!

Left snow and ice to present at a music ed conference FMEA in Tampa for three days. Went to historic Ybor city and saw gentleman rolling cigars, swam in the outdoor pool on the fifth floor of our hotel, rode the trolley, bought Peter an Panama hat and saw 8 elephants there for the Barnum and Bailey Ringling Bros. circus! Got a standing ovation in our last of three worskshops, a great send off. Back to another beautiful snowstorm. I'm off to ski.

comforts of home

My sister Annie's elegant lively room and her canned jams and pickles brought to my kitchen; this cherry coffee table from my parents now adorns my living room.

text messaging: some new suggestions

Here's from an article in Visual Thesaurus on Text Messaging I thought was funny: some new lingo

• NLE2M: Not laughing, even to myself.
• URSAGAM: Your spelling and grammar appall me.
• TWDOWWRAANC: Texting while driving — oops, wasn't watching road and am now crashing.
• URD2M: You're dead to me.
• ISOURG: I spit on your grave.
• OLRUS: Our lives are unpardonably shallow.
• TUMFTI: Thought you might find this interesting (particularly useful when forwarding an e-clipping about a newly discovered health risk).
• CTNTF: Can't text now; thumbs fatigued.
• TRE: Technology ruins everything.
• IBMM: I blame Marshall McLuhan.
• 23S!: 23 skidoo!
• WIWURAWDHTM: When I was your age, we didn't have text messaging.
• ISRN2U: I'm standing right next to you.
• HWBNIICSM: Hit wrong button; now inexplicably in clock-setting menu.
• HSORAID2PLSM: Heard song on radio and instantly downloaded to phone! Life still meaningless.
• NPM@TT: No personal message at this time.

The EE Menu of Text Expressions (each entry conveniently fewer than 160 characters), for those forced to thumb-type on the go who nonetheless mourn the loss of grandiloquent public expression. NJOY!

:|	I'm neutral.
:}	I seem to have grown a handlebar mustache.
:{>	Now I have a van dyke.
:^#	My new braces are uncomfortable.
:&	People often tell me my mouth resembles an ampersand. (Alternately: Eating a pretzel.)

By Simon Glickman and Julia Rubiner from the Visual Thesaurus