The 11th of July

Well, it's a Friday in the summer, early summer really.

This Friday is a little different. TigerBlog, for the first time, checked to see exactly how many weeks there are between today and the first athletic events of the next academic year, in this case the 2014-15 one.

The answer is eight. It will be exactly eight weeks from today that Princeton has its first games. On that Friday, Princeton will do what it always does on Day 1 of a new year - have games in field hockey, men's soccer, women's soccer and women's volleyball.

Because the athletic year starts that day, that means you can add two more weeks until the first football game, which will be 10 weeks from tomorrow. TigerBlog won't be at that one, since it's in San Diego.

The home opener for the football season is a week later, when Davidson comes to town for a 6 p.m. kickoff.

If you're looking for a game to circle on your September calendar, how about the night before the Davidson football game, when the sprint football team hosts Post.

Why that game? It'll be the first home game for the team under head coach Sean Morey, who played in the NFL for a long time and who spent the last few years in the athletic department here as a general administrator, a position now held by former football and basketball player Isaac Serwanga.

Morey is now 100% invested in the sprint program, and TigerBlog is intrigued by whether or not Morey's abundant enthusiasm can translate into winning a game, something that has eluded the team for years.

The last four weeks before the start of an athletic year always seem to zoom by, at least to TB. July? That's the most leisurely month there is.

On this campus, it's all about summer camps, which roll on, one after the other. And vacations.

There is a vacation calendar in the OAC, and TigerBlog notices that almost nobody will be here next week. The same applies to the rest of the department.

Usually when TB walks down the hall and sees a door closed or a light off, he thinks "at a meeting." This time of year, it's more "on vacation."

People tend to count down to vacation more so than they do birthdays and Christmas. TB has heard a bunch of people say "two more days until vacation" or "out of here in another eight hours." He never hears that about holidays and birthdays.

Everyone who comes back from vacation says one of two things. Either it was great, or it was great - except the kids (little ones) were a challenge. But still great.

If you've never experienced taking little kids to the beach, well, then you should try it sometime. Forget the kids themselves. Just try getting all the stuff you need and then carrying it to the beach, even without the kids.

TigerBlog's kids are both beach people. Miss TigerBlog spent the early part of this week in Sea Isle City with her friend Amy. TigerBlog's role was limited to transport.

Still, when he got out of the car, he did take a minute to go onto the beach, smell the ocean. Ah, it was great.

Right now, TigerBlog's iTunes have reached what always makes him chuckle at this time of year. The song that happens to be in the random cue is "Silent Night," the version by Emmylou Harris. It's a great song for December.

For a Friday in July? TB usually skips over the Christmas songs at this time of year, but for some reason, he let that one play on, even if it's more the time of year for a song like, oh, "4th of July, Asbury Park," which with 207 plays ranks as the seventh most-played song on TB's iTunes.

But it's not the Fourth of July. It's the 11th of July.

And a slow summer Friday.

For some, it's the last day before vacation. For at least one member of the department, it's the last day before a wedding, as assistant football coach Eddy Morrissey will be heading down the aisle tomorow.

TigerBlog wishes him mazel tov.

He'll be back at work soon enough. Opening day will be here soon enough.

For the 11th of July, it's a time to relax and enjoy the summer.

So stop reading and head outside. Go to the beach. Go for a walk. Have a picnic. Tell your boss TB said it's okay.

Besides, he's done for today.