by Mike
Welcome to the maiden voyage. Yes, this is our first kid, but I was actually (and selfishly) referring to my first blog entry. I’ve occasionally considered a blog but never followed through. I don’t consider myself uninteresting, but up until now I haven’t had that niche passion that I feel is the key ingredient to a successful blog. Gardening, local politics, hiking – potentially mundane topics until you’re looking for tips on organic pesticide, a breakdown of Prop 23 or where not to be eaten by a bear – then you’re ever grateful for the prolific freaks out there.
But – to those of you who have found your way to reading this, the future of our child is a passion. I’m assuming you’re either (a) (mostly likely) a pending grandparent of this child (b) family of some sort (c) a procrastinating friend (d) severely misdirected by Google or if none of the above, then (e) sorta weird. Welcome all. Even you, weirdo.
Because I have neither advice nor experience to share at this point, for my first post I thought I’d simply share a few thoughts.
Thought #1 – I can only assume I’ll be a good dad. I don’t think anyone ventures into parenthood under the assumption they’ll ultimately fail. I don’t know if I’ll be a great dad, I’ll certainly strive for it and expect I will have my moments of greatness – a well timed hug, showing up with surprise ice cream (strikingly similar to qualifications for the Hall of Great Husbands) – but I’m sure I will fail from time to time as well. Either way, I’m guessing a big part of the game is dusting yourself off and getting back on that horse.
Even if the horse keeps pooping on you when you’re down.
Thought #2 – I hope my child grows to understand basic etiquette on airplanes. I started writing this on a plane where it’s apparent that air travel ties jury duty for most cross-sections of humanity gone awry. But if they've learned to be patient, help people with their bags and share the armrest – they’ve probably done okay in life.
Thought #3 – William Goldman’s famous quote about Hollywood is “Nobody knows anything”. I can only imagine that this will apply to parenting far more often than I want it to.
For those of you who will be tuning in regularly, you’ll probably notice that Marnie will be the play-by-play and I’ll be the color commentary. Or another way to look at it, she’s better at the details that are actually important where I just like to screw around. Thanks for reading.
