I grew up with distant Grandparents. Not emotionally – they were wonderful when we had a chance to see them – but physically. Our family was nomadic for much of the 70’s, and our wanderings took us far from my parents’ parents. What this meant is that my sister and I saw our grandparents a couple [...]
Archive for the ‘fatherhood’ Category
If I had hands I’d be a writer, if I had brains I’d be a man
This was going to be a different kind of post. I was going to write about how, come the middle of August every year when I was in elementary school, I got bored. How at some point during the dog days, summer ground to a halt and I got excited about going back to school. [...]
Believe me, all our days here are unsure.
Why didn’t those of you with multiple spawn warn me that having two kids was four times as much work as having one kid?* I might have taken action – a vow of abstinence after Boy Z was born or something.
My Spring Break thus far has been a battle. A battle with Not Max over [...]
I’ll stop when I’m finished and sleep is for the weak
I am tired. I know, I know. Cue violins for poor Chris. We’re all tired. Life is tiring. But seriously, I am tired. This Not Max does not sleep. At least not during the prime sleeping hours of 11 p.m. – 5 a.m. And it doesn’t seem to be getting better. Last night was the worst, [...]
Frank Turner "Vital Signs": Play Now | Play in Popup | Download Frank Turner "The Road" [3:58m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | DownloadYou always told me Father’s Day was just another way of selling Hallmark greeting cards
Yesterday was Father’s Day in Australia. I’d love to report that it was a paragon of parenthood, a day spent in a gauzy sepia tone image of fatherhood.
But it wasn’t. It was blustery and wet, rendering us home bound for most of the day. It was filled with crying children and and irritable adults and [...]
But how this life will change him, that we don’t know.
Once a week for the last year I’ve been taking a day off work to spend with Boy Z – Boy Z and Papa Party Days. I’ve done it regardless of work obligations, choosing to arrange work around Party Days rather than Party Days around work. These days are like oases in the work week. [...]
Today was good. Today was fun.
Last weekend was ruined because of a self-induced work backlog that kept me in front of the computer for most of Saturday and Sunday. This weekend was nearly ruined due to some virus that Dr. O’C brought home from work. But with ample and appropriate combinations of various pharmaceuticals, I managed to stay upright for [...]
Arcade Fire "Wake Up (Where the Wild Things Are Version)" [1:39m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | DownloadSong for my father
It is not Father’s Day in Australia. So don’t bother telling me what a good Dad I am or scrambling frantically to come up with an excuse as to why you haven’t sent me a gift. But it is Father’s Day in 52 countries, including the United States, so Happy Dad’s day to all you [...]
I came in here for the special offer, a guaranteed personality
Within a single hour yesterday I reveled in one of my proudest moments as a father and muddled through one of my most frightening.
The former – I taught the boy to catch. He was born with a ball in his hand. He’s got a thunderbolt of an arm already, but hasn’t picked up the elusive [...]
Would you hold it near as it were your own?
It starts out as an exploratory, “Bubba?”, soft and hesitant.
And then a more demanding, “Bubba?!?”
Finally, bellowed, with all his little lungs behind it, “BUBBA!!!”
And that shout snaps me out of my daydream. I turn my eyes to Boy Z who is pointing at a magpie recently taken to flight, no doubt due to an unexpected [...]
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